POEM 1 A Photograph

A PHOTOGRAPH
By- Shirley Toulson

PHOTOGRAPHY
THREE STAGES OF LIFE
1st STAGE CHILDHOOD
- Photograph of Poet’s mother

- At the Beach
- Cousins – Betty and Dolly
- Poet’s mother’s age – 12 years
- Barefoot
- Uncle clicked the picture
- Sea has changed less
- Mother’s face /foot has changed
20- 30 years later
- Memory of author
- Poet’s mother laughing at the photo
- Laughing at the dress
- Sea holiday – an event of the past
- Laughter is real and pleasant for the poet
- Sense of loss
- Poet’s mother’s happy moments of her
childhood
MOTHER IS DEAD
- Remembers her mother with a heavy

heart
- Died years ago
- No words to say on her death
- Silently resigns to her fate
- Old photograph moves her to silence
Line 1 – 4:
The cardboard shows me how it was

When the two girl cousins went paddling,
Each one holding one of my mother’s hands,
And she the big girl — some twelve years or so
Paddling – walking
In these lines, the poet is looking at an old photo album which is made up of
cardboard. In the picture, there are three girls who are walking on the
beach holding each other’s hands. The girl in the middle is the tallest and
oldest, the other two girls on each side are younger than her. The girl in the
middle is the poet’s mother. She is around twelve years old when the
picture was taken.
Line 5 – 9:
All three stood still to smile through their hair
At the uncle with the camera. A sweet face,
My mother’s, that was before I was born.
And the sea, which appears to have changed less,
Washed their terribly transient feet
Transient – short-term; temporary
In the above lines, the poet describes how the photograph was taken. Her
mother’s uncle took the photograph and told them to stop and pose. All
three of them left their wet hair open and smiled at the camera. The poet’s
attention is drawn towards his mother’s face which is described as a ‘sweet
face’. The photograph was taken long before the poet was born. The poet
calls their feet ‘terrible transient’ as they were so young by then and now
they had grown older. On the other hand, the sea which touched their feet
has changed less.
Line 10 – 13:
Some twenty — thirty — years later

She’d laugh at the snapshot.
“See Betty And Dolly,” she’d say, “and look how they
Dressed us for the beach.” The sea holiday
Snapshot – photograph
After twenty-thirty years later, she would laugh at the

photograph. She would tell me to look at her cousins, Betty
and Dolly and how their parents would dress all three of
them up for the beach. They would have planned to take a
photograph beforehand.
Line 14 – 15:
Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry

With the laboured ease of loss.
Wry – ironic; disappointing
The poet recalls the sea holiday was her mother’s favourite
moment from the past. While the poet’s favourite moment
from the past was her mother’s laughter. Both the women
would think about those past memories which they cannot live
again. They tried their best to adjust to what they lost.
Line 16 – 19:
Now she’s been dead nearly as many years

As that girl lived. And of this circumstance
There is nothing to say at all.
Its silence silences.
Silences – a complete absence of sound
In the above lines, the poet says that her mother died
twelve years ago, the same age her mother was in the
photograph. Whenever the poet thinks of her mother’s
death, she cannot explain what effect she has of her
mother’s death. Death has silenced her mother which has
also left her speechless.
Literary Devices
Alliteration - repetition of a consonant sound at the beginning of two or

more consecutive words. The instances of alliteration in the poem are as
follows-
Stood still
Through their
My mother’s
Terribly transient
Silence silences
Oxymoron - a term which contradicts itself

Laboured ease
Epithet - a phrase expressing a quality of a person or something

Terribly transient
A Photograph Question and Answers
1. What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote

in the poem? Why has this word been
used?
Ans: In the poem, the word ‘cardboard’

means a frame which supports the
photograph. This word had been used in the
poem because the picture is very old when
the cardboard was used as a photo frame.
2. What has the camera captured?
Ans: The camera has captured the poet’s mother and her
two cousins, Betty and Dolly, on the beach. They went for
paddling where her mother’s uncle captured the photo in
between the moment. Her mother was around twelve years
old and was in the middle. She was holding the hands of her
cousins who were on the side of her. It was her mother’s
favourite past memories.
3. What has not changed over the years? Does this suggest
something to you?
Ans: The lines ‘And the sea, which appears to have changed
less’ depicts that the sea which touched her mother’s feet is
the one which has not changed over the years. Whereas, her
mother and her cousins grew older. The sea symbolises
eternity and immortality. Human being has a life span and
has to die one day. Life is not permanent. The poet is sad
about her mother’s demise twelve years ago and her laugh is
her favourite past memory.
4. The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot. What did this laugh
indicate?
Ans: The poet’s mother laughed at the snapshot recalling her favourite
past memories. She looked back at the photograph and remembered how
their parents would dress them up for the beach holiday. Her laugh
indicated her remembering the innocent days and the nostalgia feeling.
Behind the laugh is also a feeling of pain that those days won’t be back.
5. What is the meaning of the line “Both wry with the laboured ease of
loss.”
Ans: The above lines means that the poet’s mother felt pain whenever
she saw the old photograph because the innocent childhood days would
never be back. Those are just the memories. While the poet has lost his
mother twelve years ago and she misses her a lot and recalls her laughing
and pointing out the outfits they used to wear at the beach holidays. Both
of them lost something.
6. What does “this circumstance” refer to?
Ans: The words ‘this circumstance’ refers to

the present situation of the poet which is
the painful memories of her mother who
have been deceased twelve years ago. While
looking at the old photograph of her
mother’s childhood makes her miss her
more. She remembers her laughing and how
the photograph was her favourite past
memory.
7. The three stanzas depict three different phases. What are
they?
Ans: the first stanza depicts her mother’s childhood days

when she was twelve years old or so. It talks about a
photograph of her with her two cousins on a beach holiday.
Her uncle took the photograph. Her mother changed over
the years as she grew older. While the sea which touched
their feet in that beach holiday hadn’t changed over the
years.
In the second stanza, the poet talks about her childhood

days when her mother used to look at the photograph and
recalls everything mentioned in the first stanza.
In the last stanza, the poet shares that her mother is dead as
many years ago as was her age in the photograph. She died
twelve years ago. The poet is recalling her mother’s old
memories while looking at the photograph. She is in pain and
misses her deceased mother. She has no words to describe
her grief.
IMPORTANT WORDS –
1. The Poem depicts the three stages of life. (represents)
2. The poem revives the past memories. ( brings back)
3. Incident overwhelms the poet with emotions.(overpowered)
4. Her mother’s death robs the poet of her ability to express

her grief. ( to take something away)
5. Transience of human life is tragic. (Lasting for a short

period)

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A PHOTOGRAPH

By- Shirley Toulson

- Photograph of Poet’s mother

- Remembers her mother with a heavy

The cardboard shows me how it was

And she the big girl — some twelve years or so

Transient – short-term; temporary

Some twenty — thirty — years later

After twenty-thirty years later, she would laugh at the

Was her past, mine is her laughter. Both wry

Wry – ironic; disappointing

Now she’s been dead nearly as many years

Silences – a complete absence of sound

Alliteration - repetition of a consonant sound at the beginning of two or

Oxymoron - a term which contradicts itself

Epithet - a phrase expressing a quality of a person or something

1. What does the word ‘cardboard’ denote

Ans: In the poem, the word ‘cardboard’

Ans: The words ‘this circumstance’ refers to

Ans: the first stanza depicts her mother’s childhood days

In the second stanza, the poet talks about her childhood

1. The Poem depicts the three stages of life. (represents)

2. The poem revives the past memories. ( brings back)

3. Incident overwhelms the poet with emotions.(overpowered)

4. Her mother’s death robs the poet of her ability to express

5. Transience of human life is tragic. (Lasting for a short

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