Poem Analysis of "Early in the Morning" by Li Young Li

           This poem shows a mother who gets up early before the birds do to prepare breakfast for the family. The son's father carefully watches as his wife brushes an ivory comb through her hair, heavy and black as calligrapher's ink. She is sitting at the foot of a bed as she does this while the father watches and listens for music the comb makes as it goes against the hair. As the mother has done for half a hundred years, she puts her hair back in a bun and the father likes this look and thinks it is kempt. The son knows that his father enjoys the hair like this the most because of the way it falls out like a curtain when unpinned.

           The ivory comb going through the calligrapher's ink colored hair is a contrast between how dark the hair is compared to the color of the comb. The calligrapher's ink shows that the family has knowledge and love for each other, from the ink being contrasted with the hair and the hair symbolizes the family. Calligraphy is the art of beautiful hand writing, so it makes sense that it would mean the family is inteligent and loving from it being contrasted with it. The music of the comb against the mother's hair shows great level of attention from the dad since the comb doesn't actually make music. Putting back the mother's hair shows a ritual in the family as time goes on. The rituals are liked and worthy of doing from the family's perspective. As the pins are being pulled out of the hair and it falls down like a curtain, it symbolizes the family being open to each other and helping each other out. The poem "Early in the Morning" by Li Young Li, portrays a father carefully examining his wife's hair with it's calligrapher's ink color and music it makes when an ivory comb goes through it and reveals that knowledge and loving families help each other out and keep rituals to be organized and efficient.