Its A Woman's World By Eavan Boland Analysis

In the poem “Its a Womans World” by Eavan Boland, Boland uses a couple of devices to show her perception of how women are treated in the world. She describes her perception of women being in the shadows of history while the men are the one doing everything. Boland uses metaphors, analogies, imagery, and allusions to past times to share her perspective.
Boland opens up her first stanza with using the analogy “our way of life was hardly changed since a wheel first whetted a knife” This analogy lets the reader know that this particular topic has not only been on her mind for a long time but since civilization started. The concept of this analogy explains that through time, nothing has changed to sharpen the knife just different ways. Like the
Also that the women haven't received much respect and attention they well deserve.
Another example that Boland uses to show her perspective is the imagery “We are defined by what we forget, by what we never will be: star-gazers, fire-eaters” This image lets the reader know that Boland knows during her time, she will not have the chance to be a dreamer or someone who expresses their ideas to be heard. All for the fact that she is a woman. This doesn't just account for her, but for all women. Women as a whole at this time do not have a say or are respected for any of their ideas.
Boland also uses the allusion “we were never on the scene of the crime. So when the kings head gored its basket” to show that even during the times when they uses Guillotines to chop heads off, the women were never the ones demonstrating these horrific crimes. It was always the men committing the crimes and doing the wrong