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  1. The poem explores the themes of cultural differences between European settlers, particularly the English, and the native people in Canada. It touches on historical contexts like colonization. Some of the other themes explored include identity, power dynamics, manners, customs, and the contrast betweRead more

    The poem explores the themes of cultural differences between European settlers, particularly the English, and the native people in Canada. It touches on historical contexts like colonization. Some of the other themes explored include identity, power dynamics, manners, customs, and the contrast between refinement and simplicity. The first part talks about the “refined” attitude of the settlers through personified animals, highlighting their customs. This is set against the simpler indigenous culture. The second part emphasizes the shift of the indigenous people from a simpler native lifestyle to a more refined one after English settlement, shaping the course of history.

    The Animals in That Country Summary

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  1. Alliteration - Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem alliteration occurs in lines like “his name/ stamped on him, heraldic”, “sand, sword”, and “human/ he”. Irony - irony is used when what the poet says is in contradiction to what they actually mean. In this pRead more

    1. Alliteration – Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem alliteration occurs in lines like “his name/ stamped on him, heraldic”, “sand, sword”, and “human/ he”.
    2. Irony – irony is used when what the poet says is in contradiction to what they actually mean. In this poem, the poet uses irony when comparing the face of animals to human faces in the lines “In that country the animals/ have the faces of people”.
    3. Repetition- Repetition is a literary device in which a word, phrase, or line is repeated for emphasis or effect. The word “their” is repeated multiple times in the last few lines of the poem.
    4. Metaphor- metaphor is used when the poet makes an undercut comparison between two things without using the words “like” or “as”. In the, the poet compares the snobbish manner of the white settlers to “ceremonial cats”. She also uses metaphor when talking about the “human-like teeth” in the “blue mouth” of the bull.
    5. Enjambment – enjambment is when the line is continued onto the next line without any pause. In the poem, the poet uses enjambment to create a connection between the concepts talked about in the stanzas.
    6. Personification- personification is used when the poet gives human-like qualities to non-human objects. The poem personifies animals like “cat”, “fox” and “bull” in the poem.
    7. Litotles- Litotes is the ironic usage of a negative to highlight the positive aspect of the idea. In the poem, the poet makes use of the negative sentences like “Their deaths are not elegant” and “They have the faces of/ no-one” to emphasise on the condition of the natives in the country.

    The Animals in That Country Summary

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  1. The poem explores the themes of self-discovery and the complexity of the human mind. The poet tracks her journey through the dangerous landscape of her mind. The poem talks about the journey into the interior of the human mind. This journey is taken up in order to find oneself. The them of self-discRead more

    The poem explores the themes of self-discovery and the complexity of the human mind. The poet tracks her journey through the dangerous landscape of her mind. The poem talks about the journey into the interior of the human mind. This journey is taken up in order to find oneself. The them of self-discovery is one of the major themes that the poet focuses on. In the seemingly static landscape of her mind, the poet is able to find her creativity and her identity. At the same time, she also talks about how complex and dangerous her mind can be. The interior of her brain is an unknown hilly region. Here, if she is not careful, she can lose her way and be lost forever.

    Journey to the Interior Summary

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  1. The central idea of the poem revolves around the exploration of self-discovery and the complex nature of the human mind. The poet takes on a metaphorical journey through the perilous landscape of her own mind. This journey is a quest to understand herself. Within the seemingly still and two-dimensioRead more

    The central idea of the poem revolves around the exploration of self-discovery and the complex nature of the human mind. The poet takes on a metaphorical journey through the perilous landscape of her own mind. This journey is a quest to understand herself. Within the seemingly still and two-dimensional landscape of her mind, she discovers both her creativity and identity. At the same time, the poem delves into the complexity and potential dangers of the human mind. The mind is an unknown hilly region that demands caution. The poem talks about how it is easy to lose one’s way which could lead to being lost forever. Thus, the central theme revolves around the dual aspects of self-discovery and the intricate, potentially dangerous landscape of the human mind.

    Journey to the Interior Summary

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    Alliteration - Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem the poet repeats /s/, /p/ and /w/ in the lines “wall, welded”, “point to point”, “square surface”. Simile- simile is used when the poet directly compares one thing to another by using the words “as” or “likeRead more

    1. Alliteration – Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem the poet repeats /s/, /p/ and /w/ in the lines “wall, welded”, “point to point”, “square surface”.
    2. Simile- simile is used when the poet directly compares one thing to another by using the words “as” or “like”. In this poem, the poet uses simile in the lines “become/ endless as prairies”, “sodden as a fallen log”, etc.
    3. Repetition- Repetition is a literary device in which a word, phrase, or line is repeated for emphasis or effect. The word “that” is repeated multiple times in the first stanza.
    4. Metaphor- metaphor is used when the poet makes an undercut comparison between two things without using the words “like” or “as”. In the, the poet compares her journey into the hills to a metaphorical journey into the interior of her mind.
    5. Imagery- imagery is the use of words by a poet to paint a picture in the minds of the reader. Imagery can be of various types; tactile, olfactory, auditory, gustatory and visual. The poem uses visual imagery to paint the picture of the landscape.
    6. Enjambment – enjambment is when the line is continued onto the next line without any pause. In the poem, the poet uses enjambment to form an internal connection within the stanzas.

    Journey to the Interior Summary

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  1. The central theme of the poem revolves around the profound experience of loss and grief, particularly focusing on the mother's lament for her young son who tragically drowned. The poem highlights the deep sorrow that accompanies the death of a child, emphasizing the intense theme of loss. The poem aRead more

    The central theme of the poem revolves around the profound experience of loss and grief, particularly focusing on the mother’s lament for her young son who tragically drowned. The poem highlights the deep sorrow that accompanies the death of a child, emphasizing the intense theme of loss. The poem also touches upon identity and the quest for connection. The poet portrays the child as an explorer of new worlds in order to discover himself. The poem also explores the themes of life’s journey, from birth to self-discovery, and depicts the emotional complexity of a mother observing her son’s exploration into the unknown.

    Death of a Young Son by Drowning Summary

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  1. As the poem is written in free-verse, it has no set rhyme scheme. Though there are a few instances of slant rhyme present in the poem, overall there is no rhyming pattern. Death of a Young Son by Drowning Summary

    As the poem is written in free-verse, it has no set rhyme scheme. Though there are a few instances of slant rhyme present in the poem, overall there is no rhyming pattern.

    Death of a Young Son by Drowning Summary

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  1. The poem revolves around the themes of loss and death. The poem is a mother’s lament about the death of her young son who died by drowning. The poem explores the grief that the woman goes through. The sense of loss at the death of a child is one of the main themes. Other themes touched upon are idenRead more

    The poem revolves around the themes of loss and death. The poem is a mother’s lament about the death of her young son who died by drowning. The poem explores the grief that the woman goes through. The sense of loss at the death of a child is one of the main themes. Other themes touched upon are identity and the search for connection. The child had gone out to explore the world and find himself. The poem talks about the search for identity and belongingness for young children.

    Death of a Young Son by Drowning Summary

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  1. Alliteration - Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem alliteration occurs in the lines “his head”, “he was hung”, “It was the spring, the sun kept shining,” etc. Simile- simile is used when the poet directly compares one thing to another by using the words “as”Read more

    1. Alliteration – Alliteration is repetition of the same letter or sound in a line. In the poem alliteration occurs in the lines “his head”, “he was hung”, “It was the spring, the sun kept shining,” etc.
    2. Simile- simile is used when the poet directly compares one thing to another by using the words “as” or “like”. In this poem, the poet uses simile in the lines“he was hung in the river like a heart”, and “I planted him in this country/ like a flag.”
    3. Symbolism- symbolism is when the poet uses words to symbolize a concept, person or idea in a poem. In this poem, the “floating land”  symbolizes the emotional distance between the mother and son.
    4. Metaphor- metaphor is used when the poet makes an undercut comparison between two things without using the words “like” or “as”. In the, the poet compares “the dangerous river of his own birth” to the search for identity. Metaphor is also used in the lines “his head a bathysphere”, “cairn of my plans and future charts”, and “The dreamed sails”.
    5. Imagery- imagery is the use of words by a poet to paint a picture in the minds of the reader. Imagery can be of various types; tactile, olfactory, auditory, gustatory and visual. In the poem, the poet uses visual imagery to create the image of the strange land and the river flowing.
    6. Enjambment – enjambment is when the line is continued onto the next line without any pause. In the poem, the poet uses enjambment to create an internal connection within the stanzas.
    7. Personification- personification is used when the poet gives human-like qualities to non-human objects. The poem personifies “currents” in the line “the currents took him.”

    Death of a Young Son by Drowning Summary

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