Gwendolyn Bennett
As narrator of many of her poems, Bennett makes herself the subject. She expresses her feelings about growing older and about her complicated relationships. In "Epitaph" she explains how she desires for her corpse to fertilize the Earth in order to give life which, during her own lifetimes, she couldn't accomplish. She laments not having a baby or stable relationship. As a depressive, she finds solace in her impressions of melancholy. To Bennett, no event is devoid of suffering.
The Dusk-eyed Queen
In "Fantasy" the queen is the recipient of the poem in Bennett's dream. This queen has purple hair, hyacinth shoes, and sits upon an amethyst throne. Although Bennett recognizes the queen, she dares not approach.
The Unnamed Lover
Bennett remains vague in her references to relationships. Unclear whether she addresses the same lover or multiple, she writes about her feelings about past relationships often. The summation of these poems results in both a more thorough understanding of Bennett's approach to relationship as well as an outline of the type of person she falls for -- the "unnamed lover." As the subject of "Hatred" and "Untitled," this ambiguous person receives the full spectrum of Bennett's attention. In the first she declares unrelenting hatred for her lover, which she will never relinquish. In the second, she expresses an unbearable enduring love for this person, despite her best efforts to protect herself.
The Egyptian People
Bennett writes "Heritage" about her Egyptian heritage. She notices the somberness of her people's art. They live in a place characterized by darkness -- dark skin, dark sky, dark Nile. Although they play, they depict themselves like stoics, like the Sphinx.
