Group+6

[|Group 6 Int. Comm.-Dustin,Linda,Karen.docx] Stevie Smith (1902-1971) NOT WAVING BUT DROWNING 1957 Nobody heard him, the dead man, But still he lay moaning: I was much further out than you thought And not waving but drowning.

Poor chap, he always loved larking And now he’s dead It must have been too cold for him his heart gave way, They said.

Oh, no no no, it was too cold always (Still the dead one lay moaning) I was much too far out all my life And not waving but drowning.  DICTION- further out, waving, drowning, dead, too cold, heart. Denotation vs. Connotation. FUNCTION – Modern, everyday, simplistic language. · Connotation: “further out” – emotional detachment. · “waving” – a cry for help. · “drowning” – emotional despair. · “dead” – emotionally empty. · “too cold” – No relational or emotional connection. · “heart” – soul, spirit. Symbolism – drowning, dead FUNCTION – Symbolic of his emotional state; emotional despair/emptiness. Imagery – cold, waving, moaning FUNCTION – This allows us to experience what the dead man is feeling; isolation, being disconnected/misinterpreted/misunderstood/not heard. Repetition – moaning (2), drowning (2), dead (3), too cold (2) FUNCTION – Emphasizes motifs. Tone/Mood – somber/melancholy FUNCTION – This reinforces the theme of depression, isolation, melancholy, etc. Structural Organization – three quatrains, rhyming maintains flow, repetition, speakers include… (narrator, dead man, acquaintances). FUNCTION – 1st stanza: Introduces us to the situation. We, the reader, form an idea of the dead man’s point of view. 2nd stanza: Shift in perspective. We now experience the perception of the acquaintances. These views are inaccurate. 3rd stanza: Shift in perspective. This is when we perceive the reality of the dead man’s true emotional state of being and the error in the perceptions of the acquaintances. Form – free verse FUNCTION – To sound like regular speech.

Possible Prompt: Analyze how diction, imagery, structure, symbol, and selection of detail are used to characterize the dead man. Stevie Smith’s choice of words immediately helps to create an image that is stark, cold, and lonely. The dead man is moaning but nobody hears him. His efforts to communicate in the present, and quite possibly in the past, are never effective. The perception, from a myriad of acquaintances, is that the dead man, “always loved larking.” The reality, however, suggests something quite different. The dead man repeatedly states, “I was much further out than you thought…I was much too far out all my life.” The dead man was always misunderstood. In fact, he tells us that he was, “not waving but drowning.” This clearly symbolizes a cry for help that was never received. This led to a continued state of emotional emptiness and despair. While the acquaintances understood that the cold was too much for his heart, they neglected to perceive the true meaning of heart. His heart, or his soul, was ultimately what gave way to the cold emptiness of despair that led to his death.