Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

"Hurry Up Please It's Time" by Anne Sexton is a poem that weaves together themes of existential dread, the absurdity of life, and the inevitability of death. Through a mix of vivid imagery, dark humor, and candid reflections, Sexton explores the tension between the mundane routines of daily life and the looming presence of mortality.

The title of the poem, a phrase borrowed from T.S. Eliot's "The Waste Land," sets the tone for a meditation on time and its relentless march toward death. Sexton opens with a provocative and irreverent series of images: offering her buttocks "toward Nirvana," pulling down her pants to "moon at the executioner," and contemplating urinating "in God's eye." These acts of defiance and absurdity underscore the poet's frustration with the constraints of her existence, as well as her desire to confront death and the divine with a rebellious spirit.

Sexton's tone throughout the poem oscillates between irreverence and despair. She speaks of the troubles of being a woman, reducing gender differences to the crude image of "swallowing an orange" versus "swallowing a ruler." This image highlights the societal expectations and constraints imposed on women, contrasting them with the perceived privileges of men. Yet, despite these differences, Sexton notes that "waiting to die we are the same thing," emphasizing the shared human experience of mortality.

As the poem progresses, Sexton introduces the figure of "Ms. Dog," a persona who embodies the speaker's struggles with identity, time, and societal expectations. Ms. Dog becomes a symbol of defiance against the absurdities of life, rejecting the conventional markers of success and happiness, such as money and material possessions. She fights against the "dollars" and resists the commodification of life, instead yearning for something more meaningful and transcendent.

The poem's exploration of death is both personal and universal. Sexton reflects on her own life, marked by the date "November 14th, 1972," and describes the mundane details of her existence in Weston, Massachusetts. She juxtaposes these ordinary moments with the inevitable approach of death, personified as an undertaker preparing to "stitch up the green" and "fasten the bones down." The imagery of death is both grotesque and clinical, reflecting the poet's anxiety about the physical decay and the loss of agency that accompanies it.

Sexton's use of humor and absurdity in the face of death is a key feature of the poem. She describes herself as "God, la de dah," engaging in mundane activities like making toast and buttering it with jam. These everyday actions become acts of resistance against the overwhelming force of death, as if by continuing to live and perform these small rituals, she can momentarily hold death at bay.

The poem's structure, with its fragmented thoughts and shifting perspectives, mirrors the disjointed and chaotic nature of human existence. Sexton moves from one idea to the next with a sense of urgency, as if trying to capture the fleeting moments of life before they slip away. The repetition of phrases like "La de dah" and "Forgive us, Father, for we know not" adds a rhythmic quality to the poem, reinforcing the idea that life is a series of repeated actions and thoughts, ultimately leading to the same inevitable end.

In the closing lines, Sexton returns to the image of Ms. Dog, who stands on the shore, watching the sea and longing to "talk to God." This final image encapsulates the poem's central tension between the desire for meaning and the recognition of life's absurdity. The sea, a symbol of the unknown and the infinite, represents both the possibility of transcendence and the futility of searching for answers. The poem ends with a call to "ask and ask and ask," suggesting that the pursuit of understanding, however futile, is itself an essential part of the human experience.

"Hurry Up Please It's Time" is a complex and multilayered exploration of life, death, and the search for meaning in a world that often seems indifferent to human suffering. Sexton's use of humor, absurdity, and stark imagery creates a powerful meditation on the human condition, one that resonates with the reader long after the poem has ended.

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