Write a critical appreciation of ‘How to fly the Singapore Flag’?

by
This poem takes place in Singapore and includes local culture through mentioning some of
the red-light zones here. The speaker may be referring to the scenario of the flag- a symbol
that are
of the country and its values, being displayed in areas which are unpleasant and may not
The noun uphold the qualities the state wishes to. The speaker uses local places that have a poor
phrase reputation only among locals and not tourists and hence the speaker uses this to signify his
equality
seems to
intended meaning of the fact that not all of Singapore upholds the values of the country. First First,
be missing they see it at a construction site, which may be the speaker highlighting the fact that while
the equality
a the red of the flag represents equality of men, the people who work at construction sites,
determiner Secondly,
mostly foreigners, are shunned and not treated like locals. Secondly they see it at a small
before it.
Consider store on a bamboo stick, (idk eh) Thirdly, it is seen flown in a run-down area of Singapore
adding an and also a brothel which contradicts Singapore’s wishes to prove itself as a first-world
article. country with one of the five stars representing progress. Brothels are alternatively called the
oldest trade which would indeed clash with Singapore’s wish to portray a modernised
It seems society. The white part of the Singapore flag also symbolises pervading and everlasting
that the purity and virtue, which is definitely not words that would be used to describe brothels.
verb is are
does not The first half of the poem quotes an article in the Straits Times- a renowned news source in
agree with Singapore. The article was printed when National Day was approaching, it encouraged
the
people to show their support for the Nation in the identically, flawless way. In the
subject.
Consider instructions, there are a few rhymes such as, “right” and “might” and “torn and worn”. This
changing not only supports the aforementioned ideology of being uniform but could also be the
the verb speaker mocking the guidelines for their lack of individuality. In the second half of the poem,
form it shows the speaker going around Singapore and observing flags in different locations.

The speaker talks about a young child grasping on firmly to the flag, refusing to let it be
taken away by her mother. The young child is a symbol of the younger generation, who wish
its however,
to have greater control over the country and it’s governance, however the elders, symbolised
by the mother, does not wish to hand over power to them. The speaker uses this scene to
highlight that in the body that Governs Singapore, the older politicians refuse to hand over
command to their successors. The child’s damp palms indicate that the younger politicians
are fighting for their right to gain control; since the flag is made out of cloth, it absorbs the
small amount of moisture on the child’s hands, this may be used to show that the even
though the younger politicians are fighting for the right of command, their influence spreads
rather slowly. This also contradicts the value of progress represented by the stars on the
flag.

This highlights the tense relationship between the older and younger politicians struggling to
share governance of the country.

The speaker may wish to convey the message that despite the strict rules and the values
which we feel are very important to uphold as a nation, the actions of the citizens, or even
the leaders of the nation might negate them.
are
Mood and atmosphere is one of mockery, sarcasm, satire. A reflection of the quiet, almost
blind subservience a person has for singapore and the laws here
Singapore
 The poet writes the title in the form of instructions which gives an authoritative tone.
However the author also uses paradox in writing the poem in lower case, this gives the
Become poem less structure and makes it become more free-form which clashes with the overall
may be meaning in stanza 2. The poet uses the sentence “- we cannot decide how a flag is to be
redundant flown;” which directly refutes the title, this draws the reader’s attention to the last stanza
remarkably using the juxtaposition. It highlights the underlying meaning of the stanza: we
can physically fly the flag correctly with rules to guide us but to change what the flag
symbolises in the eyes of the locals we do not have any control of it ourselves, and this
matter relies on society as a whole to decide what the flag symbolises to us and hence
change our views on what the flag may represent aside from the one decided by the leaders
of the country years ago.