tissue Flashcards
‘paper that lets the light shine through, this is what could alter things.…koran’
modal verb: ‘could’
↳ shows uncertain possibility, light has the possibility to change people’s fixed mindsets about the world
motif: ‘light’
↳ God’s enlightenment which connects all beings in harmony
ironic: ‘paper that lets the light…alter’
↳ despite it being translucent, it is able to exert great influence (eg: koran is paper with power to have a large influence on the way people act)
‘on which sepia date, pages smoothed and stroked and turned transparent with attention.’
metaphor: ‘sepia date’
↳ sepia is a chemical filter used to preserve images, it’s yellow like warm light which could show the importance of allowing light (enlightenment) to affect fixed ideas which are written down
polysyndeton: ‘smoothed and stroked’
↳ lengthens the sentence to mimic how humans attempt to try and lengthen their impact on the future and how there are obsessed with the future
semantic field of care: ‘stroked’, ‘smoothed’, ‘attention’
↳ although paper is frail, the information that it holds is valuable to humans and is cared for
↳ this constant care ages the paper more however, suggests that humans should stop trying to immortalise their lives when they are alike to paper
transparent:
↳ invisible -> insignificant
‘if buildings were paper, I might feel their drift, see how easily they fall away on a sigh’
metaphor: ‘if buildings were paper…’
↳ if buildings were paper, people would easily see that they are fleeting
↳ depict how society is fragile, things that we whole heartedly trust in and believe are powerful, are trivial in the end
↳ paper is flexible and lets light through, dhaker wishes to replace rigid structures with paper to inflict change
‘maps too. the sun shines through their borderlines’
declarative: ‘maps too’
↳ maps are a recording of divisions and borders, show human development
↳ humans are reliant order and restraint when they should unite (light)
‘fine slips from grocery shops…might fly our lives like paper kites.’
metaphor: ‘might fly our lives’
↳ receipts control our direction in life, however when things fly only God or nature controls what happens, material possessions have no true authority over our lives, God is the ultimate director of our fates so there is no point relying on material possessions which will eventually disappear
simile: ‘like paper kites’
↳ paper is weightless and fragile, material possessions are eventually worthless
‘and never wish to build again with brick | or block but let the daylight break through’
symbolism: ‘brick’
↳ represents fixed mindsets & ideas, boring and monotonous
↳ although paper is fragile and thin, it absorbs light & can use its surroundings to generate new growth
enjambment: ‘brick or block’
↳ leaves a symbolic space for where light breaks in, reflects the strength of light
‘trace a grand design with living tissue, raise a structure never meant to last’
volta:
↳ reveals that the poem has been about how humans themselves are fragile like tissue
↳ God intended for humans to not last
‘turned into your skin.’
direct address:
↳ dhaker purposely ends the poem with this one line to draw attention to it & cause the reader to question their existence
↳ she calls people to stop aiming to control their lives and dynasties with material possessions, buildings and books and God ultimately controls everything, people should work together and unite in harmony
↳ we are all part of God’s plan
↳ alternatively, tissue could be a celebration of the human mind and body as the ultimate source of all grandeur and wisdom, even though it isn’t meant to last
meaning of title
-flesh, skin tissue
-fragile, weak
-sadness
-extended metaphor
context
-born in pakistan, grew up in glasgow (conflicting identities)
-wrote poem as her husband was dying from cancer
structure
quantrains:
↳ consistent structure to show how restrictive human power
and control can be
single, last line:
↳ emphasises & isolates its meaning
↳ breaking free from the controlling structure
free verse & enjambment:
↳ undermines quantrains
↳ loose structural forms -> freedom can be found in a restrictive institution
↳ humans should become united
form:
allegory
who wrote tissue?
imtiaz dhaker
