Reciprocities Cathal Lagan

RECIPROCITIES – Cathal Lagan

[rec· i· pro·c i ties] “Voice of the Land” p. 6 -7; Annotations p. 151

1)

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT THE POET?

• He was born in 1937. (He is, thus, in his late 80s …)
• He grew up in Ireland.
• He has a varied background: he was a sailor, a priest, a

university lecturer (in English Literature) and a poet.

• He immigrated to SA and lives in the Eastern Cape.
• In this poem, he explores his memories of an event from his

childhood.

• This implies the incident described in the poem took place at his

home in Ireland, approximately in the 1940 - 1950s.

• He interprets this event from his perspective as an adult (a

memoir) and the poem evolves as an ode to his mother.

2) ANALYSIS OF THE TITLE: “RECIPROCITIES”

TITLE: (EXAM QUESTION) The title of the poem captures the essence of the poem.
Discuss your view.

[3]

• MEANING: to reciprocate = an action of returning kindnesses/favours/acts of support and/or love
• reciprocities = the noun; referring to actual kindnesses returned.
• CLASS DISCUSSION: Is the idea of ‘random acts of kindness’ valid in today’s society? What about

‘paying it forward’?

Do you know the meaning of the Latin (legal) term of ‘quid pro quo’?
• The title is PLURAL: more than one person is involved; more than one instance of kindness,

support and love is being returned.

• SUB-TITLE: indicates an ODE (a lyric poem containing respectful thoughts and writings on a

person) to his mother.

• In context:
LITERALLY - the young son helps the mother to wind her ball of wool;
with this wool, the mother will knit a jersey just for him, helping to keep him warm.
FIGURATIVELY – the mother teaches her young son life lessons based on her moral
values; the son will learn good life lessons, although he is unaware of this at his young age.
• The title implies a positive, supportive and loving relationship between the mother and son; one of

“give-and-take”.

LINE 1: “She gave me skeins of wool …”

• MEANING: (EXAM QUESTION) An ‘MCQ’ question to test the

meaning of this word … [1]

(ALSO TESTED AS ‘MATCHING COLUMNS’ [4])
• A “skein” = loops of wool (possibly from an old jersey, which has

been unraveled to re-use the wool for another, new jersey). The
loops must be rolled into a ball, for ease of knitting the new
garment.

CHARACTER: the mother is a frugal person, possibly also implying that the
speaker and his mother lived in difficult circumstances, even though re-using
wool was not uncommon at the time.
• The verb, “gave”, hints at a firm instruction from the mother to

the speaker.

(Class discussion: is ‘tough love’ harsh and cruel? What about the rights and choices of
the child?)
• Note the enjambmentinto line 2, linking with the idea of the

looping wool and the ongoing winding thereof …

LINE 2: ‘To hold out (like a priest at mass), …”

EXAM QUESTION: (a) Identify the figure of speech … [1]
SIMILE {NB: SPELL CORRECTLY!}
(b) Explain why the figure of speech is relevant in this poem. [2]

• The son’s straight arms, holding
the loops of wool, are compared …

= the son is giving his mother his
obedience and time, just as

Note the IRONY(and FORESHADOWING):
• the son is young and NOT an ordained priest

yet, BUT …

• … to the straight arms of a priest blessing his

congregation.

= a priest would give blessings to the
people in his church.

• … he will be later in life.
This illustrates the good moral foundations laid

by the mother.

LINES 3 – 4:
“ … stern …”
>>> tone: strict/firm

“… rubrics …” = METAPHOR
MEANING = a list of requirements/ a
programme of actions/a priest’s order of
mass, usually written in RED.
RELEVANCE =the mother’s tone and
instructions to her son are firm, just like
a priest has a set sequence to follow for
mass.
The mother does not only require her
son to help her, but to do so obediently
and quietly.
Discussion: is OBEDIENCE still relevant in
today’s education system?
And should modern parents expect their
children to be OBEDIENT?

“… while she wound it into a ball, …”
= the LITERAL action of turning the long
loops of wool from her son’s hands into a
functional ball. {+ ENJAMBMENT}
(NOTE: “wound” is past tense of “wind”.)
* CREATIVE PROCESS IS UNDERWAY …

CONTRAST

“… unwinding me …”
Meaning 1 (LITERAL) = unwinding the wool
loops from his hands into the ball
Meaning 2 (FIGURATIVE) = having a
calming/relaxing influence on her son. This
hints at a dream-like moodbeing created.

EXAM QUESTION: What is the speaker’s
STATE OF MIND in Stanza 1?[1]

Substantiate your answer. [2]

LINES 5 – 6: “Unravelling my hands and arms, checking
My lapses with a gentle tug …”

• MEANING: “unravelling” = pulling loose the loops of wool around the son’s

hands; rolling it into a ball.

• “my hands and arms” = synecdoche> the hands and arms represent

the son; implying that his mind wandering …

• MEANING: “checking” = keeping (her son’s behaviour) under her control.
• ENJAMBMENT: emphasises the ongoing and looping process of winding the wool;

here also the son’s ‘random’ thoughts.

• MEANING: “lapses” = breaks in the son’s concentration; he probably drops his

arms

• “gentle tug” = oxymoron > two contrasting words next to each

other: “tug” is when the mother pulls at the strand of wool,
bringing the son back to reality, but she does so in a kind
(“gentle”) manner.

LINES 7 – 8: “When I wandered off through images
Her chat had made, for though…”

• MEANING: “wandered off” = metaphor: as if the son is

‘walking away’, but in this context it refers to his mind thinking
of other things.

• MEANING: “through images” = metaphor: various

ideas/pictures form in the son’s mind. (This implies his creative
and poetic mindset …)

• ENJAMBMENT: emphasises the ongoing and looping process

of winding the wool; here also the son’s ‘random’ thoughts.

• Line 8: the mother is talking(“chat”) to her son in a comfortable

way: she acknowledges him as important and worthy; this is
good parenting!

• MEANING: “for though” (= ‘although’) implies that a

CONTRAST to the comfortable way in which his mother is
taking to him is to follow …

LINES 9 – 10: “She kept the line between us taut
She kept my heart at ease with all her talk.”

• MEANING: “taut” = tight, under her firm control
• This line has a LITERAL and FIGURATIVE meaning: (EXAM QUESTION:

[2])

• LITERAL: the mother keeps pulling the strand of wool tightly, so that it

does not become tangled, and she can roll it easily.

• FIGURATIVE: the mother communicates respectfully and lovingly with her

son; probably telling stories or sharing anecdotes which have educational
value, laying a moral foundation for her son.

• MEANING: “my heart at ease …” = he is feeling comfortable listening to

his mom’s chatting, as he finds it stimulating.

• NOTE the CONTRAST: IRONY > She has the situation (also her son’s

upbringing) firmly under control, BUT the boy does not feel unhappy or
threatened. (EXAM QUESTION: Explain the irony in lines 9 – 10. [2])

• PUNCTUATION: the full stop indicates the END of stanza 1; the end of the

first part of the process of “rolling the ball of wool”.

STANZA 2: THE END OF THE PROCESS OF ROLLING THE WOOL
NOTE THE ONGOING CONTRAST BETWEEN THE MOTHER AND THE SON …

NOTE: The conjunction, “And”, as 1st word of this stanza, links it to Stanza 1.
LINE 11: “And when her ball compacted grew
…

•The image is positive:
The mother’s ball of wool is
tight and large;
the process seems to have
been to her advantage.

LINE 12: “And my few strands fell limp away
…”

•The image is negative:
The son’s loops of wool have
grown fewer and are short and
“limp” – too short to pull tight
now.
It seems as if he has been
disadvantaged in the process.

LINES 13 – 14: the START and END of a SECOND process

LINE 13: “And I knew there was no loss,
for she …”

• MEANING: “knew” is a verb; it

implies the son has insight and
knowledge – he has probably
experienced this process before.

• He understands that he will

RECEIVE, and the time his mother
has spent with him will be to HIS
ADVANTAGE.

• He will not only have a new jersey

but has also received parental
guidance and has strengthened his
moral values.

LINE 14: “Would knit it back again

to fit me perfectly.”

• “knit it back again” implies that the

unraveling of the original jersey is
FUNCTIONAL and that the newly
created jersey will be BETTER, as
it will not be too small for the
speaker, but a “perfect” fit for the
growing young man.

• This line also implies that the

teachings and stories of the mother
evolve to suit the emotional and
spiritual needs of her maturing son.

• This is good parenting!

STANZAS 1 & 2 = “THEN”
= his childhood memory, in their home in Ireland
…
Because of the cold climate, the mother providing her son
with a newly knitted, warm and suitable jersey was a
symbol of her caring and motherly love. This extends to
her applying good parenting skills and instilling moral
values.
STANZA 3 = “NOW” (LINE 16|: “ …today …”)
• The reader supposes that:
• i) much time has passed, and the speaker is now an adult;
• Ii) he is probably living in SA, in the Eastern Cape;
• Iii) his mother had passed away, probably long since;
• Iv) Stanza 3 is an extended metaphor, comparing his CHILDHOOD MEMORY to

the POEM (the ode for his mother).

• EXAM QUESTION: SETTING [2] *WHERE? **WHAT HAPPENS AT THIS TIME?

LINE 15: “But richer still, …”

•NOTE: The conjunction, “But”,
implies IRONY:
•The speaker appreciates his
mother’s care and love during
his childhood, BUT as an
adult he understands that her
MEMORY is more worthy –
he sees it as making him
“richer” emotionally.

THEMES

•NOSTALGIA
•LOVE BETWEEN A
MOTHER AND CHILD
•APPRECIATION

Mo
m

LINES 16 – 17: (extended metaphor)
“I see today these lines are drawn out from me
To knit through this faltering verse …”

LINE 16
MEANING: “lines” = the verses in the
poem are compared to the line of
the wool;
MEANING: “drawn out” = the
speaker feels compelled (urged) to
write the ode to his mother, in the
same way his mother pulled the
loops of wool from his hands and
arms to wind into a ball.

LINE 17
• MEANING: “knit” = the creative

process of forming a strand of wool
into a jersey, is compared to the
forming (writing) of words into a
meaningful poem.

• MEANING: “faltering” = ‘falling

short; hesitating’ > the speaker
feels as if his poem is imperfect and
does not do justice to the mother –
unlike his jersey that fitted him
“perfectly”.

LINES 18 – 19: “A thread of memory
Time has pulled away from consciousness.”
ENJAMBMENT in this stanza: emphasises the flowing memory of his mother, which is still
with the speaker. It is compared to the strand of wool she used to knit his new jersey …

LINE 18

•The extended metaphor of
the “thread” compares the
strand of wool to his
memory and the honouring
of his mother, as written in
this poem.

LINE 19 (NOTE: “Time” = personification)
• The speaker implies that, as time has

passed, he has forgotten his childhood
memory a little. His memory has been
“pulled away”, just as the strand of wool
used to be pulled away from him.

• However, in writing this ode to his

mother, he has brought her
memory back and ‘knitted’ it into
his consciousness, and so
FINALLY ‘reciprocating’ her love.

STRUCTURE

•FREE VERSE: with the lyrical qualities of
personal feelings and emotions being
shared.
•RHYME: only in verses 3 & 4. The rhyming
words, “she” (line 3) and “me” (line 4),
emphasise the close bond between
mother and son.
•SPEAKER: First person, as the pronouns
“me” and “I”, together with the adjective
“my”, are used.
•CLASS DISCUSSION: does the writing of
this poem immortalize the speaker’s
mother?
•SOURCES: ‘Voice of the Land’ B. Walter;
‘Razorsharp’ R. Everson, http://eccapoets;
http://www.researchgate;