Firstly, we will look at the simplest of these devices, that of figurative language. South of My Days is a profound example of the use of these in the construction of meaning. The first stanza of the poem can be seen to carry a large amount of personification and imagery, using such terms as “…delicate outline…, …bony slopes wincing…, clean, lean, hung

ry country.” These terms are used to convey Wright’s message to the reader that the land has a life within it, beyond the harsh outlines of the terrain, an inner life that none of us can see. Wright then utilizes imagery to describe a scene of the poem, using words such as “leaf-silenced, willow-choked, the slope a tangle of medlar and crabapple…” to express to the reader the disarray of the scene. Given that willow, medlar and crabapple are flora not native to Australia, the subject she is writing about, we get the sense that she is talking about an introduced plant, one that was once ordered and neatly planted, but now is overgrown and spreading wildly. The last line of the stanza reads “and the old cottage lurches in for shelter.” This personifies the old cottage as a very old living thing, capable of slow, lurching movement and needing shelter from the elements.

Sound techniques, including alliteration and onomatopoeia can be used to highlight certain areas where the poet wishes the reader to pay special attention to or to emphasize certain words. This can be seen in South of My Days only sparingly, as if Wright is content with the other devices she has filled the poem with, but can be seen in the second line of the last stanza in “like a pack of conjuror’s cards.” In this case, the emphasis is obviously on “conjuror’s cards”. The image of a conjuror is very specific, as it is not a commonly used word, instead usually being replaced by “magician” or another such word. Onomatopoeia is also a rarity, only being seen by Wright’s use of the word “Oh” and other such phrases. This tends to give the poem a perspective of instead being a conversation, speech, or prose in general. This view is assisted by the rhyming pattern, or lack of one, evident in the poem.

Some topics in this essay:
South Days, Wright Woman, Alternatively Woman, Days Woman, Days Wright, Robert Frost, Matthew Arnold, Additionally Wright, line stanza, south days, rhyming pattern, free verse, figurative language, “intricate folded rose”, sound techniques, poetic devices, woman poems, poem seen, alliteration onomatopoeia, “selfless shapeless seed”, seed” “intricate folded, shapeless seed” “intricate,