Horse Whisperer- English

They shouted for mewhen their horses snorted, when restlesshooves traced circles in the earthand shimmering muscles refused the plough.My secret was a spongy tissue, pulled bloodyfrom the mouth of a just-born foal,scented with rosemary, cinnamon,a charm to draw the tender giantsto my hands.

Relating to the senses

Instantly introduced with an aggressive attitude towards the narrator

Forester describes an experience of a Horse Whisperer, who is first sought for his gifts then hounded for them

Imagery of this magical method

They shouted for mewhen their horses reared at burning

strawand eyes revolved in stately heads.I would pull a frog's wishbone,tainted by meat, from a pouch,a new fear to fight the fear of fire,so I could lead the horses,like helpless children, to safety.

Aggressive tone, Repetition

The people think of him as some sort of “witch-doctor”

Alliteration, also shows that the mighty horses are weak in some senses

In this Stanza we are seeing more into the magic of the Horse Whisperer. This is setting up the character to be taken apart in the next stanza

I swore I would protectthis legacy of whispersbut the tractor came over the fieldslike a warning. I was the life-bloodno longer. From pulpitsI was scorned as demon and witch.Pitchforks drove me from villages and farms.

What does the warning represent? What is it a warning for?

How is the HW going to protect this legacy? Why would they need to be protected?

Why is it set within a Catholic community?Why are such

methods necessary?

What is Andrew Forester trying to achieve from this Stanza? Why does he use these Methods?

My gifts were the tools of revenge.A foul hex above a stable doorso a trusted stallion could be riddenno more. Then I joined the stampede,with others of my kind,to countries far from our trade.Forced, Exiled

to go else where because they need not want him/her

The HW feels hurt by these people who have left him so, he hurt them

Shows the HW actual strength or id this metaphorical (Sarcastic maybe)

Horse analygy

They shouted for me when their horses …

In the quotation, who is they and who is me ?

We see that the Stanza length gets shorter each time. This is symbolic showing that once his/her life was full but is now shortening. Its like s/he is coming to the end of their career.

The poem is written in free verse reflecting the different aspects of the narrative.

He was born in 1964 in South Yorkshire, but lived in Scotland for most of his life

In South Yorkshire and Scotland the landscape is mostly hilly, where the heritage is of farming and agriculture. This means his view on the

This means that the inspiration for the poem came from his surroundings and the attitudes of people from the area.

We can see that the poem is based on the demise of horses used in work. This would of come from the views of the people he was surrounded by.

In 1900 around 1million horses were being used in agriculture, but 14 years later there was only around 20,000.

This was because of the invention of the steam engine.

When steam power started being used, thousands of horses were sold or left unused on a farm. They were not needed, so were not bred much further.

This meant all horse-related workers had a smaller market. This meant hundreds went out of work.

Want for the horse whisperer

Horsey words Secrets of his work

relating to the witchcraft- Supersition

Contradiction

In Relation to the word “charm” on the 8th line. This word conjures up images of a magical person willing some-one or something to perform its deeds. This is relevant to the apparent Whisperer who wills these “giants” to carry on with their laborious tasks

In the first sentence we can that the horse whisperer is called for when “snorted”.

This shows the petty-ness of this snort but the farmers cared so much for the horses that they would do anything for them

However throughout the poem we see that horse whisperer shunted out of the community “as a demon or a witch”.

This shows how the view suddenly changed, they were once a valued member but now banished.

Andrew Forster uses contrast to show the emotion of the character sudden position.

Language Structure/form Poetic methods Character and voice Links

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A. Describes the close relationship between horse and man

Encourages us to sympathise with the narrator. Perhaps he is 'whispering' to us in the same way as he did the horses?

The poem is narrated by a horse whisperer, who begins by describing his work with horses and the secrets of his trade, which sound like magic but seem completely natural. When the people who once used his skills turn against him, believing that he uses witchcraft, the speaker decides to finally give up his trade, even though he had sworn to protect its secrets. The speaker also chooses to use his powers against the owners of the horses, corrupting the animals, before fleeing the country.

The poem creates a strong sense of the relationship between man and horse and the tensions between superstition, religion and progress are explored.