POINT FORMAT

Title: Somebody’s Mother

Poet: Mary Dow Brine

Rhyme Scheme:

The rhyme scheme of the poem for the quatrains is aabb and for the sestet is aabbcc.

Favourite line:

‘She’s somebody’s mother, boys, you know, 

For all she’s aged, and poor and slow;

And some one, some time, may lend a hand 

To help my mother – you understand?’

Theme/Central idea:

The Poem ‘Somebody’s Mother’ is about how a young school going boy helps an old woman cross the road. It highlights the fact that we should always try to help people in need because you never know when your old mother or you yourself will need help.

Figure of Speech:

The poet uses figures of speech like transferred epithet, synecdoche, inversion, tautology, simile, alliteration, and repetition to convey the meaning of the poem.

Special Feature/Implied meaning, etc.:

Through the poem, the poet is trying to highlight the importance of helping others in need. We have bad days, but we get through them when we get support and guidance from others. Even if we are going through bad times, our family and friends help us get through the depressing phase. Similarly we should also not think twice before helping and supporting others when they need us.

Why I like/don’t like the poem:

I like the poem because it gives me the message that we should not be cold-hearted and apathetic towards others around us. We should lend a helping hand to those in need. The poem also teaches us that it is very important for young people to treat elders with love, respect and kindness.

PARAGRAPH FORMAT

The poem ‘Somebody’s Mother’ is written by Mary Dowe Brine. The main theme of this poem is that we should always be unselfish and help others. In this poem, a young boy helps an old woman cross the road. He knows that she is somebody’s mother and hopes that someday someone will help his mother if he is not around for her. The poet wants to convey to us that we should have compassion and kindness for all others in this world. The rhyme scheme is aabbcc in stanzas 3 and 6 and aabb in all the remaining stanzas. Inversion is an example of a figure of speech. ‘At the crowded crossing she waited long.’ The correct prose order is: She waited long at the crowded crossing. The main feature of this poem is having compassion and kindness for others, like the young boy had for the old woman. It leaves the reader with a thought-provoking message and a good feeling in the heart after reading this poem. My favourite lines are ‘Somebody’s mother’ bowed low. In her home that night, and the prayer she said was, ‘God be kind to that noble boy, Who is somebody’s son and pride and joy. I like the poem because of the compassion and kindness shown by the young boy and the message that we must help others.