You know that feeling when you've been numb for way too long? Like you’re just a collection of chores and dry skin? Anne Sexton got it. She really, truly got it. In her 1969 collection Love Poems, she dropped a piece called "The Kiss" that basically functions as a literary defibrillator. It’s not your typical "roses are red" romance. Honestly, it’s closer to a medical miracle or a construction project than a greeting card.
If you’ve ever felt like a "group of boards" just waiting for someone to actually see you, The Kiss Anne Sexton is the poem that’s going to live in your head rent-free. It’s raw. It’s weird. It’s a bit grotesque. And it’s exactly what happens when someone finally wakes up a body that’s been sleeping for years.
The Brutal Opening: Why My Mouth Blooms Like a Cut
The poem doesn't ease you in. It starts with a punch to the gut: "My mouth blooms like a cut." Think about that for a second. Most poets describe a kiss as a flower or a breeze. Sexton describes it as a wound. It’s painful to be touched when you’ve been "wronged all year."
She talks about "tedious nights" and "rough elbows." You can almost feel the scratchy sheets and the loneliness. She mentions Kleenex boxes calling her a "crybaby." It’s a very specific kind of suburban misery. You’re not just sad; you’re pathetic. You’re a "fool."
Then, everything changes.
The kiss arrives, and it’s not just a gesture. It’s an intervention. Sexton describes her body "tearing at its square corners." It’s like she’s a package being ripped open. She mentions "Old Mary’s garments" being torn off. This isn't just about sex; it’s about shedding a holy, repressed version of herself—the "good girl" or the "perfect housewife" persona—to find the electric thing underneath.
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The Mechanical Metaphor: From Boat to Electric Bolt
About halfway through, Sexton shifts gears. She stops talking about skin and starts talking about... carpentry?
- The Wooden Boat: Before the kiss, she’s a "boat, quite wooden."
- The Lack of Purpose: She has "no business, no salt water under it."
- The Neglect: She’s "in need of some paint."
It’s a heartbreakingly accurate description of depression. You’re a vessel meant for the ocean, but you’re stuck on dry land, rotting. Then the lover comes along and "hoists her" and "rigs her."
Then comes the "Zing!"
Yes, she actually uses the word "Zing!" in a Pulitzer-winning context. It’s a "resurrection." She’s suddenly "shot full of these electric bolts." This is the core of The Kiss Anne Sexton. It’s the transition from being an object (a group of boards) to being a living, breathing, "electric" human being.
Why the "Confessional" Label Matters (But Isn't Everything)
Critics love to call Sexton a "confessional" poet. They lump her in with Sylvia Plath and Robert Lowell. While it’s true she wrote about her own breakdowns and her own affairs, calling "The Kiss" just a confession feels a bit small.
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It’s more of an anthem for anyone who has felt "useless." Sexton’s friend and fellow poet Maxine Kumin once noted that Sexton wrote about things women weren't "supposed" to talk about—menstruation, abortion, and the sheer hunger of the female body. "The Kiss" fits right into that. It claims the right to be resurrected by desire.
What Most People Get Wrong About This Poem
A lot of people read this and think, "Oh, it’s a poem about how a man saved her."
Kinda. But not really.
If you look closer, the lover in the poem is almost a ghost. We don't know his name. We don't know what he looks like. The focus is 100% on her transformation. The kiss is the catalyst, sure, but the "electric bolts" and the "resurrection" are happening inside her own nerves.
It’s about the reclamation of the self. She was a "group of boards," and now she’s a ship ready for "salt water." The power belongs to the person waking up, not just the person doing the waking.
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The Real-World Context of 1969
You have to remember what was happening when Love Poems came out. It was 1969. The suburban dream was starting to show some serious cracks. Sexton was living in a world of manicured lawns and hidden cocktails.
Her poetry was a middle finger to the "Stepford" expectation. In "The Kiss," when she talks about tearing off garments "knot by knot," she’s tearing off the 1950s. She’s tearing off the expectation that she should be quiet and "wooden."
Actionable Takeaways: How to Read Sexton Today
If you’re diving into The Kiss Anne Sexton for the first time, don’t try to be too academic about it.
- Read it aloud. Sexton was a performer. She had a rock band (Anne Sexton and Her Kind). Her poems are meant to be heard. Feel the "Zing!" on your tongue.
- Look for the "Grotesque." Don't shy away from the "mouth blooming like a cut." Sexton believed that beauty and pain were the same thing.
- Check the rest of 'Love Poems'. If "The Kiss" hits home, read "The Touch" or "For My Lover, Returning to His Wife." They all deal with that same high-voltage emotional stakes.
- Acknowledge the darkness. Sexton eventually lost her battle with mental illness in 1974. Knowing that makes these moments of "resurrection" in her poetry feel even more precious and urgent.
Moving Forward with the Poem
The next time you feel like a "group of boards" or a boat with "no salt water under it," remember this poem. It’s a reminder that the "electric bolts" are still there, even if they’ve been dormant for a year.
The Kiss Anne Sexton isn't just about a moment in a bedroom. It’s about the terrifying, wonderful experience of coming back to life when you thought you were finished.
To really get the full weight of her work, look for a copy of the Complete Poems. See how "The Kiss" contrasts with her later, more religious works. You'll see a woman who spent her whole life trying to find a way to stay "hoisted" and "rigged" against the tide.
Read it when you’re numb. Read it when you’re hungry for something real. Just don't expect it to be a quiet experience.