The Fume of Life

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Recommended: Concept of sexuality in literature

At a time when women were seen as no more than commodities or accessories, Edna St. Vincent Millay shocked the country with her post-war sexual defiance. Her bold and dramatic personality garnered both great interest and great criticism. Millay was able to be one of the pioneers for feminist philosophy, practicing her natural sexual desires: an area only familiar to men. Whether she intended to or not, she demonstrates to readers everywhere that it isn’t only men who hold the strength; women are fully capable of living a hedonistic lifestyle. Her willingness to venture into uncharted territory leaves traces within her poetry, and only by divulging deeper can one understand the truth Millay has left behind. Whether it was trying a new writing style or new way of thought, Edna St. Vincent Millay remained true to her individualist manifesto until the day she died.

Born into a family of hardship and struggle, Edna St. Vincent Millay first rose to prominence as the editor in chief for St. Nicholas Magazine. Vincent, as she liked to be called, was the youngest of three sisters raised by a single mother, Cora Millay. Her mother immersed them in the arts—in reading and writing especially—always encouraging them to excellence. Her most notable poem, “Renascence” was published in 1912 as an anthology. Millay attended Barnard College for a semester, and then transferred to Vassar in 1913. She starred in and wrote many plays during her college years and surrounded herself with multiple lovers, including a brief marriage to poet Arthur Davison Ficke. The hardworking Millay toured Europe whilst writing for Vanity Fair and racked up a variety of men, work and engagements. After a short-lived affair with a French violinist, she had a...

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...a new way of thought and outlook.

Works Cited

Barnes, Jessica. "Edna St. Vincent Millay's "I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed": A Deeper Look." Universal Journal. Universal Journal, 31 Oct. 2005. Web. 7 Feb. 2012.

Dore, Louise. "The Sonnet Bites Back: Sex, Spite and Feminist Stirrings in 'I, Being Born a Woman and Distressed' by Edna St Vincent Millay." 2000. Web.

Klemans, Patricia A. (1979) ""Being Born a Woman": A New Look at Edna St. Vincent Millay," Colby Library Quarterly, Volume 15, no.1, March 1979, p.7-18

Millay, Edna St. Vincent. "And You As Well Will Die Beloved Dust." Early Poems. Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 2008. 78. Print.

Stacy Carson Hubbard, "Love’s ‘Little Day’: Time and the Sexual Body in Millay’s Sonnets" in Millay at 100: A Critical Reappraisal. Diane P. Freedman, ed. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1995; 104-107

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