Paper Topic:

Sharon Olds `One secret thing`

Women and Changing Relationships in "The Music

The of women is addressed in depth in the poem "The Music " by Sharon Olds . In particular , the poet comments on the changes that occur in every mother-child relationship as mothers become vulnerable . This change in the parent /child relationship is a fact of the human condition and is something every child experiences at some point on their lives

The speaker in the poem describes how the fundamental change between her mother and herself comes about .she lets me hear what she feels / I could be

in a / cradle by the western shore of a sea , she could / be a young or an ancient mother " For what 's probably the first time , the narrator 's mother lets her guard when she is feeling vulnerable over the death of what seems to be her husband . She knows her mother in a way she didn 't in the past , on a very personal level , more like how friends or sisters might relate than mothers and daughters . This makes her think about their relationship in more of a general way than something specific existing between two people . The speaker is instantly aware of the timelessness of what 's just taken place , and how it doesn 't matter how old or young parents and children are , this change happens to everyone sooner or later

The poem later tells how the speaker feels about the change that has taken place in their relationship as the result of...

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