Compare The Language Used to Present The Attitudes of The Speakers in The Poems &Lsquo;kid’ And &Lsquo;my Father Thought It Bloody Queer’

In the poem ‘Kid’, Simon Armitage uses language about loneliness, bitterness and sarcasm to show the speaker’s feelings of anger and antipathy. This is different to the poem ‘My father thought it bloody queer’ as Armitage uses descriptive and painful language to illustrate the speaker’s attitude of regret and amusement. Although, there is a similarity in that both poems are about relationships and getting older.  

          Armitage uses language about loneliness to express the speaker’s own loneliness at the beginning of the poem ‘Kid’, ‘wild blue yonder’. This is a phrase of lonely language used to show Robin as timorous and in solitude. Towards the end of the poem Armitage again uses language about loneliness but instead to show Robin’s attitude of pleasure and happiness in seeing Batman deserted and on his own, ‘punching his palm all winter’. A phrase showing the boredom and dullness that Batman is in. Harsh language is used when Robin shows his anger at Batman leaving him, ‘ditched me….in the gutter’. This type of language is used to express this bitterness, ‘ditched’. The poet uses many clichés to demonstrate Robin’s attitude of defiance, ‘I’m not playing ball boy any longer Batman, I’ve doffed that off-the-shoulder’. This shows how Robin used to do exactly as Batman told him but now feels he wants to lead his own life, be free. These clichés are commonly used phrases which link into one another giving more emphasis on the speaker’s defiance. This leads into Armitage using empathetic language to show the speaker’s attitude of pride as he feels he has grown up, ‘a pair of jeans and crew-neck jumper’, ‘taller, harder, stronger, older’. This shows how he feels that he has changed from a sidekick to a grown man. The reference to the ‘jeans’ and normal clothing helps the poet to convey the attitude of pride to the reader as they understand the feeling themselves as they are normal citizens just like what Robin is becoming, rather than being a superhero. Bitter and sarcastic language is used to illustrate Robin’s annoyance to everyone thinking that Batman is great. Again this type of language also shows the speaker’s attitude of pride when he sarcastically mocks Batman, ‘you baby, now I’m the real boy wonder’.