Paula Meehan

Hearth Lesson

Quote	Description
Either phrase will bring it back -money to burn, burning a hole in your pocket	we journey from the present into the past. The mere mention of either of these phrases has an instant impact on her
while Zeus and Hera battle it out	emphasises how extreme the argument between the parents is
he’ll raise her airs and graces	he accuses her of pretending to be more affluent than she is
I’m net, umpire, and court; most balls are lobbed over my head	she feels caught in the middle of the disputes but she doesn’t fully understand what’s going on
even then i can tell it was money, the lack of it day after day	even at a young age she could understand that money was the root of the problem and catalyst for the arguments
she threw the lot in the fire	the mother has reached her breaking point
she’d had the last, the astonishing word	everyone is shocked and it appears that the mother has had the last word this time

The Statue of the Virgin at Granard Speaks

Quote	Description
It can be bitter here at times like this, November wind sweeping across the border	a critical tone is established immediately
The whole town tucked up safe and dreaming	The townsfolk are safe and warm, while she is exposed to the elements, they dont think about her.
The howling wont let up	The bad atmosphere won’t let up
where men hunt each other and invoke the various names of God as blessing	she is critical of people invoking God’s name to carry out horrific acts
They name me Mother of all this grief though mated to no mortal man	she is forced to bear a burden of grief and take on a motherly rate depsite being devoid of sexuality in the public’s eye

Buying Winkles

Quote	Description
My mother would spare me sixpence	Implication that money is scarce
I’d hold the tanner tight and jump every crack	Shows a playful and childish down
she’d be sitting outside the Rosebowl Bar on an orange-crate, a pram loaded with pails of winkles before her	women presented as isolated solitary and working
I’d bear the newspaper twists…proudly home, like torches	the child is proud of herself

The Exact Moment I Became a Poet

Quote	Description
Half obscured by a cloud of chalk	the teacher is obscured a distance between teacher and student
You’ll end up in the sewing factory	implication of failure, not a desireable thing to happen
I saw them…trussed like chickens	she imagines the women as trapped and not valued for the work they do
words could pluck you, leave you naked	the words the teacher said leave meehan feeling worthless and exposed