Flashcards
Father Returning Home - Dilip Chitre
Cards in this deck (12)
- 1"Father returning home""Father" not dad/ daddy.
Shows distance between him and his children (loneliness, isolation)
Could also signify old age
"returning" routine, mundane, boring
Needs a routine to feel as if he has a purpose/ a place in this world - 2"silent commuters in the yellow light"Isolation: He is feeling left out, everything appears silent to him, unwilling to interact with him, he is unable to communicate with them
'yellow' seems unnatural:
He is feeling alien in this new world
Bright and happy, which contrasts with his feelings - He is isolated once again - 3"Black raincoat stained with mud"'Black': No light or hope. Dark feelings.
Unkept, but doesn't care any more, yet he carries on working for his family. - 4"Like a word dropped from a long sentence"He is unimportant. World can still function without him.
Feels discarded by society
Unable to communicate (not part of the sentence) - links to 'silent commuters' - 5"Grey platform"Dull, morose colours which reflect
his feelings.
He is stuck in a black and white (old) world - 6"weak tea", "stale chapati"Becoming old, he has no pleasures to life.
Only way for him to reconnect to the old world if through traditional and poor
quality foods - 7"Man's estrangement from a man-made world"Feels alone as humanity becomes
more isolated
Repetition of 'man' could highlight confusion
Irony of this shocks the reader - 8"cold water running over his brown hands"Brown hands shows his hard work throughout his life (tanned by sun)
He still has hopes, but they are draining away like water, and he is unable to
grasp them.
Tries to cleanse himself from world's chaos with natural water - 9"A few droplets cling"As much as he tries to wash the modern world away, it still clings to him
Could symbolize his tears
'cling' if a powerful verb. Father could be clinging to the little place in society he is afraid to lose - 10"now go to sleep listening to the static on the radio"Enjambment: He has lost control over
his life
'sleep': Escape from the world, he is shutting himself off
'static': comforting sounds, at least he is not ignored. Reminds him of his past - 11"dreaming of his ancestors and grandchildren"Ancestors built a new world for themselves, while grandchildren are living in a new world of technology
He is stuck somewhere in between, there is no place for him. - 12StructureLittle punctuation: Life is chaotic for him
Punctuation comes too late, difficult to read.
Life is difficult for him
More punctuation at home: There, he has more control over his life
No rhyme: Life is unfamiliar. He has no direction, he is lost
Information
- Description
- Here are my notes on this poem! Good luck! =) * Some credit to azittoun for their amazing mindmap!
- Created by
- Diana Domingues
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