Explanation:
In the poem, we note an interesting detail in the last two lines as to why the old woman sees herself as a "terrible fish". The line says,
<em>"In me she has drowned a young girl, and in me an old woman / Rises toward her day after day, like a terrible fish."</em>
The woman uses such expressions above to show that with the passage of time, her youthfulness like a drowning fish has passed away, bringing old age.
By comparing herself to a fish, she symbolizes her aging self to a fish on land seeking survival after it is taken from its natural habitat.
By using the expression "terrible" she depicts her hopeless condition as regards becoming young again, just as a fish taken from water enters a terrible situation.
