Mother Who Gave Me Father And Child Analysis
Knowledge of human experience effectively represents a strong aspect of power upon an individual in terms of understanding their morals and personal ethics. The poems Mother Who Gave Me Life and Father and Child by Gwen Harwood explores that an individual with plentiful knowledge is likely to have the upper hand, representing a strong aspect of power in society. Dawe’s use repetition “You’re dead dead dead” emphasises the message the officer wants to drill into his soldiers so they won’t go out and die needlessly. The sudden use of punctuation breaks the erratic rhythm of the poem and underlines the knowledge which the sergeant holds that one can be alive one moment and dead the next, never knowing what will happen in battle. This knowledge
represents a strong sense of power however; the uncertainty of never knowing what will happen to his soldiers put a flaw in this context and displays the powerlessness knowledge has compared to war. The blood imagery “You’ve copped the bloody lot just like I said and you what you are?” indicates the reality of war. Dawe effectively demonstrates the power of knowledge the sergeant had which he passes on to the other troops displaying the sense of personal ethics. Similar to the sergeant, the persona in Sexton’s Little Girl, My Stringbean, My Lovely Woman holds the power of knowledge of womanhood which she passes on to her daughter. The use of assonance “and having owned it and known it for so long” highlights the sense of loss the mother will go through as the child moves into womanhood. This possessiveness allows the readers to understand the consequences of too much knowledge; indicating the powerlessness of it. The personification, “You are too many to eat,” specifies that her daughter is too precious to be consumed by man. This assures the readers that her daughter will gain the knowledge of womanhood when it is her turn to be a mother. Both Dawe and Sexton represent a strong sense of the power and powerlessness of knowledge on the individual and those around them.
represents a strong sense of power however; the uncertainty of never knowing what will happen to his soldiers put a flaw in this context and displays the powerlessness knowledge has compared to war. The blood imagery “You’ve copped the bloody lot just like I said and you what you are?” indicates the reality of war. Dawe effectively demonstrates the power of knowledge the sergeant had which he passes on to the other troops displaying the sense of personal ethics. Similar to the sergeant, the persona in Sexton’s Little Girl, My Stringbean, My Lovely Woman holds the power of knowledge of womanhood which she passes on to her daughter. The use of assonance “and having owned it and known it for so long” highlights the sense of loss the mother will go through as the child moves into womanhood. This possessiveness allows the readers to understand the consequences of too much knowledge; indicating the powerlessness of it. The personification, “You are too many to eat,” specifies that her daughter is too precious to be consumed by man. This assures the readers that her daughter will gain the knowledge of womanhood when it is her turn to be a mother. Both Dawe and Sexton represent a strong sense of the power and powerlessness of knowledge on the individual and those around them.