chainsaw versus the pampas grass Flashcards
1
Q
what is the tone?
A
- aggressive
- violent
- colloquial ‘bloody desire’
- represents the disregard men have for nature and femininity
- informal ‘knocked back’
2
Q
what is the metrical pattern or rhyme scheme?
A
- no metrical pattern or rhyme scheme - free verse
- informal, no patterns to make it flow, lots of random caesura represents the destructive nature of chainsaw onto pampas grass
3
Q
why is there varying line lengths?
A
- represents destructive nature of chainsaw and reckless, unrestricted power it can cause
- is damaging to the structure of poem, like how it damages nature
- theme of man versus nature, the industrialisation of natural world
4
Q
why is there so many end stopped lines?
A
-symbolises the control of humanity over natural form and structure with the unnatural barriers
5
Q
how is there a conversational structure?
A
- irregular line length
- informal tone ‘knocked back a quarter pint’
- colloquial language
6
Q
‘flesh of the face’
A
-fricative ‘f’ sounds gives impression of built up tension representing the built up anger the chainsaw (men) have
7
Q
summary
A
- considers relationship between man- made physical objects, with nature and natural world - uses symbolism of the chainsaw to show mans interaction and destruction
- poem as an allegory for the threat man poses to nature
8
Q
what are the main themes?
A
- masculinity versus femininity
- manmade objects versus natural world
- man versus nature
9
Q
what is the turning point?
A
- ‘blade became choked with soil or fouled with weeds’
- chainsaw becomes ‘choked’ connoting death, and defeat
- up to this point the chainsaw was winning the battle but now the pampas grass is showing resilience
10
Q
‘like cutting at water or air with a knife’
A
- simile to create distinct imagery of how this battle between manmade chainsaw and natural pampas grass is unnatural and links into ‘it seemed an unlikely match’
- nature was never made to be destroyed by mankind, we should nurture and protect it because overall nature is stronger than humanity
11
Q
personification of chainsaw?
A
- symbolises masculinity, the working class, manmade society and power
- presented as aggressive, dominating and violent but is ultimately shown to be humiliated and lacking in sustainability - needs a person for it to function
- becomes a hyperbolic representation of all the stereotypes associated with toxic masculinity
12
Q
key points overall for poem
A
- vividly personified
- patterns of imagery suggest a gender extended metaphor
- power dynamic between man made machinery and natural plant implies a broader struggle that reaches beyond the borders of a suburban garden
- highly patterned and deploys rich imagery and an extensive use of sound to convey emotional and physical aspects of narrative
13
Q
personification of pampas grass?
A
- symbolises femininity, upper class, nature and rebirth
- presented as vulnerable and delicate, as well as snobbish and spiritually powerful
14
Q
‘knocked back a quarter pint of engine oil’
A
- colloquial masculine diction
- adjectives used to describe chainsaw and way it operates are associated with traditional forms of male behaviour
- ‘knocked back a quarter pint of engine oil’ creates masculine imagery with a working class man at the pub
- links to violence connotations
- ‘engine oil’ alludes to toxic chemicals that harm the natural environment
15
Q
‘gunned the trigger’
A
- phallic symbol of gun emphasised
- guttural plosives manifest a sense of pride and excitement - indicating the way the speaker feels with powerful chainsaw
- could be considered a sexual abuse metaphor when chainsaw is colloquially described as ‘wanting to finish things off’ physically dominating as it ‘ripped into pockets of dark, secret warmth’
16
Q
‘its mood to tangle with cloth or jewellery or hair’
A
- clash of feminine semiotics and male destruction
- presents a negative and destructive image
- considers the poem as an allusion to domestic abuse
17
Q
violent verbs
what do they allude to?
A
- ‘tangle’ ‘ripped’ ‘kick back’ ‘gunned’
- allude to brutal and horrific violation of sacred feminine
- suggest the only way to explore this sexual abuse taboo is through metaphorical language
18
Q
‘the chainsaw seethed’
A
- sibilance placed on ‘seethed’ is emotive and emphasises passionate anger chainsaw feels when defeated by feminine pampas grass
- cant control femininity and nature
19
Q
‘urge to persist’
A
-suggests this will happen again - constant cycle of man attempting to destroy nature
20
Q
chainsaw as a metaphor for the speaker
A
- the speaker only exists in this poem alongside the chainsaw, he is not an individual
- extended metaphor for an extreme exhibition of male authority and power
- man uses the chainsaw to inflict his anger on nature, metaphor for man inflicting violence upon women
21
Q
‘ludicrous feathers and plumes’
A
- infers that beauty and richness of plant is ridiculous because its extravagant when it doesn’t need to be
- symbolises the working class who stand out in a working class environment - contrasts the chainsaw ‘knocked back a quarter pint’
- epitome of femininity
- self centred and narcissistic
22
Q
‘stealing the show with its footstools, cushions and tufts’
A
- sibilance of this makes the speech of grass seem lyrical and smoother - contrasts the harsh plosives of the chainsaw
- over exaggerates femininity of grass but also presents them as weak
23
Q
‘sunning itself’
A
- seems vain
- symbol of frailty, highlights how the battle and ‘unlikely match’ is unfair and exploiting
24
Q
‘twelve foot spears’
A
- suggests a degree of power - power of nature against man
- intimidating, violent imagery
- contrasts description associating grass with being delicate and frail
- metaphor
25
'riding high in its saddle'
| 'wearing a new crown'
- metonym of the 'crown' suggests that nature will always reign over man made power
- royal connotations may evoke anger at the triumph of power of rebirth the feminine body holds, dominating the violent brutal power of male sphere
26
why is the pampas grass ambiguous?
- in direct opposition with violent and destructive masculine power of chainsaw
- but also more ambiguous as there are various signs of power and weakness in the grass
- may argue that this ambiguity alludes to a deeper and more complex character in femininity
27
alternative stanza lengths, irregular form?
- the longer stanzas are associated with the chainsaw whereas shorter stanzas are associated with the grass
- this perhaps reflects the chainsaw has to put in more effort to tame and dominate the pampas grass, whereas grass naturally is more powerful, doesn't need the same effort or help from humanity
28
what is significant about the last 2 stanzas?
- they have a more lyrical tone with the oxymoron 'midday moon'
- also alliterative 'm' sound
- shift in language when the pampas grass has won the battle
- flows more smoothly, rejects the conversational structure tat the chainsaw employed
29
'gunned', 'gearing', 'getting'
| how do these contrast the pampas grass?
- alliteration creates a guttural voice to the chainsaw emphasising its burning power
- these destructive verbs contrasty with the 'ludicrous feathers' of pampas grass
- drawn out assonance of 'ludicrous feathers' focusing on its extravagance
30
'plant juice spat'
- disgusting imagery
- associates with blood
- poet uses this vivid imagery to convey the evident pleasure of destruction of nature
31
'dabbed at a stalk that swooned, docked a couple of heads, dismissed the top third of its canes'
- methodical 'overkill' emphasises the emotionless detached actions
- 'd' alliteration in the verbs are hard and aggressive whereas the sibilance of the plant is fort and delicate
- contrast between the alliterative sounds
32
speaker
- assumed they are male, using chainsaw to inflict his masculine power and strength over the feminine and fragile pampas grass
- chainsaw could be personified to represent the narrator
33
'I let it flare'
'lifted it into the sun'
'wanting to finish things off'
- the speaker is succumbing t the power of the chainsaw
- showing it off as if its some magnificent object by lifting it into the sun
- has violent tendencies, wants to completely dominate
- this violence resides in the man, not the machine
