Tissue

• Tissue in a nutshell

  Tissue is a poem about human power and fragility, written by Pakistan-born British poet Imtiaz Dharker and published in 2006. In the poem, the speaker uses tissue paper as an extended metaphor for life. It reveals the power of paper, and how it can be used to alter things or to record things. However, despite its power, it is still fragile, delicate and may not last, creating a sense of the fragility of human life.
• Tissue breakdown

  Lines 1-4

  “Paper that lets the light

  shine through, this

  is what could alter things.

  Paper thinned by age or touching.”

  Translation

  • The speaker is holding a thin sheet of paper in their hand
  • They are contemplating this simple material, and see a kind of power in it, as it “could alter things”
  • But paper deteriorates further with age or constant handling

  Dharker’s intention

  • The symbol of light is established straight away
  • It suggests knowledge, guidance and the divine
  • However, the use of light also suggests the fragility of the power of paper, as it is thin enough for light to pass through
  • Via the extended metaphor, the poet is suggesting that human life is also powerful but fragile
  • The thin paper represents old age
  • As we grow older, our skin also becomes thinner, but we also gain wisdom
• Lines 5-12

  “the kind you find in well-used books,

  the back of the Koran, where a hand

  has written in the names and histories,

  who was born to whom,”

  “the height and weight, who

  died where and how, on which sepia date,

  pages smoothed and stroked and turned

  transparent with attention.”

  Translation

  • Thinned and aged paper is the kind you find in a well-used book, such as the Koran, a religious text
  • At the back, someone has written the names, histories and details of people
  • The paper of the book has worn smooth, thin and transparent with years of handling
• Dharker’s intention

  • The poet is saying that paper may grow older and thinner, but it does not lose its importance
  • Paper is everywhere; it is history itself
  • Religious books are an example of paper with power over the way people act
  • sepia is the yellow-ish colour of old paper, and “sepia date” brings to mind birth and death certificates
  • Again, the poet is using paper as a metaphor for human skin, that is “smoothed and stroked” by the touch of another
• Lines 13-16

  “If buildings were paper, I might

  feel their drift, see how easily

  they fall away on a sigh, a shift

  in the direction of the wind.”

  Translation

  • The speaker invites us to imagine if buildings were made out of paper
  • Then they would be able to feel the way they sway in the wind, and watch them easily get caught up in the air of a sigh or a change in the wind’s direction

  Dharker’s intention

  • The poet is suggesting that buildings should be able to move and change, as humanity should be able to move, change and adapt
  • And just as easily, these things “fall away” as nothing that humanity builds is meant to outlast nature
• Lines 17-20

  “Maps too. The sun shines through

  their borderlines, the marks

  that rivers make, roads,

  railtracks, mountainfolds,”

  Translation

  • The speaker then gives the example of maps
  • When the sun shines through them, all of the borders, rivers, roads, railways and mountains become clear

  Dharker’s intention

  • The fact that the “sun shines through” these marks again highlights the overwhelming power of nature, which breaks through man’s markings and divisions
  • Even the most delicate of paper can record the most important things, such as national borders
  • The “marks” may also refer to the blemishes, marks, scars and wrinkles all visible on human skin and obtained throughout a life
• Lines 21-24

  “Fine slips from grocery shops

  that say how much was sold

  and what was paid by credit card

  might fly our lives like paper kites.”

  Translation

  • The speaker goes on to comment on receipts from shops
  • These tell a story about what people have bought, what they paid and how they paid
  • These bits of paper fly away from us like paper kites

  Dharker’s intention

  • The poet uses the metaphor of paper kites to criticise the significance humanity places on money and how it can rule our lives, especially if it is given too much power
  • Paper kites are flimsy and can easily break and tear
• Lines 21-33

  “An architect could use all this, 

  place layer over layer, luminous

  script over numbers over line,

  and never wish to build again with brick

  or block, but let the daylight break

  through capitals and monoliths,

  through the shapes that pride can make,

  find a way to trace a grand design

  with living tissue, raise a structure

  never meant to last,

  of paper smoothed and stroked

  and thinned to be transparent,

  turned into your skin.”

  Translation

  • An architect could make buildings out of layers of paper, which would shine with light and display their texts
  • In fact, that architect would probably never want to use bricks or concrete ever again
  • Better to use materials that allow the daylight to break through, such as living material
  • These would break through “capitals and monoliths”
  • Then the architect could build something not meant to last, but used and explored until it turns thin and transparent, like your skin
• Dharker’s intention

  • The overwhelming power of daylight is something that people can’t control
  • The poet could be commenting that the significance of human life will outlast the records we make of it on paper or in a building
  • Or she could be commenting on the pride of mankind to believe that these things are permanent when, in fact, human life is fragile and not everything can last
  • The “grand design” could refer to the way a life is built, each being unique in its own way but never meant to last
  • It could also be referencing the religious belief of God’s “grand design” and man being made in the image of God
  • The perfect image of God is traced with “living tissue” in the form of humankind
  • The poet is commenting on the different things in life that control us
  • Our lives are mapped out by the paper of religion, wealth, pride and money
• • Ultimately, life is a wonderful construction, but it is fleeting, like paper. We should not take it for granted
• Form

  The poem is written in the form of an ongoing monologue as an allegory for the impermanence of life. Dharker’s message is that we should not try so hard to have power and control over life as, ultimately, we cannot control it.

  
• Structure

  Dharker structures the poem into ten stanzas. The first nine are structured into unrhymed, irregular quatrains, but the final stanza consists of just one line. The lack of regular rhyme and rhythm reflect the flimsy and irregular nature of life, and the final line implies the need to break free from the control of human power.

  
• Structure: Tissue

  
• Language

  Dharker uses language to layer the extended metaphor of tissue as a representation of human life. She uses examples of the different uses of paper to demonstrate its power and importance, but also how it ultimately does not last. She explores the theme of power within religion, society and humanity, as well as the power of nature.

  
• Language: Tissue

  
• Language: Tissue

  
• Language: Tissue

  
• Language: Tissue

  
• Context: Conflict and power

  • Dharker was born in Pakistan, but grew up in Glasgow
  • Her poetry often concentrates on identity, home and explores the abuse of power
  • She presents the idea that humans do not have the right attitude to life
  • We see it as permanent and an opportunity to gain power
  • There is inherent conflict in the poem
  • Like the material we call tissue, the poem seems light and insubstantial, but holds an important message
  • Humanity makes its own conflict by holding on too tight to power and control
  • We create division and conflict between ourselves by insisting on following the instructions handed down to us
  • The poem written from the point of view of someone today looking at the conflict, troubles and politics in the world
  • The Koran, buildings, maps, grocery slips: these are all symbols of wider issues in the world
• • For example, religion, structures of power, divides in politics and culture, and the influence of money and wealth on society
  • The poet wonders what the world would be like if these things were more like tissue
  • We have ultimately built a world around these things, at odds with our own existence
• Given that Tissue explores ideas of the futility of human power, the following comparisons would be a good place to start:

  • Tissue and Ozymandias
  • Tissue and London
• Tissue and Ozymandias

  Comparison in a nutshell:

  Both Tissue and Ozymandias use extended metaphors to show the power and importance of time and nature, and that these things will ultimately outlast human power and its symbols.

  Similarities:

  
• Tissue and Ozymandias

  
• Tissue and Ozymandias

  
• Tissue and Ozymandias, Differences:

  
• Tissue and Ozymandias, Differences:

  
• Tissue and London

  Comparison in a nutshell:

  Both Tissue and London are critical of material wealth and the importance placed upon it, and explore the nature of power and its importance.

  Similarities:

  
• Tissue and London

  
• Tissue and London, Differences:

  
• Tissue and London, Differences: