Christian Cemetery
These tombstones have been uprooted
all weathered grey, are strewn on grass.
Never thought I would see them thus.
These stones that have been here so long
it seems the land was theirs for good –
but for the Urban Renewal Department
which needed that plot for a park.
My granny, though Catholic, was cremated
according to her wish. She knew
room in our affections was all
the space she needed. Or perhaps
she’d head all about urbanization,
how her stone, had she been buried,
would wear away or be dislodged.
And so when she had to give up
what space she occupied, she left us
something that cannot be lost in stone
and therefore has no renewal.
Arthur Yap
This poem could be taught to Secondary Two students during their third or fourth term in school. By this time, the students would have been taught literary techniques such as diction, tone, metaphor, shifts in perspective, tone and rhythms. It is suitable for the discussion of the impact of modernization on Singaporeans. Students will be able to understand the stoic acceptance of many Singaporeans in the face of Singapore’s modernization efforts.
These are the questions I would ask my students:
1. What do you think the poem is about?
2. Why do you think the poet laments about his loss in the first stanza?
3. Do you agree with the poet’s resolution that intangible memory is better than tangible tombstones memorializing the dead?
4. Is modernization detrimental to our memory?
I like this poem very much. It's one of Yap's understated and subtle critiques of Singapore society.I think you should say "persona" rather than "poet" although in this case, the two are very closely related. But just to be accurate, stick with persona.Good questions overall although I'm not sure the poet is lamenting in the first stanza. He seems to be ironic observer there.
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