Richard de Zoysa

Animal Crackers by Richard de

Zoysa
‘Animal Crackers’ by Richard de Zoysa is a ten stanza poem which is separated into irregular sets
of lines. This poem has been constructed in such a way that it has a lot of visual interest. The
lines are of different lengths, there are portions in all caps, and there are a number commands
and lines written in quotations throughout. This style of composition is reflective of the general
feeling with which the poem imbues a reader. The situation which is described is chaotic, so too
are the stanzas of the poem. You can read the full poem here.

Summary of Animal Crackers

‘Animal Crackers’ by Richard de Zoysa describes the political situation in Sir Lanka through the
drawing of symbolic animals.
The poem begins with the drawing of a lion. It represents the Sinhalese people who are going to
be caught up in the middle of the rebel Tamil terrorists. This group is depicted by the speaker as
a tiger and is completely ignored, partly out of ignorance and part fear, by the ruling party. The
government of the time was added to the poem through the image of an elephant.
The poem concludes with a depiction of the chaos caused by the terrorists and the fact that no
one is doing anything to stop it. In fact, groups are actively trying to ignore the threat and
get the citizens of Sri Lank to do the same.

Analysis of Animal Crackers

Stanza One
In the first stanza of this piece a conversation begins between the two main characters
of this piece. First, there is the speaker who gives directions. This person commands
the other to “Draw me a lion.” The artist is not surprised by, nor does he question, this
request. He sets right to work.
The main speaker of this piece is the artist himself. He states that the picture he drew is
of “a lazy, kindly beast…” This animal is not depicted in the way that one would expect.
“Kind” is not a word which is generally associated with lions.
It is important at this point to refer to the poet’s original notes which accompanied the
text. The full “author’s note” can be found after the poem here. The note states that the
“lion is the heraldic emblem of the Sinhalese” people of Sri Lanka. This group is native
to the island and make up the largest percent of the population. When the poet writes of
a lion, he is speaking metaphorical about his own people.
Stanza Two
In the second stanza the other speaker, the one who directed the artist to draw, asks a
question” “Does it bite?” He is referring to the lion which was drawn “kind[ly]” by the
artist.
The main speaker answers the question saying that it does…

Sometimes
but only when its angry—
If you pull its tail
Once again, these phrases do not refer so much to a lion or a drawing of a lion as they
do to the Sinhalese people. They might be a “lazy and kind” group but they will not be
stepped upon or insulted. The next line expands on this when the speakers says
another reason the lion might bite is if one “say[s] that it is just another cat…” From this
line it is clear that the Sinhalese will not stand to be thought of as any less than they
are.
In the last two lines of this stanza the speaker contrasts himself once more. He says
that they might be strong-willed, but they are…

for the most part, indolent, biddable

They spend most of their time “basking in the sun of pride.” One is able to interpret from
these statements that the poet and the speaker he has created are not above criticizing
the Sinhalese. He holds a particular set of facts to be the truth and is willing to share it.

Stanza Three
In the third stanza the speaker moves back from the intimate communication between
the two characters to describe what the general setting of the moment is. There is
“sunlight” outside which is not making a great impression. It is “a trifle dulled.” The day
does not appear to be anything special, at least at the outset. The next phrase adds a
bit of mystery to the moment. There is a “roaring” in the distance. It sounds like “a pride
/ of lions.” They sound to the speaker as if they are “cross at being awakened.” They’ve
been sleeping for a long time and are finally rousing themselves.
It is almost as if the lions, which are still representing the Sinhalese people, are
responding to the words of the speaker. They are preparing for a change.
Stanza Four
In the fourth stanza the narrative moves on to the next drawing. This time the speaker is
asked to draw a tiger. This animal is different from the one which proceeded it. It is too
is spoken of in the author’s note. The tiger has been chosen to represent the Tamil
terrorist group which was active in the north of Sri Lanka. This group was referred to as
“The Tigers.” Their campaign to create an independent state in the north and east of Sri
Lanka for the Tamil people led to the Sri Lankan Civil War. This conflict lasted from
1983 to 2009.
The image that the speaker comes up with reminds him of two different things. He sees
the lion and thinks of Blake’s poem ‘The Tyger,’ as well as “Jim Corbett.” Corbett was a
British hunter and tracker, as well as conservationist and author who had a national
park named after him in India. The park was established in 1936 and is the oldest in the
country.
These images move through the speaker’s mind like a “warning,” and the tiger’s stripes
“blaze” as bars of black “on gold.”

Stanza Five
In the fifth stanza the speaker reveal additional details in regards to the other person in
the room who has been directing him to draw.
This section opens up with an exclamation of the word “DRAW!” This person who is
yells, turns and draws “the gun / on me.” The drama of this moment is enhanced by the
use of enjambment, and is immediately deflated when it is revealed the other character
is a “three-year-old.” This child has turned on the speaker. The speaker states that the
child asks as if he “understands force majeure,” or an irresistible compulsion.
The child pulls the trigger of the plastic gun and “all hell breaks loose.” There is
suddenly smoke filling the sky alongside “orange stripes of flame.”

Stanza Six
The orange stripes which symbolized the coming of tigers, are fought back against in
these two lines. They are written in all capital letters in an effort to show how strongly
the a new speaker feels about what is being said. This new speaker is unwilling to admit
that the presence of the tigers is real. They are a real threat to his world, but all he is
able to see are the “LIONS.”

Stanza Seven
In the seventh stanza the speaker begins by describing how there are “jackals” running
through the streets. This image is meant to represent the reactions of normal people.
Everyone is panicking and doing whatever they can to get out of harms way. “Madness”
is spreading.
In the second half of this stanza the speaker mentions the “Elephant.” This is the last
animal symbol of the poem and is represents the ruling United National Party. The
party, acting through the image of the elephant, does nothing. He stands in the “shaded
arbor” and thinks about the situation. The elephant does not want to leave his safe
haven for fear of burning his feet. This shows the speaker’s dislike of the ruling party
and his belief that they were not doing enough to deal with the terrorist threat.

Stanza Eight
In the eighth stanza the speaker is attempting to placate the young boy. He tells him
that if he “Put[s] down that gun” he will draw “an elephant.” It is a “curious” animal the
speaker says, and one which “you must understand.”

Stanza Nine
The ninth stanza is only composed of one line and it asks that the speaker, and any
reading this poem, “DONT” venture beyond their home and look out the window. This is
once again the voice of those who do not believe in the threat the Tamil terrorists pose
and wish to keep the panic under control.

Stanza Ten
In the final section of the poem the narration asks that you just “party down the lane.”
One must not look at the fire and see a “bonfire,” instead one should see “fireworks.”
They are willing to ignore what is going on and want all the listeners to believe that there
is nothing wrong or dangerous about their present situation.

A Short Analysis of John Donne’s

‘Song’ (‘Go and catch a falling star’)
A summary of an unusual Donne poem by Dr Oliver Tearle

‘Song’, often known by its first line, ‘Go and catch a falling star’, is an
unusual poem among John Donne’s work in several ways. It doesn’t
use the extended metaphors that we find in some of Donne’s
greatest poetry, and yet it remains one of his most popular and
widely known works. As the short analysis of ‘Song’ below endeavours
to show, ‘Go and catch a falling star’ is, nevertheless, in keeping with
Donne’s beliefs and poetic style in many respects.

Although the poem is songlike – as its title suggests – and its tone is
light and frivolous, ‘Go and catch a falling star’ seems to endorse the
misogynistic belief that all women (or all beautiful women, anyway –
just to make it worse) are unfaithful and shouldn’t be trusted. Yet the
way Donne builds to this conclusion is beguiling. In summary, he
advises the reader (or, as this is a song, the listener) to perform a
series of impossible tasks: catch a ‘falling star’ or meteor in the sky,
impregnate a mandrake root, find the past and return it to the
present, or discover why the devil has cloven feet.

Similarly, the listener is commanded to hear mermaids singing

(possibly a reference to the sirens of Greek mythology, who were
actually half-bird; it was impossible, unless you were Odysseus, to
hear the sirens’ song and survive). Other impossible commands
include finding a cure for the ‘sting’ of envy, and what wind exists that
can help an honest mind to get on in life.

In the second stanza, the impossibilities continue: Donne’s speaker

says that if you seek strange sights – things which are invisible, even –
then ride for ten thousand days till you’re old and your hair is white
(‘ten thousand days and nights’ is just over 27 years, if you’re
wondering), and when you return, you’ll be able to tell Donne’s
speaker about all the strange things you saw, and also, you’ll be
prepared to swear that truly faithful and beautiful women do not
exist. (In other words, if women are ‘fair’ or attractive, they will not be
true to you.)
The final stanza might be summarised as follows: ‘If you do manage to
find a woman who is both faithful and beautiful, let me know – a
journey to find such a woman would be worth it. But having said that,
even if she were next door and you wrote to tell me to come and see
her, before I’d managed to make the journey to meet her, she would
have been unfaithful to several men.’

Can we still enjoy a poem that seems to be so down on half the human
race? (Or the In the second stanza, the impossibilities continue:
Donne’s speaker says that if you seek strange sights – things which are
invisible, even – then ride for ten thousand days till you’re old and
your hair is white (‘ten thousand days and nights’ is just over 27 years,
if you’re wondering), and when you return, you’ll be able to tell
Donne’s speaker about all the strange things you saw, and also, you’ll
be prepared to swear that truly faithful and beautiful women do not
exist. (In other words, if women are ‘fair’ or attractive, they will not be
true to you.)

The final stanza might be summarised as follows: ‘If you do manage to

find a woman who is both faithful and beautiful, let me know – a
journey to find such a woman would be worth it. But having said that,
even if she were next door and you wrote to tell me to come and see
her, before I’d managed to make the journey to meet her, she would
have been unfaithful to several men.’

Can we still enjoy a poem that seems to be so down on half the human
race? (Or the beautiful section of that half, leastways: poor
unattractive women can apparently be trusted to remain true,
presumably because Donne’s speaker thinks no one else would want
them.) This aspect of Donne’s poem – and the problem is not confined
to ‘Go and catch a falling star’ – has exercised critics for a while now.