"Parsley" by Rita Dove

My reaction in reading the poem, “Parsley” by Rita Dove, was different after listening to the poem than through simply reading it.  When I first started reading “Parsley,” it felt like I was reading a history text book.  In addition, I skipped over many of the spanish words.  All of these things changed when I heard the poem read aloud.  After hearing the poem, it sounded much more story-like and made more sense.  I heard the emotion coming through the poem.  I also heard the spanish words spoken and heard how the spanish words impacted the content of the poem.  The Spanish words held a significance throughout the life of the poem.  They emphasized the importance of L’s verses R’s in the Spanish language.  Only until I heard this through the speaking of the poem, did I realize this.  By understanding the Ls verses the Rs as an aspect within the poem, I felt I was better able to comprehend the poem to a fuller extent. 

Throughout the poem, the point of view is in first person, but, it is spoken by someone close to the general.  First person is evident through the text, for instance, Dove writes, “the cane appears in our dreams” (line 15)  and “we lie down screaming as rain punches through” (line 7).  Even though it is spoken in first person, we are unsure who is speaking.  I think this person is someone who is close to the general or even works for him, like maybe a servant or his right hand man.  Another reason this person must be close to the general is because he is able to write the first and second stanza.  In the first stanza, the setting is the sugar cane fields and the second stanza takes place in the palace.  The writer must have the ability to be in both places and close to the general.  In addition, this person also fears him. When Dove says, “the cane appears in our dreams...” it sounds like he is scared of getting killed and he fears the general.  This was my initial reaction while reading to the first section of the poem.  

As I continued to read, I assumed that the speaker in the second section of the poem was the general himself.  However, it wasn’t until I re-read the first line that I realized it says, “the word the general’s chosen is parsley” which clearly indicates someone else is speaking of the general.  It is the same person speaking from part one.  This person is watching the general struggle with the death of the general’s mother.  It is ironic because the general is pacing back and forth about who he is going to kill for the day.  He begins by thinking of whom to kill, moves onto thinking of his mother, and is only reminded he must determine who he must kill when he sees his war boots.  It even seems as though his mother becomes the person he is killing.  Almost as, if his mother (who is of African descent) can roll her R’s then why can’t they (they too of African descent)?  Dove writes, “God knows his mother was no stupid woman; she could roll an R like a queen” (line 58).  By saying this, he is justifying the killing that he is doing.  In the speaking of these words, I noticed that it gives the end of the poem an angry feeling.  I would not have as full of an understanding from when simply reading Dove’s poem, “Parsley,” as I do from hearing the words read aloud and expressed through human emotion.