University:
Georgia Southern University
Course:
ENGL 1101 | Composition I
Academic year:

2022
Views:

446

Pages:

2
Author:

genanta0v

The Experience of Reading “When in Rome” Mari Evans’ poem “When in Rome” is written in the form of a dialogue between two speakers, who can be identified as a servant, Matti, and an employer/master. However, it appears that the dialogue is one-sided, as the servant seems to keep her responses to herself. This contributes to the development of the relationship of the two speakers, which is defined by both race and social status. The poem targets a general audience, and its central purpose is to show the nature of relationships between masters and servants before racial equality was prominent. “When in Rome” is presumably set in Rome, as indicated by the title, as well as the last two lines saying, “I’m tired of eatin/ what they eats in Rome….” The poem also seems to be set before civil rights, thus the 1800s. Lines 1-30 are the basis of the exchange between the two speakers. The employer is offering food to Matti in what seems to be a generous manner, but it is clear she holds a sense of superiority. She begins by saying, “take/ whatever you like/ to eat” (lines 3-5), but quickly follows up afterwards in lines 16-21 where she says, “but/ don’t/ get my anchovies/ they cost/ too much!” Her sense of superiority implies that she reserves expensive foods for herself, while Mattie is undeserving because she is of a lower socio-economic class. Throughout the poem, the second speaker Matti, appears to respond to the first speaker’s statements in her mind. The parentheses surrounding her responses mark that her words would be not necessarily be spoken aloud. Matti’s inferiority must anger her, since her comments have sarcastic implications. When the employer makes the comment about anchovies, Matti’s response includes: “what she think, she got—/ a bird to feed?” (lines 24-25). Also, when the employer offers foods to her, like cottage cheese, endives, and sardines, Matti thinks, “yes’m. just the/ sight’s/ enough!” (lines 28-30). Clearly, the foods that she is presented with are not nearly enough to satisfy one’s hunger, so her comment exudes ridicule. This poem accurately captures a period of time when behavioral habits were clear indicators of social status and race. Matti wishes that she could go back to wherever her home may be because she is simply “sick” of Rome. Both speakers address each other cordially, but it is evident that Matti dutifully regards the first speaker with a large amount of fear, for she would respond aloud if that weren’t the case. The poem conveys the idea that employers at this time did not properly respect servants, even if they thought they did.