Classic and Contemporary Poetry: Explained

Anne Sexton’s poem "The Frog Prince" is a dark and subversive retelling of the classic fairy tale, imbued with the poet's characteristic blend of humor, irony, and psychological depth. Sexton takes a familiar story and infuses it with themes of power, transformation, and the complex dynamics of desire and repulsion. The poem serves as both a critique of traditional gender roles and an exploration of the uneasy relationship between the grotesque and the beautiful.

The poem opens with a direct address to two figures, "Frau Doktor" and "Mama Brundig," immediately setting a tone that is both personal and somewhat accusatory. These figures seem to represent authority figures—perhaps maternal or societal—who enforce certain expectations or judgments. The speaker declares, "I write for you. I entertain," indicating a sense of obligation or performance, yet the ensuing imagery of frogs falling from the sky introduces a chaotic, almost apocalyptic element. The frogs, arriving "with an ugly fury," symbolize something invasive and repulsive, something that disrupts the ordinary order of life.

Sexton’s description of the frog is deliberately grotesque and unsettling. The frog is "as old as a cockroach," "a malformed doorknob," "a soft bag of green." These descriptions dehumanize the frog, turning it into an object of disgust. Yet, there is a deeper symbolic meaning here: the frog represents something primal, something that is both abject and essential to the human experience. The frog is associated with the father’s genitals, suggesting a connection to sexuality, reproduction, and perhaps the discomfort or revulsion that can accompany these aspects of life.

As the poem progresses, Sexton delves into the psychological and emotional impact of the frog’s presence. The frog is not just a physical entity; it becomes a symbol of intrusive thoughts, unwelcome desires, and the aspects of oneself that one would rather ignore or repress. The frog's persistence—wanting to eat from the princess’s plate, drink from her cup, and sleep in her bed—mirrors the way unwanted emotions or memories can invade one's mind and life. The princess’s initial revulsion and her attempt to distance herself from the frog highlight the struggle to maintain control over one’s own desires and boundaries.

The transformation of the frog into a prince after the princess throws him across the room is a pivotal moment in the poem. This act of violence is both a rejection of the grotesque and an unconscious acceptance of the transformation that follows. The prince, arising from the discarded frog, embodies the idea that what we often find repulsive or fearsome can, under the right circumstances, be revealed as something desirable or even noble. However, the prince’s arrival is not entirely a cause for celebration. The poem’s tone suggests a lingering ambivalence: the prince is "a friend of sorrow," a phrase that hints at the complexities and compromises inherent in the transformation.

The marriage between the prince and the princess is portrayed not as a romantic culmination but as a necessary conclusion, driven by the fact that "he had compromised her." This notion of compromise—both in the sense of violating and making concessions—underscores the poem’s critique of traditional fairy-tale endings. The prince’s subsequent actions—hiring a night watchman to guard their chamber and boarding over the well—suggest a desire to control and protect, but also to prevent any further disruptions to their carefully constructed reality.

The final lines of the poem return to the symbolic significance of the lost ball, which the princess had once dropped into the well. The ball is described in mystical and sacred terms—"that moon, that Krishna hair, / that blind poppy, that innocent globe, / that madonna womb"—suggesting that it represents something deeply precious and irreplaceable, perhaps the princess's innocence, purity, or unfulfilled desires. The well, once a source of both loss and transformation, is now sealed off, indicating that the princess’s journey of self-discovery and the confrontation with the grotesque has reached its conclusion, but at the cost of her freedom to explore those depths further.

"The Frog Prince" is a complex and multi-layered poem that challenges the reader to rethink the conventional narratives of transformation and romance. Through her vivid imagery and psychological insight, Anne Sexton reveals the darker, more unsettling aspects of these tales, offering a nuanced exploration of the human psyche and the ways in which we grapple with desire, fear, and identity. The poem ultimately suggests that while transformation is possible, it often comes with compromises and the closing off of other possibilities, leaving us to question the true nature of happily-ever-after.

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