Looking+away+poetry



Fraser Sutherland


 * Looking Away**

=
at you but downward or ahead,  my good ear ======

two feet from you.
__**Translations:**__

When listening, the listener does not look at the speaker’s face directly.

Instead, the listener is listening intensely, trying to grasp every meaning of what the speaker is saying.

The listener glances up to the speaker to tell the speaker that he or she is surely listening to what the speaker is saying and is following along, still there.

If the listener looks in to the speaker’s eyes directly, the listener is implying that what is being said is most likely tedious and dull or uninteresting.

When looking directly in to the speaker’s eyes, the listener is not listening to what is being said but is, in fact, pretending to listen and be interested, like a mask.

When the listener is looking away, he or she is trying to look in to the speaker’s mind and predict what the person is going to talk about next.

When the listener looks away, the speaker may believe that he or she is listening to grasp the meaning and is following the listener along as he speaks.

When the listener looks ahead, he or she can look in to the speaker’s mind and know for sure that the truth lies between them like their relationship, even when the listener is only two feet from the speaker.

Title: Looking Away When we first read the title, we thought that the poem is going to be about forgetting the past and looking for the future; however, we found out that the title actually implies that this poem is going to be about metaphorically looking around things to find the truth.

Thematic Statement The poem is about looking away while someone is speaking, not because the listener is bored, but look into the speaker's mind the find the truth and grasp the full meaning of what the speaker is saying. For example: "but looking away I am looking into what you will say next."(lines 10~11)

**Poetic Devices **

 * __Personification: __ **

(Lines 3~4) my good ear inclined toward your words

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Explanation: Ears cannot bend or incline towards something by itself like a person trying to listen. The listener is just simply trying to hear as best as he or she can to grasp the full meaning.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">(Line 9) <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">my face a mask and not an ear,
 * __<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Metaphor: __ **

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Explanation: The person is not listening like ears but is, instead, pretending to be listening like a mask.


 * __<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Metaphor: __ **

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">(Lines 10~11) but looking away I am looking into <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">what you will say next.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Explanation: The listener is not actually looking into what the speaker is going to say, but is actually trying to infer and predict what lies ahead.


 * __<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">Metaphor: __ **

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">(Lines 13~15) I find <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">the truth a foot in front of me, <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">two feet from you.

<span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%; margin: 0cm 0cm 10pt;">Explanation: The listener does not really see the truth, but is trying to say that when looking ahead, truth can be easily found in what the speaker is saying.