Prayer for the Children of Longing: IOE notes

Question 1

Why was this poem commissioned?

Answer 1

to remember the children who died from drug use in the north inner city of dublin

Question 2

What type of poem is this (describe it)?

Answer 2

Thisis a poignant and thought-provoking poem.

Question 3

What themes does this poem address?

Answer 3

It addresses themes including suffering, community,
loss, the challenges of urban life and hope & renewal.

Question 4

This a complex and difficult poem. What does this reflect?

Answer 4

It reflects the subject matter (themes including suffering, community,
loss, the challenges of urban life and hope & renewal.)

Question 5

What is this poem a reflection of? Who is it an elegy for and why?

Answer 5

The poem is a provocative reflection on the life of the city.

It reflects on the tragedy of the epidemic of drug addiction in the North inner city, and all of the associated injustice. It is also an elegy for those young people who have died as a result of this epidemic and a reflection on the impact of these events on their community.

Question 6

What does this poem begin with the image of?

Answer 6

It begins with the image of a winter tree which creates the idea of this overly large ‘great’ and exotic tree being brought to the city for Christmas.

Question 7

What does the winter tree create the idea of?

Answer 7

It creates the idea of this overly large ‘great’ and exotic tree being brought to the city for Christmas.

Question 8

Where is the tree erected in the city?

Answer 8

The tree is erected in the heart of the city, in an area which probably suffers the most during the ice and chill of the winter.

Question 9

What may the tree symbolise to the masses and to the minority?

Answer 9

This tree, brought from the north may symbolise joy and hope to many, but not to those suffering from hardship and poverty.

Question 10

How is the opening line of the poem dramatic? (poetic techniques 1)

Great tree from the far northern forest
Still rich with the sap of the forest

Answer 10

The opening line is dramatic in it suggestiveness as our attention is drawn in through the rhythmic beat of the alliterative fs found in the rhythmic “from”, “far and ‘forest’ which draws our attention to this far away and exotic place.

Question 11

Explain the following quote from the second stanza:

“Grant us the clarity of ice”

Answer 11

In the second stanza she asks for the ‘clarity of ice’ so we can see the reality of what is happening.

Question 12

How does Meehan bring the chill and cold of winter to life?

Answer 12

She brings the chill and cold of winter to life as the ‘snow’s breathless quiet freezes the world into quiet submission.

Question 13

What is the impact of the drug trade to the victims of it?

Answer 13

There is a drug trade, which also comes from far away, but does not bring anything other than a false hope to its victims.

Question 14

How are we left with the feeling that the children of longing give in to their addiction?

Answer 14

We are left with the feeling that the children of longing give in to the ‘needle in its track’ a clear symbol of the marks left behind by a heroin addicts addiction.

Question 15

‘needle in its track’ is a clear symbol of what?

Answer 15

the ‘needle in its track’ is a clear symbol of the marks left behind by a heroin addict’s addiction.

Question 16

Explain the connection and meaning of the quotes below: (2)
‘The comfort of snow’
and
‘The knife in the back’

Answer 16

The ‘comfort of snow’ could be the numbing comfort found in drugs, but there is a clear warning as it will knife you ‘in the back’.

The deadly aspect of the killer drug is juxtaposed with the comfort it may bring.

Question 17

Define juxtaposed and give an example

Answer 17

the fact of two things being seen or placed close together with contrasting effect.

e.g. the evil witch in the wizard of Oz and the good witch

Question 18

What stanza (and what in it) accentuates the pain of the addict?

Answer 18

The silence of the fourth stanza accentuates the pain of the addict.

Question 19

What does the 5th stanza accentuate for the reader?

Answer 19

The fifth stanza clearly accentuates the depravations suffered by the children of longing.

Question 20

How does the 5th stanza clearly accentuates the depravations suffered by the children of longing? (2) (poetic technique and observation)

“The echo of their voices, through the city streets. The streets that defeated them. That brought them to their knees. The streets that couldn’t shelter them. That spellbound them in alleyways. The streets that blew their minds. That led them astray, out of reach of our saving. The streets that gave them visions and dreams. That promised them everything. That delivered nothing. The streets that broke their backs. The streets we brought them home to”

Answer 20

The repetition of ‘TH’ in ‘the’ and ‘that’ provides a sense of a list of hardships and dangerous being compiled.

Their voices echo through the streets that have defeated them.

Question 21

How are the streets personified in the 5th stanza?

Answer 21

The streets are personified as a tyrannical force that has ‘brought them to their knees’.

Question 22

What are the children in alleyways for?

Answer 22

The children are left destitute and homeless looking for shelter in alleyways.

Question 23

What have the streets become a symbol for?

Answer 23

The streets become symbolic for drugs, probably heroin.

Question 24

What has the drug heroine provided to the children? (negative)

Answer 24

The drug has provided a false dream, they have been led astray and have had their minds blown apart.

Question 25

How did the streets cheat the children?

Answer 25

These, children of the impoverished streets, were promised a better life, but this was not delivered.

Question 26

How is the following line a metaphor for drugs?
“That promised them everything
That delivered nothing”

Answer 26

These, children of the impoverished streets, were promised a better life, but this was not delivered. Again this could be a metaphor for addiction. The escape provided through drugs has become a toxic prison.

Question 27

What is the relevance of the following line to society? (What is Meehan getting at?)

“The streets we brought them home to”

Answer 27

The final line of the stanza suggests responsibility. The ‘we’ is a society that has let these children down.

Question 28

In the final stanza, what is the effect of the repetition of ‘let’?

Answer 28

The repetition of ‘Let’ in the sixth stanza sounds like a prayer.

Question 29

The repetition of ‘Let’ in the sixth stanza sounds like a prayer. But why is the poet stressing these lines?

Answer 29

She stresses the importance of remembrance. We must remember the names of the destitute.

Question 30

Meehan stresses the following lines. She wants us to remember the names of the destitute. By remembering these names she is suggesting that society can do what?

Let their names be the wind through the branches
Let their names be the song of the river
Let their names be the holiest prayers

Answer 30

She could be suggesting that by remembering their pain we, as a society, might attempt to improve the future.

Question 31

Where is the saddest juxtaposition present in the poem?

Answer 31

(at the beginning and end)
There is a sad juxtaposition to the opening stanza where there is an implied suggestion of happy children gathering around a Christmas tree that has come from the far north, full of high expectations, ‘rich with sap’ and longings for a bright future.

Question 32

Why does the christmas tree seem to be full of hope and high expectations?

Answer 32

The christmas tree has come from the far north, full of high expectations, ‘rich with sap’ and longings for a bright future.

Question 33

Why is the juxtaposition at the end of the poem still hopeful?

“Under the starlight, under the moonlight
In the light of this tree
Here at the heart of winter
Here at the heart of the city”

Answer 33

It is now society that gathers around the tree, surrounded by starlight and moonlight which could represent hope for the future, even though it is the ‘heart of winter’.

Question 34

What type of ending does this poem have?

Answer 34

a circular ending with a string sense of completion

Question 35

In the fifth stanza, ‘streets’ is repeated 7 times. What is Meehan trying to emphasise and convey?

Answer 35

the sense of outrage and of
disappointment is palpable. We have failed this community / we have failed
these people
These people are people who are valued, loved and mourned.
this is the hallmark of a
failed society

Question 36

What is the motif in this poem?

Answer 36

The repetition of ‘streets’ in stanza 5

Question 37

How does Meehan create emphasis (poetic technique)?

Answer 37

She uses repetition and anaphora to create emphasis

Question 38

How is authenticity in the poet’s voice created?

Answer 38

Colloquial language is employed, and adds an authenticity to the voice.

Question 39

The poem is, in essence, an exercise in public commentary. How so?

Answer 39

The poem is, in essence, an exercise in public commentary. It reflects on the tragedy of the epidemic of drug addiction in the North inner city, and all of the associated injustice.

Question 40

What are the characteristic poetic traits of Meehan present in the poem? Give the effect of each technique as well. (6)

Answer 40

She uses repetition and anaphora to create emphasis.

Colloquial language is employed and adds an authenticity to the voice.

Nature Imagery, metaphor and symbolism are also employed effectively.