Lipstick on a Pig

"Didn't you know?  It's been in all the papers,
to solve this problem, how they deal with beggars?
They take and throw them in the tidal rivers."
("Pink Dog" - Elizabeth Bishop)

The central idea of this poem is the poor treatment of those who appear to be impoverished, and the remedies (or lack there of) used to "solve" these problems.  The poem starts with light, carefree diction of a lovely day on the beach.  The sun is out, the sky, a bright shade of blue...and suddenly, the description is interrupted by a naked pink dog walking across the beach.  I admire how the author just nonchalantly states this like nothing is new or surprising.  Personally, I would be totally shocked.

After this stanza, the poem takes a turn toward the negative side of things.  The people automatically judge the dog and assume that she left her children to find food for herself.  I think the dog represents the poor in society; most people scoff and consider these people to be dirty and worthless. 

In the excerpt above, Bishop uses a hyperbole to show how the government only puts ridiculous plans into action that never have a chance of actually succeeding.  Bishop is encouraging the government to find a better solution to this huge problem.  Also, the community can not just dress up the beggars for Carnival and act like they are okay.   Putting lipstick on a pig does not solve anything.  Both the government and the community need to work together to find a solution.