Keyways (relationships)

Question 1

What is the poem about?

Answer 1

The relationship has now ended, and they are at the locksmith together making arrangements for him to collect his belongings from her flat. It may be that it takes place soon after ‘Night Windows’ as the weather is still hot. This poems looks back on the whole relationship.

Question 2

Stanza 2: “smooth blade”

Answer 2

• He considers the uncut keys on display and creates a comprehensive conceit, comparing their romance to a key in a lock.
• He remembers feeling like a ‘smooth blade’ at the start of the relationship, but as they have got to know each other, they have developed ‘grooves’ (S3) that have begun to coordinate with each other.

Question 3

Stanza’s 4 and 5: “from then on I was sure we were keyed alike” “again it was a coming home, my stomach, the small of your back…a master key fit.”

Answer 3

• He remembers an occasion in a chapel, when the emotional and spiritual experience of listening to ‘Messiah’ brought them together.
• He reflects on their sleeping position and how they nearly fit.
• But over time, they have drifted apart and he cannot pinpoint the exact moment when the relationship began to break down.
• He feels it’s ironic they should be together at the locksmith at the end of the relationship rather than the start.

Question 4

Structure: mono-syllabic words and short vows.

Answer 4

• Sounds of a key in a lock are presented through mono-syllabic words and short vows: cut, out, lock etc.
• The frequency of these words increases until it creates an onomateopoeic effect in the penultimate stanza, as though he is twisting the key around in the lock, hearing it click, but fail to dock.
• In stanzas 3 and 4, the clicking sounds are less frequent and interrupted by lines full of long round vowel sounds.
• These soft flowing lines reflect the couple’s fluent cooperation, and he suggests they were interdependent “like Siamese twins sharing one lung”. This connection reminds us of his parents’ relationship as described in ‘Inheritance’ which he wants to emulate; he as a desire for what they had and enjoys sharing his life with her.

Question 5

Stanza 5: “I held the bow of your hip”

Answer 5

• The motif of the bow is used again, reminding us of the unsuccessful encounter in ‘Night Windows’.
• In this case, she is sleeping facing away from him, foreshadowing the end of the affair.

Question 6

Stanza 5: “bolt”, “blade”, “break”.

Answer 6

• The questions at the end of stanza 5 are intensified by the plosive alliteration and violent mono-syllabic lexis.
• The tone is bitter and confused as he seems to have missed the signals that she was slipping away from him.
• In stanza 6, the clicking sounds increase, but the internal pararhymes (“unpick, back, dock, stuck, click”) are muddled irregularly through the lines, showing how the couple are not fitting together.

Question 7

Overall structure of the poem:

Answer 7

• Most of the stanzas are regular five lines, but the last stanza is much shorter. This is very common in this book and creates a reflective mood at the end of poems.
• He says it’s “strange” at the start and again at the end of the poem, showing he is not quite sure how this break-up has happened.
• The short last stanza might suggest he has not finished thinking about the question.
• In these poems about the different stages of a romance, the central theme of splitting/separating becomes clear, but at this stage he is baffled and confused by it.