The Full Text of “Kindness”
The Full Text of “Kindness”
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“Kindness” Introduction
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“Kindness” Summary
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“Kindness” Themes
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Deep Love vs. Shallow Kindness
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Lines 1-20
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Art and Anguish
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Lines 9-11
- Lines 14-20
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Kindness”
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Lines 1-5
Kindness glides about ...
... filling with smiles. -
Lines 6-8
What is so ...
... has no soul. -
Lines 9-11
Sugar can cure ...
... a little poultice. -
Lines 12-15
O kindness, kindness ...
... any minute, anesthetized. -
Lines 16-20
And here you ...
... children, two roses.
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“Kindness” Symbols
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Sugar
Where this symbol appears in the poem:- Lines 9-11: “Sugar can cure everything, so Kindness says. / Sugar is a necessary fluid, / Its crystals a little poultice.”
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“Kindness” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Personification
Where personification appears in the poem:- Lines 1-5: “Kindness glides about my house. / Dame Kindness, she is so nice! / The blue and red jewels of her rings smoke / In the windows, the mirrors / Are filling with smiles.”
- Lines 9-13: “Sugar can cure everything, so Kindness says. / Sugar is a necessary fluid, / Its crystals a little poultice. / O kindness, kindness / Sweetly picking up pieces!”
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Consonance
Where consonance appears in the poem:- Line 2: “Kindness,” “so nice”
- Line 3: “red,” “rings”
- Line 5: “filling,” “smiles”
- Line 6: “so real,” “cry,” “child”
- Line 7: “rabbit's cry,” “wilder”
- Line 8: “soul”
- Line 9: “can cure,” “so Kindness says”
- Line 10: “necessary”
- Line 11: “Its crystals,” “little poultice”
- Line 12: “kindness, kindness”
- Line 13: “Sweetly picking up pieces”
- Line 14: “Japanese silks, desperate butterflies”
- Line 15: “pinned any minute, anesthetized”
- Line 16: “come,” “cup”
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Assonance
Where assonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “Kindness glides,” “about,” “my,” “house”
- Line 2: “Kindness,” “nice”
- Line 3: “blue,” “jewels,” “rings,” “smoke”
- Line 4: “In,” “windows”
- Line 5: “filling with”
- Line 6: “cry,” “child”
- Line 7: “cry,” “wilder”
- Line 9: “Sugar,” “cure”
- Line 11: “Its crystals,” “little”
- Line 13: “Sweetly,” “pieces”
- Line 14: “desperate”
- Line 15: “pinned,” “any,” “minute,” “anesthetized”
- Line 16: “come,” “cup,” “tea”
- Line 17: “Wreathed,” “steam”
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Repetition
Where repetition appears in the poem:- Line 1: “Kindness”
- Line 2: “Kindness”
- Line 6: “cry”
- Line 7: “cry”
- Line 9: “Sugar,” “Kindness”
- Line 10: “Sugar”
- Line 12: “kindness, kindness”
- Line 20: “two,” “two”
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Metaphor
Where metaphor appears in the poem:- Lines 3-4: “The blue and red jewels of her rings smoke / In the windows,”
- Lines 10-11: “Sugar is a necessary fluid, / Its crystals a little poultice.”
- Lines 12-13: “O kindness, kindness / Sweetly picking up pieces!”
- Lines 14-15: “My Japanese silks, desperate butterflies, / May be pinned any minute, anesthetized.”
- Lines 18-19: “The blood jet is poetry, / There is no stopping it.”
- Line 20: “You hand me two children, two roses.”
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Apostrophe
Where apostrophe appears in the poem:- Lines 12-13: “O kindness, kindness / Sweetly picking up pieces!”
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Rhetorical Question
Where rhetorical question appears in the poem:- Line 6: “What is so real as the cry of a child?”
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Juxtaposition
Where juxtaposition appears in the poem:- Lines 1-20
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Alliteration
Where alliteration appears in the poem:- Line 3: “red,” “rings”
- Line 9: “can cure,” “so,” “Kindness,” “says”
- Line 11: “crystals”
- Line 12: “kindness, kindness”
- Line 13: “picking,” “pieces”
- Line 16: “come,” “cup”
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“Kindness” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Dame Kindness
- Smoke
- Rabbit's cry
- Poultice
- Anesthetized
- Japanese silks
- Pinned
- Blood jet
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(Location in poem: Lines 1-2: “Kindness glides about my house. / Dame Kindness, she is so nice!”; Line 9: “Sugar can cure everything, so Kindness says.”)
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Kindness”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“Kindness” Speaker
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“Kindness” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “Kindness”
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More “Kindness” Resources
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External Resources
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The Poet's Life — Read about Plath's life and work via the Poetry Foundation.
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Plath on Living and Parenting Abroad — Listen to a 1962 interview in which Plath explains why she and Ted Hughes chose to live and raise children in England.
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"The Blood Jet Is Poetry" — Read a 1965 Time magazine review, titled after a line from "Kindness," that helped shape Plath's posthumous reputation.
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Jillian Becker on Plath's Last Days — Jillian Becker, thought to be the model for "Dame Kindness" in "Kindness," recalls taking care of Plath shortly before the poet's death. [Content Warning: depression, suicide]
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Confessional Poetry — Read Poetry Foundation's introduction to Confessionalism, the literary movement with which Plath's work is often associated.
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"Difficulties of a Bridegroom" — More information on one of the inspirations for "Kindness": a radio play written by Plath's estranged husband, Ted Hughes.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by Sylvia Plath
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