Walking Away

• like a satellite wrenched from its orbit

  • simile
  • space imagery
  • unnatural, not being centre to the child
  • "wrenched" - aggressive, sudden
• it is eighteen years ago, almost to the day

  • reflecting upon a memory (in the past. MAD is set in the present)
• with the pathos of a half-fledged thing set free into a wilderness

  • bird imagery
  • "half-fledged" not quite ready to leave yet, unprepared. dangerous
  • "pathos" evokes pity + sadness
• that hesitant figure, eddying away

  like a winged seed loosened from its parent stem

  • simile
  • memory of child gaining independence
  • seed needs to separate from parent - natural
  • "loosened" - gentle, contrasts "wrenched"
• Summary: A father reflects on a memory 18 years prior when his child played his first game of football. He realised that his son is starting to grow up
• Walking Away - Concepts:

  • parent experiences fear and apprehension about becoming less important + giving child more freedom [less safety]
  • growing up is different for parents and children. parents find it painful whilst children enjoy it
  • growing up is inevitable so we must accept it
  • love is not just physical - the memory proves a strong bond between them
• gnaws at my mind still

  • 18 years later the father is still thinking about it - memory has a lasting effect
  • use as a quote to back up argument