A Constable Calls Flashcards
It’s fat black handle grips
Makes the bike sound powerful - almost threatening ad sinister
His bicycle stood at the window sill
Personification
Of the dynamo gleaming and cocked back
‘Dynamo’ - pedal powered light
‘Cocked back’ - sounds like a gun - sinister
The pedal treads hanging relieved
Of the boot of the law
Personification
‘Boot of the law’ - metaphor that shows that the boot belongs to someone who has power and authority
What are the key features about stanzas 1 and 2?
It is all one sentence and there is lots of imagery used. There is no rhyme
What is a key feature of stanza 3?
There is rhyme and different sentence structure which gives the sense that the child is noticing things separately
In his slightly sweating hair
The policeman might be nervous
Arithmetic and fear.
Fear that the constable might judge them
I sat staring at the polished holster
He cares for it - he takes his job seriously
With it’s buttoned flap, the braid cord
Looped into the revolver butt
The kid is noticing all the details - he is paying close attention to it - he is scared
‘No’. But was there not a line
Of turnips where the seed ran out
‘No’ - defensive and defiant - this man is not welcome in their household. H’s father has lied and now he feels guilty
I assumed
Small guilts and sat
Imagining the black hole in the barracks.
H fears that him or his father will be put in jail because they lied
‘Black hole’ - suggests that they will never come out
Closed the domesday book
Could lead to their doom/judgement because they lied or it could refer to how William the conquered wanted to find out everything about his people - could refer to the Irish situation
A shadow bobbed in the window
The constable still casts a shadow over their household
He was snapping the carrier spring
Like a trap - they’ve told a lie and now they’re awaiting judgement
