THE DRESS

The dress

The dress that was supposed to make you feel

Like you were the prettiest girl in the world

The dress

The dress that, instead, made you feel

Helpless

Ugly.

You didn’t eat the day before

You put it on

You wanted your instagram comments to read

“So fit”

Because you know they will respect you most

If they like how you look

Just because you feel pretty in that dress

Does not mean you are pretty

In that dress

These thoughts circle through my mind

Like a never ending spiral

You think that putting yourself

In your place, is the best way to become immune to

Others’ comments

So you stand in the mirror and tell yourself

You do not deserve beauty

Is it working?

Do their comments not sting anymore?

The dress

The dress that was supposed to make you feel

Like you were the most breathtaking girl in the world

The dress

The dress that, instead, made you feel

Uncomfortable

Reflection: The Dress

In my poem The Dress, I showed use of literary devices and enjambment to allow for the reader to get a better understanding of the topic discussed within the poem. Use of simile is used within the third stanza. “These thoughts circle through my mind Like a never ending spiral” and this is used to give the reader a somewhat visual perspective regarding how deep the mind can go to trick its host into believing anything it wants. I used enjambment within the third stanza to show the constant flow of internal negative thoughts, and that negative thoughts do not pause to let you breathe, they just flow constantly. “Just because you feel pretty in that dress Does not mean you are pretty.” I used rhetorical questions to put the reader in the character’s shoes, as if I were personally asking them a question. This allows for the reader to gain a sense of guilt themselves, and really allow for them to understand and personally relate to the topic discussed in The Dress. Regarding narration structure, I used second person narration through use of “you” throughout the poem. This, once again, allows for the reader to feel personally connected to the story of The Dress. The Dress is inspired by Billie Eilish’s “idontwannabeyouanymore” and highlights the most meaningful lyrics within the song. When Billie references girls staring in the mirror and calling themselves a “whore” for wearing a tight dress, it gave me the inspiration to make a new stanza specifically for how girls view themselves in the mirror when it is only them and their thoughts reflecting back at them.