a rhetorical question. She also uses vivid and emotional descriptions of her feelings to help the reader understand.
The poem “unrelated incidents” by Tom Leonard is written in Glaswegian dialect to strengthen his argument readers are more likely to believe someone who speaks received pronunciation, than someone with a strong accent. By taking on a news reader persona but still speaking with a Glaswegian dialect the audience is able to visualise his point.
The short line structure emphasises how his language is constricted by prejudice. Shorter lines sound more angry, as thought the words are being spat at you, this is demonstrated by the harshness of the Glaswegian dialect.
The phonetic dialect emphasises his accent. By not using standard English he is forcing the reader to examine the language and look again at the meanings behind the words.
Example 2
“Search for my Tongue” was written by Sujata Bhatt. The message Sujata Bhatt is trying to get through to the reader is that it can be very difficult to have to change language, and stop using your birth language. Also, that it can be quite upsetting, as it may feel like you are losing your true identity.
Changing the language at line 17 fits in with the text, since the poet says “but overnight while I dream”, then it changes to her ‘mother tongue’ and line 17 translates as “it grows back, a stump of a shoot”. This means Sujata Bhatt is saying whilst she sleeps her language comes back to her and she remembers it, so it makes her message clearer to include her own language in the poem her (lines 17-230).
If the poem was written entirely in standard English I do not think the message would be as clear, because the reader would not get a change to understand the poets confusion of her ’foreign tongue’.
Example 3
The language is shown to be important in “Search for my Tongue” and “Unrelated Incidents” as they both use language to portray their feelings of frustration, confusion and pride for their own cultural identity.
From “Search for my Tongue”, the poet uses two language to portray her feelings of confusion. She uses both, her mother tongue, Gujarati, and her foreign tongue, English to demonstrate how she is always in conflict with both of theses languages. Throughout the poem you learn how the poet is perpetually caught between both languages as she feels they will always be in conflict, inside her head.
The poet starts her poem in English, with a rhetorical question, directly asking the reader, “What would you feel like?” The first sentence is also and extended metaphor that carries on throughout the poem “I have lost my tongue”. This incidentally has an impact on the reader as it is directly questioning them, making them take notice.
The poet from “Unrelated Incidents” shares many values in his poem, of that in “Search for my Tongue”.
The poet successfully explores the notions of class, social status and education to show how people ate being unfairly stereotyped. He cleverly makes the reader examine the language by purposely writing phonetically. The structure of this poem is hard to read and written in short lines. This is because he wants to show his anger, and does so by writing short lines, which can easily be spat out. This form of writing breaks down the formal conventions of standard English, to show the reader that it is who you are that is important, in contrast to how people think.
The poet takes on the persona of a news reader, to enforce the message that people will only believe people who have elitist accents, who use proper, standard English. The short sentences are also written to look like an autocue that a newsreader would use. The poet shows how people class other people as well educated and important if they use language that is standard English and has received pronunciation. The structure of this poem also shows how he feels his language is being restricted.
From both these poems, you learn how the poets feel that their cultural identity is being restricted, as they feel they cannot freely express their languages with pride. They both use non standard English to aid the meaning of the poem. The poets want you to look past how they speak and see them for who they are.
