“The Dress”
“What Do Women Want” by Kim Addonizio lets the reader explore the risk that women have of being stereotyped by her peers. In “What Do Women Want” Addonizio conveys a message to the reader that what women really want is too understood. Through the poem, Addonizio focuses on the sad stereotype that women endure on the daily bases.
In “What Do Women Want” the poem opens up with the words “I want a red dress” (1). The speaker uses the red dress as a metaphor through the poem. The red dress is meant to represent a women’s sexiness and independence. She states” I want it flimsy and cheap,/I want it too tight, I want to wear it/until someone tears it off me”(3-6). She goes on to state ,” I want it sleeveless and backless, /this dress, so no one has to guess/ what's underneath”(6-8). Addonizio is showing the reader how the speaker loves her body. The dress should be tight so everyone can see her curves. The dress was meant to draw attention to herself, to attract people. She wants to be wanted by others. She believes that the red dress will help her be wanted. …show more content…
She states“I want to walk down/the street past Thrifty’s and the hardware store/with all those keys glittering in the window. The author use the “glittering keys” how the women in this poem are like the keys, they glitter, but go unnoticed. Addonizo is showing the reader how the speaker want to be noticed, not just because she is wearing a beautiful dress but she also want to be notice for what lies within. She goes on to state”, I want to walk to walk like I’m the only/ woman on earth and I can have my pick/ I want the red dress bad” (14-18). The speaker is showing the reader how it makes her feel to be in the red dress. She feels as if she is set apart from the rest of the