Defying Gravity by Roger McGough and Mort Aux Chats by Peter Porter are two poems that have death as a theme. Although they refer to death in different ways. Mort Aux Chats refers to death to convince you to dislike cats. Whereas Defying Gravity is about a mans “victory” with death. These poems rely on language to emphasise the attitude to death.
Defying Gravity is told from the point of view of a dying mans best friend. It uses a lots of metaphors and I think this makes the poem very effective and clever.
The first stanza of the poem explains about gravity and its significance to us. 'Gravity is one of the oldest tricks in the book' This explains that it’s been around for a long time and everyone knows about it and they will all eventually die. “Let go of the book and it abseils to the ground” This is a metaphor and it uses the book as your life and once you’ve dropped it its gone.
'As if, at the centre of the earth, spins a giant yo-yo 'to which everything is attached by an invisible string.’ This is an extended metaphor as it is linked to a metaphor in the last stanza. “And homage paid to the giant yo-yo” This tells us that when someone dies and have been buried their bodies decay and is given back to the earth as a mark of respect.
'a shape that can outwit air, that has slipped the knot. But no. The earth turns the winch tightens, it is wound in' This is important because by outwitting the air it s like trying to trick death which is what many people try to do because they fear of it. This is because when we die we enter the unknown and people often feel threatened about being vulnerable by not knowing what will happen.
'Attempting to Defy Gravity, and will surely succeed.’ You defy gravity when you die so the speaker is saying that his friend will surely die.
'Now seven stones lighter, his wife carries him aw
Kwardly from room to room.' It is written in such a way to make it awkward to read and to emphasise the awkwardness of the... [continues]
Defying Gravity is told from the point of view of a dying mans best friend. It uses a lots of metaphors and I think this makes the poem very effective and clever.
The first stanza of the poem explains about gravity and its significance to us. 'Gravity is one of the oldest tricks in the book' This explains that it’s been around for a long time and everyone knows about it and they will all eventually die. “Let go of the book and it abseils to the ground” This is a metaphor and it uses the book as your life and once you’ve dropped it its gone.
'As if, at the centre of the earth, spins a giant yo-yo 'to which everything is attached by an invisible string.’ This is an extended metaphor as it is linked to a metaphor in the last stanza. “And homage paid to the giant yo-yo” This tells us that when someone dies and have been buried their bodies decay and is given back to the earth as a mark of respect.
'a shape that can outwit air, that has slipped the knot. But no. The earth turns the winch tightens, it is wound in' This is important because by outwitting the air it s like trying to trick death which is what many people try to do because they fear of it. This is because when we die we enter the unknown and people often feel threatened about being vulnerable by not knowing what will happen.
'Attempting to Defy Gravity, and will surely succeed.’ You defy gravity when you die so the speaker is saying that his friend will surely die.
'Now seven stones lighter, his wife carries him aw
Kwardly from room to room.' It is written in such a way to make it awkward to read and to emphasise the awkwardness of the... [continues]
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(2011, 10). Compare Two Poems in Which the Poets Explore Attitudes to Death. How Do the Poets Use Language to Emphasise? These Attitudes?. StudyMode.com. Retrieved 10, 2011, from http://www.studymode.com/essays/Compare-Two-Poems-In-Which-The-790731.html
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"Compare Two Poems in Which the Poets Explore Attitudes to Death. How Do the Poets Use Language to Emphasise? These Attitudes?" StudyMode.com. 10 2011. 10 2011 <http://www.studymode.com/essays/Compare-Two-Poems-In-Which-The-790731.html>.
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"Compare Two Poems in Which the Poets Explore Attitudes to Death. How Do the Poets Use Language to Emphasise? These Attitudes?." StudyMode.com. 10, 2011. Accessed 10, 2011. http://www.studymode.com/essays/Compare-Two-Poems-In-Which-The-790731.html.
