Essay on “An examination of her body after death”
By Glen Colquhoun
The poem, “An examination of her body after death,” by Glen Colquhoun is about him examining the body of his friend at the morgue. There are two main ideas that are apparent throughout this poem, denial and reminiscence. Colquhoun has used a different language feature - metaphors and negatives – to enhance and describe each idea.
One of the important ideas in “An examination,” is Colquhoun denying that the dead person he is looking at is actually the body of his beloved friend. The repeated statements of denial are the language technique which helps to show this. The beginning of every verse starts off with a statement of denial. It is Colquhoun refusing to believe that the features and body parts of the corpse are those of his very dear friend. An example of this language technique is on the very first line of the poem. It says, “You are not her shoulders!” This is said as though it is a fact, it seems that there could be no possibility of these being his friends shoulders. The sureness and sternness of these statements make it much easier for the reader to identify the disbelief and denial of Colquhoun. The repeated use of “You are not her…” at the beginning of every sentence also shows that he keeps on denying his friends death throughout the entire poem.
Another one of the ideas in the poem is about Colquhoun fondly remembering his friend who has passed away and comparing her to the dead lifeless being in front of him. He uses metaphors that give contrasting images of what she was like when she was alive and what she is like now that that she is dead. An example of the use of this language feature is in the fourth verse where it says, “The sound of birds has gone away. So bold! These two fat worms now hungry for the dirt.” There are two metaphors used here. The one which includes the sound of birds is describing what his friend’s voice sounded like – cheerful and beautiful. The metaphor that has the two fat worms in it is referring to the huge, bloating and dry lips of the dead body that are ready and waiting for burial. The way that Colquhoun has put these two metaphors together creates a clear picture of what he himself must be thinking about- the wonderful sound of his friends chatter, to the now silent and expressionless mouth of this dead body in front of him.
Colquhoun’s purpose in this poem is to express his grief for a loved one. The two main ideas which are reminiscence and denial and the language features –negatives and metaphors used to explain these made understanding the purpose easy and clear. However I found the topic of the poem to be very unusual because it is describing and focused on a dead body. It is very solemn and quite sad when you realise that it is a real life situation.
By David Lewis.
By Glen Colquhoun
The poem, “An examination of her body after death,” by Glen Colquhoun is about him examining the body of his friend at the morgue. There are two main ideas that are apparent throughout this poem, denial and reminiscence. Colquhoun has used a different language feature - metaphors and negatives – to enhance and describe each idea.
One of the important ideas in “An examination,” is Colquhoun denying that the dead person he is looking at is actually the body of his beloved friend. The repeated statements of denial are the language technique which helps to show this. The beginning of every verse starts off with a statement of denial. It is Colquhoun refusing to believe that the features and body parts of the corpse are those of his very dear friend. An example of this language technique is on the very first line of the poem. It says, “You are not her shoulders!” This is said as though it is a fact, it seems that there could be no possibility of these being his friends shoulders. The sureness and sternness of these statements make it much easier for the reader to identify the disbelief and denial of Colquhoun. The repeated use of “You are not her…” at the beginning of every sentence also shows that he keeps on denying his friends death throughout the entire poem.
Another one of the ideas in the poem is about Colquhoun fondly remembering his friend who has passed away and comparing her to the dead lifeless being in front of him. He uses metaphors that give contrasting images of what she was like when she was alive and what she is like now that that she is dead. An example of the use of this language feature is in the fourth verse where it says, “The sound of birds has gone away. So bold! These two fat worms now hungry for the dirt.” There are two metaphors used here. The one which includes the sound of birds is describing what his friend’s voice sounded like – cheerful and beautiful. The metaphor that has the two fat worms in it is referring to the huge, bloating and dry lips of the dead body that are ready and waiting for burial. The way that Colquhoun has put these two metaphors together creates a clear picture of what he himself must be thinking about- the wonderful sound of his friends chatter, to the now silent and expressionless mouth of this dead body in front of him.
Colquhoun’s purpose in this poem is to express his grief for a loved one. The two main ideas which are reminiscence and denial and the language features –negatives and metaphors used to explain these made understanding the purpose easy and clear. However I found the topic of the poem to be very unusual because it is describing and focused on a dead body. It is very solemn and quite sad when you realise that it is a real life situation.
By David Lewis.
Essay on the poem ‘Tangi’ by Hone Tuwhare
The poem ‘Tangi’ by Hone Tuwhare is about him describing how he feels at a European funeral and how he feels when he attends a Maori funeral - a tangi. The main idea in this poem is about how different cultures deal with death and grief. There are two techniques used which help to portray this idea, they are the use of negatives and the contrasting between the two funerals.
The important idea in this poem is about how different cultures deal with death and grief. To show this idea Tuwhare uses negatives at the beginning of the poem when referring to the European funeral and then progresses to using positive words when describing the tangi. The negatives used in ‘Tangi’ are the words ‘not’ and ‘nor’. They are used frequently during the first half of the poem - verses one to three. An example of a negative being used is at the beginning of the first verse. It says, ‘I did not meet her on the bordered path’. The negative in this line is the word ‘not’. ‘Not’ is a very strong word, it is firm and certain and it was used because it shows how he was not able to engage in grieving for the death of a person at a European funeral. Tuwhare did not feel comfortable or included in the funeral. As the poem progresses to describing the tangi, negatives are replaced with the use of positive words which are verbs. An example of the use of a verb is when it says in the fourth verse, ‘But I heard her with the wind’. The word ‘heard’ is the verb and it tells us that Tuwhare has found mourning and grieving at the tangi. He feels involved and a sense of belonging at the tangi.
Tuwhare also contrasts between the European funeral and the tangi to help show the idea of how different cultures deal with death and grief. He describes a European funeral and the feeling that he gets when he attends one and compares this to the mood that he picks up at a tangi. An example of Tuwhare using this contrasting technique is when he describes the European funeral as a ‘bordered path’. He is saying that just like a bordered path the funeral is laid out perfectly and everything runs to a set plan. It almost has a timeframe and does not necessarily allow you to express your grief. This is contrasted with, ‘… the bowed heads of old women’ when Tuwhare is describing the tangi. This gives a picture of people grieving and reflecting about a death. It is solemn and is not restricted to time.
The author’s purpose in this poem is to show that when he is confronted with death he can only find closure and express his grief in the setting of a tangi. The two techniques which he has used, the use of negatives and contrast create a tone which identifies this purpose. He is not saying that European funerals are wrong; he is just telling us that he personally prefers and is more able to freely grieve in the setting of a tangi.
By David Lewis.
