Morris Cut_practice commentary task

Guiding question

Explore how the writer uses sequences of images in tandem with the title in order to create meaning.

Sylvia Plath uses sequences of images in tandem with the title in order to create meaning.

Right from the start of the poem, it says “What a thrill -My thumb instead of an onion. The top quite gone Except for a sort of hinge Of skin, A flap like a hat,”. This already pictures the scene of her cutting herself as she compares her thumb to an onion saying her thumb instead of an onion and a flap of skin striking out. With the image established and the title, there is a sense of a correlation between the two. What also stands out is her saying “What a thrill” This already shows something is wrong as she enjoys the cut which is not a normal thing for humans.

From here on she goes on to describe the feeling after she has been cut. For example she “I step on it, Clutching my bottle Of pink fizz. A celebration, this is. Out of a gap, A million soldiers run, Redcoats, everyone.

The examples she says like “What a thrill” or “A celebration, this is” shows that there is something different about this cut for her. In general, when getting a cut you rush for a plaster or clean it underwater but in this case, she is intrigued. She creates images of blood by saying “Out of a gap, A million soldiers run, Redcoats, everyone.”

Sylvia Plath uses imagery through descriptive language use and making links to describe her cuts. This is done throughout the poem “Cut” to create meaning of her cut instead of it being a regular cut as she sees more in it.