Week 5, Question 8

In "The Fish" by Elizabeth Bishop I find her ability to infer the fish as having humanistic characteristics. Specifically when she says, "He didn't fight. He hadn't fought at all" (830), portrays a fish with a hook in its mouth lying dead wait. It makes the reader think what is wrong with the fish? Usually the flop and fight their predator, but this one just dangles, motionless. As if it is competent enough to accept its fate and give up the fight. Bishop furthers the fish's competence when she announces, "with all their five big hooks grown firmly in his mouth...a five-haired beard of wisdom" (832), giving the fish the human characteristic of wisdom. The fish has obviously fought his way out of numerous, similar and possibly worse situations, yet this time it simply gave in. I guess six times the charm, and the fish finally realized that there was no hope for eternal freedom and gave up. This is much like humans who fight and fight for something until they are worn down so much that they give in and succumb to what is thought inevitable. The fish has worked to survive, but adversity had gotten the best of it. Maybe Bishop tossing it back in will give it the desire to keep going, much like a helping hand...