Registers

Question 1

‘Out of the warm primordial cave’

What does this suggest?

Answer 1

WARM - comforting and safe
PRIMORDIAL - since the beginning of time - the only environment the child has ever known
CAVE - hidden from the dangers of the world, sheltered

Question 2

‘Of our conversations, Jacks gone.’
What tone does those give?
What does the full stop at the end of the line represent?

Answer 2

• By mentioning the child’s name, the tone becomes more personal
• The full stop suggests finality

Question 3

'No more chit-chat under the blankets'
Explain...
- No more
- Chit-chat
- Under the blankets

Answer 3

NO MORE - this period of his life is over
CHIT-CHAT - casual and informal, talking about nothing in particular - we learn that they have a close relationship
UNDER THE BLANKETS - links back to the idea of ‘primordial cave’ the the first line - a safe environment hiding him from the dangers of the world

Question 4

‘Pegged over chairs and nipped in drawers’

Why is ‘peggED’ and ‘nippED’ used?

Answer 4

Allows the writer to create a rhythm which is reminiscent of childhood nursery rhymes

Question 5

‘I catch myself still listening out’

Answer 5

The word ‘still’ suggests that it is constant, ongoing
- He is sad and missing him, he’s not used to it
‘I catch myself’ - involuntary

Question 6

‘For sounds of him in this sensible house’

What is suggested by the word ‘sensible’?

Answer 6

The fun and play has gone - the house has been stripped of his personality

Question 7

‘Where nothing stirs but the washing machine’
Analyse…
- Nothing
- Washing machine

Answer 7

NOTHING - suggests emptiness
WASHING MACHINE - links back to the idea of ‘sensible’ in the previous stanza - a sensible, adult thing to be doing. The sound if the washing machine is repetitive and monotonous, perhaps mimicking life without him

Question 8

‘Which clicks and churns’

What technique is used here?

Answer 8

Onomatopoeia

Question 9

‘Which clicks and churns. I’m loosening my arms
Clasping around my neck, detaching myself’
What technique is used in the first line and why? (Think punctuation)
What is literally happening?
What do we learn?

Answer 9

• A CAESURA is used to suggest a shift in time
• The writer is RELIVING the moment, yet continuing to speak in present tense
• We learn that he doesn’t want to go either

Question 10

What is the poems literal meaning?

Answer 10

A parent looking at his child - reflecting on him growing up, going to school, possible boarding school

Question 11

‘From his soft protracted kiss goodbye.’
What is the significance of…
- Soft
- Protracted

Answer 11

SOFT - suggest innocence and vulnerability

PROTRACTED - long lasting

Question 12

'Good boy, diminishing down the long
Corridors into the huge unknown'
GOOD BOY - 
DIMINISHING -
HUGE -

Answer 12

GOOD BOY - praising him, reassuring both of them, don’t want him to feel punished
DIMINISHING - their bond is being stretched to the limit
HUGE - overwhelming

Question 13

Why is ‘Mrs Cracknell’ mentioned?

Answer 13

She is taking the parental role away from them