Poetry: Honour Killing

Question 1

Refers to the idea of changing the idea of god
Themes:
- religion

Answer 1

“Gave my god a devil’s face”
L/S:
- the metaphor creates a contrast between ‘god’ and ‘devil’
- god implies peace and creation
- devil implies evil and destruction

Question 2

In the first stanza, talking about her country
Themes:
- country

Answer 2

“This black coat of a country…
I believed I had no choice”
L/S:
- ‘black’ is a metaphor for evil and darkness which characterised her life up to this point
- ‘coat’ should be protective but is undermined
- ‘believed’ in the past tense, shows how she is escaping her former self

Question 3

Describes the lack of freedom of the narrator
Themes:
religion

Answer 3

“I’m taking off this veil… that tied my mouth”
…Muffled my own voice”
L/S:
- ‘tied’ and ‘muffled’ means she was unable to speak and her religion controlled her

Question 4

Progression of parts of her identity throughout the poem
Themes:
identity

Answer 4

“Taking off coat…veil…silks…skin”
L/S:
- removes aspects of her identity, as she moves closer, she feels more free
- ‘taking off her skin’ is especially brutal, shows how much she was suppressed by her identity

Question 5

Repetition at the start of last 2 stanzas
Themes:
freedom
identity

Answer 5

“Let’s see” is repeated
L/S:
- used to emphasise that the narrator is both intrigued and excited by the prospect of her new found freedom

Question 6

Shows the loss of her identity due to religion
Themes:
religion

Answer 6

“This black veil of a faith
That made me faithless”
L/S:
- contrast of ‘faith’ and ‘faithless’
- ‘black veil’ shows how her religion has been contorted

Question 7

Contrast between luxury items and her being portrayed as a beggar
Themes:
- identity

Answer 7

“The mangalsutra and the rings rattling in a tin cup”
L/S:
- ‘mangalsutra’ is a necklace given to Hindu brides, an item of luxury
- contrasted with alliteration of “rings rattling” could imply coins in a cup of a beggar, because everything has been taken from her

Question 8

Describing how she was trapped in the second last stanza
Themes:
- identity

Answer 8

“When I squeeze past
The easy cage of bone”
L/S:
- ‘squeeze’ implies how difficult it was to escape’
- ‘cage’ suggests she was trapped inside herself ‘bone’

Question 9

Last 2 stanzas using enjambment
Themes:
identity

Answer 9

“Let’s see
What I am in here”
L/S:
- enjambment adds pace and speed to the end of the poem reflecting how she now feels more free