His Speed and Strength (Themes)

Themes

Masculine Versus Feminine

As the title implies, this poem is concerned with issues of masculinity, at least in the traditionally accepted sense. In the poem, the narrator describes a day in which she spent time with her son at the local community swimming pool. In this scene, the narrator underscores the "speed and strength" of her son in several ways. At the beginning of the poem, the mother remembers how her son raced her home from the swimming pool. The race begins in the mother's favor: "First I am ahead, Niké, on my bicycle." The reference to Niké, the Greek goddess of victory, indicates that the narrator might win this race. Yet, the son soon prevails: "then he is ahead, the Green Hornet," a reference to a popular comic book male superhero. The differences between the two styles of competing are profound. While the mother rides her bicycle with "no hands, and the Times crossword tucked in my rack," indicating a lack of concern for winning, the boy is described as "buzzing" up a street and "flashing around the corner."

Traditionally, masculinity is associated with strength, competitiveness, and bravery, while femininity is associated with weakness and peace. Although the identification of these traits as specifically male has been hotly debated and has been labeled a stereotypical approach by some, Ostriker sticks to the traditional associations in this poem. This continues as Ostriker describes what the actual swim at the pool was like. While the mother is leisurely "doing my backstroke laps," the boy is performing impressive "one-and-a-half flips off the board." The boy is concerned with knowing whether or not his mother saw his acrobatics.

Racial Conflict

Ostriker also discusses, at least in a subtle sense, the fact that mother and son live in a world filled with racial hatred. Ostriker describes the mother's reaction when she sees a bunch of "black / and white boys wrestling and joking, teammates." The wrestling is once again an indication of the inherent aggressive male tendencies that Ostriker is underscoring. Yet, in the context of the poem, the wrestling between African American boys and white boys also serves to highlight the fact that these two groups, in the adult world at least, are locked in a racial struggle. The poet comments on this when she notes that the boys are "touching each other as if / it is not necessary to make hate." The poet knows that, although these boys are friends here in the sheltered environment of the pool, when they grow up and enter the adult world, they may become enemies, involved in the same racial conflict that adults are.

Childhood

It is their childhood that protects the boys from this adult hate that pervades society. As the poem progresses, one might think that perhaps there is hope for this generation of males, that maybe they can succeed peacefully where their parents' generation has not. Yet, at the end of the poem, Ostriker leaves her readers with an image that predicts the future, war-like tendencies of the boy: "he peels / away, pedaling hard, rocket and pilot." The use of these terms underscores the idea of physical war, which was a global fear when Ostriker wrote this poem, during the ideological conflict known as the Cold War. While the mother is content to focus on the "big wind at our backs" as they ride home and is not concerned with riding faster, the boy chooses to go faster, racing out of his childhood and into his adult life. One can determine, from the cues that Ostriker gives readers in the poem, that this future will likely be based on the boy's desire to achieve greater feats of speed and strength.

Topics for Further Study

• Research and discuss the differences between men and women, in terms of speed and strength. Organize your research into a short report, using charts, graphs, and other graphics wherever possible.
• Research the differences between male and female styles of communication. Imagine that you are a member of the opposite sex. Now, write a journal entry that describes the difficulties you have communicating with someone from the opposite sex (i.e., your actual sex).
• Choose one female athlete, from any point in history, who has competed successfully with men. Write a short biography about this woman.
• Read any of the classic texts from Carl Jung or other modern researchers who were among the first to discuss the psychological differences between men and women. Compare the ideas in this text to the latest research concerning the differences between the sexes.