Norman MacCaig

The Scottish Text

Sounds of the Day

Poem 5

We are learning to: Identify and explain the main ideas and supporting details of a text Apply knowledge and understanding of language to explain meaning and effect, using appropriate critical terminology

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Sounds Of The Day - Annotation

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Thinking About Silence

Think about the different types of silence that you can have.-What kind of silence do you have when you are happy?-What kind of silence do you have when you are upset or lonely?-What power does silence have?

-Where else have we looked at silence and the impact that no noise can have on someone?

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Sounds Of The Day

In Sounds of The Day MacCaig begins by describing the sounds that he hears in a still silent environment. It begins in a positive and descriptive manner.

However the sound of a door closing in stanza two signifies the turning point in the poem and MacCaig goes on to explore the despair of loss. (Again!)

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Structure

This poem is written in free verse made up of four irregular stanzas. The division between each of the stanzas helps to focus the reader on the specific idea that is contained within each one and the poem is organised in a fairly straightforward chronological order.

The poem begins by describing sounds in stanzas one and two and moves onto describing feelings in stanza three and four. The memories evoked by the “sounds of the day” allow MacCaig to explore this difficult and emotional experience

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Stanzas

Stanza One: the speaker describes natural sounds: horses, a bird, waves and a waterfall. On its own, this stanza paints a pleasant picture and indicates the speaker’s delight in nature

Stanza Two: The shut door, described in the second stanza, is the turning point of the poem. Here the ideas move from a delight found in a variety of natural sounds to a reflection upon one specific experience

Stanza Three: The personal nature of the poem is apparent in the third stanza as the speaker addresses the person who has left. We get the impression of a figure, suddenly alone, faced with the consequences of a separation.

Stanza Four: Honest assessment of how deeply he has been affected by the experience. The relationship has meant a lot to the speaker and the separation, though painful enough during the moment itself, has left a lasting impression

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Stanza One

When a clatter came,

it was horses crossing the ford.

When the air creaked, it was

a lapwing seeing us off the premises

of its private marsh. A snuffling puff

ten yards from the boat was the tide blocking and

unblocking a hole in a rock.

When the black drums rolled, it was water

falling sixty feet into itself.

Poem begins by listing the “sounds of the day”

What is most significant is the acuteness and descriptiveness of

these distinct sounds in emphasising how alert the

speaker is to them.

He can hear it because of the silence that surrounds him – it

is an enriching and still environment

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Stanza One

When a clatter came,

it was horses crossing the ford.

When the air creaked, it was

a lapwing seeing us off the premises

of its private marsh. A snuffling puff

ten yards from the boat was the tide blocking and

unblocking a hole in a rock.

When the black drums rolled, it was water

falling sixty feet into itself.

Inverted list – it is the sound that comes first.

In this instance it is the sound that is most important (as the title suggests)

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Stanza OneWhen a clatter came,

it was horses crossing the ford.

When the air creaked, it was

a lapwing seeing us off the premises

of its private marsh. A snuffling puff

ten yards from the boat was the tide blocking and

unblocking a hole in a rock.

When the black drums rolled, it was water

falling sixty feet into itself.

MacCaig uses onomatopoeia and alliteration to imitate these specific sounds

There is a strong sense of the power of nature. Theme of importance of Natural World established.

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Stanza One

When a clatter came,

it was horses crossing the ford.

When the air creaked, it was

a lapwing seeing us off the premises

of its private marsh. A snuffling puff

ten yards from the boat was the tide blocking and

unblocking a hole in a rock.

When the black drums rolled, it was water

falling sixty feet into itself.

Humorous image – personification

Show how territorial the lapwing is

Air creaked – very detailed description of the sound – emphasises how still and quiet the poet must have been

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Stanza One

When a clatter came,

it was horses crossing the ford.

When the air creaked, it was

a lapwing seeing us off the premises

of its private marsh. A snuffling puff

ten yards from the boat was the tide blocking and

unblocking a hole in a rock.

When the black drums rolled, it was water

falling sixty feet into itself.

Stanza finishes with the first hint that the poem may have a darker meaning that the first stanza suggest

CK - consonance/harsh sounding words

Black drums rolled – hints at darker undertones (ominous and brooding)

Foreshadowing the mood and tone to come

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Stanza Two

When the door

scraped shut, it was the end

of all the sounds there are.

The silence that allowed him to hear so keenly the sounds of

the natural world has returned, yet this silence is oppressive and suffocates the speaker’s

aural sense.

Turning Point in the Poem

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Stanza Two

When the door

scraped shut, it was the end

of all the sounds there are.

Door is a metaphor for the end of relationship and suggests a barrier that cannot be crossed.

Hyperbole of final statement – underlines the significance of the moment.

No pleasure in sitting listening to sounds

Scraped – Same harsh consonant

sound as at the end of stanza one

Scraped has connotations of pain and hurt

Clear sense of the despair and pain that follows a partingIdea that nothing will be the

same again(links to Memorial)

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Stanza Three

You left me

beside the quietest fire in the world.

Move away from sounds to feelings

and emotions

This single sentence stanza explains the

reason for this shift in mood.

The speaker implies the impact of the parting is that he is no

longer to hear and take pleasure in sounds – the huge

impact of the loss.

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Stanza Three

You left me

beside the quietest fire in the world.

Use of personal pronouns.Accusing tone (similar technique used in Memorial)Unambiguous statement

Word choice – again emphasising the lack of sound. Contrast to stanza one.

Use of hyperbole – communicate the extreme pain he is feeling

Suddenness of the silence

Paradox – being alone should make you hear more not less yet this is not the case

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Stanza Four

I thought I was hurt in my pride only,

forgetting that,

when you plunge your hand in freezing water,

you feel

a bangle of ice round your wrist

before the whole hand goes numb..

Complexity of emotions that comes when there is a parting.

The final verse is utterly bleak

The focus of the poem

moves from sound to

touch

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• Because of its PERONAL related content – Memorial can be linked to:

Aunt Julia– both poems describe an experience of loss Assisi – both poems utilise vivid imagery when describing a

character / person and the more significant ideas related to them (loss/ religion and hypocrisy)

Visiting Hour* – both discuss the loss / potential loss of someone

Memorial* – both discuss the ideas of losing a loved one – through death or “loss”

*Best poems to link

Links to Other Poems