Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 329 views

    Little Boy Crying by Mervyn Morris

    Uploaded by

    HER
    This poem examines the complex emotions between a father and his three-year-old son after the father spanks the son for playing in the rain. The poem shows the perspectives of both the father and son - the son responds with tearful resentment while the father feels deep sadness. It explores themes of childhood innocence, discipline as a form of tough love, and the contrast between a child's view of the world and an adult's maturity and understanding of consequences.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Little Boy Crying by Mervyn Morris

    Uploaded by

    HER
    329 views3 pages
    This poem examines the complex emotions between a father and his three-year-old son after the father spanks the son for playing in the rain. The poem shows the perspectives of both the father and son - the son responds with tearful resentment while the father feels deep sadness. It explores themes of childhood innocence, discipline as a form of tough love, and the contrast between a child's view of the world and an adult's maturity and understanding of consequences.

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    This poem examines the complex emotions between a father and his three-year-old son after the father spanks the son for playing in the rain. The poem shows the perspectives of both the father and son - the son responds with tearful resentment while the father feels deep sadness. It explores themes of childhood innocence, discipline as a form of tough love, and the contrast between a child's view of the world and an adult's maturity and understanding of consequences.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    329 views3 pages

    Little Boy Crying by Mervyn Morris

    Uploaded by

    HER
    This poem examines the complex emotions between a father and his three-year-old son after the father spanks the son for playing in the rain. The poem shows the perspectives of both the father and son - the son responds with tearful resentment while the father feels deep sadness. It explores themes of childhood innocence, discipline as a form of tough love, and the contrast between a child's view of the world and an adult's maturity and understanding of consequences.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as docx, pdf, or txt
    You are on page 1of 3

    Little boy Crying by Mervyn Morris

    Mervyn Morris is a Jamaican writer, poet, and educator. He is one of the first
    academics to adopt the importance of nation language in helping to define
    important aspects of Jamaican culture.

    POEM
    Your mouth contorting in brief spite and hurt,

    your laughter metamorphosed into howls,

    your frame so recently relaxed now tight

    with three year old frustration, your bright eyes

    swimming tears, splashing your bare feet,

    you stand there angling for a moment’s hint

    of guilt or sorrow for the quick slap struck.

    The ogre towers above you, that grim giant,

    empty of feeling, a colossal cruel,

    soon victim of the tale’s conclusion, dead

    at last. You hate him, you imagine

    chopping clean the tree he’s scrambling down

    or plotting deeper pits to trap him in.

    You cannot understand, not yet,

    the hurt your easy tears can scald him with,

    nor guess the wavering hidden behind that mask.

    This fierce man longs to lift you, curb your sadness

    with piggy-back or bull fight, anything,

    but dare not ruin the lessons you should learn.

    You must not make a plaything of the rain.


    Summary/Analysis

    • The poem examines the complex range of emotions taking place between a father and his
    three-year-old son who has been spanked for playing in the rain.

    • The perspectives of both father and son are presented showing how each person responds
    to the act of discipline- the child with tearful resentment, the father with deep sadness.

    Themes

    1. A childhood - the child perceives the world with limited discernment (good
    judgement) and want to indulge his desire to play in the rain without thought of
    possible consequences, typical of children. The consequences of this immediate
    gratification seem to be part of the lessons that the father wishes to teach.

    2. Discipline/crime and punishment - Discipline is part of the job of parenting and the
    father knows the necessity of disciplining his son. If he is to learn life lesson
    beginning with the most basic ones like not playing in the rain. Discipline is examined
    as form of “tough love” that causes pain to both parent and child.

    3. Time/innocence and experience- the stage of life begin with the childish innocence
    of the little boy whose view of the world is of it as a place to play or be entertained
    with stories and imaginary exploits. The adult's maturity that is able to disarm danger
    contrast with the naivety (lack of wisdom). The adult recognizes that there are
    consequences to the action while the child thinks only of the immediate gratification
    of his impulses.

    Poetic Techniques

    Form

    The poem uses free verse and forces its attention on specific words to add fearfulness and
    different layers of meaning. E.g. The use of “tight” at the break of the line gives an
    impression of the tenseness of the child.

    Tone

    The tone is sympathetic, reflective and tinged with humour when the child is thinking of fairy
    tale way to slay his ogre father.
    Mood

    The mood is philosophical as the poem had one to contemplate the nature of parenting and
    often unpleasant disciplinary task it involves.

    Language

    Alliteration - “grim giant” and “colossal cruel”, emphasizes the forceful tone in which the
    child expresses his anger and contribute to the sound effects of the poem.

    Contrast - the child’s world contrast with the adult world and his difference is presented in
    the perception of the child, his reaction to his world and his physical size in relation to his
    father.

    Imagery - the image of the first line “Your mouth contorting in brief spite and hurt” and
    “Bright eyes, swimming tears” helps us to identify with the pitiful images the child is
    presenting.

    You might also like