18 pages • 36 minutes read
Grace Chua(Love Song, With Two Goldfish)
Fiction | Poem | Adult | Published in 2003A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Further Reading & Resources
Related Poems
“Among the Animals” by Chelsea Rathburn (2011)
American poet Chelsea Rathburn also considers the behavior of enclosed animals in this exploration of intimacy. Like “(love song, with two goldfish)”, this poem features the sexual and romantic behaviors of animals who live in enclosures.
While an omniscient narrator informs the reader in “(love poem, with two goldfish),” “Among the Animals” has a first-person speaker watching the lions in a Las Vegas hotel.
“I Could Be a Whale Shark” by Aimee Nezhukumatahil (2018)
In “I Could Be a Whale Shark,” acclaimed contemporary American poet Aimee Nezhukumatahil uses the motif of aquatic animals to explore interpersonal relationships and personal insecurities. “I Could Be a Whale Shark” is less wry and mournful than Chua’s poem. Instead, Nezhukumatathil’s poem radiates a contemplative lightness. The couple in the poem actually make it to the ocean, and their relationship succeeds because each recognize their partner as an individual.
“Sea Longing” by Sara Teasdale (1915)
Like Chua’s male goldfish, the speaker in American poet Sara Teasdale’s poem, “Sea Longing,” also views the sea as a source of happiness and relief. While Chua’s protagonist looks to the sea for adventure and change, Teasdale’s speaker seeks the “floating” (Line 1) and drifting feelings the male goldfish wishes to leave behind.
Further Literary Resources
“An Ominous Map” by Grace Chua (2009)
In the Quarterly Literary Review Singapore, Chua reviews Fifty on 50, a collection of poems by Singaporean poets written in the four official languages of Singapore: Malay, English, Chinese, and Tamil. The collection marks the fiftieth year of self-government in Singapore and features a broad range of Singaporean poetic voices. Chua’s commentary reveals her personal relationships with poetry, language, and her home country of Singapore.
“Science and Politics in the South China Sea” by Grace Chua (2015)
This article, published online by Hakai Magazine, is a sample of Chua’s journalistic writing. In this piece, Chua explores the experience of marine biodiversity researchers in the South China Sea and reflects Chua’s interest in the politics of environmental matters.
“Message from a young Singaporean” by Grace Chua (2015)
In this essay on Quartz, an online economic news source, Chua advocates for the Singaporeans who have been left behind by the city-state’s rapid economic growth. As a young mother-to-be, Chua’s writing is both emotional and practical, reflecting her pragmatism as well as her passion for social justice.
Listen to Poem
YouTube creator EllieAndStuff reads and illustrates Grace Chua’s poem, “(love song, with two goldfish.” Musician John Fahey’s composition “Voice of the Turtle” accompanies the poem.
