Climbing My Grandfather

poet

Andrew Waterhouse

theme

admiration, trust, memory/nostalgia, adventure/curiosity

context

• Waterhouse was a keen environmental campaigner and had interest in the natural world.

• Mountain is used as an extended metaphor for the grandfather in a positive light.

• The grandson wishes to explore and cherish him however to do so is a challenge but ultimately a valuable experience

I decided to do it free, without a rope or net

adverb ‘free’ → shows the trust he has and the safety he feels in the presence of his grandfather

without caution → daring but a risk worth taking

climbing imagery ‘rope/net’ → contributes to extended metaphor of grandpa as mountain

First the old brogues, dusty and cracked

nostalgia brogues=grandpa shoes → childhood memories

starting at the bottom/feet imagery of child looking up to grandfather

adjectives ‘dusty and cracked’ → deacy and well-worn shows the experienced life of grandfather

earth-stained hands

worked hard , aged → experiences worth learning about

like warm ice

• simile → he may at first seem cold but is truly warm beneath the surface

• oxymoron → cold but familiarity makes it warm

• shows his complex character

I discover/ the glassy ridge of a scar

• noun ‘scar’ → literally bare place on a mountain but shows hoe he has gone through hardships - resilient

• adjective ‘glassy’ → fragility

• scars tell stories which reflect that we are all built on experiences though some can be painful to recall

firm shoulders

• adjective ‘firm’ → reliable and durable just like a mountain

• similar to father in follower

climbing has its dangers

somethings are difficult to learn about even though it’s ‘dangerous’ he trust his grandfather

watch a pupil/slowly open and close

• noun ‘pupil’ → intimate family connection

• adverb ‘slowly’ → shows patience and care that he takes

• contrast to relationship in follower where they can’t see eye to eye

knowing/ the slow pulse of his good heart

monosyllabic → reflection of heartbeat, slows down end of poem safety warm & affection

adjective ‘good’ → after the climb he knows him now as a kind genuine man man

structure

• one stanza → one long journey or growth reflective of stable relationship (continuous climb)

• free verse → reflects the natural, unpredictable movement of climbing — sometimes smooth, sometimes hesitant

• enjambment → creates motion and movement like climbing