“My Parents”

“My Parents” is about a son who is forbidden from playing with other children by his parents. Although he desperately wants to be their friends, his parents’ directives and the vast differences in their personalities and conduct make it difficult.

Themes: Youth, rejection, bullying, class.

Structure: The poem is written in three quatrains.

Tone: Disappointed, fearful

Mood: Sympathetic, fearful

Literary Devices:

1. Simile

Line 2 – “who three words like stones”

Line 5 – “their muscles like iron”

Line 9/10 – “they sprang…/Like dogs to bark at my world”

2. Metaphor

Line 7 – “the salt coarse pointing”

3. Alliteration

Line 4: “climbed cliffs and stripped by the country streams.”

4. Repetition

Lines 5, 7: “I feared…”

5. Imagery

Line 5: “muscles like iron” (Tactile)

Line 7: “salt coarse pointing” (Tactile, Gustatory)

Similes are the major literary device used. They are primarily used to describe the physical appearance and actions of the “rough” children.

Comprehension questions:

1. How are the boys described in stanza one?
2. Give details of their physical appearance as well as their behaviour.
3. Select the verbs and adjectives which describe the energy of the boys.
4. What fears does the speaker tell about in stanza two?
5. Why do you think the words “tigers” and “dogs” are used to describe aspects of the boys’ behavior? (Diction)
6. How is the speaker different from the boys?
7. The poem does not give us much information about the speaker’s world at home. What could you infer about the speaker’s parents, home and lifestyle?
8. Which line expresses the speaker’s attitude to the boys? (Tone)