The Secret Life of Frogs (Poetry by Gwen Harwood)

The Secret living of toads is a poem that delves into the childhood perception of war, in particular foundation War I, and the experiences of their fathers. The Secret Life of Frogs deals with the idea of misunderstandings incurred when children b perish to understand giving concepts. This is evident through the purpose of punning. The term Frog, which is frequently utilise throughout the poem adds am delectationment to the text because to the readers, it non only translates literally to a frog, but alike represents the rival French people in the war through a proscribe light.However, the narrator, who is in like manner one of the children in the poem, does not understand this other meaning given up to the term frog. This undersurface clearly be seen in the nett sentence when the narrator believes in protecting the amphibians, but does not sign the term Frogs to excessively represent the French people. The use of allusion, reference to World War I in the poem, emphasi zes the idea that children in their innocence, particularly children during the war, can misinterpret what adults talk about.Evident in the line some syllables we used as charmsGallipoli, where the children have heard of these words and the negative connotations attached, however they do not know of the magnitude of the events that are associated with the words. Throughout The Secret Life of Frogs themes that are expressed include childhood innocence and the negative exercise of war on children. The theme of the innocence of children is clearly conveyed through the use of the parenthesis, (we thought a pedigreeel was a French hotel that served hot broth to diggers).This technique is used to enclose a thought that the children had in their childhood, and helps to advance emphasize the idea that they misunderstood the adult concept of brothels. The parenthesis also helps to change the tone of the poem as it cuts the seriousness of the stanza through their misinterpretation of the word brothel. This highlights the idea that the children did not understand the insinuations of the word. The notion that the war had a negative impact on children is discussed throughout stanza 3.The use of the metaphor pa the Impaler, accentuates the idea that children saw this term in a very plus manner when in actual fact it has negative connotations. This highlights the brutality of war, and the negative influence of war on children because the children in the poem used dadaism the Impaler in a heroic manner. The use of simile in the last stanza matchstick hands as pale as the violet stems they lived among is used to comparison a frog to violet flowers, which are very delicate and easily broken.The innocence of childhood is painted through this visual technique as the narrator only sees the frogs being very delicate, but to the readers the simile also creates a vivid image of the condition of the Frogs/ the French. The use of first soulfulness helps to create a reminiscen t tone about the narrators experiences, and further helps to stress the ideas of childhood innocence and the influence of war on children because the poem is written from a childs perspective.The use of enjambment generates a conversational and personal tone, emphasizing to the readers the reality of the themes discussed throughout the poem. The use of symbolism of frogs as pets and also representing the French highlights the idea that adults saw Frogs as insignificant or unworthy to speak about, whereas the children could not understand this adult thought, and they placed exemplary regard to the wellbeing of the frogs.