Explication of Kizers Bitch
Bitch Carolyn Kizer (composed: ?; first published: 1984) 1 Now, when he and I meet, after all these years, 2 I say to the bitch inside me, don’t start growling. ... 5 My voice says, “Nice to see you,” 6 As the bitch starts to bark hysterically. ... ” 10 At a kind word from him, a look like the old days, 11 The bitch changes her tone: she begins to whimper. ... Line-by-Line Analysis: This poem—a conversation between the speaker, a past lover, and her inner “Bitch”— deals with a woman’s struggle with her ambivalent feelings over a relationship with a former lover. 1-2: When the speaker meets her former lover face to face after much time has passed, the painful memories of their relationship return in the form of anger and “the bitch inside [her]” wants to express this anger.