Poems on Relationships I

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Follower by Seamus Heaney

Elegy for My father’s Father by James K.Baxter

Praise Song for My Mother

Language and Form Questions

1.How is the title significant to the theme of a parent-child  in each of these poems?

2. What special lexicon is employed by both Heaney and Nichols while they create the personas of a father and a mother respectively?

3. How important is the refrain ‘ You were’ at the beginning of each stanza in Praise Song for My Mother?

4. How do you interpret the concluding verbs of each stanza in Praise Song for My Mother?

5. Identify the relationship between the four metaphors used by the poet in relation to the ‘praise’ that she writes of her mother.

6. How does the poet of Follower develop a sense of awe for his father using specialized choice of words?

7. The second stanza of Follower begins ‘ An expert.’ Does this bring an abruptness in the tone ?

8.Evaluate the effect of the enjambment in lines 8-9 and  22-23.

Structure and Form Questions

1.How do the form and structure of the aforementioned poems contribute towards the theme of relationship between young and old?

2. What is effect of the isolated occurrence of the last line in Praise Song for My Mother?