Historical Context
Sexton believed that poetry stemmed from the subconscious, often conveying deeper meanings than its creator might realize. Her work is rich with imagery and detail, serving as symbols of her personal desires rather than being tied to a specific time or place. "Courage" exemplifies this style of Sexton's poetry. In 1973, as she penned this poem, her mental health was declining, leading to numerous hospitalizations due to suicide attempts. Her family and friends speculated that her suicide in 1974 was primarily driven by her fear of spending her life in psychiatric hospitals, much like her great-aunt Nana. During the 1970s, the movement to dismantle America's psychiatric institutions was gaining momentum, resulting in many mentally ill individuals being released into communities without adequate support systems. This lack of support often led to substance abuse issues, exacerbated by their mental health challenges. Coupled with a housing crisis in many American cities, the collapse of these institutions contributed significantly to the sharp rise in homelessness during the 1970s.
Despite taking Thorazine, tranquilizers, and other medications in her later years, critics and biographers frequently associate Sexton's depression with the broader societal oppression of women and the emotional struggles women faced in seeking acknowledgment and identity in a male-dominated society. Although Sexton was hesitant to label herself as a feminist, many women viewed her as an inspiration and a symbol for the women's movement of the 1960s and 1970s. In 1966, Betty Friedan, author of the 1963 bestseller The Feminine Mystique, co-founded the National Organization for Women (NOW), advocating for women's rights both in the workplace and at home. In 1971, the National Women's Political Caucus was established, with dynamic congressional figures like Shirley Chisholm and Bella Abzug empowering women to have a stronger voice in national conventions. The proportion of female delegates at these conventions rose from 10 percent in 1968 to 40 percent in 1972, and from 1969 to 1981, the number of female state legislators tripled. Additionally, 1972 saw the passage of the Equal Rights Amendment by Congress.
Nevertheless, the amendment did not succeed in obtaining approval from the necessary number of states and was not ratified in 1982. A significant triumph for women occurred in 1973 when the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v. Wade declared that state laws banning abortion during the first trimester of pregnancy were unconstitutional. During the early 1970s, the women's movement also made significant strides in academia. This period saw the creation of women's studies programs at various universities and the introduction of courses focused on women's issues within many humanities and social sciences departments.
Poetry authored by women became a powerful medium for expressing dissatisfaction and advocating for change. Collections of women's poetry, such as the influential No More Masks, published in 1973, played a crucial role in advancing this cause. Additionally, pioneering poets like Adrienne Rich contributed significantly, with her 1973 National Book Award-winning collection Diving into the Wreck; Poems 1971–1972 serving as a kind of manifesto for the women's movement.
Literary Style
Symbolic Metaphor
The poem “Courage” predominantly features a series of metaphors and symbolic metaphors. Symbols are visual elements or actions that represent something else, often conveying an idea or a group of related concepts. Metaphors are expressions that create connections and highlight similarities between two unlike things. Symbolic metaphors also draw parallels between unrelated things, but they do so in a manner where the metaphor's vehicle symbolically represents something else. The vehicle of a metaphor is the component that signifies something beyond its literal meaning. For instance, in the poem's final stanza, Sexton states: “each spring will be a sword you’ll sharpen.” Here, the sword serves as the image representing spring. However, a sword is typically linked with conflict, aggression,...
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and mortality—concepts not usually associated with spring. Thus, the sword symbolizes more than just the season of spring; it embodies a spectrum of emotions and ideas.
Compare and Contrast
1974: Struggling with mental health issues, Anne Sexton takes her own life.
Today: Over 30,000 individuals in the United States die by suicide annually.
1974: While medication is occasionally prescribed for depression, psychotherapy remains a widely used treatment option.
Today: Medications like Prozac, Paxil, and Zoloft are advertised on television and commonly prescribed to manage depression and other mood disorders.
1974: Publishing heiress Patty Hearst is abducted by the Symbionese Liberation Army, a radical group intent on overthrowing the U.S. government.
Today: Sara Jane Olson, accused of being a former member of the Symbionese Liberation Army, is detained under a federal fugitive warrant. She is alleged to have conspired to assassinate Los Angeles police officers by placing bombs under their patrol vehicles.
1974: The average life expectancy for Americans is 72 years, with males living an average of 68.2 years and females 75.9 years.
Today: The average life expectancy for Americans has increased to nearly 77 years, with males living an average of 73.6 years and females approaching 80 years.
Media Adaptations
In 1993, Harper Audio released a 60-minute audiocassette titled Anne Sexton Reads, featuring Sexton herself reading her poems.
Released in 2000, Voice of the Poet is another audiocassette where Sexton recites her poetry, available for purchase from Random House.
A documentary about Sexton's life was created in 1966 as a segment of the public television series USA Poetry. This documentary can be found at local libraries.
An additional documentary, Sexton, utilizes outtakes from the aforementioned film and can be accessed through the American Poetry Archive at the Poetry Center, located at San Francisco State University, California.
The Department of English at the State University of New York at Brockport possesses a videocassette featuring Art Poulin and William Heyen interviewing Sexton. This interview is part of their Writer’s Forum Videotape Library under the title The Poetry of Anne Sexton.
The Center for Cassette Studies offers an audiocassette from 1974 titled A Conversation with Anne Sexton: The Late Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet Talks with James Day, capturing a dialogue with the poet.
Bibliography and Further Reading
Sources
Axelrod, Steven Gould, “Anne Sexton’s Rowing towards God,” in Modern Poetry Studies, Vol. 6, No. 2, 1975. Bell, Pearl K., New Leader, May 26, 1975.
Bixler, Frances, ed., Original Essays on the Poetry of Anne Sexton, University of Central Arkansas Press, 1988.
Colburn, Steven E., ed., Anne Sexton: Telling the Tale, University of Michigan Press, 1988.
Davison, Peter, The Fading Smile: Poets in Boston from Robert Lowell to Sylvia Plath, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996.
George, Diana Hume, Oedipus Anne: The Poetry of Anne Sexton, University of Illinois Press, 1987.
Hall, Caroline King Barnard, Anne Sexton, Twayne, 1989.
Kumin, Maxine, “A Memorial for Anne Sexton,” in American Poetry Review, edited by A. Poulin Jr., Vol. 4, No. 3, 1975.
Lally, Michael, “A Dark and Desperate Vision,” in Book World—The Washington Post, May 25, 1975, p. 3.
Mazzocco, Robert, “Matters of Life and Death,” in New York Times Book Review, April 3, 1975, pp. 22–23, reprinted in Anne Sexton: The Artist and Her Critics, edited by J. D. McClatchy, Indiana University Press, 1978.
McClatchy, J. D., ed., Anne Sexton: The Artist and Her Critics, Indiana University Press, 1978.
Middlebrook, Diane Wood, Anne Sexton, Random House, 1991.
Nichols, Kathleen, “The Hungry Beast Rowing toward God,” in Notes on Modern American Literature, No. 3, 1979.
Oates, Joyce Carol, “On The Awful Rowing toward God,” in Private and Public Lives, University of Windsor Press, Vol. 2, Spring 1970, pp. 107–08.
—, “Singing Pathologies of Our Time,” in New York Times Book Review, March 23, 1975, pp. 3–4, reprinted in Anne Sexton: The Artist and Her Critics, edited by J. D. McClatchy, Indiana University Press, 1978.
Sexton, Anne, The Awful Rowing toward God, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1975.
—, The Complete Poems, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1981.
—, 45 Mercy Street, edited by Linda Gray Sexton, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1976.
Sexton, Linda Grey, and Lois Ames, eds., Anne Sexton: A Self-Portrait in Letters, Houghton Mifflin Company, 1979.
Shurr, William, “Mysticism and Suicide: Anne Sexton’s Last Poetry,” in Soundings: An Interdisciplinary Journal, Vol. 68, No. 3, Fall 1985, pp. 335–56.
Stauffer, Donald Barlow, A Short History of American Poetry, E. P. Dutton & Company, 1974.
Wagner-Martin, Linda, ed., Critical Essays on Anne Sexton, G. K. Hall, 1989.
Further Reading
Davison, Peter, The Fading Smile: Poets in Boston from Robert Lowell to Sylvia Plath, W. W. Norton & Company, 1996. In this memoir, Davison explores the Boston poetry scene, detailing the intricate relationships and behaviors of renowned poets like Robert Lowell, Anne Sexton, Sylvia Plath, Richard Wilbur, and W. S. Merwin.
Middlebrook, Diane Wood, Anne Sexton, Random House, 1991. Diane Middlebrook’s acclaimed 1991 biography draws from extensive recorded conversations between Sexton and her therapist. Middlebrook portrays Sexton as emblematic of a generation of “broken” poets who struggled with alcohol and drug addiction and were captivated by the allure of fame.
Wagner-Martin, Linda, ed., Critical Essays on Anne Sexton, G. K. Hall, 1989. This collection features critical essays on Sexton’s poetry by prominent American critics, such as Joyce Carol Oates, Paul Lacey, and Maxine Kumin. Most essays are accessible and insightful, providing additional secondary sources.
