"The Joy of Cooking"

"I have prepared my sister's tongue....
I will have my brother's heart..."

"The Joy of Cooking" by Elaine Magarrell is a very strange poem.  If read literally, it is very disgusting-it talks about eating tongues and brains. However, it is not meant to be read literally but figuratively.  The speaker uses the tongue and the heart to characterize her sister and brother. The small bones and gristle of the tongue indicated sharpness and toughness.  Then it says, "it will probably grow back." These characteristics of the tongue make one think that the sister is sarcastic and does not let someone tell her what to do for very long. To describe the heart, the speaker says it is "firm and rather dry." The description of the heart indicates that the brother does not care for anybody.  It makes the brother seem cold-hearted and dull. The metaphor of this poem creates a vivid image of the brother's and sister's personalities.