Analysis of Beds by Toi Derricotte

Toi Derricotte is the author of this piece, and appears to be credible. She has written 7 books, including Tender, which won the Paterson Poetry Prize in 1998, proving that she is a skillful and intelligent author. Beds is about the author as a young girl who lived with her mother and her abusive father, who would beat her viciously. The girl in the story described the reason for the beating as a sort of mental competition between herself and her father. When she cried, her father would describe it as her trying to get attention, and would beat her even more until she stopped crying. She said that her father was smart, but violent, and would beat her in areas where the bruises wouldn't show, and there would be no evidence of a beating. She never once blames him throughout the story, though, almost making it sound like she looks up to him for his strength. She describes him as resolute, and talks about him as though he was one of her closest friends. She gave him pet names, playing with his slippers when she was bored. The story is told in a way that revolves around the different areas the main character slept in. She slept in a bassinet first, then a crib, and afterwards in various beds in different rooms. This essay seemed to be about reflecting on how the beatings have affected her and why they occurred. It appears that the target audience for whom this essay were written was people who were curious as to what it's like to have an abusive parent. The author wanted us to think about her situation without skewing our opinion in any way for or against her father's treatment of her, which is why she told the story dispassionately.

This picture shows an ideal version of the first bed that the author slept on, a bassinet. 

Image Source: http://www.lifamilies.com/chat/p/6579427_1.jpg