Analysis of 'Child of Our Time'

Overview of 'Child of Our Time'

• Written by Eavan Boland, inspired by the 1974 Dublin and Monaghan car bombings.
• Triggered by a photograph of a fireman carrying a child from the wreckage.
• Reflects personal grief and a broader societal commentary on violence.
• Dedicated to Aengus, a child who died from cot death during the same period.

Structure and Form

• Composed of three stanzas, each a sestet (six lines).
• Functions as a lament or elegy, with a mournful tone.
• Employs both full rhyme and slant rhyme, enhancing auditory experience and emphasizing discord.
• Utilizes shifting rhyme structures to mirror societal chaos.

Title Significance

• The word ‘child’ signifies innocence and wider familial connection.
• ‘Of Our Time’ implicates all of society in the shared responsibility for violence.
• Suggests timeless relevance beyond the specific events of 1974.

Key Themes

• Innocence of children contrasted with societal violence.
• Criminal neglect by society towards its most vulnerable.
• Unearthly events leading to unnatural death and loss.
• Collective moral responsibility and condemnation of societal failures.

Stylistic Elements

• Precise and evocative language choice enhances emotional impact.
• Rich imagery linked to childhood, underscoring tragedy of loss.
• Repetition techniques such as anaphora and anadiplosis promote urgency and reflection.

Stanza Analysis

First Stanza

• Opens with a personal reflection on lullabies, indicating a newfound urgency post-tragedy.
• Juxtaposes the child's final cry with the concept of 'murder,' denoting senseless death.
• Creates discord through antithetical statements, emphasizing the horror of violence.

Second Stanza

• Shift from personal to collective responsibility using the pronoun ‘we.’
• Expresses moral outrage at societal failures in protecting children.
• Uses imagery of childhood comforts (e.g., rhymes, tales) to highlight the loss of safety.
• Conveys a bleak reality where language fails to provide solace or solutions to violence.

Third Stanza

• Emphasizes the need for action to rebuild and heal ‘broken images’ of society.
• Calls for recognition of responsibility for the child's death.
• The phrase “our times have robbed your cradle” signifies societal loss of innocence.
• Ends with a haunting wish for peace for the child in a safer world.

Overall Impact

• Boland’s poem serves both as a personal lament and a critical social commentary.
• Raises questions about communal morality and the cost of violence.
• Its language and structure work together to evoke profound sadness and a call for change.

Explore the poignant themes and context of Eavan Boland's poem 'Child of Our Time'. Set against the turmoil of The Troubles, Boland reflects on the tragic loss of life from the Dublin and Monaghan bombings through a haunting narrative. Join us in analyzing this powerful piece of literature that captures both sorrow and resilience.