In her poem “One Perfect Rose,” Dorothy Parker misleads the reader throughout the first and second stanzas into believing this poem is a romantic tribute to a tender moment from her past through her word choice and style of writing. However, the tone of the entire poem dramatically changes upon reading the third and final stanza when Parker allows the reader to understand her true intention of the poem, which is a cynical and perhaps bewildered view of the memory. And, with this shift in the tone in the third stanza, there is a shift in the meaning of the entire poem, leading the reader to believe that the first two stanzas were not, in fact, sweet but instead a sarcastic and bitter account of this past moment. In the first stanza, Dorothy …show more content…

Each line ends with the line “One perfect rose,” including the last stanza. And. In using the phrase “one perfect limousine” she makes her feeling completely obvious. The rose was unnecessary and unwanted. Using it three time over in the same phrase still did not have the same effect that using the word “limousine” once in the same phrase did. Parker is clearly trying to say that if this gentleman was going to make an effort, he should have made it for something worth her time. And by reading this poem, the reader can assume that a rose is not worthy. This poem is deceptively worded and simple in design. The author, Dorothy Parker, obviously is trying to achieve some shock value for the reader and succeeds in doing so. Her intention is to create an incorrect tone and give the reader a false sense of security in the poem’s initial innocence so that when she does reveal the true tone and persona, the reader will see it immediately and understand it thoroughly. Had she droned on about her cynical and bitter recollection of this memory, the reader would have lost interest in the whining. Instead, she sneaks up on the reader with the true nature of her feelings and it makes the poem and the reader’s understanding of it truly