Degas's Laundresses: Themes & Linking Poems

Degas’s Laundresses: Themes & Linking Poems

Poem - “Degas’s Laundresses”

  • A reflection on Edgar Degas’s painting, “Degas’s Laundresses” is a poem where Boland explores the role of women and the dehumanisation they face through their work.
  • Boland brings the underappreciated and overworked women, launderers in the painting, to life, painting a vivid picture of their hardships and the unglamorous nature of their job.
  • The poem emphasises the gap between perception and reality, challenging the romanticising of these women’s lives.

Linking Poems

  • Poems like “Anorexic” and “Lace” share similar themes with “Degas’s Laundresses”, all highlighting the subjugation of women and the physical and emotional toll it takes on them.
  • These poems also underline the stark unsentimental reality behind romanticised or idealised notions of femininity and womanhood.

Themes - “Degas’s Laundresses”

  • The theme of the marginalisation and dehumanisation of women is at the forefront in “Degas’s Laundresses”. Boland sheds light on the unnamed, unappreciated women working tirelessly behind the scenes.
  • The theme of the gap between art and reality is prominent, where the poem criticises Degas’ romantic depiction and instead unveils the ‘real’ women with their struggles behind the painting.
  • The notion of time is ever-present in this poem as well, with the changing of the day reflecting the relentless and cyclical nature of the women’s work.

Boland’s Style - “Degas’s Laundresses”

  • As typical of Boland’s work, the poem utilises simple and direct language to articulate the complex emotions and harsh realities faced by the women.
  • Imagery and metaphors used in the poem such as, “The coarse soap of the Seine/ Has etched your knuckles, / Made a delta of each hand” strongly convey the physical pain experienced by the launderers.
  • The poem features a regular rhyme and rhythm that echo the monotonous and ceaseless work of the laundresses which also serves to emphasise their plight.
  • Boland’s style is characterised by her ability to humanise and elevate the mundane, a trait visible in this poem when she brings focus to the gruelling labour of the laundresses.