Emigree Flashcards
what is the poem about (4)
1 the speaker talks about leaving her country behind when she was a child but never lost her child like image of it
2 whatever bad news she hears of it she always remembers the sunlight and its beauty
3 as an adult she is becoming aware that this is false but she can not forget the view
4 she can not return but is preoccupied by the images and fantasises about them
What form does it take (2)
1 fisrt person dramatic monologue -
2 no regular rhyme or rhythm mimics freedom she applies to her memories
what is the structure (3)
1 first 2 stanzas are 8 lines long- tone is calm. In 3rd stanza he city becomes a more physical presence
2 end stop - creates a sense of condiment in the new city
3 sunlight is repeated at the end of each stanza reinforcing her positive memories of the old city
What is the key context (2)
1 appeared in 1933 colection thinking of skins
2 emigree is french noun relating to english verb to emigrate - leave and settle in another country
what is the poets message
emotions may effect memories and obscure them making them unreliable
what are the key quotes
1 “I am branded by an impression of sunlight” branded sounds negative suggests negative which suggests the view of her country is forced on her
2 “time rolls its tanks” - word tanks implies narrator sees time as a military enemy that threatens her and creates a barrier between her and her former city
3 “I can comb its hair and love it’s shinning eyes” - city is personified as a thing the speaker can play with and show affection to suggesting that there is such a close connection she can touch it.
4 city is described as having “white streets”makes it sound heavenly - whitness associated with purity
5 repetition of they in last stanza emphasises differences beteewn the speaker and people in her new city “they mutter death “ shows people don’t speak to her and shows she is still in danger despite optimism in final phrase evidence of sunlight
which poem compare well
storm on the island - both about the power of a place -
emigree former city is presented as potential war zone - the personifying adjective sick presents the city as being over run with authority - like a disease. speaker
feels threatened in new city “city of walls” suggests she is trapped imprisoned against her will “they circle me” reinforces. Use of pronoun they presents them as an unknown group
