For example, the line 'i want to go home,' which ends with a comma, forces the reader to take a short pause, reminding us of the importance of having a home to return to.Īnalyze the use of imagery in 'Home' by Warsan Shire. The occasional use of punctuation makes the moments where it appears even more powerful and poignant.
The speaker addresses 'you'-this 'you' could be interpreted as the individual reader of the poem or a generic address to the Western world, whose political leaders have been criticized for lack of action over the refugee crisis. It also suggests a hurried approach to writing the poem, almost as if the speaker is worried that they might run out of time to tell their story and so chooses to ignore grammar rules. This is because children normally focus on what goes on and this poem is largely concerned with description. The absence of capital letters gives us the impression that it is written by a child or in the voice of childhood. This irregularity mirrors the stark, unpredictable aspect of life as a refugee. 'Home' is written in stanzas of irregular lengths at points, sentences stretch across many lines and even stanzas. How does the form of 'Home' reflect its content? For this reason, the personal journey that refugees undertake to escape zones of famine, drought, natural disaster or conflict is a political journey at the same time, seeing as it raises questions about belonging and status in the host country. Whilst the plight of the refugee is a very personal thing, the idea of being a refugee crosses legal, political and socio-economic frameworks. Considering this history, it can be argued that Shire's poem takes up this mantra. The saying "the personal is political" originated in the feminist movement of the late 20th century, as campaigners made the case that women's rights and freedoms-such as access to abortion and contraception-were political and went beyond the individual woman to involve all of society.
Do you agree that 'Home' by Warsan Shire is a poem that is evidence of the mantra "the personal is political"?
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