Poetry · Chapter
A Cat explained
The chapter reflects on a cat that was owned but unloved, locked out at night, and whose kittens were drowned.
What happens
The chapter reflects on a cat that was owned but unloved, locked out at night, and whose kittens were drowned. Despite this, the cat thrived in spring by preying on songbirds, which the speaker loathed. The cat lived a long life until death finally brought her rest.
Themes in this chapter
Nature and the Seasons
The cat's predation on birds in spring highlights the harsh realities of the natural world.
The Cycle of Life and Death
The cat's long life and eventual death, along with the killing of birds and kittens, underscores the cycle of life and death.
Characters to notice
- Unknown
The speaker who loathes the cat for killing birds and reflects on her life.
Key passages
“She had a name among the children; But no one loved though someone owned Her, locked her out of doors at bedtime And had her kittens duly drowned.”
The children knew her name, but she was unloved; her owner locked her outside at night and drowned her kittens without hesitation.
Establishes the cat's neglected and harsh existence.
“I loathed and hated her for this; One speckle on a thrush’s breast Was worth a million such; and yet She lived long, till God gave her rest.”
I despised the cat for killing birds; a single spot on a thrush's chest was more valuable to me than a million cats, yet she lived a long life until God finally granted her peace.
Reveals the speaker's intense emotional conflict and the cat's eventual death.