Tissue

Question 1

‘This is what could alter things’

Answer 1

Explains the power of paper – it is used to communicate information and religion (the Koran) – it can change the world.

Question 2

‘Turned transparent with attention’

Answer 2

Paper is fragile – been handled so many times it has become so thin it is almost see-through, yet it is still hugely powerful.

Question 3

‘Turned into your skin.’

Answer 3

Metaphor here suggests human tissue (‘skin’) is also like paper – fragile but powerful. We are ‘never meant to last’.

Question 4

Structure

Answer 4

Unrhymed and irregular – can represent the irregularity and unpredictability of human life and the flimsiness of paper which can be easily destroyed.

Question 5

Idea/Perspective/Context (AO3)

Answer 5

As a poet, Dharker is aware of the importance of words and paper to change someone’s life. Perhaps,
by writing this poem, she is expressing a hope that her work will outlast her and be remembered.

Question 6

Links

Answer 6

Storm on the Island
Checking Out Me History
War Photographer
The Prelude