On Sharon Olds' "The Victims" (pp. 383-384)
Study Questions:
- What are the various meanings of the word "it"?
- Is there any difference between "we" (line 1) and "her kids" (lines 3-4)?
- Lines six and seven contain an allusion. What is an allusion? (See GLOSSARY AND INDEX OF LITERARY TERMS, pp. 407-415.)
- Why did people grin when Nixon's helicopter lifted off for the last time?
- What is an apostrophe?(See GLOSSARY AND INDEX OF LITERARY TERMS, pp. 407-415.) Why is there an apostrophe in this poem?
- What style of shoes are being referred to in lines 13-14? What are the connotations of that style of shoe?
- What is the denotation of the word "pricked"? (You can find the answer by reading Act 1, Scene 4 of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. What other meanings of the word "prick" might be suggested?
- What are the two time periods in the poem?
- Lines 18-23 contains a series of metaphors for the "bums" in doorways." How do the impression made by these metaphors change in the course of the series?
Discussion Questions:
- Whose side did you take in your parents' divorce?
- Did you ever have a big change of mind about someone close to you? How did that happen?
Presentation/Essay Topics:
- This poem is a satire on American ideals of married life.
- This poem is a lament for a childhood lost to bitterness and resentment.