Thirteen by Caleb Femi

• "Thirteen"

  • Linking to the age of the subject
  • Reminds readers how young he is, and of the injustice of the situation
• "You will be"

  • Second person narration
  • implies that this could happen to anyone
• "four minutes from home"

  • connotes the idea of being "so close, yet so far" from the safety of home
• "cornered by an officer"

  • violent imagery
  • contrasts the idea that some might have of police being trustworthy
• "four ... home ... cornered ... officer ... forty"

  • assonance
  • repetition of the "o" sound
  • indicates shock
  • emphasises the unexpected nature of the situation
• "Thirteen, you'll tell him: you're thirteen."

  • Conversational language
  • sounds more real
  • reinforcing the idea that this could happen to anyone
  • Repetition
  • repeating the subject's age and reinforcing how unfair this situation is
• "being little stars"

  • figurative language
  • the first instance of space imagery
• "supernovas / the biggest and brightest stars"

  • space imagery
  • plosive aliteration
  • harsh sound
  • conveys the fear that the speaker is feeling
• "praying he remembers the heat of your supernova"

  • space imagery
  • "praying"
  • scared tone
  • could link to the idea of "prey" - the child is being attacked by the officers
• "powerless - plump"

  • plosives
  • harsh imagery
  • could convey fear or anger
  • cesura
  • slows down the pace
  • suggests that the interaction happens painfully slowly for the child
  • makes the situation uncomfortable
• "You will watch the two men cast lots for your organs."

  • assonance
  • more "o" sound, conveying surprise or fear
  • figurative language
  • suggesting that the child feels like he's about to be killed
  • reinforcing the danger that he's in
• "Don't you remember me?"

  • dialogue
  • implication of losing childhood innocence
• "fear condenses on your lips"

  • metaphor
  • emphasises how scared the child is
• "dying stars / on the verge of becoming black holes."

  • the subject is on the verge of growing up
  • implication that this could happen more
  • plosives
  • fear
  • "becoming black holes"
  • metaphor for how he's feeling
  • implication of hope being crushed - black holes implode
  • suggests a loss of hope or faith in the police
• Structure

  • Four stanzas
  • No rhythm or rhyme sheme - free verse
  • Irregular structure
• Irregular structure

  • represents the irregularity of the situation
  • the subject doesn't have any control over what's happening to him, and there is little control over the structure
• Language gradually gets more negative through the stanzas

  laugh -> smile -> warmth -> fear