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Essay / The Importance of Inequality in "They Flee from Me"
In Wyatt's "They Flee from Me", the speaker considers all of his previous sexual conquests (with particular emphasis on a "special" partner) , then wonders why these women are no longer interested in him. Usually, in love poetry, the man plays the role of the dominant partner while the woman is portrayed as the vulnerable or subordinate partner. However, in Wyatt's poem there is an inversion in the relationship and the speaker is left at the mercy of the "special" woman. Although the punishment for sex outside of marriage was much worse for women during this time, in this poem the speaker attempts to identify himself as the victim. His emotions may possibly be linked to his position of sexual vulnerability, which would have been strange and unfathomable for a man of his time. It is clear that a reversal of fortune has been presented in this poem; therefore, the question we should ask ourselves is: how exactly was the concept presented by the author in this poem? Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In the first stanza, the phrase "for whom I have sometimes sought" suggests that women were once the initiators of the relationship, but the word "flee" creates a sense of despair in the departure of sexual partners from the speaker. Furthermore, the speaker described these women as “gentle, tame, and docile,” or as all having relatively subordinate qualities. But now that these women no longer frequent his apartments, the speaker considers them “savages.” Through this, the speaker promotes the unfair suggestion that a woman abandoning a man is tantamount to being uncivilized: she should instead be a "tame", functioning member of society. The speaker proceeds by comparing women to animals and bread to sexual activities. In essence, the speaker is trying to say that women were putting themselves in danger to have sex with him, but now they are "walking away" elsewhere. This supports the theme of abandonment achieved in the first line of the stanza. It seems that when women are unwilling or unwilling to obey the speaker, then they become unfavorable and lose the position they hold in his life. Thus, it can be said that the speaker views women as mere sexual objects and not as human beings. This is ironic because in the third stanza, the speaker complains about being a victim of sexual objectification. Additionally, this poem suggests that sex is never equal. There is always a controlling party seducing their submissive partner. In this case, the reversal of fortune presents itself through the overthrow of sexual domination. A sexually dominant woman is introduced in this stanza, which stands in stark contrast to the meek and subordinate temperament of her previous sexual partners. This is inferred from the depiction of her dress as "loose", which can be seen as a symbol of her sexual promiscuity. It's also worth noting that his fixation seems to be on the woman's attire rather than her physicality or personality, as the positive descriptions of this woman are all focused on her clothing, through phrases such as "thin together" and “pleasant appearance.” The word "disguise" implies that the narrator knows this woman can cheat on him, but the phrase "she caught me" makes the audience feel like they can't help but be trapped by her manipulative advances and attractive. “Caught” can also be linked to hunting, which perpetuates the idea that the female is now a hunter :.