Essay About Instructions by Neil Gaiman

📌Category: Poems
📌Words: 515
📌Pages: 2
📌Published: 12 June 2022

The best thing about a poem is the atmosphere. The poem 'Instructions' by Neil Gaiman uses many different techniques to keep the reader hooked by creating a clear fairytale-like atmosphere for the reader. When I read this poem, I got hooked straight away. Neil Gaiman used different techniques to make a massive difference in the poem. The poem had a nice rhythm which made it feel like you were taking on the adventure rather than being a character in the poem. The poem starts with an imperative statement. This idea is the starting hook in the story, which begins to form that atmosphere that Neil Gaiman has made for the reader. Then, the poet uses lists to give us warnings on how to survive this adventure. And finally, the most crucial part of the poem is the repetition, which gives us the flow when reading the poem.

Firstly, I'd like to talk about imperatives; they are verbs used to give orders, commands, warnings, or instructions. Neil Gaiman starts the poem with an imperative statement, which is a command. This command instantly makes the reader get hooked on the poem. Nevertheless, Neil Gaiman is starting to form an atmosphere here. The poet starts to make you understand that this poem is different from other fairy tales and that you are the character in the poem. You can imagine that you're going through the steps that the poet is giving you. It creates an atmosphere where you're going through an adventure and you are following a map. One example of an imperative in the story is "Say "please" before you open the latch." This is used in the first verse; I could feel the atmosphere as soon as I finished reading the first verse. It felt like an adventurous and mysterious fairytale that I was the character in. If I had closed my eyes, I could have imagined the setting, and I could have linked them to other fairy tales. The imperatives made me feel like someone else was in control and that I needed to just relax and continue reading the poem to get to the endpoint and finish the journey.

 

My second point is how the poet uses lists. There was one part of the poem which stood out the most to me; I think that it's used widely in poems. But only a few talk about things that use one verb in all the lists; For example, "Ride the wise eagle (you shall not fall). Ride the silverfish (you will not drown). Ride the grey wolf (hold tightly to his fur)." They all use the word ride and they all give you warnings, which I like. Also, this makes it seem more like a fairytale because you wouldn't ride an eagle. Neil Gaiman is also using that list to describe the minor characters in the story by using the words wise, silver, grey. This effect helps you be able to see the characters in your mind and have a little yet unclear description about them. 

Lastly, I'd like to talk about the repetition used in the poem to create a few effects in the poem. For example the flow and rhyme, which has a big effect on the way we read the poem and how it sounds when you read it out loud.

+
x
Remember! This is just a sample.

You can order a custom paper by our expert writers

Order now
By clicking “Receive Essay”, you agree to our Terms of service and Privacy statement. We will occasionally send you account related emails.