My Parents

BY  ST EP HE N S PE ND ER
My parents kept me from children who were rough
Who threw words like stones and wore torn clothes
Their thighs showed through rags they ran in the street
And climbed cliffs and stripped by the country streams.

I feared more than tigers their muscles like iron

Their jerking hands and their knees tight on my arms
I feared the salt coarse pointing of those boys
Who copied my lisp behind me on the road.

They were lithe they sprang out behind hedges

Like dogs to bark at my world. They threw mud
While I looked the other way, pretending to smile.
I longed to forgive them but they never smiled.
My Parents Analysis
The first line out of the 12 lines of the poem explains that Spender was kept
away from children who were considered rough by none other than his
parents. The fact that Spender states that his parents ‘kept’ him from the other
boys shows us that he felt like he was being forced to stay away from him. The
word ‘kept’ also shows his weakness, that he was unable to protest against his
parent’s will. This line carries an air of negativity, showing us that Spender
most likely entitled his poem ‘My Parents’ as a way of blaming them for his
years of being bullied. There is no further elaboration of this and Spender
quickly jumps to describing the rough boys who his parents kept him away
from. Spender uses imagery to describe these boys as ragged in appearance,
with torn clothes and their skin being exposed through rags. This pathetic
appearance could be Spender’s way of describing poverty. The boys whom his
parents wished him to stay away from where those that were of a much lower
class than himself. Spender uses a simile to relate their words to stones. The
boys would throw words like stones means that they were not careful of their
language, and when they spoke, their words were harsh enough to hurt. Once
again, a lack of etiquette in speaking is a defining characteristic of the lower
class so it becomes obvious that the boys whom Spender was told to stay
away from, were those of a lower class.

Spender goes on to describe the boys in an almost exaggerated fashion. He

stresses how they were constantly outside doing things he was never allowed
to do, such as climbing cliffs and bathing in the streams. It appears that he
was even envious of their style of living. Spender uses continuous Enjambment
to allow his thoughts to flow together and create unity between the sentences.
Naturally, being of a lower class meant the boys had to do more labor,
therefore, they had muscles which he could not even dream of having.
Spender states that he feared their knees on his arms which shows that
perhaps he had fallen into a scrap with them before, or he had seen them
fighting in such a manner with each other. Not only did Spender fear their
physical strength, but he also feared their words, mocking him and pointing at
him. The fact that Spender states he feared their pointing shows his insecurity
of being left out. Spender has so much fear of the boys because he had such a
different lifestyle compared to them and though he was of a higher
socioeconomic status he somewhat desired this lifestyle and that is what made
him feel bad about not fitting in with them. He describes them as fit and
springing up from behind bushes. This shows us that Spender found their
behavior surprising and shocking once again because he lived such a different
lifestyle than they did. Spender uses Imagery to show the boys were like some
form of predator. Springing from behind hedges to harass him for being
different than they were. Throughout the poem, Spender is describing the
boys as ‘they’ and ‘their’ showing that he truly sees them as far and distant
beings who he never can truly befriend. Spender uses a Simile again to
compare the boys to dogs, barking at his world and throwing mud. It is
interesting that he compared the boys to dogs, for dogs can both be an
enemy or close friend. Throwing mud could symbolize that the boy’s words
had no real meaning to them but they were simply echoes of their envy
towards him. Spender makes the socioeconomic class distinction more
apparent by stating that he had a different world than what they had. The
boys were not hating on Spender himself, but rather, they were hating the
class distinctions and were more than likely envious of Spender’s privileged
life. Spender concludes by stating that he would have loved to befriend the
boys had they even shown the slightest bit of interest. Towards the end of the
poem, it becomes clear that Spender entitled the poem ‘My Parents’ because it
is due to being their child that he was given a more privileged life than these
boys. He was following the orders of his parents and at the same time fulfilling
the social requirement enforced on him due to his lineage by staying away
from and even fearing the impoverished boys. Some irony can also be seen in
the poem as Spender should be happy that he is so much more privileged
than them, but instead of enjoying his lifestyle he fees envious and seems to
wish that he could enjoy their strength and freedom. There even seems to be
a hint of awe in the description that Spender gives of the boys, lithe like
 predators, string and capable. My Parents’ by Stephen Spender is a brief poem
discussing how the presence of varying socioeconomic classes in society
creates strong societal barriers. Spender discusses how bullying occurs out of
envy of one another and may not just be one-sided in which the poor envy
the rich. but the rich can envy the poor as well that being born into a
particular family meant that you could only before certain groups of people.
Spender uses enjambment, imagery, and similes to describe the feelings
experienced when an interaction occurs between people from different
socioeconomic groups.

Figurative devices
Simile :  

 “Who threw words like stones” the words the boys use where harsh and hurt when they would
say them.

 “muscles like iron” they boys were strong and Spence may have not been strong enough to
fight them off so to him they were much stronger than him and it would hurt to be hit by them.

 “Like dogs to bark at my world” not literal dogs but they were loud and unrelenting like dog’s
barks frightening and offensive getting ready to attack.

Metaphor:

 “the salt coarse pointing of those boys” salt is rough and salt in wounds sting. The pointing by
the boys would point and it would hurt emotionally for spencer.

Allusion:

 “While I looked the other way” an allusion to Jesus turning the other cheek as a form of
forgiveness, like Spencer wanting to forgive the boys.

 
Possible Themes 
1. Parent-Child Relationship
2. Childhood Experiences
3. Forgiveness
4. Bullying