Shel Silverstein

Masochistic Baby

Masochistic Baby - meaning Summary

Absurd, Darkly Comic Longing

This short poem takes the voice of a narrator who mourns a lost lover while treating violence as proof of affection. It parodies sentimental love songs by replacing tender longing with crude, comic brutality and domestic substitutes — eggs, pants, cream, a clock, a match — as hollow outlets for aggression. The result is a darkly comic critique of misplaced desire and the absurdity of equating harm with intimacy.

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Oh, ever since my Masochistic Baby went and left me I got nothin’ to hit but the wall. She loved me when I beat her, But I started actin’ sweeter, And that was no way to treat her at all. Yes, she is the one that I’m dreamin’ of, And you always hurt the one you love. And ever since my Masochistic Baby went and left me, I got nothin’ to hit but the wall, oh no... Nothin’ to beat but the eggs Nothin’ to belt but my pants Nothin’ to whip but the cream Nothin’ to punch but the clock Nothin’ to strike but a match.

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