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:sunny: The Emigrée :sunny: - Coggle Diagram
:sunny: The Emigrée :sunny:
Carol Rumens (Poet)
Emigree- female immigrant, she moved out of her home country and into the UK
Poet and lecturer
lived in Belfast, Wales then South London
She has a romanticized view on the country she used to live in
Poems to compare
Checking out me history
Similarities
Both have strong emotional attachments to their culture- Agard becomes frustrated and passionate shown by him repeating 'dem tell me' similar to Rumens and her maternal feelings towards her culture shown by the metaphor 'i comb its hair and love its shining eyes'
Both poets cling to the language they know and love- COMH is written in creole language meaning he speaks in a way that shows he has multiple cultural backgrounds attached to his accent, Rumens clings to the words she spoke as a child 'Child's vocabulary'
The conflict between the speakers culture and the one inflicted upon him by the colonial rule, violent language to represent the conflict- COMH, 'bandage up me eye with my own history, Emigree, 'branded by an impression of sunlight
Differences
Agard writes with a more angry tone due to him being frustrated that he was taught insufficiently which is shown through the separation of the stanzas and how his learning was disjointed, this contrats the emigree as she speaks positively of her home using an extended metaphor of sunlight which is a beautiful thing.
London
Differences
In London he can see the changes happening but in TE she can only imagine- London, 'I wander through each chartered street', TE, 'There once was a country...'
Similarities
Both show the power of place and its ability to influence people- London 'Mind forged manacles', TE, 'sick with tyrants'
Both poems explore the suffering of people living where they do- London, 'youthful harlots curse', TE, 'a lie, banned by the state'
key quotes
'branded by an impression of sunlight
oxymoron- juxtaposes the beauty of sunlight by the harshness of the verb 'branded'
'branded' may also suggest her country has left a significant effects on her whether that is physical or metaphorical
may also suggest that she has been branded as an outsider in the country she now lives in
'comb its hair and love its shining eyes
her city is personified as something that she loves e.g like a mother loves her child, she treats her country as if she is a maternal figure to it
'shining eyes' may also link to the theme of sunlight- suggesting she will pass on the memories of er country to her child
'child's vocabulary'
evokes sympathy from the reader due to her innocence
she clings to what she already knows and loves- her way of speaking and communicating
'sick with tyrants'
personification- her country is now ruled over by selfish people who want personal gain
creates ambiguity as to what is actually happening in her country- perhaps she did this so the poem can be applied to many countries where people have had to leave where they love so much
contributes to the contrast between how she views her country and the state it is in now
'it may be a lie, banned by the state'
suggests that the people in power are telling lies- showing that she may have opposing political views as well as just opposing the regime
'it may' suggests she is either still unsure about the details of what is happening in her country or it may suggest that she is still unable to accept the harsh truths about her country
Structure/ Form
repetition of 'they'
creates an aggressive and accusatory tone to make the city seem hostile and threatening
she blames the people in power on ruing her and her families view of their home
free verse
no obvious rhyme or rhythm which recreates the lack of structure within her life due to her having to move between countries
could represent the lack of stability and the chaos within the governements