Little Boy Crying by Mervyn Morris

https://youtu.be/TbCNUiPINVI

The title, Little Boy Crying

-Obviously the first thing your going to think of when you see the title of this poem is that its about ‘a little Boy crying’.
-At first glance, you might also think the poem will be quite sad, and possibly innocent, since its just a little boy.
-”Little” as well as “boy” again suggests innocence, and vulnerability 

The Author, Mervyn Morris

-He’s Jamaican (this is very important)
-This poem is set within a family for ‘the most intimate and fearsome dramas’
-Last of four children
-Only one to go to boarding school
-Father was ill when he was about to become 11. Then died soon
-Small immediate family
-Had lots of cousins though. “In the sense of the meaningful experience, I grew up in a very large family”.
-His name is an alliteration, giving credibility to himself as a poet.

First Stanza

Your mouth contorting in brief spite and 
-The first line tells that the boy is obviously unhappy, and is raging. He also cannot speak because he has too much anger or he has nothing to say.
-”Your/You”~ is the 2nd person pronoun describing things. It is repeated. The boy seems to be put outside of the viewer by the speaker yet still directed at him. Less bias. The “you’s” highlight the boy giving him his own state and separating him from his father. 
“Contorting”~ a word mostly applied to the face, about twisting and change into something bad. Sound effects ‘say it’. Only children are said to do this regularly so it presents the child as a child, nothing more. The word can be said to represent change from childhood to adulthood.
“Brief Spite”~ has to do with the duration of this anger. That is held within the Present. For that time, that is all he can think of. Also, it is a short time, so as a child possibly eventually will want the love of their parents the hating will stop. 
“-And”~ end of line, putting more emphasis on next word, as in ‘there’s more’


Hurt, your laughter metamorphosed into howls, 
- More change but with emotion. Has some idea of a werewolf (unpredictable changes). 
-“Hurt”~ Very visible, what sort of feeling he has. 
“Metamorphosed”~ Long word with very changing sounds. Almost describing the change through sound. Also represents change from childhood to adulthood

Your frame so recently relaxed now tight”
-A line with a shortness of time, telling the quickness of the change of the boy. 
-“Frame”~ For people usually it’s a bit like scaffolding that is fragile, such things have a required status to be in, so it doesn’t brake. 
“So recently (relaxed)”~ Again, the thought of speed, how quickly something was done without much thought involved like crying and much of the actions of children. There is some alliteration. Also represents the change from childhood to adulthood

With three-year-old frustration, your bright eyes 
-Gives the specific age to try to justify. Three-year-olds often have tantrums 
-It is one adjective but also a combination of words, in a way reflecting how young people speak, as they do not say ‘at the age of three’ etc. 
Bright eyes- bright can be associated with youth, also of tears/water. At this moment, he is crying, the rain that is still falling can be said to be tears of the sky therefore, theres a noticable parallel between this line at the beginning and the very last line.

Swimming tears, splashing your bare feet 
-A reference to the beach or heavy rain from the tears of the boy draws another relation. Ironically he is not allowed to have fun in the rain/(shore side) so he is sad in his own tears. 
“Swimming tears” ~ It gives imagery of swimming, and vast amounts of water of him being very sad and the swimming makes the thought of being on a beach (which is fun). 
“Splashing” ~ Another thought of fun in/with water. Or conversely the act of the boy playing in the rain moments before. 
“Bare feet” ~ Idea of the beach and fun, or playing in the rain.

You stand then angling for a moment’s hint 
-He is looking for any signs of weakness or regret from his father, hoping that his father will give in and apologize, so he can feel better.
-This line in a way suggests that the pain on the boys side is not just physical. The sheer indecency of the act fuels the boys sadness. Thus the boy doesn’t burst out in tears immediately, but waits for a moment to gain the mental high ground. 
“Stand then” ~ The ‘then’ is adding to the effect of the ‘stand’ that comes close to being a command for the boy, it’s a definite fact. 
”Moment’s” ~ A short amount of time. Any more hesitation and the father might realise the boy is putting on an act (i.e. the pain wasn’t caused by the blow itself, but more the sense of ‘betrayal’.

Of guilt or sorrow for the quick slap struck 
-It is a matter of pride even for the boy. His pride has been injured as he thinks what he’s done was not wrong. 
“Quick slap struck” ~ has alliteration, repeated ‘ck’. The sound makes it easier to visualize. All three of these words are short, and onomatopoeia is used making each word sound like a slap itself.
-The ‘quick’ makes the point of the slap, not to just hurt but only to force the child to listen to the advice of his father. 

Second Stanza

-This stanza explores deeper into the child’s mind. Hence Morris uses many references to the famous fairy tale “Jack and the Beanstalk” in this stanza.
-The references to “Jack and the Beanstalk” is to show the thoughts and feelings of the child, and in this case, it shows that all the child understands is fun and play, and that his way of thinking is that of fairy tales. 

The ogre towers above you, that grim giant, 
-”Ogre”, “that grim giant” ~ Are both metaphors for the boy’s father. It shows how the boy feels towards his father.We see what the child feels of the father’s actions, seeing him as an “ogre” “towering above him”, and referring to the father as “that” “grim giant”.
-Note the use of the word “that”, this demonstrative pronoun distances the child from the father, as apposed to using “the grim giant” “that” is used.
-”grim giant” ~ Alliteration used to give the image menacing figures. The alliteration is used to emphasize the strong feelings the child feels. The harsh “G” sounds give it a vengeful tone - full of hate. Also a reference to “Jack and the B.S.”

Empty of feeling, a colossal cruel, 
-“Empty of feeling” ~ Again reinforces the child’s view of his father
“a colossal cruel”I ~ The hard “C” sounds give it a vengeful tone - full of hate. Also note the use of the adjective “cruel” here used as a noun, placing further emphasis.

Soon victim of the tale’s conclusion, dead 
-Another reference to the theme of time and childhood, abundant in Stanza 1, is seen in the first word of this line: “Soon”. 
-Enjambment used in “dead ““at last”. When read out loud there is a slight pause after saying “dead” before “at last” is read. This puts emphasis on the “dead”, showing how hateful the child is of the father at this point, even wanting him dead. 
-”Tale’s conclusion” ~ Another reference to “Jack and the B.S.”

At last. You hate him, you imagine 
-The repetition of “you” puts the reader into the child’s perspective, drawing our sympathy for the child, but it also reminds us that this stanza is from the view of the child, and the words seen in the stanza are hard-sounding words with many negative connotations with an angry tone. This is all coming from an innocent child who can only see life in the form of fairy tales.

Chopping clean the tree he’s scrambling down 
-”Chopping clean” ~ Alliteration, with hard sounding “C” sounds and yet another reference to “Jack and the Beanstalk”. This is an important line as it shows how the child is going to punish his father, physically, rather than just venting out his feelings through tears and spite like before. There is also onomatopoeia in “Chopping”, putting further emphasis on the violent nature.
-The enjambment in “scrambling down”“Or” puts emphasis on “Or”, like the child has many ways punish the father.

Or plotting deeper pits to trap him in. 
-“Deeper pits to trap him in” ~ is another reference to the fairy tale.
-Note the number of references to height and depth in the whole stanza. “Towers above”, “Empty of feeling”, “Tree he’s scrambling down” and “Plotting deeper pits”. This is to remind the reader of the difference in height between the father and child and see how the child sees the father as.


Third Stanza

-The tone changes from a hateful tone to a softer tone.
-This stanza highlights the thoughts and feelings of the boy’s father. We see that the boy isn’t the only one who gets hurt- the father also hates what he is doing and is sharing the boy’s pain. Here Morris has portrayed the thoughts and actions of both the father and child, paralleling the complex relationship between the two.
-An omniscient perspective is introduced. Although still from the boys point of view, the fathers feelings are also considered.
-Then it goes on to explain why the father was so stink towards the boy; because he needs to be disciplined. 

You cannot understand, not yet. 
-This line relates to the theme of childhood again, giving the reader the impression that childhood is just temporary, and he will soon understand, given a few years

The hurt your easy tears can scald him with, 
-This line is ironic. Usually the person crying is thought of as the victim, but in this case the father is portrayed as the real victim.
-”easy” ~ simply shows how effortlessly the boy can start crying, and makes us sympathise for the father because he can get hurt so easily by a little boy
-”scald” ~ Turns the mental pain of the father watching his son crying into physical pain. Emphasises the degree of internal pain. Also portrays that the pain of the father is lasting, in comparison to the boys “easy tears”, and “brief spite”.

Nor guess the wavering hidden behind that mask. 
-This line is important; It shows the fathers TRUE feelings towards his own actions, contrary to the boys beliefs that the father is an emotionless monster.
-”mask” ~ a metaphor. The father isn’t actually wearing a mask; it just refers to the way his personality changes when he is disciplining his boy

This fierce man longs to lift you, curb your sadness 
-Contradiction, a fierce man isn’t very likely to lift and comfort you.
-This sentence incorporates a thought from both the boy and the father.
-”longs to lift” is an alliteration.
-Links back to the first stanza, when the boy is angling for a moments hint. The boy might have achieved this if the father weren’t so staunch.

With piggy-back or bull-fight, anything, 
-This line emphasises the boys sadness, and that doing ANYTHING will make him feel better 
“piggy-back” “bull-fight” ~ Animals have a big influence on children’s lives when they are young.

But dare not ruin the lessons you should learn. 
-This line is very important; it shows the fathers true motivation towards his actions, the fact that he is trying to discipline his boy.
“dare” ~ As if there are major consequences for not teaching his boy about playing in the rain

You must not make a plaything of the rain.
-This line is somewhat unexpected. It leaves the reader something to think about. Was all this drama necessary just for playing in the rain?
-It’s the last thing the father wants the boy to think about, therefore it is mentioned last in the poem, the last thing we would think about after reading the poem.

Questions for class:
In groups create questions on 
layout
rhythm
rhyme
language
mood


Questions




Create Venn Diagrams to Compare Little Boy Crying with 
Poems under the theme of Childhood
My Parents
Once Upon a Time.
DUE DATE: June 5,2019