Interpretations

Word cloud of keywords and phrases from the poem Living Space

Interpreting and analysing a poem is not necessarily a matter of finding the right answer.

Poems are complex creations and are open to many different interpretations. Your is as valid as anyone else's - as long as you can back it up with suitable evidence from the text.

Remember to avoid simply identifying what techniques or approaches poets use. Aim to show an understanding of how form, language and structure create meanings and effects.

Below are some differing interpretations of the poem. How would you interpret the poem?

Examples

Interpretation of the line: 'Nails clutch at open seams.'

Interpretation	Reason for interpretation
The buildings are unstable and the fixings are loose.	The nails are not actually joining anything together and the whole structure is 'open' and exposed.
The nails are personified and seem to want to join the structure more solidly.	The word 'clutch' gives the nails a human characteristic and implies that they are desperately reaching forward. However there is nothing for them to grasp, only 'open seams'.
Like the eggs, the nails represent faith.	The word 'clutch' is used as a verb in this line, but it is also a collective noun (a word that describes a collection of things) describing a group of eggs. In this way, the poet links the nails and the eggs showing how each of them represent faith.

Interpretation	The buildings are unstable and the fixings are loose.
Reason for interpretation	The nails are not actually joining anything together and the whole structure is 'open' and exposed.

Interpretation	The nails are personified and seem to want to join the structure more solidly.
Reason for interpretation	The word 'clutch' gives the nails a human characteristic and implies that they are desperately reaching forward. However there is nothing for them to grasp, only 'open seams'.

Interpretation	Like the eggs, the nails represent faith.
Reason for interpretation	The word 'clutch' is used as a verb in this line, but it is also a collective noun (a word that describes a collection of things) describing a group of eggs. In this way, the poet links the nails and the eggs showing how each of them represent faith.

Interpretation of the line: 'as if they were the bright, thin walls of faith.'

Interpretation	Reason for interpretation
The eggs are a symbol of hope.	The 'bright' eggs contrast with the 'dark edge/ of a slanted universe.' They stand out as something white, pure and whole against a broken dark world.
Faith is precarious too.	The 'walls of faith' are 'bright' which implies something positive, but they are also 'thin' which suggests fragility. Perhaps the poet feels that faith, like the shell of an egg, is easy to break.

Interpretation	The eggs are a symbol of hope.
Reason for interpretation	The 'bright' eggs contrast with the 'dark edge/ of a slanted universe.' They stand out as something white, pure and whole against a broken dark world.

Interpretation	Faith is precarious too.
Reason for interpretation	The 'walls of faith' are 'bright' which implies something positive, but they are also 'thin' which suggests fragility. Perhaps the poet feels that faith, like the shell of an egg, is easy to break.

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Living Space by Imtiaz Dharker - EduqasInterpretations