Summary Of To A Daughter Leaving Home

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Linda Pastan: To a Daughter Leaving Home Would you be prepared to let your child go when the time comes? In the poem “To A Daughter Leaving Home” author Linda Pastan talks about a parent who educates their daughter on how to ride a bike without anyone else, while pondering the way kids leave and grow up. This current poem's more profound story is about the life of the little girl and how abrupt the girl's life passed by until the point when they have to say farewell. This poem was composed in the mother's point of view as she reflects upon her little girl as she grows up into a young lady. I’ll battle my three essential concentrations which are the emotional process of raising a child, letting them go, and watching as they enter adulthood. …show more content…

When looking at the title you’d think the poem focus on the girl in the present but it focuses on the past, to when she was just a kid. As the little girl rides further away on the bicycle the speaker develops largely more stressed over her as she encounters new things throughout everyday life, standing by to spare her the minute something turns out badly. The bike is a symbol for life. Pastan states, “When I taught you at eight to ride a bicycle, loping along beside you as you wobbled away” (lines 1-5).The parent understands it’s her responsibility to ensure her child's safety, while also learning to let go. Furthermore, as the story advances readers can detect that the parent has a pitiful demeanor towards this occasion because the parent is thinking back to past recollections. The daughter starts to try without anyone else and the speaker understands her girl has learned the practice of bicycle riding, which means she is now independent. Also, the theme in this poem is sound. Well known author Linda Pastan writes, “I kept waiting for the thud of you crash” (lines 11-13). The thud symbolizes the speaker's dread for her little girl's takeoff, attempting to shield her from what will turn out

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