Some Old Photographs

Some Old Photographs

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'weather evocative as scentthe romance of dark stormcloudsin big skies over the low wide river           of long shadows and even longer shafts of light'

'scent'- word choice- has positive connotations of perfume rather than an unpleasant smell'romance'- theme- introduces the theme of love and glamour'dark stormclouds'- imagery- illustrates that the weather is dramatic; like a cinematic shot.'of long shadows... shafts of light'- line placement- this is a further description of the shot and it helps build a photo; also the line juts out just as the shadows do.

Verse 1

'of smoke     fabulous film-noir stills of Central Station of freezing fog silvering the chilled, stilled parks     of the glamorous past     where drops on a rainmate are sequins     in the lamplight, in the black-and-white'

Verse 2

'of smoke'- enjambment- the verses are linked by enjambment which allows for a fluid continuation of ideas and also draws out the sound as if one image is piling on top of another.'fabulous film-noir'- alliteration- depicts a Glasgow that is mysterious like a black and white crime movie and also glamorous. The repeated 'f' sound creates an echo effect'stills'- word choice- illustrates that time has frozen in place'of the glamorous past'- word choice- suggests an era where everything was stylish and lacked flaws'where... sequins'- metaphor- highlights the transformative power of a photograph as a humorous image is made over to be glamorous and stylish. 

Verse 3

'your young, still-lovely mother  laughs, thehem of her sundress whipped upby a wind on a beach before you were born'

'young, still-lovely mother laughs'- word choice- depicts an image of a young carefree woman that is hard to picture as the aged woman she has become.A typical family photographAlso a message about the inevitable passing of time.

Verse 4

'all the Dads in hats are making for Central at five past fivein the snow, in the rain, in the sudden what-a-scorcherin the smog, theirbelted dark overcoats white-spattered by the starlings'

'all the Dads in hats'- imagery- creates an image of the fathers going home to their families and suggests that all the Dads are interchangeable as they are all dressed the same.'five past five'- word choice- Refers back to a by-gone time when all businesses closed at five'in the snow... smog'- repetition- The repetition of 'in the' shows that this journey happened all year round and also the list of weather is particularly Scottish'white-spattered'- word choice- Further highlights the transformative power of a photograph because something unpleasant is suddenly glamorous and stylish.

Verse 5

'starlings swarmingin that perfect and permanent cloudabove what was never really this photographbut always all the passing nowand noise and stink and smoky breath of George Square'

'starlings swarming'- alliteration- creates a sense of movement and also a sense of security and comfort.'perfect and permanent'- alliteration- suggests that in the photo George Square appears to be perfection, despite it not being a realistic picture'above... photograph'- metaphor- This is a complex metaphor that implies that photographs only capture a fleeting and transient moment, but in real life the style is not there.'noise...breath'- word choice- this description transports us back to the gritty Glasgow that grinds on every day.

Verse 6

'wee boays, a duchess, bunting, there's abig launch on the Clydeand that boat is yet to sail'

'wee boays...bunting'- listing- this list paints a picture of an exciting day in Glasgow, a celbratory gathering, a perfect moment in history'sail'- punctuation- there is no full stop at the end which highlights that time does not stop but continues evermore.This leaves us with the feeling that time moves on and all we can do is look back wistfully.