Analysis of Tony Harrison's poem Book Ends, from The School of eloquence. Harrison's exploration of memories of difficult family relationships.

Throughout the School of Eloquence, Harrison’s sonnets explore his continuing love and loyalty towards his parents alongside a sense of conflict. He uses memories in order to show that his family relationships were difficult “he dubbed me Pagininny” in An Old Score, Harrison demonstrates his father’s sarcasm towards his work.  Harrison feels alienated from his parents, in Book Ends, he admits that his relationship with his father was difficult “we never could talk much”. He also remembers that his Mother said “You’re like book ends, the pair of you” implying that despite their difficult relationship there were similarities between them. The reader can see that the relationship between Harrison and his parents is more difficult than Harrison wishes it to be, primarily since many of his poems continually explore the theme. Nevertheless, Harrison loves his parents, for example in v. when he mourns for them and takes offence when their grave is marred. v. is a direct allusion to Gray’s Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard as it is written in identical metre and concluded with the poets own epitaph.

In Book Ends Harrison raises memories through his use of allusions, showing that he felt divided from his father after his Mother’s death,  and also explores the division between himself and his parents before this transpired. He suggests by his use of repetition that the separation between himself and his father is that of the “books, books, books” of Harrison’s grammar school education and later on in his career as a poet. Many of Harrison’s poems explore the idea that he was divided from his parents by the education that he received (winning one of only six scholarships to Leeds grammar school) for example in Confessional Poetry when Harrison discusses the war of taunts caused because of the manner of his eloquent speech “your father comes across as mean”.  Book Ends is an extended metaphor which highlights Harrison’s distant relationship with his father as it shows that although they are similar they are far apart. Harrison’s mother acknowledges that both father and son have similarities for example “Hog that grate, say nothing, sit, sleep, stare …” which would clearly make them a pair, like bookends.

The reference to 'books, books, books' at the end of the first sonnet maintains that they are different, and also relates to the function of Book Ends, as a pair. Harrison is described as “the ‘scholar'” in Book Ends and his love of literature and academia despite not having his parent’s full approval is explored in A Good Read where he receives one of his father’s “you-stuck-up-bugger looks” and he says “ah sometimes think you read too many books./Ah nivver ‘ad much time for a good read.” showing that it is what books represent that cause a division between them. In Book Ends Harrison uses the form of the two separate sixteen-line sonnets, and the extended metaphor of bookends to show this division. He also uses chiasmus in “the ‘scholar’ me, you, worn out on poor pay” this implies that Harrison being a “‘scholar’” is what causes the separation. Inverted commas are used to suggest that Harrison is being sarcastic and somewhat tongue in cheek about his educational prowess which adds a sense of irony to their dissimilarity.

Alienation from his parent’s leads to Harrison’s sense of guilt, betrayal of love and of unfulfilled duty to his parents and is shown when Harrison explores memories of difficult relationships. This guilt is linked to the italicised phrase in Book Ends where Harrison berates himself “you’re supposed to be the bright boy at description/ and you can’t tell them what the fuck to put!” Guilt is shown through the sensitivity revealed when Harrison comments “Your life's all shattered to smithereens.” Book Ends I has a strict structure; it is structured into two line rhyming couplets emphasising Harrison and his father as a pair, and is written in iambic pentameter like the other poems in the School of Eloquence. The two sonnets represent the bookends of her death, Book Ends I is the day of her death and Book Ends II the writing of the epitaph for the final farewell. The sonnets are linked as they are both written in the same meter and use the same imagery of father and son sharing a drink. Books Ends II although more relaxed, uses the same rhyme scheme as Book Ends I. This relaxed tone could illustrate the time between her death and the erection of the stone.  Harrison also acknowledges his guilt through memories in Breaking the Chain, implying that he was a disappointment to his parents by becoming a wordsmith instead of working in the “drawing office”. Harrison shows this difficult memory by reminiscing “can’t bear to part with these never passed on, never used, dividers” and “looking at it now still breaks my heart!”

The connection that Harrison has with his father is the love that both have for his mother. In Book Ends I they are united in their grief “Shocked into sleeplessness you’re scared of bed” here, sibilance is used in order to emphasise the shock. They are both rendered wordless by this shock “We never could talk much, and now don’t try”; they used to find it difficult to talk, now there is nothing left for them to talk about, no common love. The pair are emotionally divided; Harrison shows they are connected through the use of imagery in eating 'that last apple pie' which Harrison's mother had “Baked the day she suddenly dropped dead”, again it is Harrison’s mother uniting the pair even after death. The “apple pie” is also used as a symbol of  typical family life, which has now been lost. Harrison recognises that in life, and in death, his mother joins them, “A night you need my company to pass/ and she not here to tell us we're alike!”

Harrison explores the memory of his difficult relationship was with his father because of what he perceives to be his father’s limited education in Book Ends.  Harrison’s preoccupation with family relationships stems from his difficulty in coming from a working class background and “his hunger for all modes of articulation”. This is shown in Heredity the epigraph to the School of Eloquence when he describes his uncles “one was a stammerer, the other dumb.” and claims that he doesn’t know where he gets his “talent from”.  When it comes to writing the epitaph for Harrison’s mother’s stone this “talent” deserts him. The thoughts written in italics show frustration “you’re supposed to be the bright boy at description/ and you can’t tell them what the fuck to put”, Harrison uses an obscenity -“fuck” to emphasise his feeling of uselessness. He cannot better his father’s efforts which he describes as, “miss-spelt, mawkish, stylistically appalling” Harrison uses a tri-colon here to highlight how inarticulate his father is. He’s critical of his father’s inarticulacies but realises that he couldn't have done better, he couldn’t “squeeze more love into their stone” However, he is excluding himself from his family calling it “their” stone as opposed to “our” stone.

Book Ends captures the sense of heartache and frustration between Harrison and his father and also the tremendous love the men have for the same woman, who keeps the 'Book Ends' together. Through writing Book Ends Harrison acknowledges all that his mother has done for him, using his memories to allow her to live on after death. He uses direct speech, written in her dialect and using her expressions “Hog that grate, say nothing, sit, sleep, stare …”  in order that she should be remembered. This method is used in Bringing Up when Harrison quotes his mother’s voice “You weren’t brought up to write such mucky books!”  He doesn’t agree with the idea that he is like his father, yet he expects these comments from his mother, accepts them, and ultimately respects them enough to quote her directly.

In conclusion Harrison explores memories of difficult family relationships throughout the School of Eloquence. He does this to emphasise how important his family and his background is to him and how it has shaped his poems. Without the difficult family relationships that Harrison experienced his poetry and in particular Book Ends wouldn’t have such a specific and thought provoking impact on the reader.

Bibliography

Book Ends by Tony Harrison

An Old Score by Tony Harrison

Confessional Poetry by Tony Harrison

A Good Read by Tony Harrison

Breaking the Chain by Tony Harrison

Heredity by Tony Harrison

Bringing Up by Tony Harrison