Hide

and
Seek
Call out. Call loud: ‘I’m ready! Come and find me!’
The sacks in the toolshed smell like the seaside.
They’ll never find you in this salty dark,
But be careful that your feet aren’t sticking out.
Wiser not to risk another shout.
The floor is cold. They’ll probably be searching
The bushes near the swing. Whatever happens
You mustn’t sneeze when they come prowling in.
And here they are, whispering at the door;
You’ve never heard them sound so hushed before.
Don’t breathe. Don’t move. Stay dumb. Hide in your blindness.
They’re moving closer, someone stumbles, mutters;
Their words and laughter scuffle, and they’re gone.
But don’t come out just yet; they’ll try the lane
And then the greenhouse and back here again.
They must be thinking that you’re very clever,
Getting more puzzled as they search all over.
It seems a long time since they went away.
Your legs are stiff, the cold bites through your coat;
The dark damp smell of sand moves in your throat.
It’s time to let them know that you’re the winner.
Push off the sacks. Uncurl and stretch. That’s better!
Out of the shed and call to them: ‘I’ve won!
Here I am! Come and own up I’ve caught you!’
The darkening garden watches. Nothing stirs.
The bushes hold their breath; the sun is gone.
Yes, here you are. But where are they who sought you?
• A child is hiding and waiting for his friends to find him.
• He experiences both pleasure and fear during the
game.
• The poem can also be read as a metaphor for how
someone might deal with situations in life – waiting
and enduring difficulties so they can eventually
achieve.
• The poem takes the form of one long stanza and is
written in free verse.
• The child is the narrator and throughout the poem we
hear his internal voice/thoughts as he considers what
he should do.
• Direct speech is also used when he calls out to the
others, ‘I’m ready! Come and find me!’ and later
towards the end of the poem.
The poem begins with two imperatives.
Call out. Call loud: ‘I’m ready! Come and find me!’
The sacks in the toolshed smell like the seaside.
They’ll never find you in this salty dark,
Simile to emphasise
Alliteration of the hard ‘c’ the salty smell
which begins the commands

Alliteration of the ‘s’ supporting the image and sound of

the seaside.

Note the change of person from 1st to 2nd. Why?

But be careful that your feet aren’t sticking out.
Wiser not to risk another shout.
The floor is cold.

Internal monologue.

A simple statement about one of his problems.

They’ll probably be searching
The bushes near the swing.
Whatever happens
You mustn’t sneeze when they come prowling in.

The word ‘prowling’ is often used to describe animal

behaviour and makes the others seem predatory
And here they are, whispering at the door;
You’ve never heard them sound so hushed before.
Don’t breathe. Don’t move. Stay dumb. Hide in your
blindness.

He gives himself brief instructions to deal with the fact that

the others are nearby. The short commands build tension
as he may be discovered at this point.
 Assonance linking together the
actions and noise the others make.
They’re moving closer, someone stumbles, mutters;
Their words and laughter scuffle, and they’re gone.
But don’t come out just yet; they’ll try the lane
 Notice the half-rhymes:
lane/again

And then the greenhouse and back here again.

Notice the half-rhymes: clever/over. These
suggest things aren’t working out as the boy
expected. He is beginning to have doubts.

They must be thinking that you’re very clever,

Getting more puzzled as they search all over.
 Further alliteration
shows all his
senses are
affected.

Personification to emphasise how uncomfortable

he is becoming.
Supported by alliteration of the hard’ c’ to indicate
how cold he is – like teeth chattering.
It seems a long time since they went away.
Your legs are stiff, the cold bites through your coat;
The dark damp smell of sand moves in your throat.
It’s time to let them know that you’re the winner.
Push off the sacks. Uncurl and stretch. That’s better!
Out of the shed and call to them: ‘I’ve won!
Here I am! Come and own up I’ve caught you!’
The darkening garden watches. Nothing stirs.
The bushes hold their breath; the sun is gone.
Yes, here you are. But where are they who sought you?
He has come out of his hiding place, having endured the
isolation he felt and discovers that he is still all alone.

Personification highlights him being alone.

Even the sun has gone by the

time he asks the question
 Application
Answer the questions in full sentences in your book.
1. How does the narrator feel at the start of the poem? How and why
does this change by the end of the poem?
2. On line two, what simile is used? What kind of image is created?
3. In the first five lines, write down all the words that begin with s. What
technique is this and what effect does it have?
4. What word on line 8 suggests that the seekers are like animals?
5. Write down three short sentences from line 11. What effect do these
have?
6. From line 19, give an example of personification and explain why it is
used.
7. What can the boy smell on line 20? How has this changed from the
start of the poem? What does this suggest?
8. Why does the poet use so many exclamation marks on lines 23 and 24?
9. What kind of mood is created by the line ‘The darkening garden
watches’? What device is this?
10.Apply How do you think the boy feels at the end of the poem?
to Demonstrate