Haunched like a faun, he hooed
From grove of moon-glint and fen-frost
Until all owls in the twigged forest
Flapped black to look and brood
On the call this man made.
No sound but a drunken coot
Lurching home along river bank.
Stars hung water-sunk, so a rank
Of double star-eyes lit
Boughs where those owls sat.
An arena of yellow eyes
Watched the changing shape he cut,
Saw hoof harden from foot, saw sprout
Goat-horns. Marked how god rose
And galloped woodward in that guise.
What do you think?
- Any lit terms you may have spotted that also fit the interpretations we shared?
- Do you have a different interpretation?
- What do you think the scene has to do with the message of the poem? (at night, in fen and grove and forest at different times in the poem)
- What meaning is there to the line “Stars hung water-sunk…”?
- is the man willingly a faun or is the transformation forced- a curse, or a gift?
Lets discuss it!
Appreciation of Writer’s choices: Interpretation 2
Appreciation of Writer’s choices:
Interpretation 1
Haunched like a faun, he hooed
From grove of moon-glint and fen-frost
Until all owls in the twigged forest
Flapped black to look and brood
On the call this man made.
No sound but a drunken coot
Lurching home along river bank.
Stars hung water-sunk, so a rank
Of double star-eyes lit
Boughs where those owls sat.
An arena of yellow eyes
Watched the changing shape he cut,
Saw hoof harden from foot, saw sprout
Goat-horns. Marked how god rose
And galloped woodward in that guise.
Interpretation 2
The poem is about society’s views on promiscuity, and is not limited to only Plath’s views of her husband.
Literary techniques!
Symbolism
She used the symbol of a Faun:
- to represent a god-like creature who shows dominance
- to compare her husband to a promiscuous creature who thought highly of himself
Word Choice:
- “Watched the changing shape he cut, Saw hoof harden from foot, saw sprout Goat-horns” Tells the reader that this is a transformation from human to faun.
- “marked how god rose” She even uses the word “god” to describe the faun, showing how men like her husband view themselves.
Language
- What words may need definition?
- hooed – shortened version of hooved, in this context “to move on hooves”.
- fen-frost – low land covered wholly or partially with water, frosted over.
- coot – a bird, waterfowl- call:
- lurching – an awkward, swaying or staggering motion or gait.
- guise – assumed appearance or mere semblance
A presentation by Jana Saade and Alicia Sayer
Interpretation 1
Literary techniques!
Imagery/Symbolism
The faun, who was once a man, is fleeing from the lit areas of the groves and fen to a darker forest. This imagery is also a symbol for the promiscuous person’s decline in the eyes of society, willfully fleeing from their “light”.
The owls, black with yellow eyes that glow like stars, could both symbolize the man’s actions, which condemn and haunt him, and the judgement of society, chasing him even as he flees from his actions.
The transformation from the man to faun symbolizes his own debasement and animalization of himself.
Diction
Throughout the poem, Plath uses fairly simple words, usually with single syllables. This could be to show the simple, animalistic qualities of the promiscuous, as seen by society.
Allusion
The theme of fauns, and gods, is an allusion to Greek mythology, in which fauns and the faun god Pan, as well as many of the other gods, were very promiscuous and sexual. All the time. Therefore the promiscuous man in the poem is transformed into a faun.
“Faun” portrays how Plath felt about her husband.
Her husband ended up leaving her for a mistress of his.
In a feminist perspective, this poem illustrates the dominance of man over nature, and over women.
She uses a “god-like” creature such as a Faun to demonstrate how men like her husband see themselves.
Haunched like a faun, he hooed
From grove of moon-glint and fen-frost
Until all owls in the twigged forest
Flapped black to look and brood
On the call this man made.
No sound but a drunken coot
Lurching home along river bank.
Stars hung water-sunk, so a rank
Of double star-eyes lit
Boughs where those owls sat.
An arena of yellow eyes
Watched the changing shape he cut,
Saw hoof harden from foot, saw sprout
Goat-horns. Marked how god rose
And galloped woodward in that guise.
Faun
Haunched like a faun, he hooed
From grove of moon-glint and fen-frost
Until all owls in the twigged forest
Flapped black to look and brood
On the call this man made.
No sound but a drunken coot
Lurching home along river bank.
Stars hung water-sunk, so a rank
Of double star-eyes lit
Boughs where those owls sat.
An arena of yellow eyes
Watched the changing shape he cut,
Saw hoof harden from foot, saw sprout
Goat-horns. Marked how god rose
And galloped woodward in that guise.
Faun – Through a Feminist Lens
“Faun” seems to illustrate her feelings towards her husband Ted Hughes. Ted was known as a “ladies man” and he eventually did leave Sylvia for a mistress. “Faun” through a feminist lens eludes to the dominance a man appears to have over nature, over women, over everything. The man in this poem is appears to be the center of the world, and the world is blind to his true identity. “Faun” puts a feminist perspective on the reality of man and compares it to the “god-like” perspective that some men feel they are, some men like her husband.
This poem seems to be like most of Sylvia’s poems, a model of her life intertwined with mystery and fiction. She tried to be a true feminist, but when it came to Ted her powerful womanly views fell short to her undying love. “Faun” embodies her ill desire for Ted’s womanizing and affairs. She subtly uses her stanzas to represent more than the feminist view of human nature, but in a small way her lack of courage to express those views to her husband.
My feminist perspective of this poem is that the faun is a dominant figure that has all eyes on him. This poem is not a rejoice for freedom, but a realization that the struggles between men and women are apparent and never ending. It does not directly cry “feminism”, yet in a small way understanding the difference is a perspective worth writing about. “Faun” is Sylvia Plath’s step towards feminism, and it is an example to women everywhere who find themselves in one sided relationships. Knowing is half the battle.
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