I Knew a Woman

Theodore Roethke’s poem, I knew a woman, is about a man’s love for a woman. Throughout this poem, the speaker praises this woman. The tone is very loving and appreciative. When the author says, “Of her choice virtues only Gods should speak, Or English poets who grew up on Greek (line 5),” he means that the woman that he speaks of is so great that only the brightest and best beings should have the priveledge of praising her.
The speaker in I knew a woman is a man who is probably around thirty-years-old. I believe this is true because the language he uses to describe the woman sounds youthful and giddy, but has a serious undertone. I think this idea in best represented in line 18 when the speaker says, “My eyes, they dazzled at her flowing knees; her several parts could keep a pure repose.” The first part of the sentence is bright and hopeful, especially when the speaker uses the word “dazzled,” while the second part sounds much mo...