Hymn of a Fat Woman

Joyce Huff

All of the saints starved themselves.

Not a single fat one.

The words “deity” and “diet” must have come from the same

Latin root.

Those saints must have been thin as knucklebones

or shards of stained

glass or Christ carved

on his cross.

Hard

as pew seats. Brittle

as hair shirts. Women

made from bone, like the ribs that protrude from his wasted

wooden chest. Women consumed

by fervor.

They must have been able to walk three or four abreast

down that straight and oh-so-narrow path.

They must have slipped with ease through the eye

of the needle, leaving the weighty

camels stranded at the city gate.

Within that spare city’s walls,

I do not think I would find anyone like me.

I imagine I will find my kind outside

lolling in the garden

munching on the apples.

simile

sarcasm/humor

metaphor suggesting that women became obsessed with becoming thin and their obsession “ate” at them

biblical reference to Matthew 19:24, bitter tone

similes describe being thin negatively (pew seats/hair shirts are uncomfortable)

hair shirt: a shirt of haircloth, formerly worn by penitents and ascetics

reiterates the idea that being thin is non-indulgent and going down the “straight”/”righteous” path

first person

religious allusion to the apple in the garden of eden which was sinful - possible reference to one of the seven deadly sins: gluttony

loll: sit, lie, or stand in a lazy, relaxed way - paints the image of fat people lounging around lazily

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allusion to the garden of eden

hymn: a religious song or poem, typically of praise to God - ironic because the poet feels attacked by her religious because all of the religious figures are thin

shards have sharp edges, reinforces how society’s standards of beauty hurts the poet, also possibly how she feels shattered by depiction of saints

emphasizes the author’s feeling of being abandoned and neglected by society

humor - tone seems a little bit defiant and proud - use of words such as lolling and munching suggest that she believes that she and others like her should be happy, no matter what their size