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The poet uses simile in ‘like an old man’ to show the boy’s resignation to learn to read as the poet is trying to compare him to an old man’s resignation that he is far too young to know about. ‘Like an old man’ also suggests how the poet compares the boy’s struggle reading to the reading struggle of an elderly which is probably due to the difficulty to see well, suggesting how hard it is for the boy to read well thus having a resignation to learn to read. The poet also uses metaphor like ‘fish returning to its element’ comparing the boy to a fish whose element is water. This suggests that the boy feels a sense of freedom or belonging when he is doing things he is more interested in such as making ‘sculptures and fabulous machines’, ‘invent games, tell jokes’. When reading, he feels trapped as he is being forced to do something he has no interest in or struggles with it. The poet also uses cold, dark imagery to show the boy’s disinterest in reading, ‘grow cold as gristly meat’, the poet compares reading to ‘gristly meat’, suggesting that as ‘gristly meat’ is tough to chew, the boy probably feels that reading is tough and difficult.

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There is the usage of similes in the poem. In stanza 3, they compare the boy to “an old man”, “Who knows the mountains” “Are impassable” when he’s sighs and shakes his head. Hence, this hints to us how the child feels frustrated when trying to read, possibly showing his disinterest towards reading or that he simply is unable to despite being highly intelligent as seen in the first stanza, which shows us how he can “ make sculptures and fabulous machines” “invent games, tell jokes” and can also “Give solemn, adult advice”. Since an old man is also wise, it probably compares the old man to the young boy as the young boy is wise and highly intellectual, despite his struggle to read and understand the words.

The poet also uses irony to highlight feelings of disappointment in the mother. In the first stanza from limes one to four, she praises her son for his high level of maturity, intelligence and innovative personality. This contrasts the title a “ Slow Reader”, showing us as on one hand, she is praising and thinking highly of her child while on the other, thinks of her child as unintelligent, slow to understand and learn, and lazy. There is also a reservation in tone when she uses the word “But” in the fifth line of the first stanza. She is also probably comparing her child to other children who know how to read while her child struggles to do the same. And the usage of the word “relent” in the fourth line of the fourth stanza shows that she has given up and struggles to teach her child how to read, highlighting negative feelings the mother has within her and bottles up.

👾

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The writer uses contrast by comparing the boy to “an old man” when he sighs in resignation as he “knows the mountains / are impassable” where the mountains represent the boy’s struggle with reading. However the writer subverts expectations by suggesting that the boy is wise and mature like an old man when he expresses acceptance/defeat of his slow reading, much like how elderly people can be resigned to their fate or dying that others take as a sign of wisdom.

As opposed to the first stanza where the writer describes the boy as wise, in the second one she uses metaphor to liken him to animals because he wants to be free and wild. The writer says he is like a “young colt / shying from the bit”; a bit Is placed in a horse’s mouth when riding one, in this poem it represents the words/reading skills that the boy sees as a restraint that holds him down. This comparison is also reinforced by the lines “as if he sees / that he takes it in his mouth” where the writer is intentionally ambiguous on what the word “it” refers to; it could be either the bit or words. The comparison to a young horse also suggests that the writer thinks he is clever as he knows that by learning to read, “he’ll never run / quite free again”; learning to read can also be symbolic of maturity, which the boy wants to avoid as he knows growing up is full of responsibilities.

-End- (I can’t find the emojis)

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The poet uses similes to express the boy’s disinterest towards reading. In the 1st stanza, the poet says that “Sighing and shaking his head/ Like an old man/ Who knows the mountains/ Are impassable” The poet likens the boy to a tired old man who is full of knowledge. He knows that the the “mountains”, the obstacle of learning how to read, are “impassable”. This shows his struggle with learning how to read, providing an explanation for his reluctance. Hyperbole is also used in this few lines, exaggerating the boy’s frustration.
In the second stanza, similes are used. “He toys with words/ Letting them grow cold/ As gristly meat” The words are liken to tough meat, showing that it required much effort for him to read. The boy toying with words is a reference to playing with food and the refusal to eat this “gristly meat”. This shows his refusal and struggle with reading.
In the last stanza, the boy is compared to a colt, which is a young horse. He is “shying from the bit”, afraid that once he conforms to social norms and learns how to read, he will lose all his freedom. This is a metaphor, showing the reasoning behind the boy’s hesitation.

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The poet uses metaphor “A fish returning to its element”  to show that the boy was not comfortable with reading. It was only when his mother allowed him to escape from reading, that he returned to his comfort zone which was playing, making sculptures, fabulous machines and inventing games.

The poet also used imagery to present The boys unwillingness to learn to read. “ He gazes into the air/Sighing and shaking his head” shows that the boy was reluctant to learn how to read. The boys gazing into the air presents the idea that the boy was lacking in interest  in learning how to read.

🤯🤬

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The poet uses metaphors and similes to present the boy’s feelings about reading. His lack of interest is evident from line 8-12 in the lines “He gazes into the air/ Sighing and shaking his head like an old man/ Who knows the mountains/ Are impassible” This contrasts with the description of him as a little boy being taken onto his mother’s lap in the same stanza. From the lines above, he sighs and shakes his head like an old man which refers to the elderly’s apathy in doing things as they are resigned to their fate. He feels apathetic towards reading and sighs while doing it. “Thus, this metaphor shows his indifference to reading and the acceptance of the fact that he cannot read.
the poem uses symbolism to  describe the boy’s attitude towards reading. Who knows the mountains/ are impassible” shows his indifference towards reading. The mountains represent obstacles while reading, which might be a short attention span. old man who knows  the mountains are impassible would not bother to move it. Similarly, the boy is not bothering to read as he assumes he would not be able to do it as he likens reading to moving a mountain and refuses to try to read as he knows he cannot do it as he thinks that the obstacles cannot be overcome. He also uses the white eyed colt in the second stanza to symbolise his unwillingness to read. The lines ‘Or a white-eyed colt/Shying from the bit”  The white-eyed colt symbolises the boy and his youth and freedom. Once a colt gets a bit, it is owned and needs to start working. The boy does not want to read as he could not be as free and will get more responsibilities. This is supported with the lines,” As if he sees/that if he takes it/ in his mouth/ He’ll never run/ quite free again’. With the added responsibilities, he cannot enjoy the freedom of being a little child and exploring new things. Thus, he is unwilling to read. In this way, the poet uses symbolism to present the boy’s feelings about reading

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Through the use of Imagery, the poet displays the boy’s lack of interest in learning how to read, as well as how he struggles to do so. In line 8, “He gazes into the air/ Sighing and shaking his head”. Describing the boy to be gazing into the air highlights the boys lack of interest in pursuing the task at hand, as well as how unfocussed and distracted he was. An image of a boy constantly shaking his head and sighing despondently is created in the readers’ heads, enabling them to visualise how frustrated he must have felt when the persona made him read, despite his reluctance

The poet also makes use of metaphors to connote the idea that reading was a great challenge to the boy. Not done yet lol

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The poet uses irony to represent the boy’s abilities. The first few stanzas mention the boy being able to “make sculptures”,”invent games”,”tell jokes”,”give solemn, adult advice”  yet he displays a disability and disinterest in reading and uses elementary tools like a “Ladybird book” to aid in his learning. Apart from that, the boy “toys with his words” which would mean he has a good grasp of the English language, showing a certain level of intelligence and is able to manipulate certain things.

The poet also uses similes and metaphors to display the boy’s disinterest to reading like how “he gazes into the air”, showing his lack of focus while reading.”Sighing  and shaking his head like an Old man” Shows the reluctance the boy has to read with his mother. The act of sighing and shaking heads may show laziness or his displease of reading. When the poet uses “who knows the mountains are impassable” , the mountains refer to the reading disability of the boy being impossible to overcome.

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The poet uses personification to show how the boy feels as though reading should not be taken seriously. In the 2nd stanza, line 2, the boy “(lets) them grow cold”, the “them” refers to the words that he is meant to read. When things are left out in the open, they tend to have a lower temperature. In the same way, the author is saying that the boy is leaving his words out in the open, or the boy is ignoring and abandoning words and the task to read. This suggests that the boy finds his task to read unimportant and is uninterested by reading.

The poet also uses metaphors to explain the boy’s dislike for reading. After the persona let the boy runs free, the poet compares the boy to “a fish returning/to its element”. The word “returning” connotes that the boy felt that he was in an unfamiliar surrounding when reading, and when he is finally allowed to continue playing, the boy is “returning” back to his comfort zone, where he was most capable and free. This leads the reader to also assume that the boy may in fact not be unable to read, but rather unwilling to read. As seen in “As if he sees/that if he takes it/in his mouth/he’ll never run/quite free again“, readers may be led to assume that the boy was purposely pretending to be a slow reader. From “he’ll never run/quite free again”, we can see that the boy understands reading as a symbol of losing freedom, or growing up. This helps the readers to understand that the boy was unwilling to read not because he was unable to, but rather because he did not want to carry the responsibility of reading.

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The poet uses the simile “like an old man” to emphasise the boy’s reluctance to read. He also used “he toys with words letting them grow cold as gristly meat” to show that the boy was not interested to read, which made him make up words so that his mother would not make him continue reading.
The poet used a metaphor such as “a fish returning to its element” to show that reading was not the boy’s strength and when he was not reading he would do what he is good at.

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The poet uses metaphors, “A fish returning to its element”, which tells us that the boy returning to what he’s comfortable with, which is to play around, and not To read. This shows that the boy does not want to learn to read, and would rather do something else. “Or a white-eyed colt shying from the bit as if he sees that is he takes it in his mouth he’ll never run quite free again.” A bit is something that is put into a horses mouth which allows the rider to steer the horse and control where it goes. The boy understands that the “bit” refers to reading, which symbolises the losing of freedom. This shows that the boy is trying to avoid reading, and that is he starts learning to read, he would have to take the responsibilities of reading, and it shows that the boy was not unable to read, but rather not wanting to read.

The poet also uses similes like “he toys with his words letting them grow cold as gristly meat” shows that the boy finds reading very boring and uninteresting. “Letting them grow cold” also shows how the boy always tries to avoid reading. The poet also wrote “like an old man who knows the mountains are impassable”. The mountains could mean the challenges of reading and other obstacles the boy faces in his life. “Knows the mountains are impassable” shows that the boy has probably given up, and knows that reading in something that is necessary for the boy to learn, and that he understands that as hard as he tries to escape the challenges in life, there would always be countless more, and that running away from them would not do anything to solve them, but that the best way to fix it is to face it, and fix it.

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the poet uses similes like “he toys with his words letting them grow cold as gristly meat”  Which shows that the boy finds reading boring and has no interest in it. How he lets his words grow cold shows he neglects reading, avoiding it as he knows he is not the best at it, unwilling to improve.  In the first stanza, the poet also wrote “like an old man who knows the mountains are impassible” the mountains could be referred to as obstacles, and for the boy, his biggest challenge is reading.  “the mountains are impassible”  Shows that he has a poor attitude towards reading and Feels as if it is a challenge he cannot over come.
The poet  also uses symbolism. This can be seen from stanza 2, lines 18 and 19. “ a fish returning to its element” Could symbolise that reading makes the boy feel out of his comfort zone, maybe even feeling pressured by his mother to read. “Returning to his element” could refer to him having more freedom after being forced to read by his mother. His “element”, or the zone he feels most comfortable in could refer to him the poet mentions “ mak(ing) sculptures and fabulous machines“ “invent(ing) games, tell(ing) jokes” which are activities that require him to be more creative and artistic, unlike going by the book and reading. This shows that the boy finds reading boring and constraining, as reading restricts his imagination.

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The boy feels dreadful to read and the author poet Potrays this through literary devices such as Metaphors.For example “A fish returning To its element”,this shows that reading is so dreadful to him like when a fish is out of water.Thus,when he is free from reading its like being a fish in its preferred place.The author also uses comparison to show the boy’s reluctance to read. For example the line “Who knows the mountains are impassable”This shows how strong the boys’s decision not to read is very firm and that his mother cannot get him to read as he absolutely despises having to read.Thus showing how the poet presents the boy’s feelings about reading.

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1. The poet uses metaphor  to portray  the boy is exhausted of reading. When the persona let the boy free from reading after many tries of making him read, it was as if “a fish returning to its element” This is used as a metaphor to show the boy  returning to his comfortable environment where he belongs which is  free of reading.

2. The poet uses imagery of the boy slacking off from the forced reading session with his mother to show how uninterested he is in reading. “He gazes into the air sighing and shaking his head,” this shows that instead of paying attention to reading the book, he is daydreaming and expressing his displeasure. The fact that he sighed and shook his head shows his reluctance towards reading as well as how he does not enjoy the moment, thus, showing his indifference in reading.

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The poet uses metaphor to present the boy’s feelings about reading. In stanza 2, line 15, “As gristly meat”. Gristly meat is a type of meat which is hard to chew and swallow. The poet compares the boy reading to a gristly meat which shows that the boy probably found reading as hard as swallowing a gristly meat. This shows that the boy felt reluctant about reading. In stanza 2, line 17 to 19, “And let him wriggle free- A fish returning To its element”. The poet is trying to show that when the boy is not given the freedom to do what he and is forced to read, he is like a fish out of water, gasping for air. This shows that the boy found reading a torture.

The poet uses simile in stanza 1, line 9 and 10. “Sighing and shaking his head Like an old man”. The boy is “sighing”, which shows that the boy was reluctant to read. The poet also compares the boy to an old man. An old man is usually known to learn to do tasks at a slower pace, this shows that the boy was learning how to read at a very slow rate, which shows the boy’s reluctance towards reading.

😀

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Slow Reader.

Firstly, the poet makes uses of irony to present the boy’s feeling about reading. The poet wrote the poem in the boy’s mother’s point of view. In stanza one, the poet states that the boy has many abilities and talent to do things which other children his age are most unlikely to do so. The quote “can make sculptures” suggests that he is Creative or artistic. The word “fabulous” from “fabulous machines” implies that the mother sounds proud of her son’s capability to carry out advanced activities. “Invent games, tell jokes” gives the idea that the boy is innovative and entertaining. “Give solemn, adult advice” implies the boy’s maturity. However, “But he is slow to read” juxtaposes with all the tasks the boy is able to do.  “Reading” is a basic and compulsory skill that young children should know. It is a must and is a very important expertise in the future. However, the boy is “slow” to “read”. The word “slow” suggests that the boy may be mentally challenged. But, it could also suggest that the boy is unenthusiastic and dreadful about reading, as he has the ability to ace at other recreational activities. This suggest that the boy likes to do other things that involve creativity and freedom, but not things like reading, which has a confined feeling of being forced to do something.

The writer also uses similes and metaphors to emphasise the boy’s unwillingness to read. In stanza one, the simile “Sighing and shaking his head”, “Like an old man”, Who knows the mountains”, “Are impassable” indicates that  the boy has a wise,  mature thinking and behaves in a intelligent and calm manner. Thus, he is trying to say that he cannot be bothered to read, and it is impossible to make him read, as he compares reading to impassable mountains.

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The poet uses metaphors to describe the boy’s feelings towards reading. In “A fish returning to it’s element”, the word ‘returning’ shows that the boy is going back to what is familiar to him such as sculptures, machines, games and jokes. A fish’s element is that is can swim fast, it is it’s strength. The boy’s strengths  do not lie in reading and thus he “wriggles free” from his mother who is trying to get him to read a book. In a way, the boy is escaping from his captive, his mother, and his form of punishment, reading.
The poet also uses similes to show the boy’s reluctance in reading. In “Like an old man who knows the mountains are impassable”, it may be referring to the fact that like a mountain, reading is the boy’s obstacle and it is immovable and unavoidable. It is something he cannot avoid and must cross to reach “freedom” or his “element”. In “Like an old man”, the poet compares the young boy to an old man. With older people, they are well aware that death is imminent and that it is unavoidable. Like the boy’s weakness, reading, he knows that it cannot be avoided, showing that he is reluctant to read for his mother.

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The poet uses personification to describe the boy’s boredom and disinterest towards reading. “He toys with words / letting them grow cold / as gristly meat” This suggests that the boy actually can read but chooses to play with the words until they “grow cold”, which means the words become uninteresting and boring, getting the persona to relent, give in and let go of him, showing how he has no interest in reading , although he can do it, which is evident in how he has the ability to play with words, and just wants to be freed.
The poet also uses simile to present the boy’s reluctance towards reading. “Like an old man / who knows the mountains / are impassable” By doing so, the poet is comparing the boy to “an old man“ who has a lot of experience, the “mountains” to the obstacle which is reading, and “impassable” to emphasise on how he thinks it is completely impossible for him to read.

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The poet uses personification from lines 13 to 14 “toys with words /  letting them grow cold” to suggest how the boy actually knows how to read but chooses not to as he is not serious about working hard. The poet also uses similes such as “sighing and shaking his head / like an old man” from lines 9 to 10 to show how the boy behaves like an old man, resigning to fate and giving up on reading. Old people also tend to reject certain things easily, thus questioning if the boy simply cannot read or does not want to try due to his lack of desire to learn and read.

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The poet uses similes to show the boy’s reluctance towards reading. In lines 8-12, it says that the boy is “like an old man” to describe his reluctance to read. In these lines it also states that the boy sighs and shakes his head, as if he were an old man “who knows the mountains / are impassable.” This suggests that the boy finds reading a difficult task and is tired of reading. This phrase also gives us a sense of giving up, which suggests that the boy may have given up hope on his ability to read.

The poet also uses irony in stanza 1. In stanza 1, the poet states that the boy “can make sculptures / And fabulous machines / Invent games, tell jokes / Give solemn, adult advice.” This shows the boy’s intellect and maturity. However, he finds reading a difficult task. This is ironic as even though he is able to invent machines and whatnot, he cannot even do a simple task, which is reading.

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the poet used imagery to present the boy’s feelings about reading. Imagery was used in “he gazes into the air sighing and shaking his head” which allows the reader to visualise the idea of the boy being unwilling or exasperated towards reading. “Sighing” shows that the boy is tired of or does not have the patience to read his book, and “gazes into the air” suggests that he is distracted or uninterested.
The poet also uses the simile “like an old man”. As old men are usually stubborn or slow when learning new things such as technology,  this could represent the way the boy was learning how to read, and reflects on his impatience and reluctance in learning new things, just like an old man. “A fish returning to its element” further emphasises this as it shows how the boy would rather return to his comfort zone, which is mostly innovative, than learn something new that is different from his strengths and what he would usually do, which is reading.

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Zhi Shan 🪐🤍 they won’t show my emojis :(

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Zhi Shan 🪐🤍 they won’t show my emojis :(

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The poet uses simile to emphasise the boys despondence towards reading. “Like an old man / Who knows the mountains / Are impassable” The words “old man” suggest the boy’s abilities are limited and he is limited in his reading abilities and is tired of trying to read. The word “impassable” tells me the boy feels that he will forever be unable to read as well as the other children, he has given up.
The poet also uses juxtaposition to contrast the boys abilities in reading and in other activities such as his ability to “make sculptures / And fabulous machines / Invent games, tell jokes / Give solemn, adult advice”. These are all positive attributes and they suggest the boy is mature and multitalented. However, the line afterwards, “But he is slow to read.”, is negative. Contrasting the positive and negative traits of the boy.

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Kylene 🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡
The poet uses metaphorical statements and similes such as “like an old man” to portray the resignation and unwillingness of the boy when he is told to read. It emphasises on the lack of interest of the boy towards reading the book. Adjectives like “gristly” and “cold”  create vivid images to portray the feelings that the boy has towards reading- dreadful and disinterested. “Who knows the mountains are impassible” shows us that It was hard for the mother to convince the boy to read, showing how disinterested the boy was in reading. It shows us how miserable the boy was as if it was so difficult for him to read such a simple book, and how desperately he wanted to escape to his happy place, like making structures or inventing games, as seen in the first stanza.

The poet also uses metaphorical and symbolical statements such as “a fish returning to its element”. When she says this, it tells us that the boy felt discomfort, like “a fish out of water”, and  was struggling to focus on reading and was so uncomfortable. The boys element would be the things that he does well in such as sculpting or making machines, not reading. Hence, it shows us that they boy is not interested in reading at all, and wants to go back to doing what he is comfortable in rather than sitting there and reading.

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-Feaver uses symbolism to  describe the boy’s attitude towards reading. “Who knows the mountains are impassable”- the “mountains” possibly representing the difficulty/problem of reading in his perspective,  accepting his inability to read, knowing they are “impassable”- impossible to overcome. “A fish returning to its element” could symbolism the boy’s desperate attempts to return to his comfort zone in which he “make(s) sculptures” and “invent games” etc instead of reading. This can also allude to the common phrase “A fish out of water” to exemplify how hopeless he is when trying to read and his need to go back to what he feels comfortable in.

-She also uses enjambent to highlight the boy’s extremely short attention span. Despite being able to “give solemn, adult advice” and is “like an old man” he is ultimately a child at heart. His lack of interest and focus could be a reason why the boy dreads reading so greatly. The short sentences that spill over the next line emphasises the possibly quick movements of the boy. Children generally have high energy levels therefore emjambment was used to reveal his non-stop actions in attempts to escape the grasp of his mother, allowing him to return to where he feels most comfortable- “(making) sculptures” and “(inventing) games”

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the poet uses negative diction to present the boy’s feelings about reading. “He toys with  words letting them grow cold as gristly meat” shows the boy’s resentment of reading. His use of the words “cold” and “gristly” shows how much he dislikes reading and hence how he likens it to losing its meaning— hence “cold” and being tough, hence “gristly”

the poet also uses metaphors to present the boy’s feelings about reading. The poet uses the metaphor, “a fish returning to its element or a while-eyed colt shying from the bit”. The comparison of the boy to a fish “returning to his element” after he is allowed to stop reading shows how he is out of his element when reading, hence his dread and dislike for it.

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The poet uses diction to describe the boy’s attitude towards learning to read, such as “He toys with words, letting them grow cold” and “A white-eyes colt shying from the bit”. “He toys with words, letting them grow cold” is as though he is “playing with food”, meaning that he doesn’t use words well or isn’t interested in the “food”, which in this case, is reading/words. “A white-eyed colt shying from the bit” suggests that the persona/the boy’s mother is using force to get the boy to read.

The poet also uses the simile “As gristly meat”. Gristly meat is usually unwanted and is tough to eat. This suggests that the

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The poet uses a simile in line ten, eleven and twelve, “like an old man”, “who knows the mountains”, “are impassable”. The poet uses the simile which shows the boy’s resignation, that he is too young to know. Therefore, the poet shows that the boy is reluctant to read and wants to give up. The poet used a metaphor in line eighteen and nineteen, “A fish returning”, ‘To its element”. The poet uses the metaphor so show that the boy has lost the battle as despite trying very hard to read as shown in line thirteen and fourteen, “He toys with words”,”Letting them grow cold”, the boy eventually gives up and returns to his  comfort zone, hence the metaphor. The metaphor shows that even though the boy had tried very hard to read, he did not push himself to his limit, causing him to just give up and return to what he was comfortable doing, which was making sculptures and inventing things. Thus showing the boy’s reluctance in reading.

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-Metaphors are used
- “As grisly meat” shows the boys reluctance to read
- Like meat that is tough to chew, the words remain in his mouth but he can never finish them
- Grisly can also mean stringy, like how he can never finish strings of words
-“A fish returning To its element” shows how uncomfortable to boy is to read
-Like a fish on land, unable to breathe and struggling, when it returns to water it is truly free
-The boy feels trapped by reading when the phrase  “never run Quite free again” Is used

-Poet also uses irony
- The boy can “make sculptures And fabulous machines Invent games, tell jokes Give solemn adult advice”
- The boy can do many things beyond his young age but when it comes to reading, something seen as simple, he is unable to.
- The irony is further emphasised when the boy is compared to an old man, “Sighing and shaking his head”
-The boy is young enough to sit on his mothers lap and yet he behaves like an old man when it comes to reading, becoming exhausted and despondent like an old man reaching his final days when his life has just begun

Probably done 👌

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the poet uses symbolism in this poem. “Who knows the mountains are impassable” shows that the mountains  are something that cannot be moved, like an obstacle the boy cannot overcome. The mountains could symbolise the act of reading to the boy, as the boy is reluctant too read, showing that it might be an obstacle to him that he cannot overcome.

The poet also uses similes such as “a fish returning to its element”. The fish would represent the boy, and by returning to his element, he is doing the things that he is comfortable with and enjoys doing, and that is not reading. This shows that the boy has a dislike towards reading.
“A white-eyed colt shying from the bit”. The bit is something that controls the horse, and it symbolises the act of reading. By shying away from the bit, the boy is trying to stay free and be able to do what he wants without being tied down. He knows that “if he takes it in his mouth, he’ll never run quite free again’, meaning the bit will not let him have the freedom he has now. This means if he reads the book, it will show that he has the ability to read and thus be forced to read more to learn more and thus have less freedom. This shows that the boy is reluctant to read and dislikes it.