"The Fish" is a poem of many levels. Superficially it appears to be of the speaker's events while fishing but then when analyzed transforms into a beautiful poem concerning a lesson that was learned. Through the use of symbolism and irony Elizabeth Bishop portrays the speaker as coming to respect age and experience.

The rich symbolism in this piece illustrates the fish's age and familiarity with the condition he is in. The fish has been through this situation before in his youth, "From his lower lip...hung five old pieces of fish-line," with his experience he would probably find a way to escape the predicament he is currently found himself in. However, experience has also taught him the same situation will occur at a later point in time and begins to give into death. "It was more like the tipping of the object towards the light" this description...