In the poem "Seduction" by Eileen McAuley does the poet wish us to feel sympathy for the girl represented in the in the poem?

The first part of the poem "Seduction" is a story about a young girl who is seduced by a boy after the party, and consequently becomes pregnant. The second section describes how the girl then regrets her decision. In general the poet does intends her reader to feel sympathy for the girl. She does this by using many different poetic techniques. But while the majority of the poem instills a sense of compassion for the …

…better" to do these things rather than to become pregnant. However, through this the reader can also identified that she is being sarcastic, using "better" in a scornful way. In fact, she does not reject the girl, as she states "with a softly rounded belly". Rather, she sees it as a beautiful thing and criticizes the way society acts against the girl. Thus, the reader sympathizes with the girl because the poet herself does so.