Imagery and metaphors

In this section, we will give you some points you can use when you analyse the poem “The Past” by Oodgeroo Noonuccal for imagery and metaphors and other figures of speech.

Contrast

The author creates contrast between the past and the present in several ways, but it is clear that, for the poet, the present is not as ideal as the past is.

The present is defined by artificial comfort, implied by the chair which feels “easy” (l. 8) or “deep” (l. 21) and the fire which casts a “red glow” (l.9).

By contrast, the past was all about living in harmony with nature. It was a time of music made by the trees, of freedom and grounding:

“My own people, sitting on the ground,
No walls about me,
The stars over me,
The tall surrounding trees that stir in the wind
Making their own music,” (ll. 12-16)

Metaphors

While the poet resorts more to symbols than metaphors, we can still identify some metaphorical elements. For instance, the absence of walls can fu...