Saturday, October 12, 2019
The Use of Imagery in Refugee Mother and Child by Chinua Achebe :: Refugee Mother and Child Chinua Achebe Essays
Refugee Mother and Child is a poem that seems to be written to arouse response from the reader. The pitiful image of a mother holding the corpse of her son is not only sourcing empathy from the reader but also helps the reader reflect on their own fortunate lives. In fact, Chinua Achebe is a leading writer for African causes, especially for the injustices in the world. The first stanza seems to be written as an introduction to the following stanza. The poet begins by allowing the reader to visualize the ââ¬â ââ¬Å"Picture of a motherââ¬â¢s tenderness for a son she soon would have to forget.â⬠This immediately conveys the theme of ââ¬Ëdeath of a childââ¬â¢ and also helps set the ââ¬Ësorrowfulââ¬â¢ mood of the poem. The short introduction allows the reader to settle them down and focus more on the tragic scene, thus maximizing the response from the reader. Following the ââ¬Ëthemeââ¬â¢ and ââ¬Ëmoodââ¬â¢ set by the first stanza, the second stanza described the living environment of the ââ¬Å"Refugee Mother and Childâ⬠as ââ¬â ââ¬Å"The air was heavy with odours of diarrhoea of unwashed children with washed-out ribs and dried-up bottoms struggling in laboured steps behind blown empty belliesâ⬠The filthy image of the environment that the mother and child lived in is projected through negative connotation. For example, the words ââ¬Ëodoursââ¬â¢ and ââ¬Ëdiarrhoeaââ¬â¢ suggests the presence of diseases and sicknesses. This allows the reader to imagine a smelly and filthy place crammed with ill people. The reference to illness, which seems to be a link with the theme of ââ¬Ëdeathââ¬â¢, foreshadows the tragic story of the mother and her dead son although it has not been clearly stated that her son is dead. Furthermore, the grotesque image of the setting is strongly reinforced by the mentioning of ââ¬Å"unwashed children with washed out ribsâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬ Chinua uses the children as a clear symbol of innocence and the unfortunate, as the children has been given birth in places where vital resources such as water and food are lacking. This will naturally allow the reader to reflect on their own fortunate lives and raise awareness of these unfortunate children living in famines. The words ââ¬Ëlaboured stepsââ¬â¢ also suggests child labour, linking to real cases in lesser economically countries such as Africa, China and Algeria. As the second stanza continues, the constant reference to death is evident when the poet describes the ââ¬â ââ¬Å"ghost smile betweenâ⬠the motherââ¬â¢s ââ¬Å"teeth and in her eyes the ghost of a motherââ¬â¢s pride.â⬠The careful choice of the technique, personification, enables the reader to visualize the emptiness of the motherââ¬â¢s smile and spirit, by comparing the nouns ââ¬Ësmileââ¬â¢ and ââ¬Ëeyesââ¬â¢ with ââ¬Ëghostââ¬â¢, which communicates the idea of death.
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