Visiting Hour

“combs my nostril”

Imagery

gives a sense of the pervasive power of the smell, and his feeling of being invaded; showing his discomfort.

“nostrils as they go bobbing along”

Synecdoche

Synecdoche is used, since not just his nostrils are moving along, as the image would suggest. 

This emphasises the overpowering nature of “the hospital smell”, since it has blocked out his other senses.

“green and yellow”

WC

colours have connotations of sickness, which further stresses the poet’s discomfort in these surroundings.

“vanishes heavenward”

Enjambment

The rising lift becomes a symbol of the journey to heaven.

The comparison to the lift’s journey with a journey of a soul to heaven serves as a reminder of the inevitability of death,

“I will not feel, I will not feel”

Repetition

Repetition is used to suggest the poet is chanting under his breath in order to avoid his emotions.

“lightly, swiftly”

WC
Connotations of in control, know what they're doing. Referencing the nurses

“here and up and down and there”

Suggests MacCaig is looking all around to find a distraction from his thoughts. Also emphasises the number of nurses that he sees.

“miraculously”

WC

He is in awe of the nurses’ work

“Ward 7.”

Short Sentence

The abrupt non-sentence jolts the reader, just as we can imagine it affected MacCaig
Turning point of the poem, as he has now reached his relative and must face his emotions.

“she lies in a white cave of forgetfulness”

Metaphor

Suggests the white sheets or curtains are cave like (impenetrable). This conveys the isolation of the woman, and MacCaig's exclusion from her

"A withered hand trembles on its stalk"

Metaphor

Suggests that the woman’s body is brittle and frail by comparing it to a dying flower.

Also suggests that the woman’s body has deteriorated, but contains hope for regrowth

“heavy”

WC

Either too trugged o rtoo ill to lift her arm, emphasises her infirmity

“glass fang”

Metaphor

Suggests that the intravenous drip is vampire-like.

The horror in this image is shocking, which highlights the poet’s grief and distress at seeing the woman’s condition

“Not guzzling but giving”

WC

the horror of the “glass fang” image is continued in the word “guzzling”, but is reversed by the positive word, “giving”. The use of the guttural “g” sound in the alliteration conveys the harshness of the poet’s interpretation; he clearly sees the process as intrusive and pointless.

"black figure in her white cave"

Metaphor

Metaphor - refers to universal image of death
"figure" suggests the woman's blurred vision
These emphasise the isolation of the woman, as well as her impending and unavoidable death

“white cave”

WC

Connotations of isolation through confusion or sensory blankness (e.g. white noise)

“clumsily…dizzily”

WC

Shows that the poet is overcome by his emotions, leaving him confused and sick.

“fainter”

WC

Showing the woman’s vision is blurredl she can see him getting fainter with distance. Also a pun, since the poet may be so upset he is starting to feel faint.

“fruitless fruits"

WC

Oxymoron - how can a fruit be fruitless. This captures the poet's despair at the pointlessness of the woman's death being prolonged and his inability to help,

Themes

Isolation

Loss

Facing mortality