Mother Any Distance

• Mother Any Distance


  A poem by Simon Armitage reflecting on the connection between a son and his mother as the son moves into a new house
• Mother Any Distance


  • Mother / child
  • Familial
• Mother Any Distance is not very specific in its time or setting, emphasised by the present tense narrative
• Juxtaposition


  Comparing two concepts, characters, or clauses, in close proximity in a passage for the effect of contrast
• The title "Mother Any Distance" suggests the poem will explore the relationship between a mother and child, and the distance between them
• The poem is from the perspective of a son who is moving into a new home and has asked his mother for help measuring the house
• Structure of Mother Any Distance

  • - Loosely based on the format of a sonnet
  • Uneven rhyming structure
  • Uses enjambment between many lines
• Addressing the mother as "mother"

  Suggests the speaker is trying to mature and place distance between him and his mother
• The addresses "you" and "me" are physically separated but suggest the reliance the son has on his mother
• "Mother"

  He addresses her directly. The poem is like a personal message to her.
• "Distance", "acres", "zero-end", "length", "metres", "centimetres", "unreeling", "between us", "pace-walk", "two floors below", "one-hundredth of an inch", "reach" and "endless sky"

  There is a semantic field of measuring/distance words.
• "any distance greater than a single span requires a second pair of hands"

  A single span is the distance between his outstretched hands - he needs two people to measure anything larger than this. It is a small distance which suggests that his mothers support is still important to him.
• "doors" and "floors"

  Doors and floors rhyme but hands and span is only a half rhyme - this shows the dislocation between him and his mother.
• "The acres of the walls, the prairies of the floors"

  Metaphors and hyperboles create images of the vast, open spaces - this hints at adventure and exploration, but also suggest that he feels daunted.
• "Anchor. Kite."

  He is a kite starting to fly, but his anchor mother still keeps him secure. These two one-word sentences slow down the pace of the poem, suggesting that he feels apprehensive and thoughtful.
• "I space-walk through the empty bedrooms"

  Space metaphor reflects how he feels that being on his own is an exciting adventure, but it is also scary. It emphasises that this is a new experience for him.
• "Breaking point, where something has to give"

  The relationship needs to change. He is trying to move away and she is trying to hold on.
• "Your fingertips still pinch the last one-hundredth of an inch..."

  The use of the word pinch suggests how desperately she doesn't want to let him go. However, it also suggests pain - if she doesn't let him go, she'll hurt him.
• "Endless sky"

  He feels there is no limit to the opportunities open to him - they can't be measured like the walls. His tone is optimistic, in contrast to the uncertainty of the final line.
• "I reach towards a hatch that opens on an endless sky before or fly."

  Bird imagery suggests hatching and flying the nest - he is breaking free of his mothers protection, but doesn't know if he will succeed without her security. The two short lines has to fly and to fall or fly emphasise this message.