Analysis of The Box

Sara Tolliday 1986 (Melrose, MA)



You made me a box
It’s shiny and smooth
The edges are sharp
I run my fingers along grooves
They spell my name
It really is mine!
I can’t believe you made me my very own box
After all this time
You tell me, “get in!”
And so I do
I usually do what you say
Even if I don’t want to
It’s cold and stark
There’s nothing inside
Kind of represents what you think’s in my mind
I explore the box as I lay down my head
It’s rugged and hard
Nothing like you said
I thought it would be soft
Because so am I
I’m confused and unsettled, why?
Why have you made this box so small?
I can’t fit inside my talents and dreams
I can’t stand tall
There’s no space for my ambitions, my thoughts, or ideas
I feel something by my feet, what is this?
Down the end, you built in my fears
This isn’t at all where I pictured our home
A dark empty box
Where I lie all alone
You say that you love me
If you did, you would know
That my box has no walls
My box, it would grow
My box would be vast
Full of color and gleam
A safe place to be and to be seen
I never thought you’d have the nerve, the gall
To even for a second believe
That I belong in a box at all
After I leave, and you cross off my name
You’ll meet a new girl
And you’ll tell her the same
You’ll show her this box
The one you made me
You’ll deceive and pretend
Smile and plea
I hope when you’re done
Once you’ve finished your show
That she sees through your lies
And fucking says no


Scheme ABCDEFAGHIJIKLMNONPQQRSRTUVWAXYZ1 Z2 3 4 R5 RE6 EAY7 Y8 Z9 Z
Poetic Form
Metre 11101 11001 01011 11110011 1111 11011 110111111011 10111 11110 0111 110001111 1011111 1101 11001 1101111011 10101111111 11001 10111 111111 01111 10100101 11111111 1110111001 1111 11111010111010 1110111111 10111011 11111110101 01101 111101 111111 111111 111111 11111 11111 111001 011110111 1101110101 110101001 110100111 1011011111 11011 011001 11011 01111 101001 101 11111 111011 111111 01011
Closest metre Iambic trimeter
Characters 1,471
Words 318
Sentences 6
Stanzas 1
Stanza Lengths 51
Lines Amount 51
Letters per line (avg) 21
Words per line (avg) 6
Letters per stanza (avg) 1,080
Words per stanza (avg) 298

About this poem

Don’t ever let anyone try to fit you into a place you don’t belong. Be you, even if that means big and loud and “too much.” Know your worth and only accept what you deserve.

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Written on November 24, 2023

Submitted by Sara.tolliday86 on December 06, 2023

1:35 min read
38

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