Christina Rose Helmold

November 3rd, 2016

The Photograph on My Fathers Desk

The poem The Photograph on My Fathers Desk by Eavan Boland is in her New and

Collected Poems. In this collection, this poem falls under the category Outside History: A

Sequence. The speaker in this poem is somebody very close to Eavan Boland, if not Boland

herself. Simply put, the speaker, Boland, is describing a photo on her own fathers desk, possibly

one that she grew up looking at, of her father and mother. This context, helps readers to know

that she is describing an image of a scene that she was not present for, an image from the past.

Wordsworth described the effect of poetry as, producing or enlarging the human minds

capability of being excited without the application of gross and violent stimulants, by presenting

incidents and situations from common life with an imaginative twist. The Photograph on My

Fathers Desk, shows this claim to be absolutely true. Bolands poem describes a typical day,

the opening line is, It could be/ any summer afternoon (1-2). The imaginative twist comes in as

Boland brings the past forward through the photo on her fathers desk, bringing the frozen image

back to life for a moment in her poem.

At the start of the poem she brings the still photo to life, then freezes it again at a turning

point near the end. In the beginning she describes movement and whimsical life, Thrushes move

to get/ windfalls underneath the crab apple tree (6-7). She describes the setting as moving and

living, this juxtaposes the end when she puts all the elements back into an image, the talk has

stopped. / The spoon which just now / jingled at the rim of the lemonade jug/ is still. / And the
shrubbed lavender/ will find/ neither fragrance nor muslin (19-25). The difference between the

magic in a living scene and the stagnant photographic representation are striking. Boland takes

readers from feeling the wind under a tree, back to a vision of scentless lavender, one of the

strongest smelling flowers.

By lifting the instant on her fathers desk out of time, she takes readers into the past for a

single moment. Besides describing the location, though, Boland also depicts disadvantages that

women frequently face in any circumstance. The major elements that bring her points to focus

are imagery and stanza structure. Through these elements, the true meaning of the poem is

brought forward. The imagery in The Photograph on My Fathers Desk is striking in a number

of instances. Two images in particular are, the initial image of the speakers parents in a garden,

and, the first description of the woman.

The man and woman, who we can infer are either Bolands parents, or very close to her

parents, are meeting in a garden. The sun is warm on/ the fruitwood garden seat. / Fuchsia

droops. / Thrushes move to get/ windfalls underneath the crab apple tree (3-7). This idea of a

peaceful garden offers a pastoral escape from the chaos or corruption of the city. The garden

offers a quiet harmony, a refuge for this man and woman. Despite their peaceful isolation,

however, there is a hint of something unsettling.

The description of the man and the woman show distinct differences. The woman/

holders her throat like a wound (8-9). this man coming down the path with/ his arms wide

open. Laughing (15-16). The man is approaching the woman, which shows he has dominance,

even if it is subtle. To laugh symbolizes comfort or freedom. The man is laughing with open

arms. It is clear that he has freedom in their relationship. The woman, however, holds her throat,
a literal motion of discomfort or closing oneself off. These human features show central

juxtaposition between the mans freedom and the womans constriction.

To get a grasp on the context of this poem would greatly help unpack the meaning. Eavan

Boland has strong feminist tendencies. As far as we know, her parents did not suffer from any

extreme marital issues. The photograph she describes in this poem, highlights that even in a

generally happy place or relationship, women are silenced.

The image of a garden and an apple tree brings to mind the foundational myth of Adam

and Eve in the Garden of Eden. A depiction of paradise. Despite this paradise, though, the garden

was still the site of humankinds failure. This parallels with Bolands poem, because despite their

happiness and exclusion from the corruption of society, her mothers voice is still restricted,

while her fathers voice can ring free. Even in a safe and joyful zone, women are cannot fully

express themselves. This image makes Bolands critique on the patriarchy even stronger.

Her critique goes beyond the imagery represented in this poem, though. Through her

stanza structure, including enjambments and caesuras, Boland emphasizes central elements to

her main idea. The very first stanza is a short two lines, It could be/ any summer afternoon (1-

2). This could have been connected to the second stanza. By making it separate, Boland is

emphasizing this particular point. Shes enhancing the fact that this photo depicts any typical

day. There are only two other stanzas in the poem that are two lines long. The woman/ holds her

throat like a wound (8-9) is one of them. This separation from the rest of the poem, again,

brings emphasis to it. Boland points out that this woman, likely her mother, is constricted.

The final place that a two line stanza with an enjambment is seen is, The garden fills up/

with a burned silence (17-18). Enjambments often create a specific expectation. By seeing the

first line The garden fills up (17), readers expect to hear something about beautiful flowers or
lush plants growing in a garden. Instead, the second line strikes, with a burned silence (18).

This is the stanza that begins tearing readers from the living past, and puts them back in the

present with a frozen photograph. The garden is no longer filled with lush plants, now it is filled

with silence.

The only caesura used in the entire poem describes the man. this man coming down the

path with/ his arms wide open. Laughing (15-16). Caesuras bring focus to a statement, in

general, but being the only one in the whole poem, brings an even more intense focus to this one

word, Laughing. The focus is on the man, who has open arms and is making a loud sound that

depicts happiness. Through the juxtaposition of the woman holding her throat like a wound

and the mans Laughing, Boland intensifies her emphasis on a mans freedom in comparison

to a womans restriction.

Despite the different attitudes between Bolands mother and father, the two of them are

still drawn to one another. The photo is probably cherished, which is why its placed on her

fathers desk. Bolands poem exhibits a balance of opposites, which, according to Coleridge and

Brooks, is central to poetic excellence. There are contrasting images of the woman and her man.

While her mother is restricted, her father is free. Its ironic that the two of them still came

together to form a strong marriage even though there was a striking difference between their way

of life.

Coleridge suggested that an authentic literary work must possess an organically unified

form. That is it must be one, the parts of which mutually support and explain each other

(Biographia Literaria chap XIV). The Photograph on My Fathers Desk shows this critical

principal to be true. The poem isnt long, and has short choppy stanzas. However, they are made

that way for a specific purpose. There is extreme emphasis on the shortest stanzas. The
choppiness caused by enjambments and caesuras serve as calls for focus. By causing a hesitation

or disruption in the flow of the poem, those central elements are used to emphasize Bolands

points and critiques. The poem could not be rearranged because the beginning, which shows life,

eventually leads the reader to the end, which puts the photo back into the frozen past. Eavan

Boland shows a strong organic form in this poem, and makes her points striking, causing them to

resonate with readers.