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About this quote

What does it mean?
The speaker compares their own trapped existence to animals in a cage, longing for release from the physical body.
In plain terms
I feel trapped in my body like animals in a zoo.
What can you take from it?
The body can feel like a prison.

Where it applies

  • philosophical contemplation
  • personal struggle
  • artistic expression

Putting it to work

  • explore existentialism
  • reflect on mortality
  • write poetry

Questions to consider

  • Do you feel trapped by your body?
  • How do you view mortality?

Another view

The metaphor may not resonate with those who feel at home in their bodies.

More from Randall Jarrell

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  2. A bat is born Naked and blind and pale. His mother makes a pocket of her tail And catches him. He clings to her long fur By his thumbs and toes and teeth. And …

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  3. It is better to entertain an idea than to take it home to live with you for the rest of your life.

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