Stewart Island (Fleur Adcock)

Stewart Island by Fleur Adcock recounts the speaker's experiences during their time on the island. The poem begins with a remark from the hotel manager's wife, who praises the beauty of the island despite its challenges. The speaker then describes the landscape, including a beautiful bay, white sand beaches, and oyster boats manned by Maori fishermen with Scottish names. Despite the natural beauty, the speaker recounts their own difficulties, such as the cold weather preventing swimming, their child being bitten by sand flies, and another child being attacked by a seagull. These events lead the speaker to decide to leave the country. You can read the poem below and find analysis further down the page.

Stewart Island by Fleur Adcock

But look at all this beauty’

 said the hotel manager’s wife

 when asked how she could bear to 

 live there. True: there was a fine bay,

all hills and atmosphere; white

 sand, and bush down to the sea’s edge;

 oyster-boats, too, and Maori

 ­ shermen with Scottish names (she

 ran off with one that autumn).

As for me, I walked on the beach;

 it was too cold to swim. My 

 seven-year-old collected shells

 and was bitten by sand‑flies;

 my four-year-old paddled, until 

a mad seagull jetted down

 to jab its claws and beak into

 his head. I had already

 decided to leave the country.

Analysis:

Title Significance:

The title, "Stewart Island," immediately sets the scene for the poem, indicating that it will focus on the experiences of the speaker on this particular island.

Setting:

The poem is set on Stewart Island, a remote and rugged island off the coast of New Zealand. The setting is characterised by its natural beauty, including hills, beaches, and bush-land, but also by the challenges and dangers it presents.

Imagery and Sensory Language:

Adcock uses vivid imagery to evoke the beauty of the island, such as the "fine bay," "white sand," and "oyster-boats." Sensory language, such as the coldness preventing swimming and the biting sand-flies, creates a tangible sense of the environment and the speaker's experiences.

Structure:

The poem consists of a single stanza, with irregular line lengths and no consistent rhyme scheme. The structure mirrors the speaker's stream-of-consciousness narrative style, allowing for a free-flowing exploration of their experiences on the island.

Tone and Mood:

The tone is contemplative and reflective, with a sense of resignation and dissatisfaction with the speaker's experiences on the island. The mood is sombre and disillusioned, as the speaker reflects on their difficulties and ultimately decides to leave the country.

Themes:

Beauty vs. Reality: The poem explores the contrast between the perceived beauty of the island and the harsh realities experienced by the speaker and their family.

Disillusionment: The speaker's experiences on the island lead to a sense of disillusionment and dissatisfaction, ultimately prompting them to make the decision to leave.

Nature's Power: The poem highlights the power and unpredictability of nature, as seen in the biting sand-flies and the seagull attack.

Language and Diction:

Adcock's language is straightforward and descriptive, with an emphasis on capturing the details of the speaker's experiences. The use of colloquial language, such as "sand-flies" and "seagull," adds authenticity to the speaker's narrative.

Conclusion:

Stewart Island  by Fleur Adcock is a reflective poem that explores the contrast between the perceived beauty of the island and the harsh realities experienced by the speaker. Through vivid imagery and descriptive language, Adcock captures the speaker's experiences and their ultimate decision to leave the country. The poem offers a poignant exploration of disillusionment and the power of nature.

You can find analysis of all the Edexcel Time and Place Poetry Anthology Poems here.