Poison Talk

By Raymond Wilson
 The Author

• Raymond Wilson Chambers was a British literary scholar, author, and academic
• Working with University College London (UCL)
• born on 20 December 1925 and passed away on 21 March 1995
• He was a prolific short story and poetry writer
 What it means? Stanza 1
Line
• Who killed cock robin?
• I, said the worm
• I did him great harm.
• He died on the branch of a withered tree
• From the acid soil that poisoned me.
Meaning
• The person wanted to know who killed the
cock robin (a male bird)
• The worm admitted that it killed the bird in a
cruel way
• The robin died on a tree that was weak and
dying
• The acid soil was toxic and the worm was
affected. The bird was affected too after
eating the worm.
 Stanza 2
Line
• Who killed the heron?
• I, mouthed the fish,
• With my tainted flesh
• I killed tern, duck and drake,
• All the birds of the lake
Meaning
• The person wanted to know who killed
the heron (a bird that feeds on fish)
• The fish confessed that it killed the
bird because the fish was already
poisoned or polluted.
• In fact, the birds that fed on the fish in
the lake died because of the poisoned
flesh of the fish.
 Stanza 3
Line
• Who killed the lake?
• I, boasted Industry,
• I poisoned with mercury
• Fish, plant and weed
• To pamper men’s greed
Meaning
• The person wanted to know who
killed/destroyed the lake
• The lake was destroyed by the industry
around it
• This toxic waste killed the fish, plant and
weed in the lake
• To please people who were greedy and
selfish, not caring about the environment.
 Stanza 4
Line
• Who killed the flowers?
• I, moaned the wind,
• I prowled unconfined,
• Blowing acid rain
• Over field, flood and fen
Meaning
• The person wanted to know who
killed/destroyed the flowers
• The wind sadly admitted that it blew acid
rain all over the place, without any control
• Acid rain destroyed the plants and trees,
affected the water and wetland too.
 Stanza 5
Line
• Who killed the forest?
• I ensured that it died,
• Said sulphur dioxide
• And all life within it,
• From earthworm to linnet.
Meaning
• The person wanted to know who
killed/destroyed the forest
• The forest was destroyed by gas or liquid
from the industrial processes and the
burning of coal & petroleum. It dissolves
in water to form acid.
• Sulphur dioxide destroyed all the creatures
in the forest, including the worm and the
linnet (small bird).
 Themes
 Environmental Pollution
• Men are willing to destroy our mother nature for more money and power. The
factories and vehicles release poisonous gas like mercury pollutes the lake and the
flora and fauna in it.
 Destruction of nature.
• Flora and fauna affect one another. When the lake gets polluted, the fish that lives in
it will get poisoned. When the birds eat the fishes, the birds get poisoned. Also, if
the wind is polluted, it brings the poisonous gas everywhere; all plants will wither
and die. In the end, it destroys our mother nature.
 Cont’
The consequences of man's greed on the environment
• Man's greed influences them to use shortcuts in order to gain profit. They
use cheaper sources of energy like coal-burning and dispose industrial waste
in a wrong way. These actions lead to the pollution of the environment and
destruction of nature and life.
 Literary Devices
Irony
• use of irony can be seen in the confessions to the crimes. Each culprit
confesses to the killing/the crime is actually not the real killer. Though there
seems to be so many killers, at the end of the day, there is only one killer i.e.
man.
Repetition - 'Who killed', 'I'
 Cont
 Symbolism
• poison – pollution
• killing of cock robin - destruction to wildlife via the natural food chain as a result of
land pollution
• killing of the heron and the birds of the lake - the lethal effect of water pollution
• killing of the lake - danger of industrial waste
• killing of the flowers by the wind - air pollution
• killing of the forest - threat to the whole Earth
 Cont’
Personification
• Those who confess to the killings referred to themselves using the first
person pronouns 'I' and 'my'.
• They speak pertaining to the crimes in a human-like voice.
• 'Industry' begins with a capital letter like a name and 'boasted' like a man.
• The wind 'moaned' and prowls
• Sulphur dioxide 'ensured' the forest died.
 Moral Values & Lessons
• Love and care - Love nature
• Moderation
• Responsibility - We should protect our environment
• Concern
• Co-operation - Save our environment
• Kindness - We should be kind and protect plants and animals
 Language and Style
• Easy to read and understand
• The poem has 5 verses consisting of 5 lines each.
• Each verse begins with a question about a crime committed against nature
and environment. The answer to the question is in italicised text.
 Mood
Mood : Grim and chilling
• The poem focuses on unnatural death and killing. In the last stanza, the last
killer says that he ensured that the forest and all the creatures in it died.

Rhyme and Rhythm

• Rhyme pattern: abbcc
 Setting
• Countryside – animals and plant seem to grow fondly
• England and Europe where birds like robins, terns, herons, ducks, and linnets
are commonly found
• Not far from the industrial area which polluted the place
• Around 20th Century - scientists only began studying the effects of acid rain
in the late 1960s.
 Messages
Love the environment
• We should not pollute and harm our nature. It is for our own good and also
for the generations after us. We need a clean and healthy place to live.
Learn to take responsibility for our crimes against nature.
• In this poem, the author wants us to really think and comprehend, who is the
real killers that should be blamed for the crime committed. All the deaths are
caused by pollution, made by human beings.
Linnet Tern
Guess ?
Heron
Fen
Cock Robin

Drake