The Way My Mother Speaks Flashcards
Under the shallows of my breath
Word choice: image of speaker quietly repeating these words, she is actively trying to maintain the connection to her mother. Suggesting she is frightened of losing this.
Restful shapes moving
Oxymoron: reminder that she is on a train and the flickering images that are passing by the window. Restful connotes peace, moving connotes restless. Suggests the speaker is unsettled by this process of leaving home could potentially represent the memories of her childhood she is leaving behind.
The day and ever. The day and ever
Repetition creates a steady rhythm and mimics the movement of the train change is in motion and is now unstoppable. Alsosuggests the narrator is repeating the phrases in her head to reassure herself. Again, it reinforces the connection with her mother and her words suggests she will miss the comfort of home.
Too blue swapped for a cool grey
Too blue warmth and comfort and protection of family home but too suggests she has outgrown this protection, that she finds it suffocating. Grey symbolic of uncertainty of future and potential for failure.
