My Rival's House Quotes

Question	Answer
"never, never can escape"	The mother is possessive over her son the repetition of 'never' creates a dark, menacing tone
"silver sugar tongs"	Alliteration Excessive for a simple cup of tea The Mother is pretentious and wants to be formal, and not welcoming
"her salt tears pepper our soup"	Play on words Using her emotions to keep control over her son, proving she is manipulative
"she glosses over him and me"	Word choice glosses- suggests the mother does not value their relationship and doesn't listen to them. She is patronising.
"But what squirms beneath I can tell"	word choice - 'squirms' Suggests that the mother is hiding unpleasant thoughts
"I am all edges, a surface, a shell"	The girlfriends feels exposed in front of the mother and her criticism 'shell' - suggests that the girlfriend tries to only show her hard exterior to the mother
"Queen bee"	symbolism The girlfriend is intimidated by the mother The mother is dangerous when provoked
"cushions so stiff you can't sink in"	The house is unwelcoming and adds to tense atmosphere as the girlfriend cannot relax
"She won't give up"	enjambment emphasises that this is a continuous battle
"Tables polished clear enough to se distortions in"	Word choice- 'distortions' the reflections appear twisted, showing the darkness that lurks underneath the surface

Resource summary

	Created by Lana Duncan about 8 years ago