Aleena Islam
STEWART ISLAND – Fleur Adock
Themes
Criticism, hostility, lack of hospitality
Contextual overview
Adock’s poetry is typically concerned with themes of place, human
relationship and everyday activities but frequently with a dark twist given
to the mundane events she writes about. In this poem, Adock writes
rather critically of Stewart Island, (an island situated in New Zealand) as
she holidays there with her family. She constantly makes clear that she
does not like Stewart Island in this short but biting poem. Disliking the raw
nature of Stewart Island, Adock has chose to live and work for most of her
life in London – a bustling metropolis free of sandflies and mad seagulls.
In many ways this is an unusual poem since the majority of poets write
poems in praise of unspoilt nature. Adock’s poem is original in selecting
unpleasant parts of nature and pointing out the uncivilised elements of
Stewart Island.
Key features of language, form and structure
- The poem commences by the speaker quoting her hotel manager’s
wife; ‘But look at all this beauty.’ The juxtaposition of this
sentence and the harsh criticism that Adock employs throughout the
rest of the poem accentuates the manner in which the speaker
mocks the hotel manager’s wife insistent thought; it is as if she is
scoffing at the wife’s remark.
- She continues to state,’… how she could bear to live there.’ The
emphatic phrase, ‘bear to live,’ indicates that the speaker
believes that living in this location is completely unbearable and
excruciating, thus reinforcing her hostility towards the island.
- She stiffly agrees with the wife; ‘True:’ The static diction in this
one-worded phrase could suggest her reluctance to agree with
the fact that this island could display even an ounce of natural
beauty. This is reinforced by the caesura initiated by the semi-
colon, underlining her static, reluctant diction.
- There is something dismissive about the phrase, ‘all hills and
atmosphere’ – Adock cares so little for Stewart Island that she
cannot be bothered to describe or elucidate the details of the
atmosphere, but just dismisses it with the simple adjective, ‘all’
which tells the reader nothing of the sort of atmosphere it was.
- There is only three lines of some sort of descriptive natural
imagery; ‘white sand … oyster boats.’ The white sand could
symbolise the Island’s purity and aesthetic beauty, but it is clear
STEWART ISLAND – Fleur Adock
Themes
Criticism, hostility, lack of hospitality
Contextual overview
Adock’s poetry is typically concerned with themes of place, human
relationship and everyday activities but frequently with a dark twist given
to the mundane events she writes about. In this poem, Adock writes
rather critically of Stewart Island, (an island situated in New Zealand) as
she holidays there with her family. She constantly makes clear that she
does not like Stewart Island in this short but biting poem. Disliking the raw
nature of Stewart Island, Adock has chose to live and work for most of her
life in London – a bustling metropolis free of sandflies and mad seagulls.
In many ways this is an unusual poem since the majority of poets write
poems in praise of unspoilt nature. Adock’s poem is original in selecting
unpleasant parts of nature and pointing out the uncivilised elements of
Stewart Island.
Key features of language, form and structure
- The poem commences by the speaker quoting her hotel manager’s
wife; ‘But look at all this beauty.’ The juxtaposition of this
sentence and the harsh criticism that Adock employs throughout the
rest of the poem accentuates the manner in which the speaker
mocks the hotel manager’s wife insistent thought; it is as if she is
scoffing at the wife’s remark.
- She continues to state,’… how she could bear to live there.’ The
emphatic phrase, ‘bear to live,’ indicates that the speaker
believes that living in this location is completely unbearable and
excruciating, thus reinforcing her hostility towards the island.
- She stiffly agrees with the wife; ‘True:’ The static diction in this
one-worded phrase could suggest her reluctance to agree with
the fact that this island could display even an ounce of natural
beauty. This is reinforced by the caesura initiated by the semi-
colon, underlining her static, reluctant diction.
- There is something dismissive about the phrase, ‘all hills and
atmosphere’ – Adock cares so little for Stewart Island that she
cannot be bothered to describe or elucidate the details of the
atmosphere, but just dismisses it with the simple adjective, ‘all’
which tells the reader nothing of the sort of atmosphere it was.
- There is only three lines of some sort of descriptive natural
imagery; ‘white sand … oyster boats.’ The white sand could
symbolise the Island’s purity and aesthetic beauty, but it is clear
