THE PRECRAMBRIAN SHILD - E.J.

PRATT

1. The locaton of the mountain is on the North Shore. This poem is about geography of Canada.
Synonyms used for Canada: reptile, hybrid, snake, progenitor. Hybrid is a kind of mixture of species
conceived by muths. progenital - pagan tradition. It's the creator of all cravling things. It is a female - this
is another effect that is conceived in muthical times. Boa - the creator is she - goddess.

2. Personification. Jealous - becouse of - it's an animate desire to become alive, animate. She is in
animate objekt. She looks as if she is sprawing on a mattres like a queen. She has been there for such
long time, she watched this object came there and watched them now where these are fossills. "life -
deadth zone" naturall cycle, creatures were born and die all over again. but she is still there, the creator.
This changes only change here apperance, climate change, but she is still there, only present. Nothing
has really change, the same idea has been reinforced. she is there, certaint thing happends, but she
remains.

3. A world of nature is superior to man. Man faced with mountain can do nothing. VAN HOME a Scottish
Explorer, one of the first exporers of canada who wanted to tame the wildness of 'Canada, but we don't
know if he was completey successful in that. Despite his trials she was tamed completey. She has been
aprogenitor a female is the one who gives birth a mountain and the whole nature is superior to man.
They can not do anything to nature just destroid and thus bring self destruction.

THE HEIGHT OF LAND - DUNCAN CAMPBELL SCOTT

1. Land - the Artcic watershed; north of that point all rivers flow into the Artic Ocean. This poem is about
the gegraphy of Canada and the end of one civilization. This is rather romantic poem. the narrator is the
poet himself. The poet is on the top of the mountain with some Indian guiedes who know the mountines
very well. He has reached one of the peaks. The mountine shades the water that goes into the Hudson
bay. His very high up no vegetation there, but he can hear the sound of the wind and recognizes the
melody of the song of the Ojibwa tribe. The sound is wearir, exhausted, just like the tribe. the tribe not
hostile nor friendly, maybe even inferior to the whites.

2. The destruction of the old way of life. The whites want to tame wilderness and the shaman realizes
that a great change is going to happend. the white settlers are seen as possible enemies. The shaman
sings a mournful song because they expect the end of the civilization. the image of burnnig fire that is
dying out and looks like moths. Even though there is some beauty and the poet sees it. The nature is stil
untouched by white people. Still as it is not tamed yet. the poet is the only one who appereciates the
beauty of nature. He leaves and turns back and sees this image.
3. The Indians do not appereciate this beauty - they are accustomed with, but the poet is not. Civilization
destroys nature. The poet describes the routine of the travel. They are on a kind of an expedition. It
seems that the roses sleep along with Indians, they are among roses. The poet is not used to new plans
becouse he haven't seen tham in Europe.

LAURENTIA SHILD - F.R. SCOTT

1. The poem is about justificaton of exploration of nature. Reference to the harsh Canadian climate.
Personification mountain described as human being. The location of the land is unknown and ful of
suprises. No people there. It teaches

us a lesson but we can not hear it. A white man is a stranger. The first settler were without history - no
civilization - no history. "Empty as a paper" referes to the landscape, untouched by civilization as it was
waiting for someone to write a history upon it. Lost in miles - far away from civilization. These songs are
ununderstandable to white men.

2. The mountain wants to be settled waits for man to come who will have their language that is first
started by vowels and that they will give to the mountain. Two parrael proccessess: the creation of
civilization and language. this productivity will be of the expense of nature.

3. A language of flesh - the material, the language of common practical sense, of exploration, the one
that prevailed. A language of roses, the language of poetry, imagination, coenhisance, used by artres and
poets. roses do not train to exposes themself. Both language - a kind of mixture, both are necessary. The
native's technology wasn't destructive. Invention of new word to name things around them. Syllables -
made of vowels they started to build log-cabins. Steels syntax - becouse they are people made of steel
and can survive in this conditions. the language of flesh is superior in order for them to survive.

4. the following course of history. The first settlers were hunters and trappers always of the move. Then
came diggers of gold and after industralization - proper settlers were established. "Carving it's kingdoms
out of the public wealth"(taxes to big companies) social criticizm because the land was for everybody
and then they made boundaries. No silinece anymore, nature is replaced by neighbourhoods. distance is
not difficult problem anymore. The vast territory became neighbourhood.

5. The language of life was created by settlers they are not able to survive without it. No natural
landscape anymore, civilization is brought to Canada. This is an explanation for the justification of the
exploitation of nature. It seems that this changes were necessary so their children could enjoy. Indians
leave in harmony with nature. Without the human touch no chances for survival. Recapitulation of
history of Canada. The language of roses is neglecTed

TWENTY BELOW - ROBERT ARHUR DOUGLAS FORD

1. It's descriptive poem. It refers to the temperature in Canada and the first settler's reaction to the new
surroundings. Social view of life in Canada. Female point of perspective. Everything is frozen and doesn't
move and static atmosphere, melancholy present. Only her thoughts are moving. They feel they do not
belong there. the man is inside trying to warm himself. He is a provider, assures the survival of his family.
A domestic atmosphere but not ideal. The fire is not enogh to raise the temperature in the room. Even
the dog is cold. She is inside, doing domestic jobs, but she is cold too. Contrast male vs. female duties
and inside vs. outside, civilization and wilderness. the feeling of despair of no fitting there because of the
climate. Hubernation they do not move and do a lot, lazy atmosphere, children bord, not restless and
naughty as usual, monotonuos atmosphere, every day is the same. the woman looks throguht the
window for hope to make things better, to do something for her family, but she can't do anything. She is
tired and desperate and wants to cry, but doesn't want her family to see her, she must be strong. She
can see throguht the window the nature smothering the world - the distructive aspect of nature is
emphasized. The sleep is impposible and not useful because when they wake up the situation will be the
same, it doesn't bring happy resolution. There were silence even pines are gray and do not move. Mighty
heel are shadows and horizon can be measured - a sign of her despare. They can't find the way out,
there is no end.

2. Grate gap beetwen expetaction an reallity. She is frozen, in an emotional state and also physically, she
is alone, her inner self is oppressing her. Even though the time goes by, everything is the same. Her tears
are turning into ice, it hurts more. Death was new beggining. Great paradox, her life stopped death.

3. The cYcle repeates.Nothing can't stop the cold stop entering the house. The reppetitive atmosphere,
the same things happend to them. they go to sleep hoping that things will change and be better, but
when they wake up everything is the same. The whole family go to sleep, but the woman returns to her
domestic jobs. She hides her feelings from the family. It's seems that fire knows the hole story. She is
tired of doing the same everyday. Great paradox between expetations and reality.

THE LONELY LAND - A.J.M.SMITH

1. This poem can be interpreted on two levels. 1) Apstract level, many factores that shaped the
Canadaians and their lives, and multy culturalism 2) loco descriptive poem describing destructive nature
of Canada and some ideas the poet is exploring some facts about Canada 1) destription of Canadian
nature. Only the destructive aspect is shown. the land is lonely becouse of the harsh climate. Trees are
characteristic of Canada. Cedar and fir are contrasted to the sky - shrapnes vs. smooth tehture of the sky
what inplies the opozition in the nature but nevertheless there is some beauty in this scenary, despite
the destrictive function of nature. Big opstacles for those people who went to Canada. Canadian harash
climate opresses them. The image of wind - simbol of natural energy. Energy is the beauty of nature.
Nature possesses great energy greater than people have. Nature have shape of the life of canadians, and
the canadian themselves.

2. the animal world. Now there are some living being - a duck that can not it's mate. It is not easy to live
there whether you are a human or an animal. The duck is alone. There is no one there, but the duck will
never calling for it's mate. People try to call other people to help them tame the land. they do not always
succeed in this. Humans are lonely, needs help to humanize land. The repetition of the lines indicate that
they are persistent. Allineration of sound as is like the echo you can hear becouse of the vastness of the
space. Contrast harash nature, water and sound of the stone - the shaping of canadina nation - contrast.
dissonance is beautiful they are all different but they work as unitu - canadian multiculturalism. This
shows the picture of canadian indentity. Resonance all world come to Canada. The whole world is
inculed. paradox creative and distructive nature. trees stand for various charectirics of canadians.
Description of this beatiful, but menacing nature. Tendency to separate from the USA's influence. Certain
charecterstics are ascribed to natural phenomena, e.t.g. cry of wind.

3. These lines gave a more phylosophical touch to the poem. Strenght of nature - the strenght of
Canadian people "broken by strenght - emphasis of the menacing nature and its strenght. Nothing can
really affect nature, it is undestructable, harash. It is difficult to endure but it is there. ech new nation
reaching Canada, wanted to conquer, to master it, but the nature can only be modified. People break
this indentity, but still contribute to its strenght and complexity.