This document covers the poem: 'Giuseppe' from the Poems of the Decade Poetry. I studied this poem for my A Level, Edexcel English Literature Exam as part of the poetry module. By constructing these summarises and notes these provided me with ideas and themes which I could for my essays and thesis....
• Name of his uncle, yet the lack of family name
• From the title of the poem highlights a disassociation
• His story
• Places the blame and responsibility on him
• Typical name of someone, therefore could be placing the responsibility of conflict on everyone
involved.
• Innate moral compass
Structure:
• Written in free verse where the structure helps layer additional meaning into the poem in a
story-like way. Specific rhythm or rhyme make poem sounds natural spoken aloud in
conversation which creates a more personal connection to the poem. Aims to make the poem
more realistic which is important to ensure the reader considers the dark subject matter as
something that could happen and a decision needs to be made which could impact them in the
future. Effect of creating a confessional tone to the poem increases connection with a reader.
• Irregular rhyme scheme builds apprehension and uncertainty surrounding the morality of the
murder that was committed by the uncle
• Free-verse, story like structure
• Specific changes in line and sentence length in order to impact the pace of the poem. Entire fifth
stanza is one sentence split across five lines, whereas the next stanza only has one sentence on
each of the two lines. Mix of pace helps to make story and meaning become more confusing to
the reader and allows for greater consideration of points that are within their own line or
sentence.
• A lot of enjambenment from the beginning seen to be increasingly caesuras and shot sentences,
reflecting perhaps the guilt and the uncles reluctancy to share to story.
• Ford uses caesura to break up lines by pausing to make the narrator reluctant and worried to
continue sharing his story. Use of ‘She, it, had never’ at the beginning of second stanza as darker
elements of story unfold. Pause to describe Giuseppe as ‘the aquarium keeper’ in the final
stanza ensures reader understands Giuseppe had a direct relationship and impact with the
‘mermaid’ demonstrating his guilt. Similar effect created through enjambment with run of line
such as ‘in the world / was butchered’ to demonstrate visual breaks in the story which is
interpreted as representing the chaotic and confusing thought process that led to the killing of
the ‘mermaid’ woman.
• Ford uses enjambment through ‘priest who held one of her hands while her throat was cut’
creates an antithesis to the theme of religion and only amplifies the tainted reality throughout
society and a sense of purgatory for the people who are ultimately sinning and taking the life
that God has created
, • Short sentence ‘in a box for burial’ and ‘I thank God’ sticks out to reader. Irregular line lengths
representing uncertainty about what the mermaid is/ was, and forces the reader to sympathise
with the mermaid due to the dehumanization of her.
• Irregular stanza lengths. Including this shortest stanza with long lines ‘the rest they cook tend
fed to the troops. They said a large fish had been found on the beach.’. The full stoops and the
conclusion to the mermaid reflect the sinful and unjustifiable nature of her murder. Reflects the
uncertainty that surrounded war and by having these short sentences potentially is uncle
Guiseppe recognising the consequence of not preventing the murder. Allows innocent troops to
consume the sin they committed. Cannibalism effectively.
Language:
• Confessional language and tone of poem is important because it communicates the idea that
narrator’s uncle wanted to share his story with someone in order to remove the burden. Sadness
throughout the poem to suggest longing for story to be different and have more positive outcome.
Factual tone due to simplicity of language and removes opportunity for moral judgement to be
held by the narrator but forcing the reader to make their own judgement
• Mermaid is significant in numerous ways. Firstly, in mythology they unrivalled beauty and their
alluring voices to put people in a trance. A silent mermaid is highly unusual as it represents the
destruction of the irreplaceable as a result of warfare. Key aspect is that the mermaid is used to
symbolise the atrocities of war. Due to there being no single clear interpretation of the mermaid
of the poem as it suggests the reality of war has been so horrific that such symbolism was needed.
• ‘My Uncle Guiseppe’ marks beginning of the tale. Suggests the adoration and that the child looked
up to ‘Guiseppe’, as viewed by the persona pronoun ‘my’. Yet against the title of the poem, it is
suggesting that this is lost as a result of the tale the persona is about to tell. Lost respect for his
uncle, denying the family name. Wants no association after his portrayal
• ‘Sicily in World War II’ alludes to a time of depression and desperation in the corrupt society in
the 1940s. Suggests fears and paranoia of the troops against the enemy at the time, perhaps
acting as an excuse for the irrational actions taken towards the mermaid. Occurred in the
‘courtyard beyond the aquarium, / where the bougainvillea grows so well’. Preposition ‘beyond’
suggests that Guisseppe had deserted his role as the aquarium keeper in acts of immorality
towards the mermaid. Dehumanization of ethnic groups and jews
• ‘Only captive mermaid in the world’. The theme of the supernatural is portrayed to express a
sense of fear towards the mermaid. Yet, the lexis ‘only’ suggests the curiosity that surrounded the
mermaid. The oxymoron between ‘captive’ and ‘mermaid’ becomes a metaphor for the fear of
the troops against the enemy in World War II. Yet, the cliché ‘in the world’ suggests the abuse of
their power. They ruined such a momentous event by slaughtering the mermaid
• ‘Was butchered on the dry and dusty ground’. With the idea of the mermaid woman being
‘butchered’ dehumanises the character even further, but also relegates her from being human-
like to something consumable and less significant, the death on ‘dry’ ground could be likened to
how aquatic animals may die if washed up, in much more suffering that if they had been caught
at sea, which helps create more sympathy.
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