Mother, Any Distance Quotes

themes: stability, independence, distance

Anchor (stability)

“Anchor”

• metaphor for the mother, shows how the she brings stability and keeps the son grounded and safe, yet also holds him back from adventuring out into the world

• anchors stay at the bottom of the ocean where not much goes on, and so it provides limited experiences for the son

• juxtaposes with the son “kite” who longs to have the freedom to explore the vast sky, far away from the bottom of the ocean

fingertips (stability)

fingertips still pinch the last one-hundredth of an inch

• verb ‘pinch’ demonstrates the desperation of the mother, still clinging on, no matter how hard or how far

• the tiny amount of ‘last one-hundredth’ shows how the mother is still trying till the very end, she’s refusing to give up and let her son go

• she’s dedicated to try keep her son safe as it’s her role as a mother to protect him from all harm, and so letting him go into potential danger is challenging

unreeling years (distance)

the line still feeding out, unreeling the years between us

• extended metaphor of the tape measure to symbolise the distance between them growing bigger over time

• the mother “at the 0 end” (since birth) and the son wondering further away as he grows up

• The line could be interpreted as an umbilical cord, how mothers ground and support their child from the start, since the womb until they grow up and leave to be on their own

A__.K__ (distance)

Anchor.Kite

• Juxtaposition between those words could represent the distance between them. Anchors go in the bottom of the ocean, while kites go high in the sky

• Caesura in-between contrasts between the previous enjambment of stanza 2, and shows how the very close relationship between him and his mother is holding him back, as she is hesitant on letting him go. Not accepting that he’s becoming independent

space (independence)

I space walk

• space could present the vast unknown of the future, there are so many amazing and scary things out there

• space-walking requires a lot of courage, and it’s very daunting. As people grow old and independant there is a lot of fear that surrounds it

• being an ‘astronaut’ in space is extremely lonely, there’s a lack of safety and security. No longer able to rely on someone

endless sky.. f__ or f__ (independence)

an endless sky to fall or fly

• adjective “endless” helps present the daunting and unlimited amount of opportunities and pathways the future brings

• sky connotes freedom

• fall or fly could be a direct reference to failing or succeeding in life, but Armitage uses imagery of a bird leaving the nest once it’s grown enough, ready to leave the security and stability of its parents

• the end of the poem ends in a rhyme, which contrasts to the rest of it, perhaps reflecting the poets uncertainty, but by the end he’s confident with going out into the world