The City Planners

Question 1

Themes from the city plannets

Answer 1

Perfection is not possible
The conflict between humans and nature
Attempting to control nature is futile a form of insanity
Order control and madness

Question 2

Order control and madness

Answer 2

The speaker suggests that people’s desire for control and order comes from panic about chaos in nature. “The smell of spilt oil in the graves hints at underlying decay showing beneath the suburbs perfect appearance something is wrong. Reality is often messy and unpredictable. Speaker feels disturbed by the overly neat and orderly suburban environment. Speaker finds it unsettling

Question 3

The conflict between humans and nature- what do the roofs symbolise

Answer 3

Roofs are angled to defect the harsh sun. These roofs can distract or shield us from the world outside Highlighting our constant efforts to escape nature. We construct homes to protect ourselves from the sun and build fences to keep wildlife at bay because nature is the one thing we cannot control and that frightens us

Question 4

Poetic devices- personification

Answer 4

Makes the suburban setting feel both alive and suffocating.

Question 5

House- personification

Answer 5

Houses lined up perfectly seem to scold the speaker for their “dented” car door showing how the suburb has strict rules and dislikes imperfections

Question 6

Grass-personification

Answer 6

The grass described as “discouraged” reflect how lawnmowers control nature and limit its growth. Highlighting a gap between people and the environment