The Prodigal Quotes (explained) Flashcards
The quote used to describe the morning sun as it hits the farm setting
‘the sunrise glazed the barnyard mud with red
the burning puddles seemed to reassure’
Explain the quote ‘the sunrise glazed the barnyard mud with red
the burning puddles seemed to reassure’
Some mornings after he has been drinking, the rising sun transforms the ugly pigsty into something beautiful.
Bishop admires the strength of the human spirit where he can find beauty in the midst of great filth.
She celebrates the fact that in the midst of despair human beings can find a glimmer of hope.
- Explain the quote:
‘And then he thought he almost might endure
his exile yet another year or more’
The world is made beautiful by the sun and nature.
The ordinary is transformed.
The world of nature, and in particular the rising sun, has become a source of consolation and hope for him.
Nature bestows on him a sense of hope and optimism.
It made his life more bearable and helped him to cope with his suffering and loneliness in his exile.
The quote showing how nature affects the prodigal’s judgement and emotions
‘And then he thought he almost might endure
his exile yet another year or more’
Explain the quote:
‘The lantern - like the sun, going away -
laid on the mud a pacing aureole’
The lantern gives the prodigal a sense of hope.
He compares the light from the lantern to an ‘aureole’ or a halo.
The religious image could suggest that the prodigal begins to think of his spiritual life.
It presents us with images of redemption and rehabilitation for the prodigal
The quote showing his uncertainty in a different form
‘he felt the bats’ uncertain staggering flight’
Explain the quote:
‘he felt the bats’ uncertain staggering flight’
The bats’ flight is ‘uncertain’ and ‘staggering’, reflecting the prodigal’s drunkenness and his stumbling through life without direction.
The ‘bats’ uncertain and staggering flight’ convey the uncertainty he is dealing with in his constant predicament, to go home.
The final quote of the poem, the Prodigal makes up his mind
‘But it took him a long time
finally to make up his mind to go home’
Explain the quote:
‘But it took him a long time
finally to make up his mind to go home’
The epiphany of the poem.
This crucial decision to return from his exile is a powerful illustration of human resilience.
There is an image of hope at the end of the poem as the prodigal decides ‘to go home’.
As is evident in the fist stanza, the light makes the prodigal realise and accept that he must change his life.
Once again Bishop admires the human spirit as he makes the brave decision to return home and ask for forgiveness.
In the last line of the poem,
“finally to make his mind up to go home”, the word home is emphasised for certain reasons.
- How is ‘home’ emphasised in the poem?
- It is the only unrhymed end word in the poem
Explain the quote:
‘But evenings the first star came to warn’
There is a biblical insinuation here, the nativity of Jesus Christ which is represented as destiny.
The star is personified as it comes ‘to warn’ the prodigal that he is on the wrong path.
