Basking Shark

Question 1

Subject of the poem

Answer 1

The poem tells of the poet’s unexpected encounter with a shark; the meeting causes MacCaig to think about the process of evolution and his position in that process.

Question 2

With reference to language, show how the opening line effectively reveals the setting of the poem.

Answer 2

• “oar” in a boat

* “hit a rock where none should be” far out at sea

Question 3

What happens in the opening stanza?

Answer 3

•Out at sea rowing, the poet sticks his oar in the water and disturbs/hits a shark

Question 4

The speaker has a mixture of feelings towards the shark. By close examination of language of lines 2-6, show what these feelings are, and how they are revealed

Answer 4

• “Once (too often)…” frightening/scary experience. Unpleasant.
• “not too often though enough”/ “I count as gain” valuable experience
• “roomsized monster with a matchbox brain” humorous, ie not that scary!

Question 5

This stanza provides a dramatic opening to the poem, show how the poet does this

Answer 5

To stub an oar on a rock…To have it rise.

• two infinitive clauses
• The effect is to create a tension and suspense

Question 6

Comment on the sound and visual effect of “a sea tin-tacked with rain”

Answer 6

• “tin tacked” alliterative, mimics the sound of water

* “tacked” dimpled/pitted with drops of rain

Question 7

Comment on the humour in line 6

Answer 7

• “Roomsized” exaggeration, great contrast with “matchbox brain”
• Makes the shark sound ridiculous.

Question 8

With close reference to language, how does MacCaig develop the idea of ‘He displaced more than water’ in the rest of the stanza (stanza 3) and how does this further develop the idea of the evolutionary process

Answer 8

• “displaced” “shoggled” “shook” “fling” – only a small difference in meaning between each word but displaced to fling a big leap!
• Mimics evolution, only very small changes mount up to great difference

Question 9

What has the shark displaced more than water

Answer 9

Either
•In evolutionary terms, humans from the sea
Or
•The poet’s certainty about his civilized ‘decadent townee’ ways. Feelings/thought processes about humanity and the difference between different creatures.

Question 10

‘Shook on the wrong Branch of the family tree’ (line 7)

What connection does the poet make between himself and the shark

Answer 10

•Literally, in the primordial sludge, they would have been related. Fluke of evolution that they are different.

Question 11

. Explain what is meant by the image:
‘Swish up the dirt and, when it settles, a spring
Is all the clearer.’

Answer 11

• Disturbance of the water (mirrors disturbance of thought processes)
• Once water settles, all is clear (as with his thought processes)

Question 12

Comment on the sound and word choice of the final two lines and say how they help to get across the poet’s purpose in the last description of the shark. (4)

Answer 12

• Repetition of ‘sail’
• Rhyme of ‘pale’ ‘sail’ ‘tale’ suggests gracefulness of the shark.
• The length of last sentence and delayed final rhyme suggests the length of the sharks body before the tale finally disappears

Question 13

The encounter with the shark caused the poet to reflect upon some big ideas. Comment on two phrases which suggest the poet reflected upon serious issues. (4)

Answer 13

• “I count as gain” something valuable came from experience
• “he displaced more than water” caused him to think/reflect
• “decadent townee” thinks of his own position culturally
• “slime of everything” makes him think of his own origins
• “who is the monster?” reflection on civilization

Question 14

With reference to the poem’s structure (rhyme scheme, no. of stanzas, syllables in a line etc…) and punctuation, explain how these elements added to your overall understanding/enjoyment of the poem. (4)

Answer 14

•Rhyming triplets ABACD – light hearted/merry
•Incidences of punctuation increase as poem becomes ore ponderous/thoughtful
“I saw me, in one fling,
Emerging from the slime of everything”
•Punctuation used to reflect the size/gracefulness of the shark
“For twenty seconds while, sail after sail,
The tall fin slid away and then the tail”

Question 15

How does the poet catch our attention from the beginning?

Answer 15

The first two lines start with the infinitive of the verb(“To stub”, “To have” ). This unusual sentence structure captures our attention immediately.

Question 16

What does “to stub” suggest?

Answer 16

The word “stub” suggests that the boat’s oar has hit on something solid, something that refuses to give even a little. We learn that the poet has disturbed a basking shark, which is compared to a rock. From this metaphor, we are led to assume that the shark, like a rock, is bulky, solid, without feeling and, perhaps, without intelligence.

Question 17

What tells us the shark is in charge?

Answer 17

To have it rise” tells us that the shark is in charge of the meeting; it is the shark that is carrying out the actions whereas the poet has no choice in what is happening to him. The word “slounge”is onomatopoeic as it suggests the noise of the waves as the shark leaves the water. It is also a clumsy word, again reminding us of the bulk of the shark.

Question 18

How do we know the speaker was frightened?

Answer 18

In this first stanza, the poet seems to have been frightened by the encounter, saying that meeting the shark:

“Is a thing that happened once (too often) to me”

He has not relished the encounter at all but the brackets indicate a slightly humourous aside: the poet was scared but is trying to make light of it now.

Question 19

Contradictions in Stanza Two

Answer 19

The opening line of this stanza “But not too often - though enough” is initially puzzling: it seems to contradict what he has said in Stanza One. In Stanza Two he seems to say that once wasn’t too much, although by the use of the dash he indicates that he is in no rush to meet the shark again.

Question 20

CHANGE IN THE SPEAKER IN STANZA TWO

Answer 20

Having had time to think about the incident, the poet seems to think he has learned something from the meeting. So important is this meeting to him that he claims “I count as gain” the experience. He goes on to explain what he has learned in the rest of the poem. In line 5 the poet uses the word “met” : the element of shock has gone and it now sounds almost as if the meeting has be prearranged between equals.

Question 21

Appealing to the sense in STANZA TWO

Answer 21

The image “on a sea tin-tacked with rain” is a powerful one. The fact that it is raining at all ties in with the murkiness of the “slime” the poet will later refer to in Stanza 4. Moreover, the phrase “tin-tacked” provides both visual and aural imagery. Water isn’t solid but we can see the the surface of the water as it is pierced by the raindrops like tacks in a wall. The alliteration of “tin-tacked” also reminds us of the noise the raindrops will be making.

Question 22

“That roomsized monster with a matchbox brain” EXPLAIN

Answer 22

The word “roomsized” emphasises the sheer size and bulk of the shark. The word “monster” also places the shark very low down in the evolutionary scale; it is reminiscent of dinosaurs which existed millions of years ago. All this serves to demonstate how basic and underdeveloped the shark is; an idea continued by “matchbox brain”. For all his size, the shark has little intelligence. Again this could remind the reader of huge dinosaurs with tiny brains. At this point the poet seems to believe he is much higher in the evolutionary scale than the shark.

Question 23

“He displaced more than water” - explanation

Answer 23

the shark has caused him to question his position in the evolutionary process. Before meeting the shark, the poet seems to be quite content with his place in the order of things but now he is removed from that position, forced to reassess his views. The word “displaced” could also suggest the poet’s discomfort at being forced to think that he might be nearer the shark on the ladder of evolution than he likes to ac knowledge.

Question 24

Evidence to show the shark is in control in stanza three

Answer 24

Again, in this stanza, the shark is carrying out the actions, while the poet has no control:
“he shoggled me
Centuries back- this decadent townee
Shook on the wrong branch of his family tree”

Question 25

How is emphasis put on “Centuries”?

Answer 25

The enjambement of the lines draws our attention to the word “Centuries”, emphasising how long it took humans to evolve but the poet is travelling quickly back in his mind.

Question 26

What does “decadent townee” mean?

Answer 26

A “townee” is someone who lives in the town but the word also suggests that such people choose to live in the town; they chose to live away from nature (their “roots”?) because they prefer it that way. The word “decadent” suggests someone who has no worthwhile purpose to their life, but lives only for luxury and enjoyment.

Question 27

What does “wrong branch” suggest?

Answer 27

The shark is described as being a “wrong branch” - perhaps a branch that the poet doesn’t want to admit exists.

Question 28

“Swish up the dirt and, when it settles, a spring
Is all the cleaner”
ANALYSIS

Answer 28

The word “swish” here is onomatopoeic as it suggests the noise of moving water. It also describes the swirling movement of water and dirt. Once the swirling has stopped, we can see the spring of water more clearly from the dust having settled. In this image, the poet is comparing his encounter with the shark to the spring once the dust has settled. Suddenly, he sees his position in evolution much more clearly

Question 29

“I saw me in one fling, emerging from the lie of everything” - analysis

Answer 29

One “fling” from the shark makes him understand that his origins are shared with the shark, as well as all other living creatures. The word “emerging” in the final lines suggests the idea of growing, of coming from darkness to light. Like the shark, the poet has emerged from “the slime of everything”- the word “slime”emphasises the basesness of our beginnings whereas the word “everything” shows how indistinct humans were from other species at the beginning of the evolutionary process.

Question 30

What does the poem teach us?

Answer 30

This poem teaches us to think about our relationship with nature in a new way. It may also cause us to question what we are doing to our world and each other. Are we really as intelligent and civilised as we like to think?

Question 31

This stanza begins with the question “So who’s the monster?” At the beginning of the poem, the poet is almost insulting to the shark, dismissing it as a brainless monster., what changes in the poem?

Answer 31

he is not so sure of himself, not so confident that he is the superior being. Now he questions himself. Is he a monster, an intelligent being who has failed to use that intelligence usefully. This failure to use his intelligence is further highlighted when we realise that the poet only thinks about the question he has asked for twenty seconds. Is his attention span really that much longer than that of the shark? Moreover, our view of the shark has also changed: the clumsy, bulky creature of the first stanza has been replaced by an elegant, graceful shark, which the poet compares to a ship sailing away. Just as the poet has seen himself in a new light, he has also had to think about the shark in a new way. The poet is much more humble now, not so sure of his own superiority over the rest of nature.

Question 32

Themes for point of comparison in basking shark

Answer 32

• Man’s flaws and failings
• Celebration on natural beauty
• Man’s relationship with nature
• Change in the speaker
• Appealing to the sense
• Relationships