Accomplishments Poem by Elizabeth Ralph Mertz - Degree 6th sem english

Class: Degree 3rd year
Sem: Degree 6th Sem
State: Telangana

Subject: ENGLISH

Lesson: Accomplishments

Accomplishments

About the Author:

The poem 'Accomplishments' was written by Elizabeth Ralph Mertz, a professor at the University of Wisconsin Law School who specializes in family law courses. She is an anthropologist and linguist of international fame. The poem was initially published in Redcliff Quarterly in 1975. The poem discusses gender roles and the expectations that fathers and mothers have of one another.

 

The poet uses the major subject of her poem "Accomplishments" to discuss her opinions on gender participation in the family structure. The poem makes the case that men and women ought to bear equal responsibility for the upkeep and advancement of the family as well as equal participation in domestic tasks. Men cannot succeed in their areas without women's cooperation. It will be as difficult for women to function in the absence of male assistance. She uses the following quotation to bolster her claim: "Did Aristotle and Milton have toddlers at their knees, begging for dinner at the same time they wrote their books and looked for rhymes?" 

Did Junior break off to comment that his cake had ketchup on it when Dante was thinking about Hell or Shakespeare was writing a sonnet? As Socrates taught the young people to ask questions, Plato wrote the renowned book Phaedo (On the Soul), Edmund Burke wrote the political pamphlet Reflections on the Revolution in France 1790, Homer wrote the epic Illiad and Odyssey, Newton invented calculus, Darwin wrote the theory of evolution, and Holmes and Brandeis indulged in defining civil rights and freedom of speech while they were engrossed in their eminence. None of their children had ever bothered them during this time. The women in charge of the families and children provided unwavering support for their brilliant discoveries and innovations.

The poet addressed the significance and complexities of gender roles in the family and how they affect people's professional careers. The poem's main topic and contextual allusions to some of the most successful people in human history.