In “A Woman’s Last Word” by Robert Browning, the speaker, a
woman, requests her husband to stop arguing for the night and end
the day on a loving note. The title of the poem is important as these
words are her last, as they are about to retire for the night. This may
also be her last expression dedicated to her husband, a last effort to
salvage their relationship.
Let’s contend no more, Love,
Strive nor weep:
All be as before, Love,
—Only sleep!
These lines outline the entire purpose behind this piece. The woman
addresses her husband and implores him to not argue anymore. She
doesn’t want them to fight or weep (cry) and be as they were before the
argument. She wishes to set aside their differences for the night and go
to bed; here we see her desire to end the day on a loving note.
What so wild as words are?
I and thou
In debate, as birds are,
Hawk on bough!
, She states that there is nothing as wild as words; nothing can be more
uplifting or damaging - especially when people talk like birds without
listening to the other. Their words are like a ‘hawk’ i.e., they are
dangerous and harmful for their relationship.
See the creature stalking
While we speak!
Hush and hide the talking,
Cheek on cheek!
The woman refers to the words of their fight as a ‘hawk’. Like a shadow
in the room the ‘hawk’ sits and watches, waiting for the right moment
to damage their relationship. (here, she is trying to say that words can
be very detrimental to them, no one knows what words spoken by one
will hurt the other. She has compared words to a hawk as this bird has
no moral values or capacity to reason, and does damage without
remorse; just like their words.) So she urges her husband to “hush and
hide their speech” so that the hawk cannot interfere.
woman, requests her husband to stop arguing for the night and end
the day on a loving note. The title of the poem is important as these
words are her last, as they are about to retire for the night. This may
also be her last expression dedicated to her husband, a last effort to
salvage their relationship.
Let’s contend no more, Love,
Strive nor weep:
All be as before, Love,
—Only sleep!
These lines outline the entire purpose behind this piece. The woman
addresses her husband and implores him to not argue anymore. She
doesn’t want them to fight or weep (cry) and be as they were before the
argument. She wishes to set aside their differences for the night and go
to bed; here we see her desire to end the day on a loving note.
What so wild as words are?
I and thou
In debate, as birds are,
Hawk on bough!
, She states that there is nothing as wild as words; nothing can be more
uplifting or damaging - especially when people talk like birds without
listening to the other. Their words are like a ‘hawk’ i.e., they are
dangerous and harmful for their relationship.
See the creature stalking
While we speak!
Hush and hide the talking,
Cheek on cheek!
The woman refers to the words of their fight as a ‘hawk’. Like a shadow
in the room the ‘hawk’ sits and watches, waiting for the right moment
to damage their relationship. (here, she is trying to say that words can
be very detrimental to them, no one knows what words spoken by one
will hurt the other. She has compared words to a hawk as this bird has
no moral values or capacity to reason, and does damage without
remorse; just like their words.) So she urges her husband to “hush and
hide their speech” so that the hawk cannot interfere.
