The poem ‘Praise Of A Collie’ was written by Norman McCaig. In this essay I will be writing about Lassie the sheepdog, and her life rounding up sheep. The poem is both happy and sad as she progresses to the end of her sheepdog days.
In the first verse Lassie is described as a: ‘Small dog, neat and fluid.’ This is very unusual for a Collie as they are quite big and very scruffy dogs. She was a quiet dog; ‘She greeted you with bow, never bow wow.’ This shows she will not bark twice when greeting someone.
The second verse mentions she has two sons, much larger than Lassie: ‘Her sons stood monumentally over her.’ She may have been a small dog but she was the boss, but that can also suggest her sons have great respect for her. Lassies sons looked a lot older than Lassie: ‘Each grew grizzled till it seemed he was his own mother’s grandfather.’ This shows Lassie has been really well looked after by her owner Pollachen. Lassie is also seen as a fit and healthy dog, she is the oldest, but is still a really lively dog. ‘When the sheep bolted in an unforeseen direction over the skyline came – who but Lassie, and not even panting.’ She may be an old dog, but this clearly shows that she is just like a young fit dog.
Lassies owner Pollachen loves his dog which is shown in the poem as he boasts about Lassie a lot. ‘Where’s a burn – she’s first on the other side.’ This shows Lassies owner Pollachen is boasting about how fast Lassie can get over a burn. ‘Her tact – and tactics.’ This means that Lassie is an intelligent dog. Her intelligence is mentioned a number of times. It also shows two types of intelligence as ‘tact’ meaning politeness or an emotional intelligence and ‘tactics’ more of planning out what’s best for rounding sheep. I think the way this verse has been written is very skilled, the author has also added a little humour with ‘tact – and tactics.’
The Essay on Father And His Son Poem Relationship One
It is interesting that Elizabeth Jennings has chosen a Father and his Son in this poem rather than a relationship that she is more likely to have had experience with. A Father and his son however, traditionally have a very strong bond built on shared interests with the son generally making his father his role model. The effects and feelings of separation that Jennings wants to convey in this poem ...
It is a fact that Collies are really smart dogs, this is shown a lot in the poem. In verse four Lassie is being described: ‘Like a proper sea – dog.’ I knew Collies were smart, but not that smart to sail in a dinghy! There is even more boasting in this verse: ‘She flowed through the fences like a piece of black wind.’ This quote is a good one in my mind. The writer has used alliteration with the words flowed and fences, but has also used a simile with: ‘like a piece of black wind.’ We know that Lassie is a dog and not a piece of black wind, but the writer has suggested she is really fast. I think this verse is great because it uses alliteration and a simile.
‘But suddenly she was old and sick and crippled…’ This is the turning of the poem, this is when it turns from a happy poem to a rather sad one. We know this is the turning point of the poem because the writer has used ‘but’ to start the verse. The word ‘but’ isn’t usually used to start a verse or any sentence for that matter, but it’s a really good turning word especially with the situation in the poem. The writer has also used the word ‘and’ twice instead of a comma. He has done this to emphasis the sadness that such a great dog is on the downwards slope. I think using the ‘and’ twice is a good way of doing it instead of just using a comma. You can tell that the writer and Pollachen have a friendship as the writer: ‘Grieved for Pollachen.’ On the second last line of the last verse we know the end is near for Lassie as her owner Pollachen: ‘Took her for a stroll.’ He said stroll instead of walk because ‘stroll’ is happier than a boring walk. Pollachen took Lassie for a stroll because that’s what she enjoyed best. Taking her for a stroll would be her and Pollachen’s last happy moment together. Everyone who has read this poem will agree the last line of the last verse is the saddest part to the poem. In the last line Pollachen kills Lassie. Pollachen ‘put the gun to the back of her head’ so she wouldn’t be afraid of what was going to happen. I think shooting a dog is a really sad way of killing a dog: I know I couldn’t shoot my dog. That’s life though: everyone and everything dies eventually.
The Term Paper on Poems "Island Man" And "The Fringe Of The Sea".
I recently read two poems, entitled “Island Man” and “The Fringe of the Sea”. These two poems are similar in many ways, but also have conflicting ideas. They both have connections to the sea, through the content of the poems, but also through the authors. Grace Nichols is the author of “Island Man”, and she was born in Ghana, and now living in Britain. A.L. ...
The poem ‘Praise Of A Collie’ looks oh so simple, but is a very well written poem. The poem is a Gaelic influenced poem, as the name Pollachen is a Gaelic name. The poem is about life and death, it shows that killing an animal when it’s suffering is a natural thing to do. Death is also very normal thing on a farm and Pollachen’s method of killing is very traditional. I think the poem is excellent! Having the ability to make a poem look so simple yet very detailed and complex is rather good.
‘Praise Of A Collie’ is a really enjoyable poem to read and write about as I have really enjoyed studying it and also writing this essay on it. I would recommend people to read this poem as it shows the ups and downs of owning a dog, especially one like Lassie.
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