Ted Kooser’s “Tattoo” is a short poem about lost love and age as expressed through a man’s tattoo. The speaker functions as an observer as they watch an older man who “walks / between the tables at a yard sale” (Line 10). The speaker draws conclusions based on the symbolism of this man’s tattoo and his actions. This is a man who can’t let go of the past and remains permanently bruised by hurt pride and heartbreak.

When the man was younger—the speaker concludes—he got a tattoo of a “dripping dagger in the fist / of a shuddering heart” (Lines 2-3). He did so as a “statement” (Line 1), perhaps to show the world he’d lost love or faced betrayal, the traditional meaning of such a tattoo. Hearts generally represent love, and in this case, the heart’s shape is that of a “fist” (Line 2). The entry of the dagger represents the man’s wound. However, the dagger is not so much stabbing the heart as being gripped by it, as the heart “shudder[s]” (Line 3). The dagger is described as “dripping” (Line 2), perhaps with blood as is traditionally shown in such tattoos. Alternately, it could be wet with tears of grief and/or anger.