giuseppe Flashcards
“My Uncle Giuseppe told me
that in Sicily in World War Two,
in the courtyard behind the aquarium
where the bougainvillea grows so well
- The first stanza tells a story of a mermaid which the poets uses a ironic flat, unemotional tone to do so. This sets the scene in the time of WW2, preparing the reader for behaviour that falls short of peacetime, civillised standard
- Irony here as she was probably captived in the aquarium which the fact this was told “behind” could show trying to conceal him shame
- Giuseppe is Joesph in Italian which is a common name suggesting these are common tagic events
- Boungainvillea is a symbol of life and beauty which is ironic as beauty grows were terror takes place.
“the only captive mermaid in the world
was butchered on the dry and dusty ground
by a doctor, a fishmonger and certain others.”
- idea she was butchered dehumanises her but also relegates her from being human-like to something consumable and less significant, not befitting of “the only captive mermaid”
- Death on “dry” land for aquatic life is much more suffering for them, generating sympathy
- She was already a victim before murdered as she had no freedom and the fact she was the “only” one makes her unique
- “dry and dusty” ground is juxaposed with her natural habitat and could be a metaphor for moral aridity
- contrast to bougainvillea that lured the reader into a false sense of secuirty thinking the poem is about an everyday occurance
“She, it, had never learned to speak
because she was simple, or so they`d said.
But the priest who held one of her hands
while her throat was cut”
- Those involved in the killing referred to her as “she” and then immediately solved their conscious by emending this to “it”, denying her humanity reflected through the ceasura
- killing is the ultimate sin and priest is approving of this. He is contradicting himself, comforting her whilst also justifying her death which if he was sure she wasn`t human, wouldnt need to comfort her, holding her hand could be an allusion to last rites displaying inner struggle of morals reflected through stanzas being split up
- “they” distaces uncle, denying his guilt
- “cant speak” is a possible reference to childhood displaying innocence
“said she was only a fish, and fish can`t speak.
But she screamed like a woman in terrible fear.
And when they look took a ripe golden roe”
- Pivot of the poem, a dramatic climax achieved by a simple but stark simile which is only one in the poem which uses emotive language showing the most extreme fear possible encouraging readers to subconsciously to try to relate to this level of fear
- She is screaming after her throats been cut highlighting the inconsistencys of the story, helping the reader understand the dark truth of its killing and indicates an atrocity
- roe is symbolic suggesting there is something intrinsically rich and valuable in her eggs
- “fish can`t speak” could be a metaphor for foreigners
“Then they put her head and hands
in a box for burial
and someone tried to take her wedding ring,
but the others stopped him,”
people identify you and your hands have your fingerprints. These men got rid of what is most human of her to get rid of their guilt, trying to seperate what is human and what is fish
- could eb the uncle stopping them or could even be the uncle was married to her as he was the aquarium keeper
- human burial is ironic as they say she`s just a fish so is this them wanting to remain humane possibly
- fish do not marry so they take the ring to dehumanise her and justify their actions
“starvation forgives men of many things,
my uncle, the aquarium keeper, said,
but couldnt look me in the eye,
for which i thank god.”
- personification of “starvation” is a powerful force beyond human actions
- theres a concentration of ceasuras showing breaks in the story which could represent choatic and cnofusing thought
- aquarium could be symbolic prison for opressed minorities
- reintroduction of religious ideas emphasises the inhuman acts that have been described by the narrator which could also be a criticism of violence over religion which ending the poem on this note shows war, conflict and human atrocities continueing into the future.
