To A Daughter Leaving Home

The poem “To a Daughter Leaving Home” by Linda Pastan is an emotional poem about a daughter growing older and leaving her parents. The narrator of the poem portrays how there are special moments with the daughter and that there are “gone before you know it”. The author uses the analogy of the daughter riding her bicycle to portray a story about the maturing of the child from a parental point of view. In this poem, the narrator uses poetic devices to translate the deeper meaning in this story. The author employs symbolism, imagery, and theme to emphasize her concern of leaving. Pastan’s poem ostensibly appears to be a work about a parent teaching their daughter how to ride a bicycle; however, the bike ride symbolizes much more than just a bike ride. One way the narrator uses symbolism is by writing “when you pulled ahead down the curved path of the park” (Pastan 8-10); here the author is using “curved path” as a way to symbolize life. The narrator states that life is unforeseeable and does not follow a straight road. The author also uses the bicycle in its role as a symbol to exhibit the maturing of the daughter and the hardships she will face throughout her life. The author writes, “When I taught you at eight to ride a bicycle” (Pastan 1-3) and the daughter “wobbled away” (Pastan 5), where she was
The poem’s real meaning is about how fast a daughter’s life can by the time she has to leave her parents. The significance of this story can be easily interpreted by anyone by the use of the author’s poetic devices. Pastan creates a common storyline to the poem and leaves the reader with thoughts of where the daughter might be going, where she will end up, or even about the reader’s own parents and their feelings toward their child leaving. This story demonstrates many other elements of literary, but symbolism, imagery, and theme are the core to this poem and make it an interesting