'Giving love the only way she knew,
In each cheap cut of meat, in roast and stew'
Suggests that she is not physically affectionate, but she does love her child.
Love comes in many forms.
'Cheap'- narrator sounds disdainful.
1 of 11
Lines 11 - 13: 'Faded snapshots, long forgotten things...'
"Abroad"- again, sounds disdainful + sarcastic. This builds the sense of separation between the narrator and his mother.
2 of 11
'She wanted everyone to know that she was his wife
Only now he was dead.'
Foreshadowing her death. Clear resentment. Full-stop draws attention to this line.
3 of 11
'Heaved herself upright, blinked and poured drink after drink'
'Heaved' shows strain of mental health, struggle.
Drinking problem.
List of 3 shows that her movements have become mechanical.
Drinking to bring herself closer to her husband.
Loss of identity- took on his.
4 of 11
She dreamt 'of the time before I was born, or grew up and learned contempt'
Wishing she could have had a better relationship with the narrator.
5 of 11
'Chops or chicken portions, English, bland,
Familiar flavours she said she preferred
To whatever “funny foreign stuff”
Young people seemed to eat these days'
Injects some dry humour.
Generational divide.
6 of 11
'As the others shuffled around, and drooled, and swore…'
Ellipsis shows moment of contemplation. The narrator thinks about what they could have done to help her.
7 of 11
'Please don't leave
But of course I left'
Shortest line in the poem.
Begging tone.
Regret at the disconnect.
8 of 11
'her little bag of effects'
Realises the impact she has had on him.
Sentimental value behind objects and actions.
Tone of deep regret and guilt.
9 of 11
Repetition of 'Not'.
Marks the start of 3 different time periods: The past when her husband was alive, the past when she is alone, in the psychiatric ward- shows her slow mental degradation.
Narrator's indifference to mother's suffering.
10 of 11
One continuous stanza
Represents: Flow of time, stream of consciousness, spiralling memories, how her mental health declined continuously but went unnoticed.
11 of 11
Other cards in this set
Card 2
Front
"Abroad"- again, sounds disdainful + sarcastic. This builds the sense of separation between the narrator and his mother.
Back
Lines 11 - 13: 'Faded snapshots, long forgotten things...'
Card 3
Front
Foreshadowing her death. Clear resentment. Full-stop draws attention to this line.
Back
Card 4
Front
'Heaved' shows strain of mental health, struggle.
Drinking problem.
List of 3 shows that her movements have become mechanical.
Drinking to bring herself closer to her husband.
Loss of identity- took on his.
Back
Card 5
Front
Wishing she could have had a better relationship with the narrator.
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