HomeThe poem "Home" by Warsan Shire focuses on the importance of home and demonstrates how the connotation of home is experienced by refugees. The poem urges Western host countries to show a modest attitude and welcoming towards welcoming the refugees and understanding their suffering and pain. The speaker uses powerful images and metaphors to evoke empathy for the refugees, who are forcibly displaced from their homes. The poem captures the chaos of refugees you are safe everywhere, including the place everyone is running to. Say no to plagiarism Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned”? Get an original essay “… Neighbors Run faster than you / they breathe blood." in their throats” (Shire, 5-6). Everyone seeks asylum to save their lives, no one cares about others. Everyone runs for their own survival. Everyone wants to be safe, happy and feel comfortable there looking for a place to call home. Home is not just a place where people live, it is a peaceful and safe land. In the second stanza, line 3 shows that when circumstances change, the entire scenario changes. “…boy you went to school with / who kissed you… behind the old tin factory / holds a gun bigger than his body” (Shire 7-9). Friends become enemies and a boyfriend can become a murderer. It is full of pain to see our loved ones experience adverse conditions. When the evoked people transit to new borders to seek a safe place or asylum, the host countries do not show their positive behavior towards refugees. Another image created through metaphor is the personification of the truck as a place of death. “No one spends days and nights in the stomach of a truck” (Shire, 29). This reveals that traveling is not an enjoyable activity or vocation for them, however it is a UN desirable event that occurs due to an unconducive living environment. They face problems and experience lack of food which is not their choice, and at one point the speaker also says that she was raped during the journey. The sixth stanza of the poem shows the use of foul language. It elaborates on the racist attitude of some of the host countries which uses bad words such as black refugees, dirty immigrants, asylum seekers and idiots to expose the attitude of the host countries. One of the metaphors used in the poem when referring to refugees, for example, “A limb torn off” (Shire, 63) creates empathy for refugees. I believe that Warsan Shire, as women, deeply understand the implications of being kicked out of own home. He therefore feels a lot of empathy for those asylum seekers. He also reveals that there is no substitute for home and it is natural that it cannot be made or taken away. The speaker insinuates that you can escape when things go wrong, but this will be part of the your memory forever. Don't give up, but believe that circumstances will improve. The social function of this poem is to send a strong message to refugees by letting them know that they are not alone, giving them a voice that needs to be heard. C 'is someone who thinks about them and who can work to raise awareness in popular culture about their problems due to the ongoing crisis in the Middle East. It also alerts the responsible authorities to notice, accept and have some actions and responsibility for the well-being of refugees. The entire poem has a very powerful message and the selection of words and uses of literary devices are very emotional and captivating. This phrase is very informative because it conveys the reason why she left home: “…home is a sweaty voice in your ear / saying: / get away / run away from me now / I don't know what I've become / but I know that everywhere / is more.
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