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Post by tharindu on Nov 13, 2007 8:01:05 GMT -5
I need help with a poem called 'My parents kept me from children who were rough' anyone has heard or read this poem. If not this is the poem...
My parents kept me from children who were rough And who threw words like stories and who wore torn clothes their thighs showed through rags.they ran in the street And climbed cliffs nad stripped by the country streams.
I feared more than tigers their muscles like iron And their jerking hands and their knees tight on my arms. I feared the salt coarse pointing of those boys Who copied my lisp behind me on the road
They were lithe, they sprang out behind hedges Like dogs to bark at our world. They threw mud And i looked another way, pretending to smile. I longed to forgive them, yet they never smiled.
Well i have been given several questions to be answered of this poem.
I need any help of how to tackle this question
Q. What is the poets opinion of the rough children?
If anyone can help me with these i wud b really appreciate it.
thank you
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Post by graesonbelinda on Nov 13, 2007 13:03:08 GMT -5
The poem is about rich vs poor--the poet Stephen came from a rich background--he writes a lot about his own life in his works.
The rough kids (in the poet's opinion) are aggressive, strong, poor, & free. Stephen uses a mixture of both positive and negative words to describe them which suggests that he both fears them but wants to be part of their group.
salt coarse = unrefined, coarse (as in without any social graces )He contrasts their strength (muscles like iron, tigers, jerking hands, knees etc) with his own weakness - fear, copied, lisp! The word 'tiger' is significant because a tiger is free (like the rough kids) but they are dangerous because they are physically powerful.
he contrasts again between weak & strong - lithe, sprang, barked. Those are all strong words suggesting that he was bullied by the local 'gang' of street children. He was excluded from their community because of his class & his lisp. He seems to be envious of their freedom - the freedom that "rough kids" take for granted.
I hope this helps.
Belinda
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Post by tharindu on Nov 14, 2007 7:43:50 GMT -5
thx a lot belinda. lol sorry to bother u but i have yet another question. I need to pick out 5 figures of speech. i can only find 3 figures of speech. cud u point out the other 2. the ones i found are 'words like stone,' 'muscles like iron' and 'like dogs to bark at our world'
thanks
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Post by tharindu on Nov 14, 2007 7:59:24 GMT -5
Ermmm..... i need this really quickly so can someone please answer me quickly
thank you
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Post by graesonbelinda on Nov 14, 2007 15:32:42 GMT -5
threw words like stories
tripped by the country streams
salt coarse pointing of those boys
I hope these lines help as well.
Belinda
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