STAFFORD AFTERNOONS

(1) “suddenly PAUSE”

Stative verb, emphasised by enjambment, could imply that as a child, time seems to go slower.

(1) “the gardens were empty” + “dwindled away”

Adjective “empty” and verb “dwindled” convey the loneliness the child feels in this ordinary suburban setting.

(2) “I waved at windscreens”

Alliteration, brings attention to the dynamic verb ‘wave’ portraying the child’s ineffective attempt to interact with the wider world.

(3) “a strange boy threw”

Evaluative adjective ‘strange’ and the dynamic verb ‘threw’ portray the human world as hostile

(3) “lonely and thrilled”

Evaluative adjective conveys the child’s excitement as she explores the world outside her usual neighbourhood.

(3) “the green silence gulped once and swallowed me whole.”

Personification, the dynamic verbs ‘gulped’ and ‘swallowed' begin to make the setting of the woods seem sinister.

(4) “the trees drew sly faces from the light” + “flowering nettles gathered spit in their throats”

Personification, the woods are presented as an unwelcoming place, with the adjective sly and sticky perhaps foreshadowing the danger she will encounter there.

(5) “Touch”

Imperative sentence, the man is presented as commanding and threatening

(6) “Hoarse, frightening endearments."“

Oxymoron, conveys the girl as unable to understand the man’s actions, being frightened by him.

"(6) “Time fell from the sky like a red ball.”

Simile, suggests that the shocking evening changed her and perhaps made her grow up too fast.