How we cite our quotes: (Line)
Quote #4
My head gripped in bony vise
of knees, the writhing struggle
to wrench free, the blows, the fear
worse than blows that hateful (13-16)
Broken homes are an epidemic in this poem. This memory is either the woman's, or the speaker's, but either way the home described is just as bad as the one where the whipping is taking place. It is a home fully of control and violence. Instead of love and tenderness, there is an awful struggle and lots and lots of "blows."
Quote #5
the face that I
no longer knew or loved (17-18)
The woman, or the speaker, no longer recognizes the face of what must be a parent (the word "love" suggests that this is the case). A child so alienated from the parent that recognition and love are no longer possible? That is the complete opposite of anything we could call a home. That's for sure.