Lullaby - Poetry

Question 1

Lullaby is about…?

Answer 1

the experiences of an orphan and her fantasies of where her parents are now
- very childlike and presented with tropes of a fairytale e.g. sadness as a monster and fantasy elements

Question 2

Lullaby poem

Answer 2

when the sadness comes
my sister tells me a story -

a man buried in pakistan,
a woman buried in new york city

when we sleep they wake
opposite sides of the world

the planet opens a tunnel
where they meet: dirt sky & worm

stars. the lovers dance
all night, their way back

my father’s fingertips
pressing against my mother’s

crooked smile. her henna-dyed
hair light the underworld

the mole on his lip’s left side
winks the dark.

Question 3

Lullaby - For Khudejha

Answer 3

presents a close family relationship - it is dedicated to her older sister
the sister has taken on the normal role of the parents
the title references the idea of a young child being soothed

Question 4

structure points:

Answer 4

two line stanzas to remind the reader of the death of the parents and their relationship, lasting even in death
- also the sisters
non-standard punctuation makes it feel more childlike and like a lullaby/song
no rhyme scheme, free verse, stream of consciousness - story qualities

Question 5

stanza I

Answer 5

‘when the sadness comes
my sister tells me a story - ‘
Sadness is personified here like a monster stalking her - fairytale effect
(sadness, sister, story) sibilance creates a lullaby-like effect, mirroring the title
grief is constant (comes)

Question 6

the parents

Answer 6

a man buried in pakistan,
a woman buried in new york city,
PARALLELISM -
when we sleep they wake
opposite sides of the world
ANTITHESIS - juxtaposes the ideas of sleep and wake
creates an image of unity and separation in these two stanzas, by the parallels (such as the repetition of ‘buried’)
when ‘we’ sleep ‘they’ wake - separation of the parents and the children but they have each other for company
differences - ‘man’, ‘woman’, ‘pakistan’, ‘new york city’, ‘sleep’, ‘wake’
‘opposite sides of the world’ - ideas of distance

later stanzas:
change from very impersonal, dissociative pronouns/descriptors ‘a man’ and ‘a woman’ to intimate details of the parents relationship
‘my father’s fingertips pressing against my mother’s
crooked smile’ enjambment makes it a sustained action, mentions of imperfections make them seem more human
‘her henna dyed hair’ soft ‘h’ alliterations make it sound gentle and romantic
human memories of the parents
‘winks the dark’
the final line - light hearted and bitter sweet reminder that the parent’s eyes are shut and will not open, ideas of light (stars)? short - only three syllables, reminder that the lives are cut short
light is overcoming the darkness of death
the children only fantasise about the parents being together

Question 7

fairytale elements:

Answer 7

‘when we sleep they wake’
‘the planet opens a tunnel’
—> impossible, as if even the world has schemed for them to be together
dirt sky & worm
stars.
–> decomposition of the parent’s bodies
oxymoronic images and the enjambment emphasises ‘stars’ to represent freedom as they are no longer buried underground

Question 8

key quotations

Answer 8

‘when the sadness comes’
‘my sister tells me a story’
‘a man buried in pakistan
a woman buried in new york’
‘when we sleep they wake
opposite sides of the world’
‘dirt sky & worm stars.’
‘my mother’s crooked smile’
‘her henna dyed hair light the underworld’
‘winks the dark’

Question 9

themes

Answer 9

death, age, family, identity, darkness vs light,

Question 10

mood

Answer 10

sad, bittersweet, consolation, comforting