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The death at the opposite house Synopsis The poem evolves on death that occurred in a small neighbourhood in a country

town. The poet emphasize on the particulars that took place in house. The persona also inserted the reactions of those who are involved. However, the poet did not show any forlorn as he does not know who had died. The persona sees the event from the eye of a little boy. The persona is just merely stating the incidents that took place without giving further explanation Literal Meaning The persona can tell that a death had occurred in the opposite house. This is said because of the gloomy look from the faces of the family members. Not only that, the writes concluded the sad episode from the occurrence and ritual that will usually be performed during the loss of life. Meaning of the Stanza o Line 1-4 (Stanza 1) Theres been a death in the opposite house As lately as today I know it by the numb look Such houses have always Meaning: Line 1- 4 shows the bold statement the persona inspects from the environment that there has been a death in the house across the road. The house lingered with a gloomy and melancholy look where it is contrasted from a house where there is no occurrence of death. o Line 5-8 (Stanza 2) The neighbours rustle in and out The doctor drives away A window opens like a pod Abrupt, mechanically

Meaning: Line 5-8 shows how the neighbours are seen as paying their respects and walking in and out of the house like a never ending saga. The doctor who has confirmed the death leaves the house as his service is no longer needed. Then the window is quickly opened.

o Line 9-12 (Stanza 3) Somebody flings a mattress out The children hurry by They wonder if it died on that I used to when a boy Meaning: In lines 9-12, throwing the mattress out is a custom practised by the community to cleanse the house. The action get rids of germs. The dead person is referred to as it as he is no longer a person. Looking at the action where the mattress is thrown out, the children quickly walk past the house wondering if the deceased died on the flung mattress. When the persona was a young boy, he used to think the same way o Line 13-16 (Stanza 4) The minister goes stiffly in As is the house were his And he owned all the mourners now And little boys besides Meaning: Lines 13-16, the Minister is an important person. Everyone is following the order of the minister. The Minister of the Church assures and takes control of the people and situation. He also performs the last ritual for the deceased. A little boy is seen standing by him

o Line 17-20 (Stanza 5) And when the milliner and the man Of the appalling trade To take the measure of the house Therell be that dark parade

Meaning: Lines 17-20 explain the job of the hat-maker who is seen, arrives to take the measurement for the hat the deceased. Then the undertaker arrives to get the measurement to build the coffin. The ritual is continued with the present of everyone who will be in black attire to pays their last respect. o Line 20-24 (Stanza 6) Of tassels and of coaches soon, Its easy as a sign The intuition of the news In just a country town Meaning: In the last stanza, one can sense that death has occurred by looking at the obvious sign that can be found when there is a death. The news of death spread quickly as they are living in a small town. Setting The poem is set in a small neighbourhood in a country town where the death has occurred. The persona is inspecting the funeral procession from his house which is facing the deceases house. As it is a small town, everyone knows each other and play their role in the community accordingly. Not only that, the persona also recognizes the neighbours, the doctors, the minister, the milliner and the undertaker which demonstrates how well they carry their duty.

Point of view There is two type of point of view that could be detected in the poem. a) In the first person point of view: The persona, who is a man as proven in line 12 third stanza, expresses the events through his own encounter and inspection. Example: I know it by the numb look (line 3, stanza 1) b) In the third person point of view This can be seen when the persona says that the children are a little frightened of death when they hurry past the deceaseds house. Example: Line 9-10 third stanza Somebody flings a mattress out The children hurry by

Moral Values The moral values that could be found in this poem are; a. Death should be dealt in a rational way. Death is something that could not be predict or run away from and should be taken as part and parcel in life. b. Nothing will last forever. Nobody will have eternal life. The perception that the poet had changed when he was young to his current state. When he was young he always wondered if the mattress that was the one that the deceased died on. However when he grew older with much more matured thinking he has a different perception on death. c. The poem also shows the importance of preserving traditions and custom. When we are attending a funeral it is implies as social obligation. The persona shows how the people in that social setting pays respect to the deceased no matter what your social status is. For example, when the minister and mourners visited the deceased house d. Last but not least, the other moral value that could be seen is importance of cooperation and the feeling of togetherness. The neighbours and the mourners are there to pay their last respect to the deceased. Not only that the milliner and the man of appalling trade also carry out their jobs accordingly so that the ritual will take place

smoothly. There is no need of spreading the rumour of the deceased one as everyone is coming in and out of the house. This shows cooperative sense among everyone there signifying the sense of belonging in a community. Themes There are three types of theme present in this poem. The themes are: a. The realities in life Death is a gloomy and sombre event. It is a reality that everyone should accept in life as it is unavoidable and has become a part in the journey of life. Different people have different reactions about death. The persona has accepted it as part of life, but the boys are scared of it because they do not really understand the meaning of death. It is shown in stanza three, line 7 and 8; Somebody flings a mattress out, The children hurry by b. Dealing with death Dealing with death shows the event that sets off a series of activities and preparations after someone dies. All the preparation those place from the one paying last respect to the undertaker. Everyone is involved in it c. Customs and tradition The persona emphasizes on the preserving customs and tradition. In the poem, it is believed that paying respect to the deceased family is significantly important despite your social status. In this small town, it is crucial for the minister to pay a visit, offer prayers and also comfort the family members of the deceased. It is also a tradition of the western culture to wear black attire to a funeral. This is shown by a phase in the poem There'll be that dark parade. The dark parade displays how everyone will be in black attire. Structure and Style a. Type of Poetry The lines in the poem are mostly unrhymed. Therefore it is free verse poetry. The poem is more conversational. It describes event as though the persona is reporting the events to someone. The words used are simple and direct.

b. Kind of stanza- Quatrain The poem is written in six stanzas however, the kind of stanzas that the persona uses is Quatrain. Example: Theres been a death in the opposite house As lately as today I know it by the numb look Such houses have always c. Sound effects- Meter It is of iambic trimeter to pentameter, including feminises. There is no significant on assonance, consonance, or alliteration throughout the poem. Example: Theres been a death in the opposite house (5 iambs, 10 syllables) As lately as today I know it by the numb look Such houses have always Tone or mood For the tone used in the poem, the persona uses diction throughout the poem to generate a despairing environment. To make it more interesting, the poet emphasis on depersonalization that occurs after a death. For example, by using words such as numb, mechanically, and stiffly and describing the funeral director as the Man/Of the Appalling Trade or the funeral procession as that Dark Parade atmosphere indirectly. The persona articulates the occurrence in the death house. The present tense is used to convey the idea that death is an everyday occurrence. The use of the word it reflects to the person who died. It gives no hints on the deceased; neither name nor gender is provided. The poem never mentioned that the narrator got to see the deceased. This detachment to the dead drives us back to the main idea that death is a natural occurrence. Literary Devices A. Simile - A window opens like a pod (line 7) the persona cleverly created a grief-stricken

Pod is a part of a plant. The line shows the relation between the word "opens" and "a pod". The poet means that a window opens quickly by someone. B. Personification Such houses have always" (line 4)

In this part, "such houses have always" means like "such houses as always. The poet compares "houses" to a human being that shows the gloomy atmosphere when death takes place. C. i. Imagery Aural Imagery (something heard) The neighbours rustle in and out (line 5)

Rustle means noise that is made and could be heard.

ii. -

Tactile Imagery (something felt) I know it by the numb look (line 3)

Numb means not able to feel any emotions or to think clearly, because you are so shocked or frightened. The numb looks of the house depicts the sad and static movement of a house which encountered death. iii. Visual Imagery (something seen) There's been a death in the opposite house (line 1)

When the word house is mentioned, we can imagine a house in the poem although we don't know how the real house looks like. This house also has a door where people will come and go. The neighbours rustle in and out (line 5) We can imagine the busy neighbours paying visit and it is a continuous process. Somebody flings a mattress out (line 9)

We can imagine the mattress is being thrown out although we may know the actual size of it.

And little boys besides (line 16)

We can imagine a petite looking boy standing looking all scared. The minister goes stiffly in (line 13)

We can imagine how the minister or the priest who enters the house as though he was invited and offered prayers to unfortunate family. He also takes charge of the rituals of the funeral cloth. Of tassels and of coaches soon (line 21) And he owned all the mourners now (line 15)

We can imagine what mourner looks like. We imagine a person at a funeral wearing black

We can imagine the form of tassel as a group of short ropes held together at one end, in the poem. We can imagine a coach as someone whose job is to teach people everything in the poem.

D. Euphemism : Therell be that dark parade (stanza 5 line 20) This shows everyone in black attire E. Alliteration The doctor drives away consonant d (stanza 2 line 6) F. Flashback : I used to when a boy (stanza 4 line 12) The persona recalls him being similar to the children when he was Younger G. Metaphor - rustle the sound of the swishing of skirts H. Symbolism Words such as numb, minister, mourners, milliner, dark parade, tassels and coaches can be related to a function where death had took place. The word dark, refers to a mournful event and also the attire that would be worn

Bibliography Charene M. (2009). Selected poems and short stories. Shah Alam. Cerdik Publication Kementerian Pendidikan Malaysia (2000). Selected poem & short stories. Selangor Darul Ehsan: Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. Literature for Secondary Students (2007) Theres been a Death in the Opposite House. Retrieved on April 24,2013, from http://literature.com.my/index.php? option=com_content&task=view&id=386&Itemid=343 Ratman P and Richard C. (2008). Selected Poems & Short Stories Form 4. Selangor, Malaysia: Pearson Malaysia Sdn.Bhd. Sunny Tan Siew Bek (2001). Reading and analysing literary texts selected essays . Selangor. Pearson Education Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. Putra Fajar (2007). The Analysis of Imagery, Figurative Language, and Theme in Modern English Jakarta. English Letters Department, Adab and Humanities Faculty, State Islamic University of Syarif Hidayatullah The Star Online (1995-2013) Tackling the Poem. Retrieved on April 24, 2013, from http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2008/10/19/education/2274677

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