one art, by elizabeth bishop

In the poem “One Art,” Elizabeth Bishop expresses two different views on the “art of losing.” Bishop’s first view on loss is that loss is an everyday occurrence, something to “accept.” Her second view is that a loss can affect someone very deeply. Bishop utilizes verse form and language to fully develop these two different view points.
In the first five stanzas of the poem, Bishop’s view of loss is whimsical. In the first stanza Bishop states that “many things seem filled with the intent to be lost that their loss is no disaster.” With this statement, Bishop means that losing something is fundamental and is bound to happen no matter what we do. Also, Bishop insinuates that when we do lose something, we shouldn’t take it as a surprise, ...