Eluding the Bounds of Insomnia
Elizabeth Bishop’s poem "Insomnia" is about a woman who sees herself in the mirror and begins reflecting on her own life. ... The images and tones in "Insomnia" give the poem the theme that by reflecting internally and letting go of the hindering past one can break free from the bounds of guilt. The images in "Insomnia" push the reader to see that the woman in the poem is internalizing her life. ... Because the moon, a womanly image, is contrasted by the Universe, a male image that is all encompassing and ultimately binding, the moon and Universe are metaphors for the bounds a man puts on a woman. By deserting the Universe, or man, and telling him to go to hell, in the second stanza, the woman pushes away the bounds the man has on her.