The Friendship

By Toi Derricotte

Anna Stanford

I tell you I am angry.You say you are afraid.

You take your glasses off and lay

Them on the table like a sparkling weapon.

I hold my purse in front of me.

Do I love you? Do you love me?

“If we just had time…”

You could show me how you wore your hair

Pushed forward over one eye, hiding

Half of what you knew of beauty

Poor friendship, why must it sit

At a table where the waitress

Is ready to go home? In a city

Between tunnels-cracksOf darkness in the sea.

Derricotte, Toi. The Friendship. New York: Simone & Schuster, 1996. 104. Print.

Work Cited

I really liked this poem because…

It really caught my eye and it got my attention. Out of all of the poems I

had gone through this one really stood out to me. I

loved the content and the way it was written.

Why I liked this poem…

My favorite line in the poem is, “If we just had time…”

That line is my favorite because time is very special to me. I don’t have a lot of free time for my personal life. When I

looked at that line I immediately thought of the people I had hurt because I was too busy. It struck me as a sign that I need to make time for the people that I love and that I care about. Though I am busy, time is endless. I will always have time for the person I love. No matter how long. Even if

it is a minute.

Favorite Line

The poem doesn’t necessarily make me upset or sad, it rather makes me think about my life. It makes me take a step back and

realize the things that are important to me. This is probably one of my favorite poems written

by another person. Something that has affected my life greatly.

Mood/Tone

The poem describes someone who isn’t really sure what they want or what they need in their relationship. She’s scared and frightened, she’s angry…but at the same time you can tell that she is strong. Each line has a very strong description of her

feelings.

Poem Meaning

Figurative language:

“You take your glasses off and lay them on the table like a sparkling weapon.”

- simile

“Poor friendship, why must it sit at a table where the waitress is ready to go

home.”- hyperbole