It's a Woman's World

Eavan Boland wrote "It's a Woman's World" as a form of outcry to the injustices against women throughout history. Boland's tone, word choice, and the title of her poem highlight her personal distaste for the sorry condition in which women are being foot-noted in history. This poem reveals Boland's personal conception of a "woman's world:" this world is not a "woman's world" at all.

Boland titled her masterpiece "It's a Woman's World;" after reading the verses that follow this glaring conception, it becomes evident that there is no better contradiction than of the title and the content. From the first two lines of the poem, Boland establishes her conception of the injustices to women in history: "Our way of life/has hardly changed" (ll. 2-3). As far as Boland is concerned, the treatment of women has not changed since the beginning of history. She quickly develops her tone by the end of the second stanza; it is clear that Boland disapproves of the lack of recognition women receive. Boland constantly references back to her original thesis of stagnation for women. For example, in the fifth stanza, Boland creates a simile, comparing women to an ancient populace: "Like most historic peoples" women seem to have become extinct in the scrutinizing eyes of history (l. 18). Boland's comparison of women in history to "historic peoples" further sets her tone of indignation.

Aiding Boland's tone in the poem is her diction of simple words that all audiences easily identify with. Boland's infuriation manifests itself in words such as "oversights," "outrage" and something as simple as "never." Boland chose the declaration "oversights" to reveal just how insignificant women are portrayed in history - women have merely become overlooked in history texts. Boland repeats "never" several times in her work, which advances her concept of a "woman's world." Boland makes it very obvious that women have always been persecuted, having never been able to hold significant jobs other than "gristing bread" and maintaining her husband's household (l. 33). Women were denied the basic freedoms their male counterparts have always enjoyed.

In addition to her word choice throughout the poem, Boland titled her work to seemingly contradict her message of persecution. By titling her poem "It's a Woman's World," when she most obviously feels that this is the most untrue description she has come across, Boland reinforces her horror that women are forgotten in history. Boland points out some of the petty, horrifyingly common notions women have been remembered for: "gristing bread" or "getting the recipe/for a good soup/to appetize/our gossip" (ll. 33-36). These notions, she makes quite clear, are further proof that the