Hotel Room 12th Floor Flashcards
“This morning I watched from here”
Daytime view of NY. 1st person “I”
suggests he is alone.
“watched” suggests he is a passive
observer; not a part of the city.
“This morning”
Fixes the poem at a specific time – together with
the title this makes the poem seem like it is
about a real life experience
“a helicopter skirting like a damaged insect”
Technique: Simile
From a distance the powerful machine looks like a tiny insect. It helps us imagine the hovering movement.
“damaged”
Connotations: broken.
Suggests that the Poet is not v. impressed.
“the Empire State building, that
jumbo size dentist’s drill, …”
Technique: Metaphor
“dentist’s drill”
Connotations: pain, suffering etc.
“jumbo size” – suggests he thinks its size is over the top, unnecessary.
Suggests that he is criticising the American view that bigger = better.
Helps us to picture the shape of the building, tapering to the thin radio mast point. A typical humorous MacCaig image but prompting deeper reflection.
“But now, Midnight has come in”
“But now”
Technique: Change in mood/tone
‘But’ signals the shift from day to night. The mood become more sinister. “But now” also creates a sense of immediacy.
“… Midnight has come in
from foreign places. …”
Technique: Personification
Personification of ‘midnight’: the capital letter emphasises this (like a name). The darkness (midnight) has arrived in NY from other countries (time zones etc)
“foreign”
Technique: Word Choice
“foreign”
Connotations: strange, mysterious, other, threatening.
Contributes to sinister atmosphere, things feel more dangerous, threatened.
“But now Midnight has come in
from foreign places. …”
Technique: Short Sentence
Creates tension
“Its uncivilised darkness”
Technique: Personification
It’s not actually the darkness which is uncivilised; it’s the fact that people become more violent/ disruptive/aggressive etc when darkness falls.
Alternatively, it could suggest that modern America is in conflict with anything that contrasts with its views of
civilisation – anything “foreign”
“… darkness
is shot at by a million lit windows, …”
Technique: Metaphor
He compares the lights from the buildings piercing the
darkness to gunshots to emphasise his message about the constant threat of violence.
“shot at” has connotations of
gunshots/gun crime/violence.
“… all
ups and acrosses”
Technique: Word Choice
“ups and acrosses”
The pattern of dark and lit up windows
looks like a crossword.
“acrosses” Also contains the word “cross” – may make us think of a crucifix. This links to Christ who died for the sins of civilisation.
The poet is lamenting the
evil within society.
“… It uncivilised darkness
is shot at by a million lit windows, all
ups and acrosses.”
Technique: Metaphor/Religious imagery
The poet uses midnight/darkness to
represent evil. He bleakly feels that we will never
be able to completely overcome evil in the world.
Dark represents evil. Light represents good –
religious imagery.
There is a battle between light (knowledge, civilisation,
progress) and darkness (evil, the unknown, threat).
“But midnight is not
so easily defeated. …”
Technique: Signal word/ Enjambment/ personification/ Repetition
“But” signals a shift: from day to night; from the veneer of polite, civilised society to violence and evil.
“midnight” is repeated and again is personified.
“is not so easily defeated”
The darkness becomes like a threatening figure that cannot be beaten, representing the ever present evil and violence in society.
Enjambment emphasises the word
“not” to show his bleak attitude of the poet.
“… I lie in bed, between
a radio and a television set, …”
The noises of sirens outside compete with the TV and radio: more signs of technological advances.
“between”
Suggests these noise of technology could be coming from the hotel rooms on either side. On the other hand,
MacCaig could be trying to block out the more sinister sounds coming from outside.
“… and hear
the wildest of warhoops continually ululating through
the glittering canyons and gulches - “
Technique: Extended Metaphor
The poet compares NY to the Wild West.
The shapes of the skyscraper buildings and the
streets look like the canyons and gulches of Wild West
landscapes but also he sees a link between the noise,
violence and conflict in NY and the wild battles of the
American Wild West.
“wildest”
Technique: Word Choice
Connotations: uncivilised, brutal culture.
These noises could initially be coming from the TV/radio but then are compared to the constant sound of howling sirens outside.
“wildest of warhoops”
Technique: Alliteration
Harsh sounds
“warhoops continually ululating”
Technique: Onomatopoeia
Repeated ‘oo’ sound helps us to imagine the noise of the sirens/war cries from the Wild West.
“wildest of warhoops continually ululating…”
“continually”
Technique: Word Choice
Emphasises the idea that evil never stops.
“glittering”
Technique: Word Choice
Reminds us of sun glinting off rock in Wild West but also the shining lights of NY.
This does not disguise the real horror of what is going
on though for the poet.
Contrast between the natural landscape of the Wild West and the man-made cityscape: the canyons may now be ‘glittering’ but are still canyons: not much has really changed.
“police cars and ambulances racing
to broken bones…”
“racing”
Technique: Word Choice
Emphasises the speed of response: obviously attending emergency/serious incidents.
“police cars and ambulances racing
to broken bones…”
“broken bones”
Technique: Synecdoche (when a part stands for the whole.)
Instead of saying the ambulances are racing to injured
people, the poet just describes them as “broken
bones”.
This dehumanises the victims – there are so
many violent incidents/accidents that they all just seem
to be reduced to a catalogue of injuries.
