Literature Sec 2 EOY Notes Unseen Poetry

SAMPLE POEMS AND ANALYSIS an afternoon nap - Arthur Yap the ambitious mother across the road is at it again. proclaiming her goodness she beats the boy. shouting out his wrongs, with raps she begins with his mediocre report grades. she strikes chords for the afternoon piano lesson, her voice stridently imitates 2nd. lang. Tuition, all the while circling the cowering boy in a manner apt for the most strenuous p.e. ploy. swift are all her contorted movements, ape for every need; no soft gradient of a consonant-vowel figure, she lumbers & shrieks, a hit for every two notes missed. his tears are dear. each monday, wednesday, friday, miss low & madam lim appear and take away $90 from the kitty leaving him an adagio, clause analysis, little pocket money. the embittered boy across the road is at it again. proclaiming his bewilderment he yells at her. shouting out her wrongs, with tears he begins her expensive taste for education. QUESTIONS (i) what is striking about the description of the mother in lines 1 to 12? (ii) what are the boy’s feelings in the rest of the poem?

ANSWERS (i) The description of the mother is striking because she repeatedly mimics the boy’s weakest subjects. Line 6 states “her voice stridently imitates 2nd. lang. tuition,” The word “stridently” suggests her ruthless behaviour towards her son. The second language is unfamiliar and can be challenging to comprehend. The speaker compares the boy’s mother to be speaking in a second language, showing that the boy often does not understand what his mother is berating him about. In line 4, “mediocre report-book grades” show that the boy is not very good with his studies, hence why he needs tuition as he struggles with his subjects. It suggests that the mother is repeating what the boy learns in his tuition in hopes of etching the knowledge into his brain so that he can improve and meet her high expectations. Line 7-8 states, “All while circling the cowering boy in a manner apt for the most strenuous P.E. ploy.” In this line, the poet compares the mother circling her son to strategies in P.E. where a player will circle their opponent, portraying her as someone who challenges him rather than someone who supports him. The action of “circling” also resembles that of a hungry vulture preying on a weak animal, similar to the strict mother using her authority to intimidate and control the vulnerable and