In Poem 88 of Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthology, we hear the voice of Mrs. Charles Bliss, a woman who wants to divorce her husband but who is advised against it by her preacher and a judge.
There are several moments in the poem which reveal her negative attitude about preachers and judges. First, at the opening of the poem she relates that her reverend (preacher) advised her against divorce and the judge...
In Poem 88 of Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthology, we hear the voice of Mrs. Charles Bliss, a woman who wants to divorce her husband but who is advised against it by her preacher and a judge.
There are several moments in the poem which reveal her negative attitude about preachers and judges. First, at the opening of the poem she relates that her reverend (preacher) advised her against divorce and the judge advised her husband the same. Both gave this advice for the "sake of the children." As the poem continues, Mrs. Bliss explains that the children sided with different parents which caused the children to grieve and blame. This division caused the children pain.
Second, the poem makes a comparison between how people would give advice for avoiding problems and pain. She compares the advice from the reverend and judge to the advice a gardener would give; the gardener knows that plants grown in darkness will not thrive. This comparison suggests that the advice-givers should have known the children would suffer from growing up in a divided house. Next, she compares the advice to "diseased milk" which no mother would give her child. Again, this suggests that the advice she received was harmful and even poisonous to the children because it caused them to suffer when their parents would not separate.
Finally, with the ending line of the poem she rails against preachers and judges who advise the "raising of souls" in darkness and cold - an unhappy family - rather than allowing the parents to divorce. The final line - her exclamation "Preachers and judges!" - suggests just how much she blames them for her unhappiness and that of her children.
It's worth noting that her last name - Bliss - implies great happiness, but this name is ironic since Mrs. Bliss is certainly very unhappy.
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