Walking Away - Quotes

Question 1

“half-fledged thing set free into the wilderness”

Answer 1

1 - “wilderness” connotes the idea he is setting him free - where he has no control - despite a school normally being strict and controlled, showcasing how he is overly sentimental over his son

2 - “half-fleged” , he is not yet ready to be in the wilderness, he is only half ready, showcasing how he cares for his son overly

3 - “thing” zoomorphises his son, giving him animal qualities, showcasing how he does not believe his son can fend by himself without the help of his own father - father is overly obsessed with his sons wellbeing - perhaps as a result of growing up too fast?

Question 2

“like a satellite / wrenched from its orbit”

Answer 2

1 - evokes the expansive abyss of the world, in releasing his son, the father is casting him into an unknown “abyss” of space where satellites orbit - his son is becoming out of his physical and emotional reach

2 - “wrenched” his son has been forcefully snatched and stolen, he is no longer orbiting his father yet an external body due to another gravitational presence stronger than him

3 - he is set as powerless, he is wrenched away, showcasing how he can do nothing against the cycle of life and growing age, it is bound to tear you apart

Question 3

“sunny day with the leaves just turning”

Answer 3

1 - passage of time - evokes temporal imagery, sets the tone of the never ending structure and nature of time - the changing of the seasons may be symbolic of the ever-changing relationship between parent and child

2 - the close syntax of “sunny” and “turning”, the emblem of hope the sun acts as is now turning, the shift in mood and therefore the shift in their relationship, the vibrancy of their shared memories will be overcome by the sorrow of the son’s youth slipping away

3 - “leaves just turning” may evoke ideas of autumn, where the days get darker, his son growing up leads to his days analogously getting darker too.