Elizabeth Bishop ends her famous poem “One Art” with these lines: “It is evident that the art of losing is not too difficult to master / although it may seem like... disaster." Although "One Art" lists many literal and symbolic forms of loss, the one that becomes most prominent in Bishop's poetry is the loss of time. "In the Waiting Room" and “At the Fishhouses” both show the relationship between personal development and the passage of time. In this essay, I intend to explore the different ways in which Bishop uses imagery to demonstrate growth and maturity. over time in these poems. Say No to Plagiarism. Get a Custom Essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned” Get an Original Essay Although these poems “At the Fishhouses”, published for the first time? times in 1947, use imagery of ages and seasons very similar to those in "In the Waiting Room", which was not written until the 1970s. The poems begin the same way, with the speaker " At the fisheries” saying “Although it is a cold evening, / near one of the fisheries / an old man sits in a net,” suggesting that it is winter, the season of death. , and the image of the old man in the cold reiterates this. Meanwhile, the speaker of “The Waiting Room,” who is implied to be a young bishop, begins by talking about her surroundings in a very matter-of-fact way, such as when she says, “It was winter. It was dark/early. The waiting room / was full of grown-ups, / arctics and overcoats. As in “At the Fishhouses,” these lines suggest that it is the season of death, except that in this poem, it is the death of one's childhood. His language shifts quickly from that of childhood to that of adulthood in his narrative, and this technique gives the reader a strong sense of his childish stream of consciousness and the anxiety of waiting both to leave the dentist and grow up. “At the Fishhouses,” the speaker comments on “the cold, the dark, the deep and the absolutely clear, / the water clear, gray and icy.” » . . Back, behind us, / the tall, dignified fir trees begin. The “great dignified fir trees” are grown from seedlings, so the fact that they are literally and metaphorically behind the speaker and the old man suggests that they are even older than the trees. The description of the water is similar to the last stanza of "In the Waiting Room", when she says: "Outside/...it was dark, slush, and cold/and it was still the 5th/February 1918 ." Here, young Elizabeth returns to her present after being tossed sporadically between her past, present and future – she is neither a full adult nor a full child, as she is only 6 years old. years old, but is now aware of growth, of being and of life. adult understanding after reading National Geographic and hearing his aunt scream. While the verse of "At The Fishhouses" suggests certainty about one's place in life, this final line of "In the Waiting Room" represents a transition into reality. The biggest difference between the two poems is the presence of a childish side. While movement into and out of adulthood is central to "In the Waiting Room" since the focus is on the transition from childhood to adulthood, childhood is only obscured in " At the Fishhouses.” After noticing the icy water and the fir trees, the speaker says, “Bluish, associated with their shadows, / a million Christmas trees stand / await Christmas.” The association of the fir trees behind her with Christmas is a nod to the childhood that is also behind her, but apart from this example, she remains focused on adulthood in this.