"Plums Are Falling"

The poem, “Plums Are Falling” is short and quick, yet it contains a depth that measures more than the few words read in the poem. Plums are used in order to represent the possible paths the woman’s life can take through marriage. She wants a good fruit (man), so that she will be healthy (happy in marriage) and live a good life. The poem was written in a time period where women were viewed as having a successful life based on the success or respect of the man that they married. The time was not like today, where women have the opportunity to get a job and work on the same level or even above men. Women were subordinate to men and it is reflected in the way that the speaker of the poem so desperately wants to find a good man (plum) to marry.

                In each stanza of the poem the line “many men want me,” (p.814-815) appears as the third line. The author makes use of repetition in order to stress how desirable the woman is. She seems to be very attractive and is desired  by many men, but she is still nervous about being able to find a good man. The last line of the poem, “let me be bride of one” (p.815) makes me think that there could be some outside factor that is causing her to worry about marriage. Fixed marriage or parental pressures are possible factors that could be the cause of her worry. Fixed marriage seems very plausible, and would be a cause of great stress for her as she might not agree with her parents decision. She might want a man based on love, whereas her parents may look at marriage as a means of progress in the eyes of society. T the speaker of the poem can only hope that she will find a man that she can love and marry, who also meets the outside standards that need to be met in order for their marriage to become official.