Notes

In Hide and Seek, the theme of childhood is presented both as games and elusiveness. The presentation occurs through the subject matter, hide and seek, which falls under both categories. However, this poem could also revolve around a subtle but elaborate metaphor outlining a possible result of not being yourself (which in itself is moderately elusive); namely, when your friends discover that they have come to know no more than a fictitious character, they may simply not want any more to do with you. When reading this poem through the lens of this metaphor, everything clicks into place with no exclusions. This detail even extends to the use of the word 'salty' to describe the 'dark'. Not only do both of these words have negative and even ominous connotations anyway, but the word 'salty' also has a very colloquial meaning (which, coincidentally, has recently seen a resurgence among young people): very irritable or annoyed. This suggests that the seeker is slowly reaching the conclusion that the hider is hiding, and is annoyed as a result. The use of this metaphor seemingly demonstrates the volatility of childhood friendships. On the other hand, Half Past Two presents childhood as ignorance and fear; the ignorance of not knowing the time ('All the important times he knew // But not half-past two.') and the fear of asking ('He was too scared at being wicked to remind her.'). This paints a very timid picture of the offender and creates doubt in the reader's mind that he really did do 'Something Very Wrong', which in turn manifests sorrow and pity. When these emotions are exposed it may come as less of a surprise that the speaker may be reflecting on his own past. In conclusion, both poems present at least one fearful idea of childhood.