Marked With D Flashcards
Title - Marked with a D
Reference to patty cake nursery rhyme. Shows how Harrison’s father was uneducated.
D- death, dad, ding. Poem about his fathers cremation
Structure
One 16 line meredithian sonnet
‘Not unlike those he fuelled all his life’
His father fuelled others and was exploited his entire life, metaphor for exploitation.
Fuel- he was consumed by his job.
Imagery of fire
Ambiguous symbol, great warmth, light and beauty however it is destructive.
Light streaming from his mouth to shape her name
How he is voiceless and when he does speak light comes from his mouth. Shows passion and love for his dead wife.
Cold tongue burst into flame
Cold tongue- struggle to speak
Burst into flame- finally been given a voice
The tongue that weighed like lead
How he was uneducated and unable to speak up. His speech/ he was silenced against those in power. Language barrier.
Religious imagery- marked with a d
Harrison’s father was religious but Harrison wasn’t. Religious imagery through out. No heaven for his father to reach- symbolic of the lack of hope. Religion often described as dulling the pain of the oppressed, Harrison sees through this and how religion oppressed people further.
Line 8 - but only literally, which makes me sorry.
Turning point, we were encouraged to think metaphorically, but now we think literally.
The bakers man that no one will see rise
Another reference to nursery rhymes. Shows how he is uneducated, unrealised potential because he does not have the opportunity to show it.
England made to feel like some dull oaf
Pun, bakers making things that rise, suggesting he cannot rise or achieve as a person.
Direct criticism of England, and the poor treatment of his father.
Smoke, enough to sting one persons eyes
Only one person at his funeral, shows his insignificance in society. Also shows how only on person felt emotionally effected by his death, showing isolation or alienation of the working class.
Criticism of society- identity
Identity is what his job is, “bakers man”
Poem as a whole
All that was left behind of his father after his passing- insignificance
