Edna St. Vincent Millay's Analysis

For centuries women suffered being seen as the lesser gender and it was not until the 1920s that they earned headway. The twenties was a decade for partiers, free-spirits, and strong-willed women. People were more focused more on what brought them enjoyment rather than the day to day responsibilities. Women, while fighting for their rights, were dancing, painting, and writing novels. It was often that the struggles of the time were expressed in their works. The strive for women’s rights and equality was at the forefront of many hearts and minds in the early 20th century; this can be seen in Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem “Philosopher.”

The Twenties are known for their wild fashion choices, illegal production of alcohol, and much more. One

Vincent Millay was one of the big names during the twenties. She was young, determined, and talented. Edna is one of many women who grew up in the age of suffragism. Edna grew up in a single-parent home with two sisters. From a very young age her mother encouraged a love and appreciation for music and literature. “Cora encouraged her girls to be ambitious and self-sufficient, teaching them an appreciation of music and literature from an early age,” (Poets.Org). Edna spent her life writing poems, novels, and plays. She lived the Bohemian Lifestyle after many years of education. Millay showed the talent and dedication that seemed to be in high demand during the era. Marches, riots and protests gained the attention of many. Though, novels, poems, music and plays also had a hand in expressing the need for equality. Edna St. Vincent Millay was one of the many voices screaming for more than what was

One such poem is The Philosopher. “And what are you that wanting you should I be kept awake, as many nights as there are days with weeping for your sake? And what are you that missing you as many days as crawl, I should be listening to the wind and looking at the wall? I know a man that’s a braver man and twenty men as kind, and what are you that you should be the one man in my mind? Yet women’s ways are witless ways as many sage will tell, and what am I that I should love so wisely and so well,” (PoemHunter.com)? For many previous centuries, the lives of women were expected to revolve around men. Women grew up under the rule of her father and then under the rule of a husband. The strive for equality was mentioned in hushed tones, that is until the mid 1800s. From that point on women gained strength and momentum. In Millay’s poem we see that the woman speaking can only think of the aforementioned man. As the poem goes on we can postulate that the woman has transgressions against men, “Yet women’s ways are witless ways as many sage will tell,” (Millay). While the poem is about loving a man that is not worth love, it is also about women being seen as witless and unwise. The last line of them poem; “...and who am I that I should love so wisely and so well,” seems to be quite the contradiction. In fact it is proof of the opinions of men. Men and women are not perfect, as the narrator implies, yet in the opinion of the sage,