s were harsh. The reference to a well-known fairytale increases the reader's ability to relate to the situation and creates a more vivid scenario.
In the third stanza, the line "You cannot understand, not yet" demonstrates that the child does not acknowledge the fact that his father is teaching him a lesson. The father seems very guilt struck and at fault that he had to take such measures to teach a lesson, "The hurt your easy tears can scald him with." The boy does not realize the pain his display of sadness causes his father, who obviously takes no pleasure in making his son cry. The father seems to regret his actions however stays firm to teach the lesson, "Longs to lift you, curb your sadness." The alliteration of "l" emphasizes the longing however the father stays strong to ensure his son is raised with the correct values.
The last stanza implies the little boy has been playing in the rain, "you must not make a plaything of the rain." This line has several meanings such as the immorality of trying to get sympathy by crying. On another level, it could be the father instructing himself to take his lessons more seriously and his need stay firm to show discipline.
Isobel Dixon also uses powerful imagery and language to convey her messages. The title itself contrasts with nearly the entirety of the poem as poverty has placed them far away from "Plenty". Isobel Dixon creates an intense mood using vivid description early on in the poem.
In the first stanza the reader is introduced to Dixon's memory of an "enamel tub, age-stained and pocked upon its griffin claws, never full." Such an image conveys the impression that that the family cannot afford proper equipment such as a bathtub and is unable to fill it with water as it is too costly and in short supply.
Water is recognized as a representation of their deprivation from basic necessities in the ongoing "expanse of drought where dams leaked dry and windmills stalled." The alliteration of "d" in the phrase "drought where dams leaked dry," enhances the effectiveness of the image created by making them more prominent in the description.
The stalled windmills are subsequently compared with the mother's smile, "Like mommy's smile." This infers that her smile has stalled. Dixon uses metaphors to describe her mother's frown, "a clasp to keep us all from chaos." The metaphor is used to create a more vivid image of the mother's efforts to keep the family together. Additionally, the onomatopoeia of the word clasp creates a more powerful picture.
Many cases of sibilance are found in the phrase "she saw it always, snapping locks and straps, the spilling: sums and worries, shopping lists..." The ongoing repetition of the consonant "s" creates an almost explosive ringing.
The poet uses contradictory phrases to exaggerate their meaning in the oxymoron, "each month was weeks too long." A month is always an exact number of weeks long; however Dixon implies that they never had enough money to cover an entire month's worth of spending.
In the penultimate stanza, when describing the present, Dixon uses enjambment in the line "water's plentiful, to excess, almost, here./" This creates a slower progression in the poem and exemplifies how she is disregarding all her previous worries about taking "another precious of water."
"Little Boy Crying," is written from the voice
