What does the title mean — 'She Contrasts With Herself'?

The title suggests that the poem explores internal conflict. Hippolyta isn't comparing herself to Theseus or other women; instead, she's at odds with herself. The warrior side and the nurturing side, the cold armor and the concealed warmth, are battling within her.

Why are some stanzas in italics?

The italicized stanzas convey Hippolyta's inner voice — her private feelings that she would never express openly. The narrator envisions that even within Hippolyta's "sheltered heart," a faint song managed to seep through. The italics indicate the line separating her outer, guarded persona from her inner, vulnerable self.

What does 'born of hate' mean? Did Hippolyta hate her son?

H.D. argues that Hippolytus was conceived from hatred and violence rather than love. The phrase "Born of hate" refers to how he came into being, not Hippolyta's emotions toward him as a child. In fact, the poem implies that she had some tender feelings for him, which adds to her distress.

Why does Hippolyta ask Artemis for forgiveness?

She seeks forgiveness for giving in — for letting Theseus take her, even though she "relented not" in her heart. There’s a painful truth in this: she blames herself for not being strong enough, despite being the one who was wronged. Artemis, as the goddess of chastity and the hunt, embodies the ideal that Hippolyta strives to uphold.

What is the significance of the grafted flower image at the end?

Grafting involves attaching a cutting from one plant to the root of another, which is an unnatural process that forces two incompatible elements together. Hippolyta uses this as a metaphor for her own experience: something foreign—Theseus, his world, his child—was imposed on her wild, native identity. She prays it will never happen again.

Is this poem feminist?

It does read that way. H.D. takes a myth where a woman's conquest is seen as a heroic feat and completely reinterprets it from the woman’s perspective. Hippolyta's inner life — her sorrow, her concealed softness, her passionate plea to stay true to herself — is the central focus. The hero, Theseus, hardly appears in the poem except as an opposing force.

What style of poetry is this? Does it rhyme?

This poem is free verse with Imagist influences—there’s no regular rhyme scheme or fixed meter. H.D. crafts her impact using vivid, concrete images like steel, flint, snow, and owlets instead of relying on sound patterns. The short lines give a clipped, controlled vibe that aligns perfectly with Hippolyta's character.

The Annotated Edition

SHE CONTRASTS WITH HERSELF HIPPOLYTA by H. D.

Summary, meaning, line-by-line analysis & FAQ.

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Hippolyta, the Amazon queen from Greek myth, contemplates her defeat by Theseus — not out of love, but through brute force — and the son, Hippolytus, born from that tumultuous union.

Poet: H. D.
Era: Modernist (1924)
Themes: freedom, identity, love

The PoemFull text

SHE CONTRASTS WITH HERSELF HIPPOLYTA

H. D., 1924

Can flame beget white steel-- ah no, it could not take within my reins its shelter; steel must seek steel, or hate make out of joy a whet-stone for a sword; sword against flint, Theseus sought Hippolyta; she yielded not nor broke, sword upon stone, from the clash leapt a spark, Hippolytus, born of hate. What did she think when all her strength was twisted for his bearing; did it break, even within her sheltered heart, a song, some whispered note, distant and faint as this: _Love that I bear within my breast how is my armour melted how my heart: as an oak-tree that keeps beneath the snow, the young bark fresh till the spring cast from off its shoulders the white snow so does my armour melt._ _Love that I bear within my heart, O speak; tell how beneath the serpent-spotted shell, the cygnets wait, how the soft owl opens and flicks with pride, eye-lids of great bird-eyes, when underneath its breast the owlets shrink and turn._ You have the power, (then did she say) Artemis, benignity to grant forgiveness that I gave no quarter to an enemy who cast his armour on the forest-moss, and took, unmatched in an uneven contest, Hippolyta who relented not, returned and sought no kiss. Then did she pray: Artemis, grant that no flower be grafted alien on a broken stalk, no dark flame-laurel on the stricken crest of a wild mountain-poplar; grant in my thought, I never yield but wait, entreating cold white river, mountain-pool and salt: let all my veins be ice, until they break (strength of white beach, rock of mountain land, forever to you, Artemis, dedicate) from out my reins, those small, cold hands.

§01Quick summary

What this poem is about

Hippolyta, the Amazon queen from Greek myth, contemplates her defeat by Theseus — not out of love, but through brute force — and the son, Hippolytus, born from that tumultuous union. She navigates through her grief, touching on a hidden tenderness she struggles to acknowledge, and ultimately makes a passionate plea to Artemis to maintain her coldness and strength indefinitely. The poem centers on a woman seeking to reclaim her identity after losing a part of herself.

§02Themes

Recurring themes

§03Line by line

Stanza by stanza, with notes

Can flame beget white steel-- / ah no, it could not take
Editor's note
H.D. begins with a metallurgical riddle: fire and steel stand as opposites, not complements. Hippolyta represents steel — cold, hard, and unyielding — while Theseus embodies flame. This imagery establishes the central argument of the poem: their union signifies a clash of incompatible forces rather than a meeting of equals. The term "reins" (referring to the body's core and vital organs) indicates that this is visceral, not abstract.
sword against flint, / Theseus sought Hippolyta;
Editor's note
The conquest is portrayed as a mechanical clash — sword against stone — instead of a tale of seduction or romance. The spark that erupts from this impact is Hippolytus, their son. H.D. simplifies the mythic rape to a matter of physics: two hard objects colliding create something neither had planned. "Born of hate" delivers a harsh and straightforward judgment on the child's origins.
What did she think / when all her strength
Editor's note
The narrator takes a moment to reflect and poses a deeply human question: what was Hippolyta experiencing internally while her body was used to bear a child? The expression "twisted for his bearing" evokes a sense of physical pain. The idea that, despite this, a faint song might have pierced her "sheltered heart" introduces a vulnerability in the poem — hinting at the possibility that Hippolyta felt something she couldn't quite articulate.
_Love that I bear / within my breast
Editor's note
This italicized stanza represents the "whispered note" that the narrator envisions—Hippolyta's inner voice, the part of her she keeps concealed. The oak tree beneath the snow serves as a striking metaphor: while the tree remains vibrant and green beneath the surface, it is buried under the snow. Her armor isn't melting because Theseus broke it; rather, it's the result of carrying a child, a change she never chose and cannot fully fight against.
_Love that I bear / within my heart, O speak;
Editor's note
The second italicized stanza enhances the imagery of hidden life. Cygnets tucked beneath a shell, owlets nestled under their mother owl's wing—these evoke small, vulnerable beings finding shelter within something larger and more resilient. Hippolyta embodies both the tough outer shell and, somewhat reluctantly, the delicate creature within. The owl's pride in caring for its young reflects this duality: fierce yet tender at the same time.
You have the power, / (then did she say) Artemis,
Editor's note
Hippolyta looks at Artemis, the goddess of the hunt and chastity — the embodiment of everything she once was before Theseus. She seeks forgiveness, but her reasoning feels off: she asks for pardon for *not* being merciful to an enemy who surrendered. She holds herself accountable for giving in, even just a little, even if just once. "Returned and sought no kiss" emphasizes that she never craved affection, only the battle.
Then did she pray: Artemis, / grant that no flower
Editor's note
The final prayer asks to be made permanently cold. The botanical images—a dark flame-laurel grafted onto a mountain-poplar—depict something alien and wrong imposed on something wild and native. Hippolyta is asking Artemis to maintain her purity and authenticity. The closing image of "small, cold hands" emerging from her veins is haunting: it hints at the child she bore, but also at the tenderness she is attempting to eliminate from herself forever.

§04Tone & mood

How this poem feels

The tone feels controlled and icy at first, yet there's a simmering warmth beneath that threatens to surface. H.D. uses short, sharp lines that evoke a woman holding her jaw tight — then the italicized stanzas reveal a more lyrical and vulnerable side. By the end, the prayer to Artemis carries a sense of desperation: Hippolyta isn’t inherently cold; she is *asking* to be made cold, which reveals just how much the poem has cost her.

§05Symbols & metaphors

Symbols & metaphors

Steel / sword / flint: Hippolyta's identity as an Amazon warrior is tough, resolute, and self-sufficient. Steel embodies a strength that can only be matched by something equally strong, never softened by fire.
The spark (Hippolytus): The child emerged from the brutal clash of two opposing forces. He is neither flame nor steel but rather an unforeseen outcome, created by conflict instead of love.
Oak tree under snow: Hippolyta's concealed inner self — the vibrant, living essence that endures beneath the cold exterior she shows to others. The melting snow represents the armor cracking, a change she dreads and grieves.
Cygnets / owlets: Small, vulnerable creatures find refuge in something strong. They embody the maternal tenderness that Hippolyta unexpectedly uncovers within herself—a life she never intended to protect yet cannot let go of.
Artemis: The goddess of the hunt, the moon, and chastity—Hippolyta's muse and true self. To pray to Artemis is to seek a return to her former self before Theseus: independent, fierce, and complete.
Grafted flower / alien laurel: Something foreign imposed on a native plant — a metaphor for what Theseus did to Hippolyta. The graft is harmful and unnatural; Hippolyta hopes it never happens again.

§06Historical context

Historical context

H.D. (Hilda Doolittle) was a key player in the Imagist movement, which valued clear imagery, exact language, and a departure from Victorian sentiment. She wrote this poem in the early twentieth century, a time when she was grappling with her own complex feelings about desire, identity, and autonomy. Her relationships with Ezra Pound and later Richard Aldington were long and tumultuous, and her bisexuality and sense of self were ongoing concerns. H.D. frequently revisited Greek mythology, not to retell the stories, but to explore the emotions of the women within them — characters like Hippolyta, Helen, and Eurydice — and to consider their true feelings. The tale of Hippolyta and Theseus depicts the Greek hero defeating the Amazon queen, sometimes through force, other times through deception, depending on the version. H.D. removes the heroic elements and zeroes in on Hippolyta's inner experience.

§07FAQ

Questions readers ask

Hippolyta was the queen of the Amazons, a tribe of fierce warrior women. In the most popular versions of her story, Theseus — the hero from Athens — either took her against her will or married her (accounts vary on her level of consent). They had a son named Hippolytus, who would later become the focus of a tragedy written by Euripides. H.D. interprets their relationship as one of conquest rather than love.

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SHE CONTRASTS WITH HERSELF HIPPOLYTA by H. D.

SHE CONTRASTS WITH HERSELF HIPPOLYTA

What this poem is about

Recurring themes

Stanza by stanza, with notes

How this poem feels

Symbols & metaphors

Historical context

Questions readers ask

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