Climbing my grandfather

• Climbing My Grandfather


  A poem by Andrew Waterhouse that uses an extended metaphor of mountaineering to reflect a young boy's process of getting to know his grandfather
• Poem


  • Semi-autobiographical
  • From the perspective of someone recounting childhood memories
  • Uses an extended metaphor of mountaineering
• The poem is written in the present tense, which presents the speaker as an active character and involves the reader
• The speaker decides to climb his grandfather 'without a rope or net'


  Suggests an element of peril or risk in getting to know his grandfather, but also a level of familiarity and trust
• The speaker's process of climbing his grandfather


  1. Starts at the grandfather's shoes

  2. Comments on his shoes, hands, skin, nails

  3. Climbs up to his shoulders and reflects

  4. Climbs further to the top of his head and reflects on his 'good heart'
• Structure of the poem


  • Single, unbroken stanza
  • Enjambment used to reflect the changing direction and pace of the climb
• Extended metaphor of mountaineering


  • Suggests the speaker sees his grandfather as a monumental, complex figure
  • May represent the process of the speaker growing up and developing a deeper understanding of his grandfather
• Oxymoronic language


  Used to demonstrate the complex nature of memory and the relationship between the grandson and grandfather