Originally Flashcards
“We came from our own country”
“We” and “our” are plural pronouns suggesting shared experiences.
“red room”
“red” symbolises anger/danger. quote refers to a car but due to her hazy childish memory/ impression of situation she sees it as a “red room”
“which fell through the fields”
“fell” implies lack of control.
“our mother singing”
Shows the mothers happiness and optimism which contrasts with the children’s emotions.
“My brothers cried, one of them bawling HOME, HOME”
“bawling” implies extreme emotion of sadness, proves contrast with mothers feelings. Repetition of “HOME” shows they feel a connection with there living place and their desire to go back.
“as the miles rushed back to the city”
“rushed” gives a sense of the speed of the departure and shows her lack of control in the situation. “back” shows she is looking over her shoulder and reminiscing.
“the street, the house, the vacant rooms”
Tricolon. List emphasises how much she feels she is leaving behind and the memories she shares with the location.
“where we didn’t live anymore.”
Full stop/caesura provides a finality to the statement.
“I stared at he eyes of a blind toy, holding its paw.”
“eyes of a blind toy” symbolic of her feeling of heading into the unknown, unsure of what is ahead of her. “holding its paw.” shows she has a sense of comfort in the toy and feels reassured in these troubled times. Also implies she isn’t letting out her true feelings as while the brothers cry, she ‘bottles up’ her emotions.
“All childhood is an emigration.”
Declarative sentence. “emigration” literally means to move to another place but in context implies Duffy sees her growing up as its own journey in time, rather then place to place.
“Some are slow, leaving you standing, resigned, up an avenue where no one you know stays.”
“Some are slow” contrasts with later line (“Others are sudden”). Shows two differing growing experiences. List emphasises the drawn out, “slow” nature of some ‘journeys’. “no one you know stays.” Caesura and word choice add to the feeling of unfamiliarity these “emigrations” bring as you grow.
“Others are sudden.”
Short simple sentence adds to the “sudden” nature of the emigrations Duffy is referring to. Contrasts with previous statement (“Some are slow”).
“Your accent wrong.”
Declarative, Short sentence provides the sense of certainty Duffy feels that she doesn’t belong here. Also builds on speed of transition with the “sudden” nature of the sentence.
“Corners, which seem familiar, leading to unimagined, pebble-dashed estates, big boys eating worms and shouting words you don’t understand.”
Tricolon brings attention to sheer number of new and unpleasant situations. “seem familiar”, “unimagined” and “pebble-dashed” all use word choice to build on her unfamiliarity with her whereabouts and how she hasn’t acclimatised to her surroundings. “big boys” shows she feels intimidated by there presence and doesn’t feel safe. “eating worms and shouting words you don’t understand.” shows her disgust of the new customs and behaviours of her new community and also shows the communication barrier present leading to her not being able to assimilate into society, building on the outcast theme seen throughout the stanza.
“My parents’ anxiety stirred like a loose tooth”
Simile shows the parents questioning their decision. Root of “loose tooth” suggests a niggling pain/irritation that keeps coming back. Implies in context that the parents are constantly worried about their choice and that the feeling sticks with them.
