The poem
They should not have left him there alone, Alone that is except for the cat. He was only nine, not old enough To be left alone in a basement flat, Alone, that is, except for the cat. A dog would have been a different thing, A big gruff dog with slashing jaws, But a cat with round eyes mad as gold, Plump as a cushion with tucked-in paws--- Better have left him with a fair-sized rat! But what they did was leave him with a cat. He hated that cat; he watched it sit, A buzzing machine of soft black stuff, He sat and watched and he hated it, Snug in its fur, hot blood in a muff, And its mad gold stare and the way it sat Crooning dark warmth: he loathed all that. So he took Daddy's stick and he hit the cat. Then quick as a sudden crack in glass It hissed, black flash, to a hiding place In the dust and dark beneath the couch, And he followed the grin on his new-made face, A wide-eyed, frightened snarl of a grin, And he took the stick and he thrust it in, Hard and quick in the furry dark. The black fur squealed and he felt his skin Prickle with sparks of dry delight. Then the cat again came into sight, Shot for the door that wasn't quite shut, But the boy, quick too, slammed fast the door: The cat, half-through, was cracked like a nut And the soft black thud was dumped on the floor. Then the boy was suddenly terrified And he bit his knuckles and cried and cried; But he had to do something with the dead thing there. His eyes squeezed beads of salty prayer But the wound of fear gaped wide and raw; He dared not touch the thing with his hands So he fetched a spade and shovelled it And dumped the load of heavy fur In the spidery cupboard under the stair Where it's been for years, and though it died It's grown in that cupboard and its hot low purr Grows slowly louder year by year: There'll not be a corner for the boy to hide When the cupboard swells and all sides split And the huge black cat pads out of it.
Title suggests a legal reference. Poem then could be read as the case for the defence - the extenuating circumstances. The neglect of The Child is a feature of several of Scannell's poems. Poem can also be read as confessional (poet or persona it does not matter too much which it is) Under the promptings of supressed conscience the poem is a confession of a childhood crime long denied but demanding acknowledgement;…
Read the whole commentTitle suggests a legal reference. Poem then could be read as the case for the defence - the extenuating circumstances. The neglect of The Child is a feature of several of Scannell's poems.
Poem can also be read as confessional (poet or persona it does not matter too much which it is) Under the promptings of supressed conscience the poem is a confession of a childhood crime long denied but demanding acknowledgement; thelonger supressed, the more cathartic and painful the release brought about by confession.
The use of imagery is excellent. Only what increases the sensation and highlights the emotion is employed in the poem.
The rhythm of the final lines is noteworthy with the sequence of almost equal stresses emphasising the deliberate progress of the ghostly cat - symbol of the inevitability of conscience having its say finally.
Though as a universally applicable idea it is probably wrong (Some consciences are cadavers) it is of significance to many individual lives which have been blighted by feelings of guilt.
Of course in these sick politically correct times feeling guilty is old-hat and reactionary.
I am doing this as a project at school and i find it very interesting of course i have to say what a good poem and poet i have read lots of poems but this one stands out to all the others
I Have to admit, I read a lot of poetry! I have to admit that Vernon Scannell is my favourite poet; He is a craftsman, first; an artist, second. I thought I had read eveerything he had ever produced, so it was interesting to come upon this.
All craftsmen re-use the tools that have proven trustworthy in the past....
"Dead Dog" ..... a poem by Mr Scannell... Spot the similarity...
Thanks for another great poem and upper-cut Vernon
Stokes
this poem is horrible but i love the author haha xx
i am a boy who is 13 years old and i usually read funny poems by roald dahl,spike milligan etc. but after reading this spooky poem i felt sad in the begining but then i realized that the boy had to remove his anger somehow (although i did not expect it to be so harsh).And now i am turning to to read spooky poems thanx to the impression put by vernon scannell on me about frightning poems .
THANX FOR WRITTING SUCH A POEM Mr VERNON SACNNELL!!!
I am a 13 year old boy who usually reads funny poems from poets like Rolad Dahl,Spike Milligan etc.So I read this poem as i was in scearch of a poem for my trinty collage of london speech and drama exam and the poeam reaaly shook me! Although i must understand that the boy did have to remove his anger (but i did noyt expect it to be so harsh!)but now i am going to start reading spooky poems like 'A CASE OF MURDER' thanx to the impression put by Mr Vernon Scannell
"THANX Mr VERNONSCANNEL FOR WRITTING SUCH A POEM!!!"
well i haved figured out wot the poem means....:) the answer is that mr payne is the pig man and the poem is impossible 2 figure out and im well bored
i dont like it its sad
We were doing this in english.We were analizing it.I hate the phrase,'Cracked like a nut'but i suspect the Boy's ill'treated. He said Daddy's stick. He might've have bin hit with it since he knows where it is and how 2 use ie. and no loving parent would leave there 9 year old alone with sumthing they hate!
hey , im doing this poem as a projct at school and i need help on what the meaning is .I find this poem very touching and i really love it , but i really need help !!!!
poem
the poem makes me feel a little bit sad but its a cool poem i dont like the part where it said "the cat half way through was cracked like a nut" but in general the poem is a nice one. we were doing this poet in english.
We are doing this poem in our school. We are also writing a critical essay on it too. This poem is based on ANIMAL CRUELTY. The boy may have hated the cat and had been left alone but he ha NO reason at all to take this anger out on a little helpless cat. I was horrified when I read it. I didn't think twice for the little brat. He could have screamed into a pillow or punched one or something else. The boy was cruel.…
Read the whole commentWe are doing this poem in our school. We are also writing a critical essay on it too.
This poem is based on ANIMAL CRUELTY. The boy may have hated the cat and had been left alone but he ha NO reason at all to take this anger out on a little helpless cat. I was horrified when I read it. I didn't think twice for the little brat. He could have screamed into a pillow or punched one or something else.
The boy was cruel. He did not have any right to hurt the poor cat. As he is frightened and hates the cat he starts to see it as an enemy who is going to attack him if he turns his back on it. So he then hits the cat.
Don't feel sorry for the boy. What Scannell is trying to get through is Animal Cruelty. We are comparing "A Case of Murder" to "The Early Purges"
Brilliant messages in each poem. At least the boy regretted what he did unlike Dan Taggert. Depressing and sickening, but very well written. (:
english
hate poem