Final answer:
In 'The Possessive,' the mother compares a haircut to a future war as a metaphor for her fear of losing her son and the changes that come with his growth, which are reflected in the transformation caused by the haircut. Her fear is informed by her family's history with war and is symbolic of a larger worry of children growing up and facing danger.
Step-by-step explanation:
Understanding the Mother's Fears in the Poem 'The Possessive'
In the context of the selected excerpts, the mother in the poem 'The Possessive' compares the haircut to a future war to express her deep fear of loss and change. This metaphor reflects the mother's instinctive protectiveness and her dread of her son's potential involvement in war, which could lead to irreversible tragedy. The mother's fears are rooted in the past family experiences with war, and the haircut symbolizes the impending severance from childhood innocence and the peaceful life she wishes to preserve for her son. Hair, often an element of one's identity, when cut, signals a transition or transformation which can be unsettling as it touches on themes of identity, loss, and the inevitable change that growing up brings.
In literature and in life, haircuts can signify milestones or shifts in a person's life; therefore, the mother fears that the loss of her son to the throes of war is as certain as the loss of identity seen in the drastic change of appearance after a haircut. The deep-seated fear is also connected to historical and social associations with war and its effects on families, highlighting the universal theme of parental protective instincts and the sorrow tied to the perceived inevitability of children's exposure to life's harsh realities.