Structure - The Emigree

• What tone and meaning are created by the opening line “There once was a country” and the use of ellipsis in The Emigree?

  The line creates a fantastical tone, showing the place is a memory, not a reality. It reflects the romanticised, idealised view of the past shaped by youthful innocence. The ellipsis creates a pause that shows the narrator hesitating, which suggests the memory may be unreliable or fragmented.
• What does the title The Emigree and the phrase “sunlight-clear” reveal about identity and memory in the poem?

  The title contrasts the English “the” with the French “Emigree,” highlighting the speaker’s conflicted identity between two cultures. The phrase “sunlight-clear” shows the memory is bright and idealised, symbolising the speaker’s emotional attachment despite the harsh reality of war and tyranny.
• What does the 8-line stanza structure in the first two stanzas of The Emigree reveal about the speaker’s mindset?

  The consistent 8-line stanzas suggest the speaker is trying to create a sense of control and order over the chaotic and painful memories of her home, reflecting her attempt to make sense of her past.
• Why is the final stanza in The Emigree longer with 9 lines, and what does this show?

  The longer final stanza (9 lines) reveals the speaker’s resistance to leaving her city behind. It highlights her strong emotional attachment and how her feelings become more complex and harder to contain as the poem ends.
• How does the structure of the final stanza in The Emigree reflect the speaker’s emotional state and themes of identity?

  The final stanza may describe the narrator’s new city, contrasting her idealised memory. Rumens uses enjambment in “Through the city // Of walls”, separating “of walls” to isolate the word and create connotations of entrapment or division, reflecting how borders restrict identity and freedom.The use of caesura and free verse disrupts rhythm, evoking chaos, but this disordered form can also symbolise liberation, showing the speaker’s resistance to confinement and the fluidity of memory and identity.