An Undisclosed Fortune

themes

in a world where overt and heroic expressions of love are dramatised, JSLR explores the ordinary in love, its finite nature and ageing

“an undisclosed fortune”

indefinite article: makes the personal universal

denotes inheritance: life as a gift passed down through generations

“my mother’s fond of the story”

personal pronoun “my”: begins with anecdote

historic present tense: implies long standing devotion, reliving memory, bond

“like a God” “my tiny nostrils”

simile and allusion to Bible foregrounds theme of creation

son worships his mother

“pancreatic ooze” “spent muscle”

graphic imagery in multi clausal sentence

disturbing and uncomfortable

“systole, diastole”

iambic meter could mirror a heartbeat

fragility of life, reduced to bare physical processes

“the single grey hair” “the bruise on my hip”

noun phrases: physical ageing marks a turning point in his life, becoming a carer

“a coin”

metaphor: life is a gamble, physical shape = circle of life

“held my lover’s heart in my hands”

idiom: having control in a vulnerable relationship

becoming a carer, taking on responsibility

“But … But”

conjunction introduces uncertainty into the poem

enjambment and colon

unpredictability of death, theme of mortality

quotes

“an undisclosed fortune”
“my mother’s fond of the story”
“my tiny nostrils” “like a god”
“pancreatic ooze” “spent muscle”
“systole, diastole”
“the single grey hair” “the bruise on my hip”
“a coin”
“held my lover’s heart in my hands”
“But… But”
(enjambment and colon)