The Gun Flashcards
What is The Gun about?
a woman speaking to the partner about how a gun brings her pleasure and excitement - introduced by him
what is the purpose of The Gun
make the reader uncomfortable with taboo topics surrounding guns being associated with pleasure
why is the speaker ambiguous in The Gun
could be directing the ‘you’ to her partner or a general reader
bringing a gun into a house changes it.
single short line stanza at the beginning marks the immediate dramatic change - intrusion of violence on domestic setting
endstop emph
You lay it on the kitchen table, stretched out like something dead itself
the intrusion of violence and corruption in the domestic setting -juxtaposition
jutting over the edge
sense of endangerment/ turning point
metal barrel…grey shadow/ green-checked cloth
juxtaposition in colour imagery between light and dark shows the invasion of violence and disruption
what is special about the 3rd stanza in The Gun?
‘orange string from trees in the garden’… ‘then a rabbit shot’
The first 4 lines are childish happy images then the last 2 are brutal and violent - depicts of progression of violence
Then a rabbit shot clean through the head.
endstop and minimalist language shows the casual switch to death and destruction
creatures that have run and flown. Your hands reek
the dehumanising language depicts the corruption of violence and the taking of life
your eyes gleam like when sex was fresh
death is associated with pleasure and ironically life that is within her house
A gun brings a house alive.
short single line stanza is ironic - idea of thrill associated with a gun
endstop emph a matter of fact tone
I join in cooking: jointing and slicing, stirring and tasting
tempted by violence and complicity
intrusion of violence - kitchen is a traditionally feminine and domestic image
King of Death…winter woods…black mouth
images of death
sprouting golden crocuses
symbol of life and vitality but also poison - reflects the gun
