Penguin on the Beach
Stranger in his own element,
Sea-casualty, the castaway manikin
Waddles in his tailored coat-tails. Oil
Has spread a deep commercial stain
Over his downy shirt front. Sleazy, grey,
It clogs the sleekness. Far too well
He must recall the past, to be so cautious:
Watch him step into the waves. He shudders
Under the froth; slides, slips, on the wet sand,
Escaping to dryness, dearth, in a white cascade,
An involuntary shouldering off of gleam.
Hands push him back into the sea. He stands
In pained and silent expostulation.
Once he knew a sunlit, leaping smoothness,
But close with his head’s small knoll, and dark,
He retains the image: Oil on sea,
Green slicks, black lassoos of sludge (sibilant alliteration)
Sleeving the breakers in a stain-spread scarf. (garments)
He shudders now from the clean flinching wave, (transferred epithet)
Turns and plods back up the yellow sand,
Ineffably wary, triumphantly sad.
He is immensely wise: he trusts nobody. His senses
Are clogged with experience. He eats
Fish from the Saviour’s hands, and it tastes black. (religious imagery and irony)
By Ruth Miller
Questions:
1.1. Consider the following definition of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder:
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is the most severe form of emotional and psychological trauma. Its
primary symptoms include intrusive memories or flashbacks, avoiding things that remind you of the
traumatic event, and living in a constant state of 'red alert'.
Stranger in his own element,
Sea-casualty, the castaway manikin
Waddles in his tailored coat-tails. Oil
Has spread a deep commercial stain
Over his downy shirt front. Sleazy, grey,
It clogs the sleekness. Far too well
He must recall the past, to be so cautious:
Watch him step into the waves. He shudders
Under the froth; slides, slips, on the wet sand,
Escaping to dryness, dearth, in a white cascade,
An involuntary shouldering off of gleam.
Hands push him back into the sea. He stands
In pained and silent expostulation.
Once he knew a sunlit, leaping smoothness,
But close with his head’s small knoll, and dark,
He retains the image: Oil on sea,
Green slicks, black lassoos of sludge (sibilant alliteration)
Sleeving the breakers in a stain-spread scarf. (garments)
He shudders now from the clean flinching wave, (transferred epithet)
Turns and plods back up the yellow sand,
Ineffably wary, triumphantly sad.
He is immensely wise: he trusts nobody. His senses
Are clogged with experience. He eats
Fish from the Saviour’s hands, and it tastes black. (religious imagery and irony)
By Ruth Miller
Questions:
1.1. Consider the following definition of Post-traumatic Stress Disorder:
Post-traumatic Stress Disorder is the most severe form of emotional and psychological trauma. Its
primary symptoms include intrusive memories or flashbacks, avoiding things that remind you of the
traumatic event, and living in a constant state of 'red alert'.
