Mac Neice started his poem by describing the elephant as A tonnage of instinctive, Wisdom in tinsel. He obviously had a lot of respect for the large animal which is naturally very wise but he is unhappy to see it dressed in such a cheap and gaudy way. Trunk like question And legs like tree trunks “Trunk like question” in this part of the poem the poet uses a simile, to have a configuration of “?” question mark. The elephant seemed to be questioning “Why do I have to do this performance?” “Why am I here?” “And legs like tree trunks” tree trunks give an impression of old, solid and strong which depicts the way it was in the jungle and circus. On each forehead A buxom blond A woman wearing a sexy costume, showing off her cheapness, the whole purpose of putting a lady on the forehead of elephant is to draw the attention of the audience, but it shows disrespect to the huge animal. And round each leg, A jangle of bell People are just laughing at them, because such a huge animal looks silly by are dressed in such a way.
Deep in each brain, A chart of tropic The elephants will never forget, they have a very good memory. They will remember its home. The poet feels very sorry for the elephants as they can remember their previous way of life. Swamp and twilight, Of creeped curtains. Elephants travel from their only country to another country. There is a big change in their living conditions. In their homeland, elephants stroll and run, feeling the breeze, looking at sights and gathering food, but the elephant in the circus spend about 98 percent of their lives chained in boxcars and trailers, travelling ...
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Deep in each brain, A chart of tropic The elephants will never forget, they have a very good memory. They will remember its home. The poet feels very sorry for the elephants as they can remember their previous way of life. Swamp and twilight, Of creeped curtains. Elephants travel from their only country to another country. There is a big change in their living conditions. In their homeland, elephants stroll and run, feeling the breeze, looking at sights and gathering food, but the elephant in the circus spend about 98 percent of their lives chained in boxcars and trailers, travelling thousand of miles in freezing winter and hot summer, they rock back and forth, unable to walk or bathe or be with their friends. Shamble in shoddy Finery Forward The elephant cannot walk probably because it is tangled up in its ugly costume. Maybe it doesn’t want to walk because it is sad and unenthusiastic about doing anything. And make their salaams To the tiers of people Salaam is an Arabic word which means “Hello”. The elephant is forced to greet the audience sitting on the tiers by raising its front legs, which is a difficult things for her to do to. When they see the mountains Come to Mahomet… He is critical of the audience who he describes as “ Dummies with reflex” they are laughing at elephants without giving any thought to them, they have lost their dighity. The crowds are happy to see the elephants in their own environment, rather than in their natural habitats. He says they laugh “when they see the mountain comes to Mahomet…” Dummies with a reflex Muscle of laughter. Dummies are the ones who are stupid and foolish. The writer used “dummies” to describe the people who watch the circus show, they don’t think, they don’t care about the feelings of the elephant. Efficacy of engines, Obstinacy of darkness The “dummies” who are watching the circus would not change. They respond automatically without thinking. They seems to be trained like the elephants, to respond in a certain way and refuse to think deeply about things and refuse to change. The reader has a sad vision of this beautiful animal, made to look ridiculous, acknowledging the crowds in the way it has been trained to do. G.C.S.E. English Language Personal Writing:Non-fiction MJA In what ways is MacNeice’s Elephants a poem of protest?
