Dear ANS students,
'The Cockroach' is one of 14 poems you will be studying from the collection 'Songs of Ourselves.'
On the surface, the poem seems to be about the observation of a cockroach's movements. But there is more to it than that...
As a student of English Literature, you will need to demonstrate that you can explore the poem beyond this obvious, surface meaning, to find and show deeper awareness of the ideas and attitudes the poem contains.
Your homework task is to write a short response of 500 words to the following question:
QUESTION- HOW HAS THE POET USED THE EXTENDED METAPHOR OF THE COCKROACH TO CONVEY HIS PERCEPTION OF HUMAN EXISTANCE?
IN YOUR ANSWER, PAY ATTENTION TO HOW POETIC DEVICES HAVE BEEN USED.
Remember, Assessment Objective 2 (AO2) assesses your ability to:
AO2: Understand the meanings of literary texts and their contexts, and explore texts beyond surface meanings to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.
Some thoughts, analysis and interpretation:
ReplyDeleteAt first glance, the poem ‘The Cockroach’ by Kevin Halligan is about, as the name suggests, a cockroach. However, with a deeper reading, it later appears that the detailed description of the cockroach is an extended metaphor of either, the persona (presumably the poet himself) or of humans in general.
This is first hinted by the fact that the cockroach is ‘giant’ – is it large for its species, or large to the point it is the size of a human? This is reinforced by the activities of the cockroach described in later lines – ‘jog’, ‘trace’, ‘circle’, etc – remarkably human like actions for an insect. These closely described frantic actions of the cockroach (lines 3-11) seem to represent human nature in a way; first the cockroach is satisfied with his current situation, but then quickly gets bored of it and begins to want something more, something new, and so does so – beginning to shift from his activity of tracing the ‘path between the wainscot and the door’ to ‘jog in crooked rings….” He is then struck by a case of restlessness, but then finally finds something exciting, new – the open shelf.
However instead of going straight in, he hesitates, ‘he looked uncertain where to go.’ His actions seem to represent human nature, how we, sometimes very suddenly, realize that instead of being content and satisfied with what we have, we want more – more experience, more money, more social life – the depths of human wants are endless. We soon get restless and bored and disappointed at our current lives as it is not where we want to be. However, when we actually find an opportunity to take the chances to get what we want – there is sometimes a moment of hesitation and uncertainty: is this what we really want? Is the risk worth it to take the chance? Do we really want to leave our comfortable current life? And then, along with the definite realization that the cockroach personifies the persona or humans in general with the last line (‘Except I thought I recognized myself’), the true idea of the poem is revealed – that humans scurry through life frantically, almost rushing through it, but without any true goal or purpose. We are constantly looking for choices we can take, but when actually presented with them, realize that we don’t even know what we truly want.
The Cockroach
DeleteI watched a giant cockroach start to pace,
Skirting a ball of dust that rode the floor.
At first he seemed quite satisfied to trace
A path between the wainscot and the door,
But soon he turned to jog in crooked rings,
Circling the rusty table leg and back,
And flipping right over to scratch his wings-
As if the victim of a mild attack
Of restlessness that worsened over time.
After a while, he climbed an open shelf
And stopped. He looked uncertain where to go.
Was this due payment for some vicious crime
A former life had led to? I don’t know
Except I thought I recognised myself.
The poet uses an extended metaphor to contemplate his life using the imagery of a cockroach. The poets’ choice to use a cockroach, an insect widely renowned for its foul and disgusting traits, implies that Halligan is not proud or satisfied with his life. This is supported by the frequent use of negatives-‘victim’, ‘worsened’, ‘vicious’, uncertain’. The poet explores his past experiences and decisions, but above all his identity-who he is and why.
ReplyDeleteAccording to the Webster’s College dictionary, ‘identity’ is ‘the state of having unique identifying characteristics held by no other person or thing’. In ‘The Cockroach’ by Kevin Halligan, the poet not only explores the idea of identity, but the concept of identity being shaped from past events, experiences. He starts by recalling his steady and simplistic early life-‘he seemed quite satisfied to trace/a path between the wainscot and the door.’
He then goes on to depict a different scene, one of frenzy and confusion. He warns the reader about the change using the diction ‘but’-‘but soon he turned to jog in…flipping right over to scratch his wings’. Already, though not completely evident, the author drops hints to the use of an extended metaphor by employing personal pronouns and personification to describe the cockroach. The poet uses various time references to indicate the different stages in his life-‘at first’, ‘but soon’, ‘after a while’.
The narrator is initially a blank narrator as he focuses purely on the events, which consists of the cockroach moving across a room. As the poem progresses, the narrator draws away from purely the event and comments on the "restlessness" and uncertainty that this insect eventually portrays. This change is observation coupled with the presentation of the cockroach as the main focus, foreshadows what is to come in the poem.
It's tough to figure out what is meant by the word 'identity', but it can be summed up in these poems as 'thinking about the meaning of life, sense of self, life as a journey, sense of scale, proportion'.
ReplyDeleteIt isn’t clear at first, how 'The Cockroach' deals with identity. This is revealed only gradually. At first, Halligan plays with proportion; the cockroach is ‘giant’ and seems to expand to fill his field of vision. Halligan is focussed on something outside of himself. Its journey as it starts to ‘pace’, ‘skirting’, to ‘trace’ then ‘jog’ seems to echo the journey of life. The mood seems fairly negative, with words like ‘dust’ echoing the words of the funeral service, with ‘rusty’ suggesting decay. The poet seems to view the cockroach from the outside fairly impassively (neutral mood) at first, but the imagery gradually darkens with words like ‘attack’ and ‘vicious crime’ - picking up on the idea of reincarnation, as the poet seems to wonder if the cockroach was a person in ‘a former life’ who behaved badly. The poet almost seems to put himself in the cockroach’s position by the end of the poem - at the volta - where he says ‘I thought I recognised myself’. A challenging, rather troubled view of identity. Halligan compares himself to a cockroach, suggesting darkly that he may have committed a ‘vicious crime’, and he gains self-awareness; he ‘recognised’ himself in the cockroach.
Volta is a theatrical turn in poetry. It is the moment at which the viewpoint of a poem alters, either summarizing the poem or staggering the person who reads.
Kevin Halligan was born in Toronto,Canada in 1964. He regards himself as an Anglophile and has spent long periods living in England, but has also travelled in Asia, where this poem was written.
ReplyDeleteHis collection Blossom Street is based on his travels and he often observes alien counties with detailed fascination. In this poem he apparently focuses an intense concentration on an insect, but in a powerful twist of focus the whole poem flips back to reveal that the poet himself is actually the subject.
Halligan hones his poems obsessively. He is able to use a variety of forms with great control, and deceptive ease. This seems at first quite a simple poem but it is tightly constructed with great skill.
The poem, ‘The Cockroach’, is a short scene of a cockroach and how it made its way around a room, moving in lines and loops. It uses many different forms of imagery to portray the cockroach giving it emotion and character. Halligan also compares the cockroach to himself, leading the reader to believe that the cockroach is symbolic of life itself.
ReplyDeleteWhen looking at a piece of poetry, the first thing we read is the title. So in this case, one must wonder why and how Kevin Halligan chose the words he did for his title of the poem: The Cockroach. Firstly the word ‘The’ gives the reader a sense of a one specific cockroach. Not just any cockroach in general, or all cockroaches, but the one in this poem, which he describes in vivid detail. The word ‘Cockroach’, not a topic usually written about by many poets, gives readers a sense of curiosity that lures them in, thus making the title stand out. The usual connotation of cockroach being a dirty pest has been overlooked. Instead throughout the poem, Halligan’s eyes follow the cockroach, recalling all of its movements as it scurries along the dusty room floor.
Kevin Halligan repeatedly personifies the cockroach in many ways, giving it its own personality. Halligan calls the cockroach ‘he’ rather than ‘it’, possibly implying, that he thinks of the insect as more than it actually is. He gives it feelings of satisfaction, restlessness and uncertainty. Halligan also uses the word ‘jogging’ to portray its movements. Using such a human word to describe the actions of a scuttling bug, further illustrates the point. He also uses a simile to compare the cockroach’s erratic movements to that of ‘a victim of a mild attack.’ This makes the cockroach seem humanlike, able to think and make decisions. At the end of the poem, Halligan also relates the cockroach to himself: ‘Except I thought I recognized myself,’ claiming that he saw its characteristics in himself.
What students think...
ReplyDeleteAt first reading a person may think that the writer is just describing the movements of an insect, but there’s something more. The writer recognises himself in the cockroach, and so does the reader once he realizes that the movements that the insect is making are comparable to the ones that we do in everyday life.
“I watched a giant cockroach start to pace, skirting a ball of dust that rode the floor” these lines are introducing the poem and starting to list the movements of the insect. The poem manages to convey feelings about humankind by making the reader recognise himself in the figure of the insect. “after a while he climbed an open shelf and stopped”- a person who is feeling uncertain and that hesitates to take decisions may like this poem because he realizes there’s someone who feels the same sensations; this is called personification. The writer is trying to communicate that we are not so different from animals, even the most insignificant ones.
“A former life had led to? I don’t know. Except I thought I recognised myself.” Here the poet admits he fully recognises himself in the figure of the cockroach.
In the poem we can find enjambement at almost every line, I think the poet did this to make the actions sound like if part of a list; in my opinion, this is conveying that humankind sometimes is too shallow and doesn’t give a meaning to everyday actions.
This is poem that has been composed by Kevin Halligan. The poem ‘The Cockroach’ is a sonnet written by Kevin Halligan. It is written in the iambic pentameter as there are ten syllables in each line and as it mostly follows the pattern of the syllables being unstressed and then stressed. For example the line “I (unstressed) watched (stressed) a (unstressed) giant (stressed-unstressed) cockroach (stressed-unstressed) start (stressed) to (unstressed) pace (stressed). The poem includes a few literary devices like personification as he gives the cockroach human conditions throughout the poem, a smile and a metaphor.
ReplyDeleteThe poem starts with the poet getting monopolized by the cockroach. When the poet’s eyes fell upon the restless cockroach, it reminded him of himself. Sometimes, just like the cockroach, he tried to avoid things whether it was a person or trouble. The poet was restless as well. The poet felt that he resembled the cockroach when the cockroach had climbed up onto the shelf and was uncertain about where he wanted to go as though he was having a private conflict in his mind of which path he shall chose. Life is a journey of twists and turns and the poet has witnessed this at some point in his life. Therefore he identifies with the cockroach. Throughout the poem, the poet uses an extended metaphor to describe the human condition.
The poet is watching the cockroach as if it is a human being not an insect in an objective view. This foreshadows the twist at the end which is that the poet is the subject of the poem. The poet can even sense how it feels and thinks: 'he seemed quite satisfied' and 'he looked uncertain where to go'. These illustrate that the cockroach begins to feel distracted and confused suggesting that the persona relates his thoughts to it. Therefore this, in turn, involves the readers in the poem furthermore. The cockroach is an extended metaphor of the persona and human being.
'The Cockroach'is a poem about reflection on life through watching the movement of a cockroach. Through the use of structure, detailed descriptions of the cockroach as an extended metaphor of the persona, the theme of confusion and realization of life is well conveyed.
The poet uses rhyming words to create a rhythm in the poem - it gives a feel of a circular motion in the poem.
ReplyDeleteThe poet uses simple lines to describe what he is trying to say, it's simple but effective creating a picture almost telling a story with the cockroaches movements.
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ReplyDeleteThe Cockroach by Kevin Halligan is a Petrarchan sonnet as it consists of an Octave, a Sestet and a Volta. In the poem, the poet talks about the actions of the Cockroach as he paces, circles the table leg and climbs an open shelf. However, beneath the poem’s surface lies a much deeper meaning. The poet has achieved this deeper meaning by using extended metaphor to compare the movements of the cockroach with himself and human beings as we constantly search for newer and better things in life.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the poem, Halligan uses personal pronouns for the cockroach. This is shown by using the pronoun “he”. This hints that he may as well be a human being. The pronoun makes the cockroach seem less disgusting and repulsive as the word “he” has raised the creature’s status. This creates a close connection between the reader and the cockroach.
To add to this, personification has been used to describe the cockroach’s movements and imagery feelings. I know this from words like “pace”, “satisfied”, “relentlessness”, and “uncertain”. By using these kind of words, the writer has created a resemblance between humans and the cockroach. The cockroach is described as feeling “satisfied” at first and then after moving around, it feels “uncertain” and no longer happy. This helps the writer put across the poem’s deeper meaning as it is similar to how we feel when we are unmotivated.
Another thing that Halligan uses is negative vocabulary to describe the cockroach’s bored and restless mind as he “circles the rusty table leg”. Examples of negative vocabulary are “victim”, “attack” and “worsened”. This suddenly darkens the mood of the poem as well as shocks the reader. Moreover, it may suggest that the cockroach had a guilty former life as the writer asks “Was this due payment from some vicious crime a former life had lead to?” afterwards.
To help him achieve in delivering the poem’s message, Halligan has used the metaphor; “open shelf” to resemble the opportunities in our life. This highlights that, for the cockroach, the open shelf is a new place for him to go - just like a new target or dream we set ourselves in order to move on. The word “open” enlightens the mood of the poem.
Furthermore, time references can be found in throughout the poem. I know this because he uses references like “at first” , “But soon” and “after a while.” The effect of this is to make the events of the poem orderly and continuous to help compare it to the constant cycle of our life. Moreover, time references introduce a new feeling or movement to the cockroach as the reader is kept on edge to wonder what the cockroach might be doing or feeling next.
In conclusion, Halligan has used a variety of poetic devices in “The Cockroach” to depict human greed and restlessness. He ends the poem with a cliff hanger “I don’t know except I thought I recognised myself” to directly compares himself to the cockroach. This surprising ending forces the reader to re-read the poem and pay more attention to its content and choice of words to search for the deeper meaning of the poem that lies beneath.
Mod I like how you use the poem structure to relate it to the effects it has on the poems. I also like how you explained in full detail of how each techniques of specific words are used to create the effect. I think that your analysis is very well-structured; smooth, flowing and contains a variety of punctuations.
DeleteI like the way you fully point out the techniques and explain what it was. Mod,you also give a very clear and easy to understand conclusion. The only thing I want to see on your analysis is what each technique done to our emotion and feelings, I don't really see them in there.
DeleteAn amazing analysis - very detailed and well-structured. I like how you explain the relationships between the cockroach and a person. It really helps the people see how we can be represented by these very unlikely choice of comparison.
DeleteThere's not many things to improve in my eyes, but I think the last part of the fourth paragraph can be explained further - what did he means when the poem said "...due payment from some vicious crime a former life had lead to"? Why did the writer present the cockroach as a guilty being?
Articulate and intelligent responses to this unusual poem, Mod. Well done!(And you kept to the word limit too!).
ReplyDeleteYou explore beyond surface meanings, analysing the poet's ideas with close reference to textual detail (quotations). You develop your points using effective discourse markers, developing a confident and probing personal response.
You have demonstrated clearly three of the four course objectives in your response:
Assessment Objective 1 (AO1): you have shown detailed knowledge of the content of the poem.
Assessment Objective 2 (AO2): you have explored the poem beyond surface meanings, to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.
Assessment Objective 4 (AO4): you can communicate informed personal responses to literary texts.
Target: focus more, in your next response, on Assessment Objective 3 (AO3): I can appreciate the ways in which writers use language, structure and form to shape meanings and effects.
You have skilfully explored Halligan's use of language, but you needed to say more about why the writer used the sonnet form - the Petrarchan - for a text about a cockroach. What is the effect? What happens in the octave, the sestet, the volta? What is the impact of the last two lines? Why is it a shocking revelation / finale?
I look forward to reading more of your responses, Mod.
Mr Griffiths ;)
Kelvin Halligan used extended metaphor to compare human’s life: his life with the act and movement of a cockroach. To me, at first glance, the poem was just describing the act of a cockroach moving around; ordinary, nothing interesting but after looking at it closely for many times, I realise that it meant much deeper than that.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the whole poem, Halligan refer to the insect by using the word “he”, normally we don’t refer insects or animals as he or she. We use he or she on humans or at least higher animals, he was using “he” to make us think that the cockroach is a human, hinting about what he is trying the say.
He used rhetorical question: “A former life had led to? I don’t know…” this causes us to stop and think because of the question. To me, it was confusing when I saw it especially when it was followed by “Except I thought I recognise myself” it even cause me to re-read the whole poem again. I believe that other people who read this poem also done it like me. This ensures that the readers will understand what he is trying to say through the poem. The last verse also concluded that he saw that his life overlaps with the cockroach.
The writer also used personification on the cockroach; it jog, it satisfied, it grew restless, it climb. Usually people don’t think cockroach do that thing, to us it just ran around in all direction because it’s using kinesis movement (in biology means that it move without knowing directions). This causes us to think that it was human even more in addition to the use of pronoun “he”.
The constant use of negative words like victim or worsened or crime in the poem, making us felt somehow blue or the mood change to depress. Infer that the writer is not pleased with his life.
The use of time guide; “At first”, “But soon”, “After a while”, enable us to sequence the events, this give us the chance to compare the act of the cockroach with our own action. When the cockroach is satisfied at first refer to when we are happy with our life, when it changes its mind and ran around, frantically it is the same as when we found something more interesting and left our peace to find something new, when it went in to a shelf and stayed there is the same as when we already achieved our new interested and happy again.
Another thing I noticed about this poem is the choice that the writer used to compare. The writer chooses to use the disgusting creature like a cockroach with the life of us, humans. I believe that he is trying to say that our life is disgusting like cockroaches, never satisfied for long and fell in to greed.
ps. this is my very first attempt at this when i'm not truely understand this poem so it might be clumsy and not so hit to the point
Eye, first have a little more belief in yourself! You have explored beyond the surface meaning, digging deeper to uproot the writer's true intentions: to compare his life/human life with this unlikely insect.
DeleteYou also identify and comment on some of the poet's techniques with success.
For a first response, this is very encouraging, Eye :)
You are showing competence already with the four assessment objectives:
Assessment Objective 1 (AO1): you have shown detailed knowledge of the content of the poem.
Assessment Objective 2 (AO2): you have explored the poem beyond surface meanings, to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.
Assessment Objective 3 (AO3): I can appreciate the ways in which writers use language, structure and form to shape meanings and effects.
Assessment Objective 4 (AO4): you can communicate informed personal responses to literary texts.
Targets: use "" for all quoatations taken from a text, even if you use the same quotation more than once in your response.
Ensure you write fully developed sentences.
Well done!
Mr Griffiths :)
Eye, I think you have pointed out lots of different techniques that the writer uses to create an effect. You have done a super job in explaining the techniques in details. What I like the most is the language or the tone of your analysis; I think that it creates a very friendly and inviting vibe for the readers, which makes it even more enjoyable to read. The only thing I suggest is to remember to use quotations, even for short words.
DeleteThroughout the analysis, you elaborate every points very clearly that even the smallest bits of information were explained. Very amazing, Eye!
DeleteThe response was not only detailed (there's a reference from biology!) it was very personal and quite informal - as if you were really talking and explaining to us for real, which really helps the relationships between you and the readers. The only improvement I can think of is on the order and structure of your analysis.
“The Cockroach” poem is a very intriguing poem, with many meanings and messages hidden in its text.
ReplyDeleteThe poem describes a cockroach scurrying across the room, seeming contented with his environments and circumstances. But then it grew restless, and quickened his pace in search for new places to explore. When it finally found his point of interest (an open shelf), instead of diving into the newly discovered location, it seems to hesitate slightly, as if unable to make his decision. The whole poem might look innocent and harmless at first, but it is in the end that the writer puzzled us, “I don’t know, except I thought I recognized myself”. It is only until we re-read the poem again that you realized that the entire poem is an extended metaphor for human lives and their behaviors.
When a person has achieved his goal or gets new gifts, there is a moment of peace and satisfaction within us for a period of time. But sooner or later, we become bored of it, and look for new things to have or places to go. This is what the meaning of the entire poem is about: human greed is endless, and our actions and behaviors are very similar, if not the same, as the cockroach.
The first poetic technique that the writer used to compare us to the cockroach is by using personification and personal pronouns. I know this because throughout the poem, the cockroach was referred as “him” ”he” and used human actions such as jog, trace and pace. By presenting the cockroach with human pronouns and actions, this cause the readers to begin seeing a more human-like quality and behaviors in the cockroach, and plant the idea of how we humans are similar to them. Also, the time references in the poem, such as “At first” “But soon” “After a while”, helps us see and compare the cycle of human greed to the cockroach’s movements.
Another technique the writer uses to help us understand his message is the structure of the poem. The poem is written in a Petrarchan sonnet: eight lines of poem (Octave) is to introduce an idea, followed with six more lines (Sestet) to develop the idea and present it in another perspective, finally ending with a twist or a surprise at the last line of the sestet (Volta). The Volta in this particular poem causes a lot of impacts and effects to the readers. This is when the mood of the readers suddenly shifts into confusion – What common traits do the writer share, and why is he even comparing himself to an insignificant insect, known for its resilience and sickness? By leaving the readers mystified and curious, this compels the reader to re-read the poem again, finally seeing how there are metaphors and similes representing us and the writer’s true message.
Overall, this is a very interesting piece of writing, with various metaphors used to present human’s very nature with a very unlikely choice of comparison.
A very good response to the poem, Peach. And yes, it is indeed a very unlikely comparison but that is what makes it so striking and effective!
DeleteAt this early stage of the course, you are already demonstrating competence with these 3 assessment objectives:
Assessment Objective 1 (AO1): you have shown detailed knowledge of the content of the poem.
Assessment Objective 2 (AO2): you have explored the poem beyond surface meanings, to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.
Assessment Objective 4 (AO4): you can communicate informed personal responses to literary texts.
In your next response, I want to see you comment clearly on how a poet/writer uses structure to get across their feelings/attitudes/ideas.
This is assessed by AOB 3:
Assessment Objective 3 (AO3): I can appreciate the ways in which writers use language, structure and form to shape meanings and effects.
A great start to your course Peach!
Mr Griffiths :)
Target: make sure you link your points directly to the text, showing close analysis of the writer's word choices.
Peach I really like how you use a range of vocabulary to portray your view of the poem, for example the word 'intriguing' and the start of the analysis. Furthermore I enjoy how you keep comparing the cockroach to a human because it is like a repetition and makes us remember your point after we finished reading. To improve you could add in more quotations to make your analysis more reliable.
DeletePeach! Your analysis is very deep in meaning and complicate. You choose to tell the meaning of the poem to us, I think is was very important to tell because sometimes we don't even know the meaning of a very important poem. However, you got the same point to fix like me, quotations.
DeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThe Cockroach by Kevin Halligen is a poem which depicts a cockroach pacing through the kitchen. Halligen creates a sense of surprise in the end, also known as a volta by admitting that the cockroach’s movement was somehow similar to his life.
ReplyDeleteIn this poem, instead of calling the cockroach as an ‘it’ he uses personal pronouns to make the cockroach more humane, this raises the reader’s curiosity on his choice of words and make the readers want to read on. Also by describing the cockroach as a human, he has made the cockroach look more intelligent and civilised which is juxtaposition of what the cockroach has thought to be of.
Furthermore Halligen consistently uses personification throughout the poem. He expresses the cockroach’s feelings with the words ‘satisfied’, ‘relentless’ and ‘uncertain’. At the start of the poem he tells us that he was watching a cockroach, but as soon as personification is used, the viewpoint starts to switch back and forth between Halligen and the cockroach: we start to know what it is thinking and its feeling. Personification helps to smooth out the gap between these conversions of viewpoints.
Not only did Halligen use personification for emotions, but also for its movement. He uses ‘pace’ and ‘jog’ as if the cockroach has foot and could walk around like a human. At the start of the poem, he sets a slow and calm pace but then he increases the pace by using ‘jog’ which hints that the poem is now more developed and nearing to a climax. He then suddenly stops and cools down the pace of the poem with ‘climbed’, tricking the reader that this was the last struggle to reach the end and then attacking them by surprise with a strong volta at the end.
The turning point of the poem was very intense and serious. Halligen starts to provoke the reader by calling the cockroach a ‘victim’, he then continued to strip the sense of innocence and positive energy from the reader by continuously throwing negative vocabulary such as ‘worsened’ and ‘attack’ at them. This shocks the reader and make them sympathise with the cockroach, which will then lead them to accepting the similarity between them and the cockroach at the end of the poem.
The time reference is also a crucial point that has helped the poem deliver its message. Halligen uses ‘at first’, ‘but soon’ and ‘after a while’ to help with the smoothness of the flow of the poem, which could also be compared to a human’s life that it is continuous and has its own pace. But when he uses ‘and stopped’ it actually makes the reader stop and helps them to catch up with the situation.
Overall Halligen used extended metaphor to symbolise a cockroach’s movement as to a human’s life of greed and curiosity. His selling point is his volta which ends with a rhetorical question to make the reader re-read the poem or to make them reflect on the poem and their own life.
A confident response to the poem, Pim. Well done! :)
DeleteAt this early stage in the course, you analyse the poem and probe it for deeper meanings. You are able to identify some of the techniques the writer uses and explain their effects.
Next time, try to focus on the extended metaphor and explain how this works. In what ways do the movements of the cockroach / its feelings reflect our own lives as human beings?
A really positive start to the course where you show competence with the four assessment objectives:
Assessment Objective 1 (AO1): you have shown detailed knowledge of the content of the poem.
Assessment Objective 2 (AO2): you have explored the poem beyond surface meanings, to show deeper awareness of ideas and attitudes.
Assessment Objective 3 (AO3): I can appreciate the ways in which writers use language, structure and form to shape meanings and effects.
Assessment Objective 4 (AO4): you can communicate informed personal responses to literary texts.
Target: take care with expression of ideas (how you say things) and check your work carefully for errors when complete (this is called 'proof-reading').
Well done Pim!
Mr Griffiths :)
Pim, you used wide range of vocabulary and punctuation, so wide that I don't know some of the word you used mean. -_-'' Overall this is a very good analysis, I don't have anything to say.
DeleteThe first thing that stood out when I read your response is that your choices of words - such as "juxtaposition" "attacking" and "provoke" - are very strong and precise, which conveys your message to the reader very clearly. It also makes you sound very passionate on the poem, that you understood each parts to the core and show the readers how powerful and deep each effects are.
DeleteOther good points is that you structured your response very professional-like, similar to Mod's. As for improvements, I'm having a hard time finding it.
Students' poems...
ReplyDeleteTheir homework task: to write a poem using either animals / a force of nature as an extended metaphor for themselves.
Well done class! Your poems are now on corridor display!
Mr Griffiths :)
The Doe
Composed, she gazed across the field,
Stunned and dazed at the scenery.
The flowers flittered and fluttered,
The wind soft against her face.
Then, her ears pricked,
Her left leg made a small kick.
She turned around,
Hooves thudding the dry land.
Her eyes became alert,
She feels troubled.
Pacing, she is the prey of uncertainty.
The wind and the flowers kept on dancing,
She strides, gallops and slows down.
But still, nothing happens.
The deer hesitantly comes to a halt.
She realizes her mistake,
It was not an attack.
She had been anxious again.
Maybe, small calm steps would have been better.
Perhaps she’ll be wiser next time.
Water
ReplyDeleteEbbing and flowing through the stream, he is
Free, unrestricted.
Adapting his course cleverly, expertly,
Or simply powering his way through the first gaps and holes he sees.
All depends on where his interests lie, just like a child.
Confused and indecisive he is,
When faced with so many pathways and opportunities.
He always tries to spread in every direction,
But sometimes he makes himself too thin,
Reaching none of the exits.
A nomad he is,
Constantly travelling, in search for somewhere he belongs.
At first, he thought his answer was the ocean,
But its saltiness embarrassed him.
And despite the many tears he shed to fit in, he can never truly belong.
Sensitive and emotional he is,
For even the smallest pebble can cause ripples to his calm surface.
Sharing the feelings of insignificance and the unforgivable,
And when duty calls him to be harsh and unmerciful,
He can only pray this is the last time he’ll do it.
He is both contrasting and unpredictable.
Sometimes, he is fuelled by the heat of his desires,
Making him impulsive and uncontrollable.
Sometimes, he dons his mask of ice,
Solid, collected and calculated.
He can be soft and soothing when happy,
Mad and relentless if anger takes him over.
When optimistic his eyes see light,
When paranoid he sees shadows and darkness.
He might have to go right,
But he can’t help but wonder where left leads to.
He is the most stable unstable thing in the universe.
That is what I saw as my eyes reflected on the surface,
Smiling I drank from my cup.
Puppy
ReplyDeleteI saw a puffy puppy,
Wondering in the room of laundry.
She sniffed and barked,
Ardent eyes sparked.
Something caught her eyes,
She leaps to play with it.
At first, the ball of yarn was amusing,
Spinning and rolling in her hands.
But eventually, she grew bored,
Looking away, something else captured her attention.
Glistening in the golden sun,
A pin stood tall on a pillow.
Immediately, the fragile puppy hoping for fun,
Scurried to the pillow to grasp it.
Whimpers echoed the room,
She ran away, terrified.
However, she’ll never learn,
Soon she’ll look for something else to play with.
I laugh at the sight while something,
Someone, overshadows the little puppy.
Someone I know well.
The Cat
ReplyDeleteI stretched out on the couch below,
Hearing a purr emitting from the windowsill above,
My cat strode across the cat walk,
Fearless of falling and swift with perfect balance.
I stare at its arrogant and frozen face,
Its eyes locked on something far away.
I outstretched my hand to pet it,
Only to return with a small hiss and a scratch.
I tried a second time with a more open mind,
Its fur was soft against my fingertips.
The cat became drowsy after a while,
It suddenly fell off from on high,
Only to land perfectly on all fours,
Nuzzling its body with my arms.
Never staying still for a moment it continued,
Playing with the woolen ball rolling around,
Just then I felt something ticklish on my hand,
The cat was licking the scratch-wound for me.
Oh how happy I was.
Eye: I really like your analysis of “The Cockroach”. I agree with your views on how the last two line of the poem was confusing and forces the reader to reread the poem again to understand its deeper meanings. You have mentioned an interesting point on how the writer chose the cockroach because it’s disgusting, just like our greed. I think it’s is a very clever idea.
ReplyDeletePeach: I think you have explained the contents of the poem very well using references to human behaviors like boredom. Additionally, I like your explanations on why the writer has chosen a Petrarchan sonnet. I think you can improve your analysis by picking out and stating more poetic devices like the use of negative vocabulary and maybe explain the effects of personification.
Pim: I agree with you on how negative vocabulary literally “strips” the sense of innocence and positive energy from the reader. I also like how you mentioned the term “juxtaposition” because it’s clear that Halligan uses this technique to help compare the cockroach to humans. One thing that you can improve is mention how the extended metaphor adds up to symbolize our greed.
Dear Pim, Mod, Peach and Eye,
ReplyDeleteWell done for completing your homework peer assessments! It is obvious that you have given careful consideration to the points your classmates have made when analysing this poem.
Lovely efforts - keep it up!
Mr Griffiths :)
Your analysis is so well structured and detailed. It relates to human life and experiences and also pays more attention to the poet's feelings. You may not know this but you're reaching out to thousands of students out there, like me, who are endlessly yearning for knowledge.
ReplyDeleteThank you Mr. Griffiths ;-D
ReplyDelete