Heir Conditioning

Grand dad did you breathe

Before air cons were invented
Was it hard staying
Alive without modern inventions?
Grandma werent you flustered
As you fluttered with paper fans?
Could you communicate before
Faxes and long distance calls
Became basic necessities?
Grandchild we lived
Before your age. Because
Of our ignorance,
We did not know
Pollution, stress, traffic jams
Destruction of forests, streams and
Hills
We feared God and nature
Now nature fears you and
Money is your new God.

Meaning of Stanzas:
Stanza 1
In the first stanza, the poet asks his grandparents about the life before the technology
arouse and become the important usage in the world nowadays. He asks his
grandfather was it complicated to live in the life without technology as he refers the
technology to the invention of the air cons. Then he asks his grandmother regarding
the condition when she used paper fans to cool herself. He also asks his grandmother
what were the possibilities for them to communicate without faxes and long distance
calls compared to the world nowadays.
Stanza 2
The second stanza shows the answers given by the poets grandparents that sum up
all the questions in one simple answer. The reason on why they did not experience all
the pollution, stress, traffic jams, and destruction of forests, streams and hills is
because of their ignorance; they were lack of knowledge by that time. His
grandparents add, the only thing that they fear is God and nature but now, the nature
turns to fear the entire human race and money is the only obsession to human.
Setting:

The poem is written in twentieth century setting as there are references to modern
gadgets such as air cond and faxes. The problems mentioned in the poem also allude
to current problems faced by today's generation.
Persona:
There are two personas in the poem. They are the grandparents and the grandchild.
Themes:
1. Technology Brings More Harm
It may seem that we are living in comfort with all the technology that keeps on
improving, but we do not realize the harms that the technology has brought us. The
grandchild thinks that it is impossible for their grandparents to live in comfort with
the help of technology. The child does not realize that because of the technology
itself, the world becomes hotter and that is the reason why some technologies are
created to blind humans with the fake comfort that the technologies bring them. For
example, electric fans and air cons. Technological advancements have other setbacks
such us pollution, stress, traffic jams, and destruction of forests, rivers and hills.
2. Fear
The older generations were God-fearing people and respected His creation nature.
However, todays generation does not fear God. On the contrary the poet says that
now nature fears you and money is your new God. This indicates that the younger
generation has become more materialistic. They do not care for nature but gives
priority to riches and money rather than practicing good values such as preserving
Gods creation.
3. Importance of Preserving Nature
God created nature to preserve life. In stanza 2, the poet gives the consequences of
not preserving nature -pollution, stress, traffic jams, destruction of forest, streams
and hills. Humans seem not to aware that the more pollution they make, the more
they need to preserve the nature. In paving the way for development, forest and hills
have been destroyed and streams have been polluted. This has destroyed the natural
habitat of many species of animals and plants which help to retain balance in our
ecosystem
Moral Values:

We must be grateful with what we have.

Do not take things for granted.

Progress brings advantages and disadvantages

The younger generation has different values.

We must pay a high price for development.