Amniocentesis is a 15 line poem written from the point of view of the author about being pregnant late in life. This poem consists of two stanzas, the first containing 6 lines and the second containing 9 lines. In the poem Wolfe comforts her unborn child during the surgical procedure that will require some of the amniotic fluid to be taken out of the womb so that the doctors can analyze it and determine whether or not the fetus has any genetic defects. In "Amniocentesis", Wolfe uses free form structure, dramatic tone, and several vivid metaphors describing this event and suggests calmness and protection throughout the poem. The structure of this poem is very simple. She uses no apparent rhyme scheme or rhythm at all, and most of the lines are short. The title of the poem tells exactly what the background is for this work so that the reader has a clear view of what is happening and can understand the metaphores she uses much more easily. In this poem Wolfe uses no punctuation at all, only capitalization at the beginning of certain lines, seemingly where a new sentence would begin. I think the reason Wolfe left out the punctuation is that she may have wanted the poem to flow even though the lines are short and chopped up, so without the abrupt stop at the end of the sentences the poem seems to flow more appropriately, which adds to the calming effect it has. The tone of the author is what causes this great calming effect in this poem. Although her child is at high risk for having some kind of genetic disorder, she is very relaxed and calm. She is comforting her baby while the procedure takes place, informing it of the purpose of this act. I felt that there was a sharp contrast between the flow of the poem being calm and relaxing and the subject she is speaking of, her childs possibility of having a genetic disorder. She does not seem to be worried about the outcome at all, she suggests worry and fear in lines 6 and 7, and in...
