A Work of Artifice

Marge Piercy

The bonsai tree

in the attractive pot

could have grown eighty feet tall

on the side of the mountain

till split by lightning.

But a gardener

carefully pruned it.
It is nine inches high.

Every day as he

whittles back the branches
the gardener croons,

It is your nature

to be small and cozy,

domestic and weak;

how lucky, little tree,
to have a pot to grow in.
With living creatures

one must begin very early

to dwarf their growth:

the bound feet,

the crippled brain,

the hair in curlers

the hands you

love to touch.

     Marge Piercy was born March 31, 1936 in Detroit.  She lived through the depression and was deeply affected by it.  She was the first person in her family to attend college.  Her poetry often addresses feminist and social issues. 

     Bonsai is a Japanese art form using miniature trees grown in containers.  This tradition dates back thousands of years. 

     Although Piercy was clearly talking about Bonsai trees, I saw a deeper meaning in the poem.  I think that she is saying we, as people, have so much potential but it is never put to use.  The third line of the poem really stood out to me.  She says could have grown eighty feet tall, which is referring to the tree.  Her word choice is what really struck me.  Piercy uses the words could have, as in the tree had the potential to be something great and magnificent. It goes on to say how a gardener kept it at nine inches tall and from reaching its true potential.  I compared this to humans.  We are all capable of achieving great things, but we are not brought up to our full potential.  Lines 20 through 24 I didn't quite understand.  In line 20, it thought of foot binding, which was used in Chinese culture, but I'm not sure if I'm on the right path there or not...