1. How would you characterize the speaker? Is the speaker a prostitute? What words and phrases, especially at the beginning of the poem, might be interpreted by the reader to assume the speaker is a sex worker (i.e., “working girl,” “street walker,” “lady of the night”? How might the reader be misinterpreting those words and phrases? If the speaker is not a sex worker, how would you characterize the speaker?
2. What does the speaker mean when she claims:
I want that red dress bad.
I want it to confirm
your worst fears about me,
to show you how little I care about you
or anything except what
I want. (16-21)
Does the speaker only care about herself? Is she completely selfish? What does the speaker mean by “your worst fears”?
3. Explain the importance of the color of the dress. What are the connotations of the color red? How would the poem change if the speaker wanted a white dress? A black dress? What are the social and cultural norms associated with a red dress? A white dress? A black dress?
4. The title of the poem poses the question: What do women want? How does the poem answer the question? What role does the red dress play in that answer? Is the dress a literal red dress? If you interpret the dress figuratively, what might the red dress symbolize?
