24 Poems - Independent Annotations

In groups or by yourself - create your own annotations for 24 Poems. This is the last poem in our collection and you should be able to
understand Robert Gray’s distinctive qualities. To complete the table, do the following:
● Identify techniques and their effect in the Annotations column
● Describe what the stanza describes and consider the broader idea in the Summary column
● Find two images that represent the stanza (Remember, Gray is an imagist poet)

Poem Stanza Annotations (Techniques Summary and Key Ideas Two Images
and Effects)

In the rock pool, grass - Enjambment This Stanza describes the

moves with the water. Violin bows represents the flowing slow movement of seaweed
adagio. movement of the grass in rock pools.
in water
- Metaphor - ‘adagio’ – As time passes we can
the sounds of a violin experience renewal, just as
played in ‘slow time’ waves wash over seaweed
extends the metaphor in rock pools
of the movement of
‘grass’ in water’
- Symbolism; water as a
symbol of renewal and
cleansing
- Establishes natural
imagery - revealing
calming presence of
nature and how it
precedes anything in
an individuals life.
I get up. Bright moonlight. - Metaphor: “The sea is The sea is an excess of
The sea is a glass brimming a glass” creates the water overflowing from the
under the tap. effect that the crystal tap into the sink
clear tap water is
overflowing as The overflow of water could
enormously as the sea. mimic how the mind can
- Domestic imagery: become clouded and filled
creates the comparison with thoughts of worry after
of tap water being bombarded with the
gleaming/reflecting light struggles of modern life.
similar to seawater - Alternatively, it could also
seeing beauty in be a reminder of the
mundane moments everlasting presence of
- The use of assonance nature presented in a
to repeat the long ‘l’ romantic notion -
vowel sound in the first endless/eternal
line
- Establishes firrst
person voice in his
poem with the
truncated sentence “I
get up.”

4 a.m.; the Milky Way Personification - As the powm moves

blowing high above the forest. from midnight into
A truck changes down. the early hours of
the morning, Gray
Personifies the
“milky way” in
showing it as
“blowing” amidst the
forest which
emphasises the
endlessness and
sheer magnitude of
nature as Gray
 combines the
earthly elements of
a forest with the
galaxy

Mountainside dusk; Personifcation - Amidst this

white flowers through the bush, powerful, symbolic
the milking-shed lights. unity of earth and
space, Gray makes
this powerful image
relatable to his
audience by
showing how this
action exists amidst
the ordinary actions
of a regular modern
life, with the “truck
changes down”
serving as an
example of this.
Gray evokes visual
imagery associaged
with light through
the accumulation of
illuminating
features.

Drying her eyes, Imagery - The voyeurisitc

outside on the hilltop street; element og the
hiding in the wind. poem’s omniscient
 narration is
established as the
poet bears witness
to a woman in an
emotional state,
shwon to be “drying
her eyes”.

A railway hotel Colour imagery - Even when the

in the rain. Reading early confines of
by soapy yellow light. manmade structure
such as a “railway
hotel”, the poet is
shown to
acknowledge the
natural elements
around them by
immediatly
describing the rainy
weather whereas
their actions are
reflective,
contemplative and
somewhat
meditative as they
are shown to be
“reading early by
soapy yellow light”
Hot night. In the yard, Metaphor - These two stanzas
tighten the tap. It keeps dripping. make astute, simple
The mosquitoes come. observations of
ones surroundings.
The effect of this is
to show the
awareness that the
positive fostering of
a relationship with
nature can conjure.

A cathedral – Metaphor - The poet is shown

long tapers of rain light to observe the
candles on the twilit river. continual “dripping”
of the tap, the arrival
of mosquitos in the
evening and the
luminescence of the
rain on a river
Two magpies stepping Accumulation - The elements and
on the verandah. Ploughed subtle movements
hillside, of the nature are
smoke, and cumulus. reinforced in the
ninth “poem”. Where
the poet observes
“magpies stepping
on the verandah”
which sybokises the
poets own
connection to
nature, due to the
proximity of human
and bird on the
shared verandah
I sit and watch 1st person narrative - The use of first
the way rain is falling, person language in
its eyes closed. the tenth stanza, in
“i sit and watch
reminds the
audience of the
immediacy of nature
in the own lives
whilst the
personified vision of
the rain, shown to
have “its eyes
closed” strengthens
the audiences own
personal connection
ith nature
After a quarrel Imagery - The unsettling
she makes love in the shower emotions from he
to the limbs of water. earlier stanza are
explored further
where Gray projects
a vision of a woman
in a shower
following and
argument, “ after a
quarrel she makes
love in the shower”.
This image is
significant for two
reasons, the first as
it shows the
turbulent nature of
human relationships
and how they can
result in negatively
as symbolised by
the “guarrel”.

The crows go over Juxtaposition - The juxtaposition

all day, back and forth, anxious Tactile imagery between the
to lace night with night. “quarrel” and “love”
illustrates the
positive result of the
womans connection
with the water,
whilst the familiar,
tactile image and
sensations of
showering, once
more reminds the
audience of the
 immediacy of this
transformative
relationship in their
own lives.
- Familiar human
emotion of anxiety is
exihibited within
nature, as the poet
observes the frantic
movements of
crows “back and
forth, anxious to
lace night with
night”, which unifies
the emotions of
humanity with
nature

A hospital room; Juxtaposition - Earlier images of

in the curtains, a slight breeze. the transformative,
Thoughts of living. enriching power of
nature are
juxtaposed to an
image devoid of any
prominent natural
elements , as Gray’s
voyeruristic
procession of
thoughtful, imagist
observation moves
to a hospital room
where the presence
of nature is
significantly
diminished, as
established by the
 adjective of “slight”
in “slight breeze”.

Bring my mother in - A possible identity

from the morning, she will vanish for the patient is
in that light. provided as the poet
comments on their
own memories of
their dying mother,
despite the
sorrowful
connotations of this
image however,
Grzy reintroduces
positive
connotations of light
with “morning” and
“light” that dignifies
the portrayal of the
mothers passing as
she is shown to
“vanish in that light”.

The shadowy sides Hyperbole - The decay of

of everything, on the way down humanity is equated
to the white sea. to the existence
through
“everything”, which
are all shown to
eventually return to
nature. The
hyperbolic
“everything”,
diminisahes the
significance of te
 individual in a
beneficial, rather
than negative
manner.

In the vase, flowers Juxtaposition Whilst the fifteenth ‘poem’

from deep in the heath conveys an image of life
open their eyes. “on the way down” this is
immediately juxtaposed to
the following ‘poem’ which
personifies the natural
element of flowers ‘opening’
their eyes to emphasise the
renewal associated with
existence as Gray reminds
audiences of how whenever
something perishes,
something new is born,
which is symbolised by the
flowers that “open their
eyes”
Moon, a spinnaker Motif - The recurring motif
on the bay of night, and stars Metaphor of water conveyins
make a distant shore. aspects of existence
established by the
“white sea”, is
sustained as the
moon is
metaphorically
compared to a
“spinnaker” which
president sa
romanticised image
of the moonlight.
- Positive image of
the moon is
paralleld to the
sunset, whos effect
on the water is
compared to the
golden hues of
“whiskey” with the
simile providing a
rega atmosphere to
the suns aquatic
reflection.

Thick sunset waters, Simile - Like the moon,

golden as whisky. In this light the Personification which works
tree-roots will walk. inharmony with the
water, the “thick
sunset waters” are
shown to enable the
movement of trees
in “the tree-root will
walk” , which
personifies the tress
 in solidifying this
natural relationship.
- In conveying this
harmonious
connection between
different elements of
nature the positivity
of this interplay
between nature is
juxtaposed to the
negative
consequences that
human interaction
can conjur.

Late afternoon sun Personification - The personification

in the back of the shed, Juxtaposition of sunlight in
cornered and still. showing it as being
calm and dormant
whilst “in the back of
the shed, cornered
and still” helps
symbolise the
calming presence of
nature.
In the dim room
a piano-lid propped. Urgent
sail, far from home.
Open the door on
the gunshot of the morning –
work all day wounded.
Into the room, a breeze,
the pure note
on the ocean’s single string.
Visual imagery - As the sun sets,
Metaphor Gray juxtaposes this
image of a small
glimpse of still light
to a “dim room” with
a “piano-lid
propped” to
emphasise the
negative
consequences that
a life disconnected
from nature can
manifest into.
Motif - Gray introduces a
Auditory imagery new recurring motif
associated with
auditory imagery
commencing with
the onomatopoeic
sound of the
“gunshot of the
morning” caused by
the opening door.
Extended metaphor - Harsh imagery is
juxtaposed to
calming image of a
breeze entering a
room, which utilises
musical elements in
the auditory images
of the breeze as a
“pure note on the
oceans single
 string” in
metaphorically
comparing the
breeze and ocean
calming, musical
qualities.

A pious sunset Motif - Gray draws his

at the boatshed. Crows with gulls recurring motif of
along the rail. oceanic/nautical
imagery to a close
of his metpahorical
day as a sun is
shown to be setting
over a “boatshed”.
Gray deliberately
casts his sunset
over a boatshed as
this is where boats
are kept overnight,
which alongside the
sunset indicates a
restful, calming
atmosphere.

In the bus, white neck, Personification - In the closing ‘poem’

black hair. Light has paused Gray presents an
on its endless journey. image of departure,
by establishing the
setting of “in the
bus” which utilises
the notion of a
departure as a
prompt for the
audience to
reassess thei
relationship with
nature in their own
‘departure’ from
their reading of the
poem.