the deliverer Flashcards
what is the poem about?
an emotive poem, looks at issues surrounding adoption, culture and gender, particularly in India
the sections and subheadings?
divide the poem into two different locations - a convent in Kerala, and an airport in the USA. the airport = global connections, freedom, technology, mix of cultures. the convent = traditional, focused on individual culture. contrast shows the distance between the two. transition emphasised by the asterisks between the locations. symbols = dehumanising?
every stanza is end stopped
continuing cycle of the process - happens again and again through generations, no sense of completion. emphasised by the short lines. (could also show the tragically short lives of the girls)
uncaring / dehumanising verbs
‘stuffed in bags’
‘squeeze out life’
‘toss the baby’
uncaring attitude, emotive for the reader because it shows how tragic these lives are. a contrast to our own culture
a distant tone / lack of judgement
lack of emotive language, ideas are kept simple like facts
‘covered in garbage’ ‘watch body slither out from body’
makes the reader make their own judgement
simple and realistic imagery also drives the poem home by making it more realistic and mundane, makes the message less remote
‘abandoned at their doorstep’
‘abandoned’ the most emotive verb used, emphasises how striking this is
‘doorstep’ familiar but distant
sees how she’s passed from woman // to woman
’s’ repetition and sibilance = sense of danger
continuing over the lines = inevitable, regular but unwelcome
‘trudge home to lie down for their men again’
= a line that stands alone at the end
desolation of the women
‘their men’ = culture of possession
‘again’ = the cycle
gender
centred around the idea that in many eastern cultures the equality of women is still a battle to be won. shows how the ‘value’ in these cultures of people relies on them being men
society and culture
highlihhts the different values exisiting between culutres but without judgement
transgression
the abuse of the children crosses out social boundaries brutally to drive home the message
