Captive

Rose Terry Cooke often had themes of nature, freedom and passion imbedded into her poetry. These themes come alive in her poem Captive by her strict structure and her word choice. She paints a picture of desire for freedom and of love. The idea of the Summer coming then dying in the first line, creates a dark undertone to the poem. The summer dying and no sunshine expresses a feeling of hopelessness. She describes leaves falling from the trees also creating an image of these beautiful red leaves dying. It creates such a dark undertone with such beautiful natural language. The fact that she uses nature to describe this sort of dying image shows how she shows this dying and entrapment as natural. It shows how it is just a cycle that does not seem to change. Each stanza in the poem is four lines with eight syllables in almost every line. In the second stanza, the second line “You deck the bars with tropic flowers” has nine syllables. This puts an emphasis on it especially because it is in the middle of the stanza. Here she is comparing the cage she is in to nature. It seems like something locked her up yet tries to make it beautiful and natural. However the cage she is in she realizes is not natural. The cage is there to keep her from the freedom of her desires. This cage is a metaphor for society and how women are enclosed in a cage rather than free to express themselves. This cage is shown in the tight structure because she is restricted. Her two lines which are nine syllables are her way of pushing on this desire but being restrained. Her word choice such as service, rage and rapture, all create the idea of a strong animalistic desire. Words used like this with a definition not commonly seen, makes the poem seem to be less passionate and more restrained. It seems the reader must look into the words to see the pure desire. It is again hidden, just like her cage. Rapture and trammelled are controlling words showing her restricted heart and her want to be