The Living Photograph

Jackie Kay
Exercise 1

My small grandmother is tall there,
straight-back, white broderie anglaise
(1)___________________,
pleated (2)____________, flat shoes, grey bun,
a kind, old (3)_________ round her eyes.
Her big hand (4)____________mine,
white hand in black hand.
Her sharp blue eyes look her own (5)
______________ in the eye.
the crinkled smile is still (12) _____________ ,
It was (6) __________ after all; that look.
My tall grandmother became small.
Her back round and (7) _____________.
Her (8) _____________ forgot to boil.
She went to the (9) ____________ place
grandmothers go.
Somewhere unknown, (10) ___________.
But there she is still,
in the photo with me at (11)____________,
breathing.
Exercise 2
1. Who is the persona in the poem?
The persona is the granddaughter and she is talking about her grandmother.
2. Give evidence from the poem that shows the persona and her grandmother are different race.
Explain your answer.
The evidence is ‘white hand in black hand’ and the line shows clearly the
two hands of white and black means the two are of different races.

3. What physical change did the grandmother experience when she aged?
The grandmother became hunched and looked shorter.

4. The title of the poem is ‘The Living Photograph’. Explain how you feel about the title. What is
the importance of the photograph to the persona?
I feel that the title is interesting and it makes one want to read
a) Feelings : the poem to understand the title.
Its importance lies in the fact that it is a memento of her close
b) Importance: relationship with her grandmother.