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Anne Sexton - Killing The Love

I am the love killer,
I am murdering the music we thought so special,
that blazed between us, over and over.
I am murdering me, where I kneeled at your kiss.
I am pushing knives through the hands
that created two into one.
Our hands do not bleed at this,
they lie still in their dishonor.
I am taking the boats of our beds
and swamping them, letting them cough on the sea
and choke on it and go down into nothing.
I am stuffing your mouth with your
promises and watching
you vomit them out upon my face.
The Camp we directed?
I have gassed the campers.

Now I am alone with the dead,
flying off bridges,
hurling myself like a beer can into the wastebasket.
I am flying like a single red rose,
leaving a jet stream
of solitude
and yet I feel nothing,
though I fly and hurl,
my insides are empty
and my face is as blank as a wall.

Shall I call the funeral director?
He could put our two bodies into one pink casket,
those bodies from before,
and someone might send flowers,
and someone might come to mourn
and it would be in the obits,
and people would know that something died,
is no more, speaks no more, won't even
drive a car again and all of that.

When a life is over,
the one you were living for,
where do you go?

I'll work nights.
I'll dance in the city.
I'll wear red for a burning.
I'll look at the Charles very carefully,
weraing its long legs of neon.
And the cars will go by.
The cars will go by.
And there'll be no scream
from the lady in the red dress
dancing on her own Ellis Island,
who turns in circles,
dancing alone
as the cars go by.

Added: on October 11th, 2005 at 9:51 AM | Viewed: 17721 times | Comments and analysis of Killing The Love by Anne Sexton Comments (11)


Killing The Love - Comments and Information

Poet: Anne Sexton (Anne Sexton Art)
Poem: Killing The Love
Poem of the Day: Feb 10 2008

Comment 11 of 11, added on January 19th, 2006 at 10:40 AM.

This poem makes perfect sense to me. Whenever you end a relationship you kill that entity that was the joint version of you and someone else. You can call that "third person" love.

As far as someone not accepting blame, I don't think this poem tosses blame on anyone, except perhaps the writer herself. She states clearly that she is the love killer, and doesn't give reasons (which could be interpreted as blame on the other person) as to why she is killing love. Its more about the death of love. The sympathy and loss and continuation of life that go along with it.


Heather from United States
Comment 10 of 11, added on December 10th, 2005 at 3:18 PM.

I find it interesting that those who speak of experiencing the killing of love seem to place the responsibility on others in thier lives and take none of their own.

Jay from United States
Comment 9 of 11, added on October 11th, 2005 at 9:51 AM.

I am new to Anns poetry. It saddens me deeply because my husband is trying with all his might to Kill The Love he has for himself and everyone and thing around him. He is manic depressive and uses her poetry to enable himself to fall deeper so he can kill himself as well. It saddens me because his children will be without a father someday and this sight is only allowing him to gather information to make it worse not better. I feel for Ann I understand her dispare as I am a outsider looking in and watching a beautiful person Kill The Love so you can Kill himself.

Michelle from United States

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