half past two Flashcards
“once upon a schooltime He did Something very wrong”
- mimics the opening of a fairy tale, immediately placing the reader in the perspective of a child. This highlights the innocence and imagination of childhood.
-The capitalization of “Something Very Wrong” reflects the child’s perception of the event as monumental, even though the specifics are forgotten.
-This exaggeration underscores the gap between the child’s emotional world and the adult’s logical one, emphasizing themes of innocence and misunderstanding.
“And she said he’d done Something very wrong and must stay in the school room till half past two”
-he repetition of “Something Very Wrong” reinforces how serious this moment feels to the child, even though its specifics are trivial or forgotten by the adult speaker (indicated by parentheses).
-The capitalized pronoun “She” gives authority to the teacher while also making her seem distant and impersonal, highlighting the power imbalance between adults and children.
-This moment reflects broader themes of authority and childhood vulnerability.
-sibilance, sinister, hissing effect, reflects childs anger at teacher
“he knew alot of time… TVtime”
-The child’s understanding of time is expressed through neologisms (invented words) that reflect his routine-based perception of life. -These compound phrases are playful and endearing, emphasizing his innocence and limited grasp of abstract concepts like “half-past two.” -This contrast between concrete and abstract time highlights how childhood operates on sensory and experiential understanding rather than rigid structures.
“but he couldnt click its language”
-This metaphor personifies the clock, suggesting it has a “language” that the child cannot comprehend.
-The verb “click” evokes auditory imagery associated with clocks, reinforcing his alienation from adult constructs like timekeeping.
- This line encapsulates how children often feel excluded from adult systems of knowledge, furthering themes of misunderstanding and isolation.
“into the smell of old chrysanthemums on Her desk”
-The sensory imagery here captures the heightened awareness of the child as he waits in detention, detached from conventional time.
-The reference to “old chrysanthemums” may symbolize neglect or decay, subtly criticizing the teacher’s carelessness in forgetting him.
form
-It is a free verse poem that does not have a regular meter, This gives the poem a conversational feel, which could reflect the innocence of the child
-Only some lines rhyme, This perhaps highlights how the poem is not intended for children, even though it is about a child:The speaker is an adult and so the lack of rhyme reflects the adult perspective, even if the words are childlike
structure
-While the line lengths vary, each stanza is three lines long, The consistent stanza length gives the poem some structure and organisation: The content may reflect the innocence of the child, but the consistent stanza length reflects the power of the speaker telling the story
tone
-The tone in the poem “Half-past Two” is predominantly one of childlike innocence and confusion. This tone is established through the use of childish language and the portrayal of the young protagonist’s inability to comprehend abstract concepts like time.
-“He knew a lot of time: he knew
Gettinguptime, timeyouwereofftime,
Timetogohomenowtime, TVtime,
Timeformykisstime (that was Grantime).”
-This quote illustrates the child’s understanding of time through concrete, everyday activities rather than abstract numerical concepts. The made-up compound words like “Gettinguptime” and “Timeformykisstime” reflect the child’s innocent perspective and highlight his confusion when faced with the abstract notion of “half-past two”.
-The tone conveyed through this language is one of naivety and bewilderment, emphasizing the disconnect between the child’s world and the adult world of precise timekeeping.
