Gwendolyn Brooks' Poetry

[Alison Mandaville]

Hi Class--
Long time, no question! Time to get back to work.

1) For this week, please read 3 Gwendolyn Brooks' poems posted to the
Course Materials.

2) Please answer this question: What do you think the speaker's
message is in the poem "The Mother"? Use quotes (words, lines, images)
from the poem to support your analysis. Do you agree with the overall
message of this poem?

3) You should also start reading "Maud Martha." This is less than 50
pages--a very short novel. You will need to make a copy of this from
class copy. I cannot put it on the course materials page because it is
copyrighted. I will expect you to finish this novel by class in two
weeks.

Any questions? Ask tomorrow in class!

Best,
Ms. Alison

[vefa_o...@yahoo.com]

good morning my friends

Firstly i want to say that i loved this poem. Because there are words
rhymed so good.

Coming my opinion about this poem is that that it is somehow
religious. I think that speech that is given by the auther is from
THE GOD.From the beginnig the is given ONLY GREAT LOVE.I think that if
somebody gets such great sins noone can fogive him/her. THE GOD ONLY
CAN DO IT (EXCEPT HUMAN RIGHT) . Even makes us sure as we know from
the KURAN.

WE CAN SEE IT FROM TTHE LAST WORDS

Believe me, I loved you all.

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you

All.

but I meke sure I will continue my thoughts by other point of views as
soon as I GET THEM

On 20 Kasım, 09:46, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[nesib...@yahoo.com]

hello everyone, this poem "the Mother" is about lamenting of mothers
for abortions by which they end up lifes of children. she calls it a
crime of deprieving them all things that they would taste in life. the
message is, for my opinion, that wether it is really a crime while
people die at the end, anyway.

You were born, you had body, you died.
It is just that you never giggled or planned or cried.


On Nov 20, 9:46 am, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[abid...@yahoo.com]

Abortion is wrong, no matter what. Nice poem, would have been better
if she was talking about how disgusting abortion is. I'm glad she felt
bad about it.
Abortions will not let you forget.
You remember the children you got that you did not get,-

On Nov 20, 9:46 am, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[eldart...@yahoo.com]

hi dears:
sorry I was ill so I couldn't write. Now I am with you .....

This poem is about a woman who experienced abortion. through the poem
you can feel the pain of this mother and by means of yhis mother you
can describe all women who have experienced it maybe for many times.
The message that author wants to tell is that it is not good and it is
pain of body physically or pschologically. Author says:
"I have heard in the voices of wind the voices of my dim killed
children"
It is needable to say that Gwendolyn Books is perfect in wording.
Author makes as to think about the pain and loss of the mother. She
hears the cry of her Children, as if baby says mammy, dear mammy why
you did so? why you didn't give me chance to live.?
I believe to God and I think that God gives life to person. Nobody can
take it, it can be just taken by God. Maybe financial problems, or
fear from parents can prompt you to do it. But I think that don't do
it because you can't know future of this baby. Maybe this baby is
going to be famous like Shakespeare, Blake, Dickens or Jacob, chopin.
who knows it, maybe this baby is going to be president. I think that
life is given by God and if person takes it, it is crime. For
instance, if we put to prison the person who kills someone then why we
can't do it with the person who do abortion. It is crime, and I can't
see any advantages of this behaviour.
Last week on TV I saw the pregnant woman who was reading her letter to
her unborn baby. This letter was wonderful. There are lots of methods
that can help you not make you pregnant. Before facing with such
situation you have to control your emotions, don't makeit be late.
Abortion is wrong, sorry not wrong but sin which can't be forgiven.
Maybe I take Radical way but Ithink I am true.
Some people in our country think that I have 2 babies, I don't need
third one. I know families who have many children and their children
are very happy. In addition to this the little child of this family is
famous and he is manager of Bank. If his mother did abortion, this
kind of child (man) would not be alive. Mother could say he is 4th
one.See how dangarous it can be, think future of baby, maybe he
skilfull, intelegence..... at last this baby is your own... don't do
it...
Whatever the situation is, don't have abortion.
Maybe we are not parents, and don't feel how it is sweet to have
baby. But I will ask from Elshen, he is father. Elshen, is it good
feeling? :))))))

Advice from your friend Eldar

[FreeSlaveMan]

Everything --her smile/cry, eyes, noses, eyelashes, blink, "baby-lke"
arms, legs--whatever comes to your mind isthe most sweety thing that
parents experience.
You can't exchange one of her finger with the golden mountains, let
alone killing her -Allah is Great--by abortion.
It is absolutely absurd, however every society in the world does it
unfortunately thinking this right is given to them.
It's a gift (emanet) given by God, and parents should bare responsible
in the presence of God.
Even modern societies--or thinks themselves such--are prone to have
abortion often...
Our love, romance begins after marriage, of western people it ends
after the marriage.
Even they become surprised and shocked by hearing, say, her wife's
pregnancy.
We are happy to hear it, even if we have financial problems
They are upset to hear it, even if they don't have such problem
It is not our issue but I want to share the following with you...
So long!

EASTERN WESTERN
We live in time You live in space
We're always at rest You're always on the move
We're passive You're aggressive
We like to contemplate You like to act
We accept the world as it is You try to change it according to your
blueprint
We live in peace with nature; religion is our first love You try to
impose your will on her; science is your passion
We delight to think about the meaning of life You delight to think
about the physics of life
We believe in the freedom of silence You believe in the freedom of
speech
We lapse into meditation You strive for articulation
We marry first, THEN we love You love first, THEN marry
Our marriage is the BEGINNING of a love affair; it is an indissoluble
bond Your marriage is the happy END of a romance; it is a contract
Our love is mute Your love is vocal
We try to conceal our love from the world You delight in showing it to
others
Self-abegnation is the secret of survival Self-assertiveness is the
key of your success
We're taught from the cradle to want less and less You are urged every
day to want more and more
The love of life is our ideal Conquest is your goal
We glorify austerity and renunciation You emphasize gracious living
and enjoyment
Poverty is to us a badge of elevation It is to you a sign of
degradation
In the sunset years of life, we renounce the world and prepare
ourselves for the hereafter You retire to enjoy the fruits of your
labor

[afa...@bk.ru]

First I want to say that I did not understand this poem.But I think
that the can be about mother's pain of abortion.Mother who did not
want to hear the voices of her dead children as is described in this
line:I have heard in the voices of wind the voices of my dim killed
children.From this line I can clearly feel the feeling of mother.There
is no second person in the world who can feel every trouble of
children as "mother".So from the top to the end it describes the
pain,feelings,troubles of the mother who worried only for her
children.

> > Advice from your friend Eldar- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[gunelh...@yahoo.com]

Today abotrion is one of the most widespread events that families
meet. Unfortunately it has became an ordinary thing and people do it
as if they do normal thing.
Abortion is a crime- unforgivable sin. Nobody can have an excuse for
doing it. Because first of all we don`t have right to end any life
given by God.How we are unable to create a human being, we can not
decide to end his life as well. Only God can create human beings and
only He has right to kill us.He has create us without asking our
opinion, and He will take our lifes back in the same way.
Second, today there are a number of methods to prevent pregnancy.
In the poem we see mother`s suffering after abortion. I am very sorry
for her and other mothers who faced such event. Many women are forced
to have it by the people around them. These people can be her husband,
her parents or other relatives. But as a result the one who suffers
physically and phsychologically are mothers

[asif_m...@hotmail.com]

Hi to everyone

Understanding this poem deeply is not so easy for me.There is
something deep,the author wants to state.What I understood of this
poem is just simple.

From the very first line we get the speaker's imaginations and advises
to the reader of being pre-aborted.The speaker wants to say that you
will ever be sorry for the child you did not get which you had pre-
abortion and you will remember it till the day you die

Abortion brings regret,hopelessness and you can not get rid of it
because you really made a crime.(my opinion of course). This is a sort
crime that you kill a human-being who is helpless.That human-being
wants his/her birth,marriage but abortion makes it impossible

The speaker regrets and begins to find out where is the truth.

Whine that the crime was other than mine?--
Since anyhow you are dead.
Or rather, or instead,
You were never made.
But that too,I am afraid,
Is faulty:oh, what shall I say,how is the truth to be
said?
You were born,you had body, you died.

It is just that you never giggled or planned or
cried.

She regrets but what to do life is life, you can not bring
(yesterday) to (today).

bye to everyone

[gunelh...@yahoo.com]

This poem reminds me something happened before Islam. In the past
there was a terrible rule in Arabia. People would get upset when their
newborn babies were girl, and they would bury them alive. But after
islam this incident was strictly prohobited by Quran. Islam gave the
same rights to women and men. It is said in Quran " As you have rights
on your women, they have rights on you as well"
Unfortunately this rule remining from that times is still surviving
among uneducated people. I think there is a similarity between this
event and
abortion. Because today one of the reasons of abortion is the baby`s
being a girl. Some people don`t want to have a doughter and they force
the mother to have abortion.

[baby_c...@mail.ru]

This is very intesting poem.The poem is named "Mother".But it is not
about mother.It is about abortion,about baby which is not born.I
think the poem is spoken by a woman who has many abortion,thus never
becoming a mother.In first stanza said that you will never forget
it.The second stanza dramatize the loss.The final stanza is
heartbreaking but offers the important final word on issue "Believe I
loved you all........"
I think in this poem is said the abortion is crime.Also advise for
woman you musnt do abortion.The baby is present that given by
GOD.Women musnt do it.Because the life is given by GOD.We have no
right do it.Only GOD can do it.

[h.mus...@yahoo.com]

Hi everybody. In the poem is told about the melancholy feelings of
mother that she doesn't want to abort her baby. Maybe she is obliged
to abort the baby. She thinks of her abortion child. Abortion is
crime. God doesn't give us such rights, to kill someone or to abort
baby. To give and get life from human belongs to God.

Abortions will not let you forget

You remember the children you got that you did not get

These sentences are inauguration to the poem. From these sentences we
see the mother's hardness. We know that such men want to get the
children. But they don't get. There are such men that they can reject
from the baby.

Believe me, I loved you all

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you All.

The last sentence ends with mother's excuse that she doesn't do
anything to help her baby to stay in the life. She doesn't do anything
against abortion. Because the society is against of woman's rights and
laws.

[kamuflaj....@hotmail.com]

Hello everyone,
All of us know that mothers are very very important and
special,more special than all creatures.A father can't be as patient
as a mother.Although the baby starts to cry in the late hours of
night,the mother goes and look after with her baby with patience and
never gets angry.A father can't be as patient as a mother in this
situation.Because women were created with special senses. Patience is
their most perfect side.Just this sense shows us the reason why
mothers are special.There is an example: ''A woman's heart is like a
tomb.If you enter for one time,you will never go up.But a man's heart
is like a shop.It is not evident who comes in and out.'' This was said
for lovers butif we look from another aspect we will see here
something about mothers.Women's heart... The senses are very strong
and for a comparison stronger than men.This tells us that mothers have
special properties.
A mother can't decide an abortion if there is not a valid
reason.Because God gave mothers a special sense.
''Abortions will not let you forget''
This line shows us the sacred sense that I told above.If a
mother has her child aborted,all of us know that she won't see her
child.But in this line it is told that she wont be able to forget.How
a person can't forget the thing that he/she has never seen.The only
reason is the sacred sense that was given to mothers by God.The poet
describes the behaviours that a child has and tells these things that
the mother won't be able to forget.
''Believe that in my deliberateness,I wasn't deliberate
Though why should I whine...''
As I said above,these lines shows us that there must be an
important reason to abortion for a mother.She says that she
whines.This sjows us the regret of her decision.
'' Believe me, I loved you all.

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you

All.''
As a matter of fact in these last lines the mother tells her love
to her baby and wants her baby to believe her.That is an implore and
the implore in these last lines effected me too much.

[m_im...@yahoo.com]

Hi,

The given message is "No Abortion". The way by which the speaker gives
it is very effective. The speaker, she, does not just tell the women
"do not abort", instead shows its result, afterwards feelings, and
pain it gives. Abortion is not acceptable, as for me as for the
majority, whatever the reason is. Yes, I said, whatever the reason is,
but it is 98%. There can be cases that abortion is inevitable. I know
a young couple who are married almost 2 years, they are close friends
of my sister's family. And I know how they are eager to have a child.
The very Lady was pregnant several times but lost them because of her
immune problem. And in her latest pregnancy with the help of doctors
and lots of medicine she was able to save her child for couple of
months. But unfortunately in her later happened what they feared the
most. All of a sudden her kidneys went out of work and she get shocked
because not enough blood circuled to her brain. The only way to save
her was to remove the baby. So pity. These are very different and
exceptional situations for abortion. But there are women who did
abortion not once or twice but several times. And the noticeable point
of those women is their being not educated. I can assure you that
educated women, women with a wide paradigm, who is well informed of
all of these issues never do abortion even once. Abortion is sin,
abortion is crime for which you will pay in other world if not in
this. Babies are our joy in this life, our part, and our future. They
are so little, so cute but full of life. How one is able not to want
the little living life, when she feels how it grows inside her.
Motherhood is the perfect feeling that GOD could give us-women.
Whole poem, each of its lines can be given as support. As the narrator
states she loved all her children even if she took their lives from
them. But the second stanza specially entails the negative sides of
abortion: fault, whine, and loss of all joys that child gives. It is
nothing but physical pain, psychological affect. I think I said enough
to show my agreement with that given message. All the women all over
the world do this. But WHY one allows being pregnant if she goes to
abortion?! WHY one goes to abortion when there are so many ways to
prevent it, to prevent the pregnancy?!

Thank you for the different and interesting poem.

[g.cab...@yahoo.com]

Hi Teacher and my friends!
First I want to tell you that I couldn't get background online
information about the relation between the poem and the period it was
written.So I do not exactly know why the character in the poem have
had to refuse the baby. It might be that in her country it was
restricted to have many children at that time.The other reason could
be that the woman's family situation didn't not allow her to have
babies, for ex she was poor and can not afford enough money to raise
her children or her husband wanted only a boy and so on .In the poem
none of these are mentioned. We only see that there are very remorsful
lines told by the woman who is very upset that she couldnt have given
birth to her children.The lines.'Believe that even in my
deliberateness I was not deliberate and "Believe me, I loved you all'
show that she had no intention to kill her children but she had to do
it for unknown reasons.She had no other ways or she was powerless.I
think speaker wants all woman to be very decent in this matter, she
wants them to be powerful to struggle with whatever might prevent them
to have babeis and also pity infants' lives.
I also know that there a number of women who deliberately make
abortions to stay thin or only have a boy or a girl. Also from the
religious aspect we know that abortion is sinful. It makes no
difference if you kill a baby inside you or you kill a man.The
thought that you ended your baby inside you will never leave you.
Every time you remember it youll be sad as said in the first line of
the poem 'Abortions will not let you forget'You remember the children
you got that you did not get'.

On Nov 20, 9:46 am, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[afe...@box.az]

Hello, everybody. How are you doing? I have just finished reading the
poem The Mother. I felt that, in fact this is a powerful poem about a
very difficult topic. When I have finished reading this poem, I felt
that very strange feelings surrounded me. There I saw a mother who is
full of sorrow. She condemns herself for abortion. On the other hand,
she has no choice. Such as she thinks that, if she gives a birth to
that baby, the baby will never be happy in this unmerciful and quickly
changing world. I would say she is poor woman and her living condition
is not so good. Therefore, she thinks that the best way for the baby
is the abortion. However, she feels herself sinner for doing this. Let
us pay much more heed to the following sentences taken from the poem.

You were born, you had body, and you died.
It is just that you never giggled, planned, or cried.

Believe me, I loved you all.
Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you All.

When we pay attention to these sentences, we see the mother and her
repentances.
No one deserves to be put in that position and no one deserves to feel
that way afterwards. At last, I want to stress that, Abortion is
wrong, no matter what. I liked the beginning, but the time I found out
that, she had an abortion. Nice poem would have been better if she was
talking about how disgusting abortion is. I am glad she felt bad about
it. these sentences made me very strange and I felt Mother tears and
her screaming

[Pervi...@mail.ru]

Hi everyone and especially our dear teacher. First of all l want to
thank you for bringing us such interesting poems and stories. I enjoy
them very much. Now about the poem.

"The mother" by Gwendolyn Brooks.
I enjoyed the poem very much. It influenced me deeply. When I read it
l was so sorry for all the babies who were the victims of abortions.
In the poem we can get the description of innocent children. In
general as we can see from the title, the poem is about "the mother".
I think the speaker (narrator) of the poem is a mother too- the one
who made abortion.
She constantly speaks to the readership. In the very first line of the
poem she tells the women who made abortion that they will never forget
what they did: "Abortions will not let you forget\You remember the
children you got that you did not get."-because she forgot neither.
She still remembers them: "I have heard in the voices of the wind the

voices of my dim killed children."

From the poem we see what the women "loss" when they make abortions.
These are ordinary things like protecting their babies, taking care of
them, "scuttling off ghosts that come", "buy a sweet" and etc. that
makes every mother happy. And by making abortions they loss all these
moments of happiness. These lines show that the speaker feels guilty:
"If I stole your births and your names,
Your straight baby tears and your games,
Your stilted or lovely loves, your tumults, your marriages, aches and
your deaths,
If I poisoned the beginnings of your breaths,
Believe that even in my deliberateness I was not deliberate."

She knows that she committed a crime: "Though why should I whine\whine
that the crime was other than mine."

The interesting and unknown (suspicious) part in the poem for me is
when the speaker says "I am afraid" and "oh, what shall I say, how the
truths to be said." I think she means God. She is afraid of his
punishment for making abortions.

The mother is sorry and misses her children. For her they continue to
live, because she speaks to them. "Believe me, I loved you all."
But if it was so, if she loved them then why did she do it? What made
her "to kill" them?

If this poem was written by Azerbaijani woman writer I would think
that maybe she was going to have a baby-girl and because of being "a
girl" the baby was killed. In our culture to have baby-boys are
preferred to girls, you know. (It's not right, I don't agree.)
Or maybe the baby was not healthy and mother decided not to have it
at all. Because not healthy people are separated from the rest of the
society and it makes them to feel unhappy. Mothers don't want to see
their babies unhappy, because it makes them so too. That's why she
preferred to kill him\her.

On Nov 20, 9:46 am, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Pervi...@mail.ru]

[hopement...@hotmail.com]

Hi People how is it going life?

I have read this poem and I startled. I saw a woman real mother there.
That woman-mother-thinks that abortion is the best way to be happy in
this world. Beyond she feels herself very bad for that. That poem
gives fact of the real life. Many people who became pregnant
unexpectedly think about abortion to get rid of the problem. They also
realize that, this action is wrong and crime. They fell themselves
very sinner.

[fourth...@yahoo.com]

Hi everybody. We are again back after a long break. This new poem is
about a woman who regrets about abortions that she has done, and we
feel her sufferings from her words "If I stole your births and your

names, Your straight baby tears and your games, Your stilted or lovely

loves, your tumults, your marriages, aches, and your deaths," It seems
she experienced it several times, and was forced to do it. She has a
feeling guilty about it, otherwise she would think it was a way out
and our common decision. May be woman has a desperate life, has a need
for her children to be close to her. For the poem we can claim that
the woman don't do abortion for her will, probably she is forced by
her husband. She feels herself guilty. But we not always meet women
who feel the same sin, instead in most cases women who bores many
children are blamed by others, because not always parents are able to
care 6-9 children as they want, or needed. Saying that abortion is
sin, and boring all children, then leaving them so bring up by
themselves is not true. Because parents are responsible for their
children in everything, they have no right make their children
miserable and wretched in the streets to earn money or abandon them in
children's house.
Some days before I watched a program in which there was a
discussion about a married couple and their unborn child. I didn't
watch it till the end but what I understood is that unborn child has a
problem with the health, that doctors give a diagnose that this child
will be born anomaly, with a physical defect. Then the parents can not
come to a common agreement, mother wants to bore the baby despite of
his/her physical defects, she argues that this child has a right to
survive but father claims that as the child is not yet born, she has
to abort otherwise he will divorce her. I understand mother, she wants
to see her first child, with all defects that is their own child but
let's think much later, when the child is born and is not normal as
other children, is not able to walk or can not speak properly or has a
defect at any organ. Then parent's disappoints will begin, seeing
their child distinguished from others, is not able to share social
life, or every day they live with fear if something happens. I think
in this cases abortion can be made, because the health of child is
parent's responsibility. For me they should better do abortion rather
than see their child as defected, and is not able to get the pleasures
of life as walking, running, going to school, playing with children
etc. For now I can tell this...see you ...later!

[pear...@yahoo.com]

Hi my friends!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This is the first poem that I have read about abortion, so it is
interesting for me to answer this question. I also think this is
the message for the mothers. To read this poem made me to think about
the families of 30-40 years ago. For instance our grandmothers.
Although they have many economic problems they did not think that it
is a great impede to have a baby. There were six or seven children
at every family. May be they have not enough food ,but they were very
happy. I think it is very good to have many brothers and sisters,
because you think that you are not alone .But now many women don't
want to have a baby more than two. For instance I look to my family.
I have only one brother and I always think about my future .After
the death of my father and mother we will be alone and it
frightens me very much. These lines were very interesting for me.

If I stole your births and your names,

Your straight baby tears and your games.
If I poisoned the beginnings of your breath.

It is very terrible, because the women have no right to kill the
babies. I think the writer make the mothers to think about the fate
of their children before kill them. But I do regret that today many
women think that they have many economic problems or their body
will pervert so they don't want their children. If it is harmful
for the woman because of her illness it can be understood. But if
she does this because she does not want the child it is a great
sin.
If the God wants any child to be born then he will give all
necessarily things to that family.















On Nov 20, 11:46 pm, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>
wrote:

[Gunay_...@mail.ru]

This poem is about abortion and the feelings a mother has: sadness,
remorse, sorrow, love....The mother has aborted and now feels guilty. I
don't know she has one or more children, but here is said "children".
The mother directly addresses her dead children.

"Abortions will not let you forget.

You remember the children you got that you did not get"

These phrases mean that abortion willn't be forgotten. In the future
you will remember your dead children. The pain, heartache, grief,...will
remain in the heart.

"You will never wind up the sucking-thumb
Or scuttle off ghosts that come."

She tells what she will never do with her children.

She explains that she had no other choices. Maybe the situation made
her do that. But I think that in any case, the mother shouldn't do
that. Because it is a crime. It is your own baby, a part of you. Every
mother wishes that she would give birth to a child. There are such
mothers who are childness, mean they will never have a child. But this
mother has aborted her child. Yes, she is regretful. But it is too
late.
At the end, she tells that she loved her children with all her heart.

"Believe me, I loved you all.

[mehdiye...@box.az]

Hi dear people.
I think to give end to the live of the children is not respected
conclusion.
I am against of abortion.
For my opinion All religions also give a prove to my idea.
F. ex Nowdays technolocy is high, so during the pregnance almost all
women go to the doctor to get advice or to check their childrens
health. So the parents take care of the children which are not born
yet. Although most of the society and I disagree abottion there is an
exeption. For ex A pregnant woman go to the doctor and hears that
her child will have big problems in his or her health wich can not be
solved easily, in this case I think the abortion can be done without
any disagreement.
If everithing is ok with the health of the child to do abort is not
good. Because the child is a present given to the family by the God.
So you can not refuse this present.
It is true that nowdays abortion is in fashion. But such kind of
fashions have to gradually fell down.

[ayka...@yahoo.com]

Good evening my dear friends and my lovely teacher. Sorry for my
latter writing. Your questions are always divine my intentions. I want
to write many things but how? First of all I want to give information
about our culture when our girls become a pregnant. In our
religious (ISLAM) it is sin to kill a children from mother's
uterus. But it has many reasons. Either girls become pregnant without
marriage or not planning pregnancy. Sometimes in a family if first
baby is a girl the second must be a boy. That's why they have an
abortion as soon as this baby become a boy. I gave a brief explanation
about pregnancy in our culture. But in foreign country does not matter
girls are married or not married most of them keep their children and
don't have an abortion. I know its from foreign films. May be it is
different in real life.
Muslim girls at the result of being deceived from dishonest boys have
an abortion because of afraiding from their family, relatives and
arounds. Foreign country's culture is different from ours. Their girls
are more free than Muslim girls and despite of their family's
dissatisfactions they never killed their children. Not all of them but
many of them.
In this poem if mothers wine if love their babies why they killed
them. For ex :
" Believe me I loved you all
Believe me I knew you though friendly and I loved, I loved you all
" - mothers show their love toward their children but if they want to
kill them how they show its, how the babies believe them? That is why
mothers keep your children and if everyone are against you don't
listen them. Know that you kill an alive person.

[kama_h...@yahoo.com]

This poem is about abortion and her deep feeling about it. On
the whole, I devide it into 3 parts.in the first part the poet address
to women who had abortion experiences. It is obviously seen in the
first 10 lines. For instance; "abortion will not let you forget.You
remember the children you got that you did not get,"brooks choose
"you" rather than "I" .and it shows poet universalized "you".in the
part of appeal to women ,she describe abortion and its bad effects.
The poet wants to say that the mother never forget aborted
children .because ,it is the heart of mother.
"The damp small pulps with a little or with no hair,
The singers and workers that never handled the air."

In these lines ,Gwendolyn Brooks wants to say that the littles
who can damn to death ,never having lights of world could be famous
person ,workers, singers, doctors, teachers, diplomats, etc. also
poet describe here bad effects of abortion to women.

"You will never wind up the sucking-thumb
Or scuttle off ghosts that come."

In this lines ,brooks is trying to convey the feeling of longing
by mother .she has feeling of longing because of her loosing and
missing for littles.
In the second part of poem,Brooks speak about herself and fault
she made. She parallels abortion and killing .

"I have heard in the voices of the wind the voices of my
dim killed children."

I agree with this idea .because, abortion is killing in spite
of infants are not born. But I want to mention that kids start to live
from the very beginning of womb. How can you perish new buds that
haven't yet blossomed, the buds that are human beings .so how can you
kill human beings who should born soon.
The poet comments with her poem that she feel sinn according
to her conscience.it is shown in these lines .
"I have said, Sweets, if I sinned, if I seized
Your luck"
In The 3rd part of poem ,Brooks address to child. and start
talking to the child. in this appeal to child ,she express the
sadness ,love to child, and also trying to show her regret about her
sin.The poet also say that the abortion is not her guilt.it is the
guilt of other that made her do this kind of unpleasant thing.
" Though why should I whine,
Whine that the crime was other than mine?--"
The interesting point for me who else could be blame?it could
be man who got her pregnant or may be society or may be the doctorwho
doesn't permit her to born a child.the problem may be in her health or
may be the circumstances she live that doesn't permit .the causes
could be many .which cause it could be? She(poet) entrusts readers
with the answering of this message by their own thoughts.the poet
afraid of her own conscience and doesn't know what to say to her
conscience about her faulty.
" But that too, I am afraid,
Is faulty: oh, what shall I say, how is the truth to
be said?"
And at the end the poet expresss her huge love to children
despite having never held her children .she create the image in her
own mind that she is mother,and that's why she has feeling of mother
love.

" Believe me, I loved you all.

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I
loved, I loved you
All."
i thing to write such kind of powerful work as this
poem ,the writer or poet should have live experience in his or her
works.and Brooks obviously either had experience with abortions or she
felt very strongly about the issue .thus,so affective poem written.

[faras...@yahoo.com]

Hi,everybody.
This is the best poem which is written by Gwendolyn brooks and that
i have ever read about mother and child. I think this poem should read
not only we, also all girls who is going to marr.
In this poem first auther addressed to woman who wanted to abort and
told about her feellings that abortion would not let her to forget her
child that never born. Before her abortion she said" You will never
neglect or beat,tham or silence or buy with a sweet.You will never
wind up the sucking-thumb or scuttle off gosts that come...." So here
auther mentioned that you will never see all these things- her/his
sweet face,little tiny fingers or his/her cry when wanting something
or loves her baby if she does abortion.
In other stanas are feelled the pain of woman and regretness that she
doesn't give a birth her child.
If i stole your births and your names

Your straight baby tears and your games

Your stilled or lovely loves, your tumults,your marriage,aches and
your deaths.
Abortion can happen from some reasons. For example: May be woman has a
lot childeren or she is poor and knows that she can't provide with
everything that her child will need in future. But however woman
musn't do that.This is a gift that gives to woman.
Yesterday i watched one Turkish program. There people discussed the
well-known woman who knew that her baby would be invalid when she
wasborn and she was in her fifth month of her pregnancy. Some people
said that she could do abortion, some said not. But i think in that
case woman must do abortion becouse if she gives birth that baby it
will be more painfull in the light world than kill her/him inside.
There is another case. Some women are longing for baby for several
years.They go,some of them go to near fortune-teller or pray to God to
give baby to them. So it is a life.Baby is a beautiful being. How we,
woman can "kill"them!

[grmi...@yahoo.com]

Hi friends! First of all I agree with my friends thoughts. I was glad
while reading because reaction to abortion was very bad by them. I
also read the poem.I like this poem. While reading I feel painless,
sorrow woman character. The feeling to be mother I think is very
sweet. I don`t understand that why woman doesn`t want to taste it. The
speaker's message is in the poem "The Mother" is "Don`t do like me".
She didn`t give to all women advise, she just only expressed her
feelings how this hard from phsycological aspect. But while reading I
found that she had meny abortions not just only one. I don`t also
understand this. You the character inthe poem firstly do that, you
feel pain why you then do the same thing? I can`t understand this.
Today abortion is very simple and easy thing in the world. Women
without problem escape themselves from baby in this way. It is always
interesting me have their conscience? First of all, doing abortion
they commit suicide, the second they are women who will carry this
body. I know women who are eager to be mother and do everything, And
also I know women without problem do abortion. I think this is reality
of life.
But I think whatever you have problem you must carry this body. You
are not God to end his/her life. This is not your job.

[sevil_de...@yahoo.com]

HELLO MY DEAR FRIENDS AND DEAR TEACHER!
In this poem writer wants to give message to all people in the
world that-if you will have an abort how you will feel yourself. She
wrote about her own experience or may be about the women who is very
close to her - I think this woman think about abortion because"

Believe me, I loved you all. Believe me, I knew you, though faintly,

and I loved, I loved you. All."- In this lines she speaks with her
baby, she wants to justify to herself that despite I will take your
soul I want you to know that-I LOVE YOU SO MUCH.
Despite that-Abortion is forbidden in some countries (At present
abortion is forbidden in many European countries: Poland, Portugal,
Malta, Lithuania, Ireland and Slovakia. - http://www.epha.org/a/1961)
in the most f them it is common, unpunished way of killing the human.
But why people forget that childbirth is very special, miracle feeling
that- GOD does not give to all women such kind of happiness. Children
were sending to us by GOD as a gift of our love. I am agreeing with
writer's message because it's wildness, injustice, mercilessness
against to humanity. People do not have any rights as killing any
creation of GOD moreover HUMAN.
There are a lot of women in this world who are deprived from being
mother but somebody for a moment pleasure is ready to kill a baby. In
now day there are a lot of things which help to people prevent having
a baby but people become savage that they sacrifice the baby who will
born to their burning passion. "Abortions will not let you forget. You
remember the children you got that you did not get."- I think the
person who goes to abortion is ready and I do not think those people
will have the conscience-stricken. If she decides to have an abort it
means that she thinks about results and spiritual harm.

"I have said, Sweets, if I sinned, if I seized

Your luck.
And your lives from your unfinished reach,

If I stole your births and your names,
Your straight baby tears and your games,
Your stilted or lovely loves, your tumults, your marriages, aches, and

your deaths," -In this lines she describes babies life, his/her
rights- which she decides to take from her/him. I do not understand if
she knows what she will take why she done it-I think there is not any
good reason for this action.
I hope that one day in the entire world will pass a low that- abortion
is a fault and it is forbidden.
IF GOD
PLEASES!

[kama_h...@yahoo.com]

I want give additional thoughts about "The Mother"and abortion. There
is summons to mothers about the feelings of charity for children.And
as I noted in the previous message poet mostly wrote about bad
feelings toward abortion .Generally ,the poet calls all women not to
do unconscious action -abortion and her expression of love at the end
of poem arise in reader feeling of charity toward children.

"Believe me, I loved you all.
Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you

All."
I thought that if woman is in state of conscious she will not have
false step according to simple reason.but,there could be only one
exception according to my opinion.If your(women's) pregnancy is face
to face with death then there could be abortion. But I don't agree
with some of my friends.they wrote that if you know your future child
will have illness problems you could have abortion.But I say in this
case "NO".Because,it doesn't matter how child will born; Healthy or
invalid;clever or mentally diseased man ;tall or shortish;white or
black.the main thing is you have to care of your child.it does not
matter he or she will live luxery or poverty.it is not great problem
child grow up without father .if woman is pregnant and her
pregnancy is not danger for her life then mother should give birth.
You may have such kind of question to me .why you think mother can
have abortion only in the case of danger for her life but not in the
case of child having great health problem after borning?
According to my thoughts, child couldn't grow up right without
mother .Because ,he\she will always be in need of mother love from the
cradle to the grave even if he has health problem ,especially
invalidness or mental problem.so ,I want to say all women It's your
duty to take care of your child.if you are not exist,then child is not
exist.Save your health and children.if you are healthy then children
are healthy.if you are ill then children ill. You know ,spiritual
illness is worth than body illness.
Abortion is evil .protect yourself from evil.evil is Demon.if you
choose the way of Demon,then you will go to Hell.Hell is torments of
Tantalus.
People ,afraid of God .Why you sin so much?God bless you and
forgive.

[vefa_o...@yahoo.com]

hello my friends

as i sured before i want to continue my explenation on this poem. as i
said before i loved it .
my first opinion was that it is religious poem.
But it was my first ideas that came on me at the first time.
after reading second thierd times i got lots of ideas. here some of
them
1. it is about ther real abortion proress.the auther against such kind
of step. by her messages wants to stop it

2. shows the situation that the mother got after the abortion

by giving mesage MOTHER she wanted to atract all mothers that wanted
to do abortion.
to make her work more influensible she used images such as voise feel.
also these images say that if you also do this you too feel faced the
same problems as the MOTHER in the poem
On Nov 20, 8:46 pm, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>

[n2...@yahoo.com]

Hİ CLASS....
İ THİNK THAT THE POEM İS ABOUT THE FEELİNGS AND THOUGHTS OF A MOTHER
WHO IS GOING TO ESCAPE FROM HER CHILD.I DO LIKED THE POEM,I LIKE POEM
WHICH ARE BASED ON PURE FEELINGS, LIKE THIS ONE.
HERE WE SEE HOW THE MOTHER SUFFERS WHILE SHE IS GOING TO ABORTION,
WHAT SHE THINKS ABOUT HER UNBORN CHILD, HOW SHE BLAMES HERSELF. BUT
NOTWITHSTANDING WITH IT SHE DOES IT.IT'S QUITE CLEAR THAT THE MOTHER
LOVES THE BABY:
/Believe me, I loved you all.

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you

All./
SHE THINKS ABOUT HERSELF THAT SHE HAS STOLEN ONE MAN'S LIFE:
/....And your lives from your unfinished reach,

If I stole your births and your names,
Your straight baby tears and your games,
Your stilted or lovely loves, your tumults, your marriages, aches, and
your deaths,

If I poisoned the beginnings of your breaths,..../
SHE STILL DOESN'T KNOW WHERTHER SHE IS RIGHT OR WRONG, BUT SHE DOES IT-
ALTHOUGH HOW PAINFULL IT IS.
SO I THINK THERE SUCH A BIG PROBLEM IN HER LIFE THAT SHE WAS AGREE TO
TAKE THE BABY, SHE SHE BARES ALL THE SUFFERINGS AND TROUBLES AND KILLS
THE BABY.U KNOW IF SHE WAS A CRULE MOTHER WE WERE NOT GIVEN SO MANY
EXPRESSIONS ABOUT HER SUFFERINGS...
THAT'S ALL, BYEEE

[tural_...@mail.ru]

hi class.....
the poem, interested me very much.
As i understood the poem about the feelings of a mother who goes to
free herself from her unborn child.
Here we can see, how mother suffers.How she loves her child.But the
conditions make her to be aboted.
the abortion itself is very bad think to be done.I think that if the
God gaves us the life, only HE can take it from us..
but unfortunately in today's world there are many abortions, and it
makes us to think that how the word "mother" is loosing its power.but
the poem show that there're still mothers who can't decide wheather
they are right or wrong.
if such kind of poems will be more and more then maybe in future we
can see its results on people-maybe laterafter they will stop this
evilish action.
that's all from me byee

[afe...@box.az]

The Mother by Gwendolyn Brooks

I have just finished reading the poem The Mother. I felt that, in fact
this is a powerful poem about a very difficult topic. When I have
finished reading this poem, I felt that very strange feelings
surrounded me. There I saw a mother who is full of sorrow. She
condemns herself for abortion. On the other hand, she has no choice.
Such as she thinks that, if she gives a birth to that baby, the baby
will never be happy in this unmerciful and quickly changing world. I
would say she is poor woman and her living condition is not so good.
Therefore, she thinks that the best way for the baby is the abortion.
However, she feels herself sinner for doing this. Let us pay much more
heed to the following sentences taken from the poem.

You were born, you had body, and you died.
It is just that you never giggled, planned, or cried.

Believe me, I loved you all.

Believe me, I knew you, though faintly, and I loved, I loved you All.


When we pay attention to these sentences, we see the mother and her
repentances. No one deserves to be put in that position and no one
deserves to feel that way afterwards. At last, I want to stress that,
Abortion is wrong, no matter what. I liked the beginning, but the time
I found out that, she had an abortion. Nice poem would have been
better if she was talking about how disgusting abortion is. I am glad

she felt bad about it. These sentences made me very strange and I felt
Mother tears and her screaming. I was in melancholy mood after
finishing this poem. It influenced me too much. I am very fragile
person and when I read such poems, I cannot regain myself from being
sad. I could not go out of its influence until now. In here, I believe
that there is a little catalog of the qualities of motherhood. In
addition, of course you are free to take anything else from it that
you need to use. That is one of the richness poems. In one hand, I
justify that woman because she had no any alternative but especially I
have to stress that no matter what abortion is wrong. If she came
across such situation, she must not abort him or her at any cost
because firstly, it is the biggest sin; second, that baby is a part of
her body and soul. I think she is very sorrowful because her
consciences stabbed bed her. When you do such thing, please act
according to your conscience. I saw mother who is very repentance and
cannot find any place for herself in this neglectful world. I pity her
tears and no one desired to be her place. In short I would say with
great assurance that writing this poem that writer Gwendolyn Brooks
in one hand infers Slavery and strived to show us that, woman had no
right as much as man but Nevertheless all people (it does not matter
who ever you are, man or woman) born equal value. There is no
discrimination between them. According to Islam, man and woman are
equals and it is the biggest sin to end ones life in whatever case.

[jalehe...@yahoo.com]

HIIIIII MY FRIENDS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

This poem is addressed to the woman who denies to give birth to the
child she waits for. As we know nowadays abortion is a rare
situation we meet and it has always different reasons and different
results. Here author describes a woman who decided to do abortion who
may be does not want to do it, but she has to, or may be this is a
message to women not to do abortion. Because they do not have any
good character for your country.
"You remember the children you got that you did not get". I think this
line is enough to understand all women who make abortions. And to be
clever in everything you do and to look for a more healthy ways and
of course ,there are a lot of ways in our modern life. ABORTION IS
A GUILTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!












On Nov 20, 11:46 pm, Alison Mandaville <alisonmandavi...@gmail.com>

[afe...@box.az]

Hi dear friends.from Perviz 4b
"The Mother "
In this poem I understand only few things it is against abortion or
about suffarage a woman who did abortion.Here we see that she thought
about her not born children and sorrow.In my opinion she say that she
is quilty for their unlived life.
I think her feelings was not like that when she create that child.Also
everyone must think about their actions before he or she did it.

[Alison Mandaville]

From Elshen Mecidov:
At last I can receive letter from you. First of all I want to inform
my thoughts about this poem. I have read Gwendolyn Brooks Maud
Martha. That is interesting and this is a powerful poem about a very
difficult topic. This poem is so deep. It reaches deep inside a mother
who made the decision to abort her child. But Abortion is wrong. I see
sensible and terrible acts in this poem. In Gwendolyn Brooks' poem,
"The Mother", the narrator expresses a reluctant regret and a desire
for the children to which she did not give birth as a result of
abortion. Mother is fed up social life and problems. Really mother is
holy being and mother is symbol of mercy in the life. Mother brings up
personality for society. Child's training , upbringing depending from
mother. Such a mother cannot be in the life that she does not care for
her baby. An author is also mother and she well understands her
character situation and feelings. Gwendolyn is not afraid to speak her
mind about such sensitive topics. She is very gallant with her words.
She doesn't care what anyone thinks of her. This lady has such a big
heart. Subject that writer opened today that is really urgent.

[Alison Mandaville]

From Sevinc:
"The Mother" by Gwendolyn Brooks is a sorrowful, distressing poem
about a mother who has experienced numerous abortions.When I read this
poem I feel the pain, distress and grief that woman is feeling. This
poem is a reflection of what many women in society are feeling. She is
both remorseful and regretful. She explains that she had no other
choice. It is a sentimental and heart wrenching poem. She talks about
not being able to experience or do things with the children. She
aborted -things that people who have children often take for granted.
The first stanza starts off with "Abortions will not let you forget".
In this stanza she is talking about how future experiences will never
take place.
In the poem, the woman is talking about her pain and loss. She is
haunted by her own children's faint cries that she hears in her mind.
She feels that she did what she had to do. She probably could not
handle having kids at the time because of her situation, whatever it
was, so she had an abortion. She probably did not think it was a
crime, but society has made her believe it is and she feels guilty.
"Believe me, I knew you, though faintly and I loved, I loved you all."
In this stanza she knew her children because they were a part of her
being that they were in her body. She emphasizes that she loved them
to let them know that she really loved them although she did what she
had to do.
I think that abortion is a crime and loss. Because any human beings
have no right to kill someone. Because the life is given by God. Only
God can kill someone.

[mehmeta...@yahoo.com]

This poem is about a woman who experienced abortion. Through the poem,
you can feel the pain of this mother and by means of this mother; you
can describe all women who have experienced it maybe for many times.
The message that author wants to tell is that it is not good and it is
pain of body physically or psychologically. Author says: "I have heard
in the voices of wind the voices of my dim killed children"
For me in this poem she wishes to say that I wrote about what I saw
and heard on the street. in this poem author wishes to say that
abortion is wrong At the end of my word, I would briefly say that, I