Summary

A mother describes her life of hardship to her son. She explains that it has not been one of ease and privilege, but rather one of dangers, pitfalls, and obstacles. Often her life has been empty and lacking in basic needs. But in spite of this upbringing, the mother has continued moving forward, reaching goals and milestones along the way. She implores her son not to give up when things seem hard, because she is still going after all this time despite the hardships she has faced.

Analysis

“Mother to Son” is told through a single 20-line stanza without any breaks between lines. The first line makes it clear that the poem is a first-person account: “Well, son, I’ll tell you” (Line 1) gives the sense that the reader has been dropped into the middle of a conversation, and that the mother has some...