Comparative Analysis of Bukowski and Blake Poems: Essay

This essay presents a comparative analysis of two poems, Charles Bukowski's “Bluebird” and William Blake's “Earth’s Answer.” The essay explores the themes of sexism and patriarchy, prevalent in both poems, highlighting how each poet approaches these issues. Bukowski's poem focuses on the vulnerability of men and the societal expectations placed upon them, while Blake's poem critiques the oppression of women. The analysis examines the literary devices used by each poet, such as metaphor and personification, and how they contribute to the overall critique of society. The essay contrasts the perspectives of the two poets, noting that Blake's critique is more general, while Bukowski's addresses a specific aspect of patriarchal society. The essay concludes by emphasizing the similarities in their critiques of societal norms and their use of literary techniques to convey their messages.

Running head: COMPARATIVE POETRY ESSAY
Comparative Poetry Essay
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1COMPARATIVE POETRY ESSAY
In the poem “Bluebird” written by the German-born American poet, Charles Bukowski
has portrayed the troubles and hardship of a male who has suffered terribly from a bad childhood
and has a rollercoaster of emotions in his daily life. The other poem “Earth’s Answer” written by
William Blake is a poem that depicts women oppression in and the unjust and brutal manner they
are treated with. Both of these poems are similar in their themes of sexism and the patriarchy that
was so prominent in the society.
Charles Bukowski has composed a poem from an angle that was hardly recognised by
other people since it is a thought that is rarely acknowledged by anyone. The poem preaches that
men put on a mask of “external” shell but in reality, a man is also a human being made of flesh
and bones (Blake, 2008). They have emotions too, their passion is undivided and they have the
right to express themselves in divine expressions. The society back in the times of Bukowski had
an image of a man as someone with no vulnerability since the tears of a man was a sign of
weakness which was nothing but a disadvantage for the whole society. Men with emotions,
found it hard to cope up in a society that had so many expectations from a man, like the man in
the poem of Bukowski’s “Bluebird” (Polimeni, 2015). The poem pointed out the flaw of the then
society when patriarchy was dominant and men did not have any choice but to be like the
structure of a man that this society created. Bukowski’s poem in a way portrayed the sexist
nature of the society through the eyes of a vulnerable man.
William Blake has metaphorically expressed the unjust that women goes through in the
society by using the imagery of Earth and personifying it as a woman. The torture and brutality
that mother earth has to suffer is indicative of the same type of brutality that women have to face
in the society. However, Bukowski’s poem was bended towards a certain category of men who
were vulnerable and showed sympathy towards them and their feelings; William Blake’s point of

2COMPARATIVE POETRY ESSAY
view is a strong attack to all kinds of patriarchy and all kinds of men (Paglia, 2008). There is a
generalised fact that Blake supports in his poem whereas Bukowski preferred to be realistic and
differentiate between a prevalent category of patriarchy that did exist but was not recognised.
The poems are written in simple diction and both the poems aimed at judging the society
in a way that it looked upon the weak men as similar to the “fair sex”. There is an image created
by the society that differentiates between man and woman, which was clearly portrayed through
both the poems. Bukowski used metaphor as his weapon to attack the norms of the society
whereas Blake took the help of personification. Though their ways of critiquing the society was
different, yet the mentality was similar.

3COMPARATIVE POETRY ESSAY
References:
Blake, W. (2008). The complete poetry and prose of William Blake. Univ of California Press.
Paglia, C. (2008). Final Cut: The Selection Process for Break, Blow, Burn. Arion, 16, 1-23.
Polimeni, C. (2015). Bukowski for Beginners. For Beginners, LLC.