Tissue by Imtiaz Dharker

Question 1

What themes are in Tissue?

Answer 1

• Man vs Time
• Power of time
• Power of knowledge
• Conflict of identity
• Futility of life

Question 2

Context for Tissue:

Answer 2

• Recurring themes in her poetry include cultural identity, freedom, displacement, communal conflict, gender politics + freedom.
• Imtiaz Dharker has Pakistani origins and was raised in Glasgow

Question 3

Form and Structure in Tissue:

Answer 3

• Extended metaphor of the tissue as human skin.
• The form is free verse to act as natural speech.
• The structure is formal as it is 4 lines long but in the last line she has one line on its own to give emphasis to her message.
• Irregular metre because it shows how the poet is breaking from time, irregularity of life + power of human life and nature.

Question 4

“Paper that lets the light shine through, this is what could alter things.”

Answer 4

• The semantic field of religion more specifically Christianity, ‘light’ god’s light shines through goodness. Also God has power of what is written on paper
• The homophone ‘alter’ is to show the similarities between Islam and the Christian faiths. But she also wants to alter the perspectives of her readers.
• Enjambment creates ongoing monologue tone.
• Refrain - paper controls life like God does
• Translucent so doesn’t know what’s real

Question 5

“The back of the Koran, where a hand has written in the names and histories”

Answer 5

• The tissue paper in the Koran and the bible which acts as a transparent protection. The Koran here is used to show that we are apart of the same history and focuses on generations. It changes tissue from paper to skin. She focuses on the persons hand which is something which we can all identify.
• Koran is a symbol of culture and religion and also emphasising a major conflict in modern society and the perceived war on Islam
• Juxtaposes to something done on machine so continues tactile.
• Non-specific so no individuality as legacies are that important
• Repetitive “h” sound are soft so shows the fragility of paper

Question 6

“Maps too. The sun shines through their borderlines,”

Answer 6

• She focuses on the idea of a map to represent different cultures and countries.
• The idea of the “sun” could show that these borders are just an illusion to separate us, and without them we are all the same.
• The sun is also part of religious imagery to symbolise God and his power, by referring to the maps as tissues she is suggesting that we need to look at them with the right light to see equality.
• The sun is a recurring theme which is instrumental in giving power to paper; interdependent
• Listing encompasses the man and nature made aspects of the world and how the ‘sun shines’ representing hope and how transparent these things become rather than the permanent object we see them to be.
• Caesurae separates the man made “maps” to the natural “borderlines” showing man vs nature

Question 7

“Find a way to trace a grand design with living tissue”

Answer 7

• She uses language to represent buildings but instead the architect is going to design something with people, the image suggests many types of people.
• She uses the verb ‘find’ as it will be difficult also the use of the noun ‘trace’ could relate to history that we all go back to the same place by seeing we are all the same people and equal.
• Biblical reference suggests the bigger picture and a sense of spiritual fulfilment - suggests that we could be building things that improve our life, not hold us back.

Question 8

“Thinned to be transparent turned into your skin”

Answer 8

• The metaphor suggests that the paper is thin to show that our differences are easy to break through.
• The adjective ‘transparent’ suggests that we are the same - she doesn’t see people as threatening.
• The poet is saying that she wants everyone to see colour as irrelevant as if we can break down our barriers we will see that we are all the same.
• She is asking for acceptance and showing that underneath skin we are all the same.
• The alliteration of ‘transparent’ and ‘turned’ is to emphasise the Volta and demanding acceptance.
• Cyclical structure converys the omniscience of paper
• Repetition from stanza 3, reminding us of the tactile intimacy of the book but now on a larger scale.
• Direct address suggests that instead of being at conflict with the world around us we create a sense of ownership and shared identity.