This was one of my favorite poems of the book because of how empowered Renee is by her body. She realizes how awesome she is and does not have any intentions of giving it away for free. She respects her body and self worth, and I think that is a message that all women can learn from. I believe that Renee is addressing this poem to men who objectify her, taking control of her body away from them and protecting it for herself.
Throughout the poem, Renee often refers to a "you." And she is not very polite or soft hearted to this "you", she is tough and crass and teasing. And it is awesome. After her first stanza, where she introduces her predicament - that all men want from her is sex - she comes after them saying that she understands why: because she is "THICK." I picture her with a man who attempted to charm his way into her pants, walking around him like a female interrogator. She says, "I'm THICK / Like molasses / Pouring slow out of that bottle / Onto your mind, saturating you with poetic time / And with ever word I coat your brain / Yet you're still only able to watch the way / I pour from that bottle" (stanza 2). Overflowing with sexual imagery, I can sense how she is taunting the listener with a you-can't-have-it-but-you-know-you-want-it attitude.
She also compares herself to the listener's "Aunt Sarah's pound cake" that is "filled with sooo many enticing ingredients that / You never bother to ask about / Given that you only want to eat" (stanza 3). Again, this is dripping with sexual undertones. The "you" would be the men that do not want to be with her for the long run, but are merely attracted to her body. Renee points out ingredients such as "Charisma, abstract eccentricity, [and] power", highlighting parts of her besides her breasts and thighs that are just as important to her being (stanza 3).
She calls the listener out for his shallow intentions, saying "If you stared as intently at my thoughts / As you do my thighs / Maybe on day you might be able to get in them / But I doubt it" (stanza 4). Renee teases the listener, continually stringing them along and dashing their sexual fantasies in one fell swoop. She uses her confidence and her power with a pen to her advantage. I feel like she is calling out all of those men who look at her like an object with this poem. She is letting them know that she knows what they are all about, but they should be warned that she is so much more than a pair of boobs. This is why she is THICK. She even says, "while your thinking may be thin / I am THICK" (stanza 7). Her body is only one facet of her being. She is empowered by it and not ashamed of it, but she knows that her self worth comes from within, that it has substance. So when she is talking to these shallow and narrow-minded men, this poet is not afraid to call them out and let them know that she is not what they expect, because she is THICK.
I liked this poem too, it is very much an "I am woman hear me ROAR" kind of poem. YOu make a good point about the sexuality of it, she deosnt necessarily say "all you want is sex", but she implies it so well, and tells the man that there is sooooo much more to her than her (apparantly awesome) body.
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