My reflections on The Victory, by Anne Stevenson

1.) Newborn babies are often described as "little angels" or "bundles of joy." Hoes does the speaker of "The Victory" describe her son?
She describes him as gory, with black insect eyes barbing the air. Her newborn is described as a snail and a hungry snarl.

2.) Why does the speaker describe the child as an "antagonist" (Line 5).
The antagonist is against that which the main character (which is the mother) contends. An antagonist is often a villian, set of circumstances, or a force that is in conflict with the protagonist. Obviously, the baby is viewed as an enemy of the speaker that is simply put as a set of circumstances the mother must tend too.

3.) Why is the poem titled "The Victory"?
Maybe it is called The Victory because out of everything the mother thought she was getting by having a baby, ended up in complete contrast. She must put her needs aside, her wants of what she expected and tend to the babies neverending cries, hungry appetite, and every want and need. In the end, the baby won the battle of schedules and routine despite if it makes his mother unhappy.

4.) Why is the infant compared to a knife in both lines 2 and 12?
Her thinking that he was her victorey, she feels that the baby back-stabbed or cut all dreams and hopes.