At the beginning of this semester, we read the poem The Traveling Onion. I knew from the opening words of the piece that it would be about more than just an onion. I think it was the title that gave it's depth away. You see, in my often literal mind, onions do not travel. I found myself questioning the poem's title and coming up with some distant answers. Perhaps the onion has traveled. The author could even, “kneel and praise” because of the distance that the onion has travelled to make it into the homes and stomachs of nearly everyone on planet earth.
The traveling onion is almost like an excerpt from a cookbook. I picture a great photography cookbook opened to the page of an onion cut in half with the words of Nye's poem in the margin. This poem is like a recipe in a way. Perhaps that is because the author thought of it while reading recipes? At any rate, this poem describes how onions make you cry, how they are subtle and yet full of flavor when cooked, and how they are often small and forgotten.
While reading this poem, I could see Nye cutting onions in her kitchen. At least when I am cutting vegetables, I often ponder more than just what is in front of me. Sometimes parables spring forth. I believe that Naomi Shihab Nye meant her onion poem to be sort of a parable. I don't think it is possible that it is just about an onion.
Part Two
I believe that this poem needs to be interpreted for a variety of reasons. The author intended for the reader to really ponder what she had to say. I think that she wanted to be subtle in her prose in order to engage the reader to think for herself. She didn't want to just spell out what people should think about a subject, but instead she wanted us, the readers, to come to our own conclusions and discoveries based on what she wrote. Her message is one of importance, I think. It's not because the poem is about onions, but rather the underlying themes of the piece are important because I believe that they teach us about life, history, depth, and compassion.
Even though I have now come to my own conclusion about the hidden meaning in this poem, the first stanza of this poem didn't really tip me off to what Nye was trying to say. It wasn't until I read, “And I would never scold the onion/ for causing tears...” that I realized this poem was definitely not about an onion. Here, Nye personifies the onion. Onions cause tears because of a chemical reaction. Of course we cannot or should not scold them, unless we are just being silly and having fun in the kitchen. Since the tone of this poem is serious, I am positive that Nye isn't just speaking concretely. I think this is a metaphor for how we tend to treat people who might show their emotions in public. People who draw us to tears and make us feel vulnerable: pastors who preach convicting sermons, human trafficking, National Geographic images of starving children. The fact of the matter is, tears are healing. They happen and they are God's way of bringing restoration and a surge of hormones that chemically help us to get over pain, grief, and sorrow. They also drive us to action and justice for the least in this world. Sure, onions make us cry, but I think Naomi is subtly pointing the finger at people who are afraid of emotions.
Part Three and Four
Sure, the onion is a wonderful part of the Allium genus, and it has traveled from central asia to arrive on our plates today, but I cannot think that the onion is all that Naomi Shihab Nye's poem is about. I love food, and I am thankful for onions, but after several thorough readings of this poem, I know that Nye is not just talking about onions. I believe that this poem is about being thankful for all things that we take for granted, but especially women in society.
Though in 1952, the year Nye was born, there were many woman poets and writers, women were still portrayed as stay at home wives and mothers in the media. Advertisements for appliances told women to ask their husbands for the latest toaster or iron. We laugh at such things today. Nye grew up in the 50s and 60s, a time of great change in America for women. After World War II, women realized that they had the strength and ability to work outside the home and still do a good job at raising their families. I think Nye had a political agenda: to show the world just how awesome and needed women are.
I don't know if Nye is a Muslim or not, but I do know that she visited the middle east when she was fourteen and that it changed her perspective on the world. I grew up with Muslim neighbors from Saudi Arabia. They thought it was perfectly normal and acceptable to eat at segregated tables. The boys in the family had their own bedrooms while the girls- all six of them- had to share. There was a definite difference in the way the boys and girls were treated in this family, and they were considered liberals. I think Nye's heritage plays a large role in her poetic voice and target audience.
The line, “When I think about how far the onion has traveled/ just to enter my stew today...” made me think about just how far women have traveled to get to the place in society that they now hold. In various cultures around the world, women are still treated as slaves and are not allowed to speak unless spoken to. While I was in Thailand, I learned to avert my gaze to men so as not to appear forward or condescending. It is the year 2012, and this is unheard of in most parts of America. Women have travelled a long way to get to where they are today in western society. There are women mathematicians, inventors, artists, and poets. Nye herself is one such women. Only three hundred years ago, women were writing under pen names and keeping all of their talents a secret from the world. We have come far. We are in the stew of humanity now along with every other race in the world. We provide color, flavor, and most of all, life.
Women are often treated as “small forgotten miracles.” Of course this is rather superficial, but when I read the words, “Crackly paper peeling on the drainboard,” I thought about the expectations of women in regards to their appearance. So many women rise early to put on their makeup and coif their hair. They go to great lengths searching their closets for the perfect outfit with matching purse and shoes in order to put their best foot forward. Of course, some women just go out in jeans and a t-shirt and do little more than washing their faces, but stereotypically, women around the world take time to beautify themselves. This often does go overlooked. It is quite rare for a man to notice a new dress on me or to comment on my toenail polish. I have grown to accept this as the norm. I so appreciate it when someone does take the time to notice.
It is women's “traditionally honorable career” to remain silent and to fade into the background. Nye herself is of middle eastern descent. Surely, she has witnessed families where men sit in the dining room and eat from fine china while women eat off of chipped second castings in the kitchen. Men get the choice cuts of meat while women take the scraps. This is the way of the middle east. I believe Nye is challenging this. It is an honor for a woman to disappear in middle eastern life. She is respected more if she keeps her mouth shut. How sad. How sad because women have so much to offer their spouses. They can provide a listening ear and an arm to lean on. They can comfort and sustain. They can provide laughter and harmony.
Part Five
So what? Why does my interpretation of this poem matter? I believe that it matters because Nye wanted her voice to matter. She wrote subtly so that she could draw people in to her poetry and make them think. I believe that her agenda was about women in society, but if she would have started out her poem this way, it would have been vastly different. Below, I have re-written the poem as I believe Naomi meant it. As you will read, it doesn't pack nearly the punch that Nye's words do.
The Traveling Women
When I think about how far the women has traveled
Just to enter society today, I could kneel and praise
All small forgotten miracles
Hair being tamed by morning light
Outfit checked before making breakfast
The way emotions cut into a women
and women falls apart on the hardwood floor,
A history revealed.
And I would never scold the women
for causing others tears.
It is right that tears fall
for something small and forgotten
How at meal, we sit to eat,
commenting on politics and business,
but never on the vulnerability of women,
now exhausted, now drained
or her traditionally honorable career:
For the sake of others,
disappear.
If Nye would have written her poem this way, I don't think it would have caused me to think about this topic in such depth. It would have just made me go, “Oh, that's nice,” and move right along. Instead, I had to savor every word and every line of this poem so that I truly could grasp the poignant meaning behind the text. Nye wanted her readers to grasp something greater from her works. I think there are a myriad of meanings behind this one poem, but if she would have spelled them each out, there would be nothing to think about. It would all be done for us, and then what would be the point of reading dry, bland poetry?
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