In class we were given this task after reading a new poem called My Parents. These are our answers and analysis. I worked with Lucia Do Carmo.
MY PARENTS
Task 1: The kid probably felt oppressed because of the bully kids and how mean, violent and threatening they were. Moreover, at school he must have felt lonely due to the fact that he had no friends, and we can infer this because he even tried to be friendly and smile to those who bothered him.
Task 2:
It was written by Stephen Spender, who worked a lot with
There is imagery to describe the bullies. It is also mentioned the fact that the child and his family are from a higher class, as the voice looks down on them, which can be related to the fact that his parents did not want him to be with them. There are differences between classes. Boys are rough with him and probably violent towards him.
Imagery: Gives the idea of how different they were to the person.
Simile: Shows how rough the children were, and somehow a feeling of admiration. The fact that they are compared to animals also supports the point of the social differences.
Themes:
- Childhood experiences
- Social Differences
- Loneliness
- Admiration and envy
Tone and Mood:
- Casual
- Relaxed
- Informal
- Admiration
Task 3:
Stanza 1: “My parents kept me from children who were rough” This proves everything said in the summary, from what the parents said to how the bullies were. A literary device found in this stanza is Simile when the author writes “Who threw words like stones” portraying how harsh and strong what they said was, and how hard it affected him.
Stanza 2: “Their muscles like iron” This summarizes the stanza as it talks about the admiration the boy has towards the bullies physical appearance. The literary device that we can find in this stanza is symbolism, “I feared more than tigers” , this shows
how as the bullies are from different classes, the voice looks down on them and
portrays them as animals, wild. It is not that the child thinks that, but as we can see in the beginning, his parents taught him to think like that.
Stanza 3: “I longed to forgive them but they never smiled.” This shows that he is willing to forgive them and tries to be friendly with them, but they do not accept that. A literary device for this stanza would be Simile, “Like dogs to bark at my world.”, here the boy is once again comparing the kids to animals and portraying them as rough. With “world” he probably means his social position.