To My Nine-Year-Old Self

• Themes

  • Joy
  • Innocence
  • Childhood
  • Nostalgia
• "You would rather run than walk, rather climb than run, rather leap from a height than anything"


  • A neat triplet of clauses, leading to an emphatic end-stop to the stanza. The adult poet is not under any illusion. It also emphasises the impatience of the child.
  • They are syntactic parallels, grammatically similar, to create rhythm and balance.
• "I have spoiled this body we once shared"

  • She blames herself for having ‘spoiled’ her body, a note of regret that she, perhaps, didn’t take sufficient care of herself.
  • The word ‘spoiled’ could also be ambiguous, meaning being over-indulgent as adults may be to a child.
  • The focus on the body is notable, as it is really the only link between the two of them- the two separate selves are only tenuously linked.
  • The use of ‘we’ shows she is talking about the same person; herself. It helps emphasise the juxtaposition of young and old, how different and alienated the two lives are.
• "could your morning"


  • The is a metaphor for the reality that represents childhood hope, and doesn’t wish to spoil the innocence.
  • She is trying to preserve these beautiful memories. ‘Cloud your morning’ is in contrast to the ‘summer morning’ referred to earlier.
• "slowly peeling a ripe scab from your knee to taste it on your tongue"


  • Complex metaphor - the curiosity of children extends even to wounds; scabs caused by falls, with sometimes repulsive results. Children don’t respond in the way adults do.
  • adverb ‘slowly’, which may indicate that the older speaker wants younger self to savour her childhood, even the painful parts.
  • The child is curious, so wishes to ‘taste’ it, as she will taste the future. playing with a scab is something typical of children. The injury represents future flawed life; the first ‘injury’ of adulthood.
• Structure


  • The rhythm of the poem is immediately broken, with a caesura after “forgive me”. This creates a reflective tone, hinting to the subject matter having negative elements - linking to betrayal.
  • The frequency of commas, and breaks in the rhythm throughout the poem, adds layers of emotion, and pauses acts as moments of reflection and contemplation.
  • Another notable use of punctuation is the question at the end of stanza two. This is the only question mark in the poem, helping to place emphasis on the extent of differences between the narrator as a child and in the present.
• Structure pt 2


  • There is also a transition in the poem in terms of how changes between stanzas occur. Initially there are complete end-stopped lines with full stops and question marks, however as the poem continues this changes to commas and hyphens.
  • These punctuation devices enable a more constant flow of speech with less separation, enhancing the narrator’s growing emotion and lack of clarity in this ‘letter’ as they become more consumed by memories and nostalgia.
• Techniques


  • The frequent use of pronouns helps to ensure the personal tone throughout the poem, with the mix of “I” “we” and “you” giving the impression that the narrator is increasingly being caught up in the past, and is now mixing these experiences as if they are occurring simultaneously for both themselves now and when they were younger.
  • Very emotive because it provides a clear demonstration of the very strong nostalgia for the innocence and freedom of childhood - could also show the separation between the two
• Techniques


  • Imagery - repeated imagery of summertime, evoking happy memories due to freedom from school and responsibility, and greater opportunity for fun
  • It also connects to positive connotations of happiness, life and energy, which suggests that the narrator feels they now lack these qualities in their adult life.
  • However, there is the contrasting imagery of “scars” which links to the lasting impressions of events and memories, but with a surprisingly negative tone which helps to make it more memorable