Assisi Flashcards
Themes
- Hypocrisy of the Church
- The plight/isolated of the beggar
- Rich versus poor and social injustice
- apathy of society towards the less fortunate
What is the poem about?
The speaker observes a deformed beggar outside the Church of St Francis in the Italian town of Assisi. The beggar is ignored by the priest and tourists who are being shown Giotto’s famous frescoes.
What are the three key things in Stanza One
- Language describing the beggar is brutal
- Juxtaposition of the grand church of St Francis with beggar
- Tone created is negative and unsympathetic of the beggar
“Dwarf with his hands on backwards”
•Grotesque metaphor conveys his deformity
•poem begins with a negative and demeaning description of the beggar
“Dwarf” - political incorrect term, belittles him, highlights prejudice in society
- From the beginning of the poem it catches the readers attention as it seems wrong and it is placed at the end of the line
‘H’ alliteration creates an emotional element combined with emotive ideas. Sounds like someone has put him together but without care. Shows he is physically different and vulnerable.
“sat slumped”
“Sat slumped”
•Sibilance: makes the deformity more noticeable and creates an uneasy feel. Implies that something is deflated and empty. Suggests that the dwarf is limp which suggests that he is helpless due to his deformities.
“Slumped like a half filled sack”
“Slumped like a half filled sack”
•Simile: compares the beggar to a sack, cheap material which is largely invaluable but has potential to be useful, yet only half filled, not reached his full potential. Physically run down. Dehumanises the beggar and suggests that and like a disposed object- unattractive and shapeless.
Sibilance in “sat, slumped” suggests lethargy, discomfort
• long vowel sounds in “sat, slumped” suggest heaviness, tiredness
• onomatopoeic effect in “slumped” to suggest heaviness, defeat, echoes of “lump”, “dumped”
“Tiny twisted legs”
•Alliteration of ‘t’ is uncomfrotable to say suggesting that the dwarf is weak, helpless and uncomfortable
- Disturbing gives an oxymoronic feel, tiny suggests vulnerability and innocent yet twisted is grotesque and unpleasant.
“On tiny twisted legs from which sawdust might run”
“On tiny twisted legs from which sawdust might run”
line break between “which” and “sawdust” creates a small dramatic pause before the horrors of the description
•Metaphor: Continues the idea of the dwarf as an inanimate object. He is an object that is falling apart.
“sawdust” replaces blood, no life is pulsing through his veins as it is clogged up with sawdust. His life is being stifled.
“Run” creative wit - ironic as he will never run himself and this highlights the tragedy.
“Sawdust might run, outside the three tiers of churches built”
“Sawdust might run, outside the three tiers of churches built”
-The sentence runs on right away from him straight onto the cathedral
The use of one long sentence and enjambement shows how attention never stays with him, and society will never pay attention to his value.
•Contrast: poet contrasts broken structure of the beggar with the powerful structure of the church and comparison with an inanimate object suggests the dwarf is not human
“Over whom he had the advantage of not being dead yet
“Over whom he had the advantage of not being dead yet”
Juxtaposition of grand church (“three tiers”) with St Francis’ reputation (“brother/of the poor”) and/or his simple lifestyle (“talker with birds”)
• sardonic observation that dwarf has an “advantage” over St Francis, but only that he is “not dead yet”
•IRONY - being alive is the only thing going for him yet harsh description suggests the beggar would be better off dead
•poet lists great achievements of St Francis in order to further contrast between the saint and beggar. This is a reminder that the only advantage the beggar has is that he is not dead which will soon be gone. It creates a sarcastic tone which highlights the speakers now found anger at the treatment of the dawned. “Yet” emphasises that life is temporary - negates the only positive thing about the beggar.
“A priest explained”
“A priest explained”
•Hypocrisy: inside the church the preist tells
Simplified stories of the bible to satisfy tourists. He is a hypocrite as he should be helping the suffering of the beggar.
“I understood the explanation and the cleverness”
•Cynical/critical tone: the priest doesnt understand the real message of the art
-The priest is portraying a superficial message but ignoring the need for charity.
•Ambiguous: the artist who was able to convey this and the preist is clever in commercialising and using history of St Francis to make money
•Enjambement: highlights ‘and the cleverness’ conveying that is the speakers overwhelming critical view
Speaker is presenting himself as the detached observer
• mock admiration for the “cleverness”
• hint of superiority (especially if read with
emphasis on “I”)
• a line of thought could be developed around the idea of a poet as user of words contemplating visual art communicating with the illiterate
“frescoes tell stories”
Personification shows they had power
“the illiterate”
- not charitable label
- These people are vulnerable!
“Goodness-
Of God”
Line break means that God and goodness are separated. The alliteration tries to keep it together yet ultimately God ends up on the same line as “suffering” which shows something is wrong as he should be with “goodness”. It shows that the “good” deeds of the church and society are separate of God as the goodness is the press making money off the tourists. Goodness is reduced to materialistic desire. Cliché shows its lost all meaning
