Analysis of “You may turn over and begin” by Simon Armitage

â€Å"You may turn over and begin† is an interior monologue of a person who is sitting an exam, seemingly on the subject of General Studies. The title itself lends itself well to this theme as â€Å"you may turn over and begin† are the words an exam invigilator says as an exam begins. The poem follows the thoughts of the speaker who may or may not be Armitage himself as he sits the exam whilst musing over exam questions and other things that enter the speakers thoughts when he has finished the paper. The first line of the poem could be said to be the title itself as it directly links to the first line of the main body of the poem. While the title is said by someone else the remainder of the poem is the thoughts of the speaker, the fact that it is someone's thoughts is reinforced by the seemingly random train of thought and the subjects themselves which are personal in nature- i.e. the speakers thoughts on â€Å"milk white breasts and†¦ virginity† in lines 12 and 13. The questions themselves are not typical of a general studies exam and are seemingly random, much like thought processes often are, though reference to â€Å"the decameron† could be linked to the adolescent and hormonal thoughts of lines 12 and 13. Armitage's reputation for representing and understanding youth culture is highlighted by his reference to the general studies exam as â€Å"..a doddle, a cinch for anyone with an ounce of common sense† in lines 6 and 7. This concept of general stud ies remains true today while the speaker's insight on the use of â€Å"†¦a calculator with a memory feature† to cheat shows the writer's comprehension of such things. Lines 10 and 11 reinforce the idea of general studies being an unimportant exam as the speaker neglects to check the work, instead choosing to let the mind wander. The next few couplets reflect on the injustice of male/female relations at that age whereby the boys are in a frenzied hormonal state while the girls remain untouchable â€Å"long and cool†¦out of reach†. Use of imagery is evident as mention of the â€Å"†¦the heat† in line 14 points to enforced sexual repression on the part of men that age, while â€Å"†¦long and cool like cocktails† indicates the heightened maturity of women (though referred to as girls by the speaker) at that age. There is further imagery shown by the lines describing â€Å"†¦their buns and pigtails only let out for older guys† which makes the link between the exertion of control evident in those hairstyles, which in turn is relaxed for older men. This is a metaphorical representation of sexual control. As is common with thought patterns the subject suddenly changes in line 20 where the speaker reminisces on an occasion when the cold control of teenage girls is lost as a â€Å"jot of consolation†. The following couplets detail a comical situation which dispels some of the faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ade the speaker has built up about teenage girls. Lines 24-27 detail the girl primping herself but 28 and 29 tell of the motorbike pulling away, it is a typical of a story which would circulate around a college and the speaker reinforces this in line 30, referring to it as a â€Å"†¦rumour†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The final line answers the first question posed by the exam paper and once again follows the theme of random thoughts as the answer just pops up, much as it would into one's mind. It may also be noted of this poem that, due to strong allusions to the fact, that it is Armitage or at least a male who is writing this, though there are no specific mentions of the speakers sexuality, merely re ferring to his/herself in the first person ‘I'. The structure of the poem is both random and yet structured. The lines are set out in 16 couplets (possibly a connection to the age of the speaker at time). Enjambment is evident in how the lines straddle separate couplets which connotes the theme of random thoughts without structure or regulated progress. The metre itself also reflects this with a seemingly random variance in syllables which reflects the fairly random process of thought. While the majority of the lines within a couplet hold a similar metre (lines 1-2 with a 8 and 9 syllables respectively etc) one couplet that does stand out as breaking that mould that of lines 12 and 13. Line 12 has 14 syllables while 13 has 4 with â€Å"virginity†. The separation of the word from the others and putting it on its own both represents the importance of the subject to adolescent males while also possibly representing the speakers embarrassment about the subject. The use of couplets serves to create a slow methodical rhythm in the poem. Coupled with this, examples of unstressed and stressed syllables within the couplet rhyme create a sense of the multiple choice nature of the paper the speaker is sitting. This is particularly evident in the first and second couplet. The rhythm is fairly structured when read aloud, this is compounded by use of strong para-rhyme- e.g. â€Å"..specifically/virginity†¦Ã¢â‚¬ , â€Å"†¦Honda/amber†¦Ã¢â‚¬ . The absence of a strict rhyme scheme or metre is in keeping with the unsystematic nature of the thoughts of a person, though it must be noted that there is some structure to the poem as there is in some sections of the monologue of the speaker. An example of this is line 20 â€Å"One jot of consolation† which seems an unlikely sentence to actually think, though it does serve to create a division in the speaker's thoughts on lusting after girls from the story about the â€Å"†¦spind ly girl riding pillion†. Armitage is very much perceived as being of the ‘poetry is the new rock and roll' era so it is not surprising that much of the vernacular and thoughts are akin to that which people of the college age. As is true of many contemporary poets the use of brands is evident â€Å"†¦her man's new Honda† while much of the lexis, as previously mentioned, is colloquial, I.e. â€Å"†¦a doddle, a cinch†. Particular attention is made to the appearance of the girl in lines 24 to 27 with pre modification evident, â€Å"†¦her tight jeans† which continues the theme of a hormonal teenager lusting after girls. The poem itself is a mixture of teen angst and comedy. We can assume that Armitage writes this poem from personal experience as most men can identify with the thoughts of the speaker, while everyone who has taken the general studies exams will identify with the speakers opinion on it as a bit of a waste of time. As a male I can sympathise with the speaker while a female reading this would be, in my opinion, more likely to focus on the comedy aspect of the poem rather than the hormonal maelstrom that is shown in the first half of the poem. While the structure, rhythm and lexis all support the context of the poem it may be said that while the theme of random thought is well presented there are sections which detract from the success of the attempt to achieve this theme. This mainly manifests itself in the ordered nature of some of the narration and use of simile (â€Å"long and cool like cocktails†) which is not a realistic thought. Despite this the devices used combine to good effect in this perception which is very easy to identify with.