Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Anne Sexton's poem "The Little Peasant" is a darkly humorous and richly symbolic retelling of a folk tale, infused with her characteristic blend of the macabre and the sensual. Through this narrative, Sexton explores themes of deception, desire, and the interplay of power and cunning in human relationships. The poem's vivid imagery and playful language create a world where morality is flexible, and cleverness trumps virtue.

The poem begins with an evocative description of women "grip[ping] and stretch[ing]" as they faint on the "horn," an image that suggests both vulnerability and a yearning for something more, something that can heal their weariness. The women and men in the poem are portrayed as desperate for physical and emotional rejuvenation, calling to each other in language that mixes the mundane with the erotic: "Touch me, my pancake, / and make me young." This plea for renewal through touch sets the tone for the rest of the poem, where physicality and desire are central themes.

Sexton then introduces the central characters—the parson and the miller's wife—who are depicted as lying down "in sin." The women cry out for their men to "heal" them, to "wear [them] threadbare," and to "lick [them] clean," suggesting a deep-seated need to be consumed and renewed through these physical acts. The men, in turn, respond with their own demands, asking to be "bounced off like a shuttlecock" and "dingo-sweet," a term that Sexton seems to coin to evoke a playful, almost animalistic form of intimacy. This exchange highlights the mutual desperation and the transactional nature of their desires, which are portrayed as both deeply human and inherently flawed.

The narrative then shifts to the story of the little peasant, a figure who, unlike the other characters, is initially presented as poor but crafty. The peasant is not yet a "voyeur"—he has not yet found the miller's wife "at her game"—but he is driven by necessity, lacking food for both himself and his cow. The peasant's poverty leads him to slaughter the cow and take its skin to town in hopes of making a profit. On his way, he encounters a raven with damaged wings, which he adds to his meager "booty," further underscoring his resourcefulness and willingness to make the best of a bad situation.

As the story unfolds, the peasant takes shelter at the miller's house during a storm. Here, he witnesses the miller's wife engaging in an affair with the parson, a scene that serves as the poem's focal point of deception and infidelity. The peasant cleverly uses the cowhide and the raven to manipulate the situation, pretending to be asleep while secretly observing the illicit feast and dalliance between the parson and the miller's wife. The raven, which the peasant pinches to make it croak, becomes a symbol of his cunning, translating its cries into revelations that expose the hidden food and, ultimately, the parson himself.

The miller, oblivious to the deception, is enthralled by the peasant's supposed soothsayer, eager to learn the "fifth thing" that the raven knows about him. The peasant, seeing an opportunity, extracts a large sum of money from the miller before revealing that "the devil is in the cupboard." This revelation leads to the parson's exposure and hasty flight, leaving the miller convinced that he has outwitted the devil. The miller's delight in his supposed victory is laced with irony, as he fails to realize that he has been thoroughly duped by the peasant, who walks away not only with the money but also with his reputation intact.

Sexton ends the poem on a note of quiet triumph for the miller's wife, who "smiled to herself." Though her affair has been discovered, she is secure in the knowledge that her secret is safe, "as a fly in an outhouse." The peasant, meanwhile, returns home with the spoils of his deception, the raven—a symbol of his cleverness—still in tow, now elevated to the status of a "soothsayer."

"The Little Peasant" is a masterful exploration of the ways in which desire, deception, and cunning interplay in human relationships. Anne Sexton uses the framework of a folk tale to delve into the complexities of power dynamics, where the clever and resourceful can turn situations to their advantage, often at the expense of the more powerful but less perceptive. The poem’s language is rich with sensual imagery and dark humor, capturing the absurdity and moral ambiguity of the characters' actions. Through this narrative, Sexton offers a reflection on the human condition, where the line between virtue and vice is often blurred, and where survival and success frequently depend on one's ability to navigate the murky waters of deceit and desire.

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