1. ‘Aunt Julia’
by Norman MacCaig

2. Norman MacCaig ( )
Norman MacCaig was born in Edinburgh in 1910.
Although he spent his childhood and later life in Scotland's capital, his mother's Highland past was a great influence on him.

3. MacCaig's mother was from Harris and the Gaelic heritage he inherited on visits to his mother's family on the islands was to have an enduring effect on MacCaig.

4. In the poem, Norman MacCaig pays tribute to his aunt who lived a hard life on the island of Harris in the Western Isles of Scotland.
Like many islanders, she had a spinning wheel for producing the famous Harris Tweed.
She spoke Gaelic which he could not understand.

6. Learn Gaelic
About the Gaelic Language
A Gaelic song

7. Harris Tweed
"Handwoven by the islanders at their homes in the Outer Hebrides, finished in the Outer Hebrides, and made from pure virgin wool dyed and spun in the Outer Hebrides."

8. Lewis and Harris
Luskentyre

9. Stanza 1
Aunt Julia
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. I could not answer her - I could not understand her.

10. Stanza 2
She wore men's boots When she wore any. -I can see her strong foot, stained with peat, paddling with the treadle of the spinningwheel while her right hand drew yarn marvelously out of the air.

11. Stanza 3
Hers was the only house where I've lain at night in the absolute darkness of a box bed, listening to crickets being friendly.

12. Stanza 4
She was buckets and water flouncing into them. She was winds pouring wetly round house-ends. She was brown eggs, black skirts and a keeper of threepennybits in a teapot.

13. Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. By the time I had learned a little, she lay silenced in the absolute black of a sandy grave at Luskentyre. But I hear her still, welcoming me with a seagull's voice across a hundred yards of peatscrapes and lazybeds and getting angry, getting angry with so many questions unanswered.
Stanza 5

14. Structure? How many stanzas?
Is there a pattern? (E.g. Same number of lines in each.)
Is there a rhyme scheme?
Does it follow a particular rhythm?

15. Technical terms Free verse Stanza Metaphor Personification Repetition
Contrast
Word choice
Sentence length

17. Glossary
Gaelic – a Celtic language spoken in the Highlands of Scotland
peat - an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation which forms in wetlands such as bogs
treadle – rocking lever operated by the foot to drive a spinning wheel
yarn – continuous twisted strand of fibre produced on a spinning wheel
box bed – bed built into a recess in a traditional Highland cottage, separated from the main room by a curtain or wooden panel
flouncing – to move in a lively, impatient or jerky manner
threepennybit – old eight-sided pre-decimal coin (worth about 1p)
Luskentyre – tiny village with spectacular sandy beach on the Island of Harris
peatscrapes – scars in the bog where the peat has been removed
lazybeds - traditional way of growing crops in small patches of soil using ridges of soil

18. What’s it all about?
MacCaig recollects his childhood visits to his Aunt Julia’s house in Luskentyre.
He is impressed by her vigour, strength and capability as she performs various rural manual tasks.
He is also impressed by her Gaelic heritage and mentions twice that she spoke Gaelic.
He seems to take some satisfaction in the fact that he came to learn some Gaelic but he is frustrated by the fact that, by the time he achieves this greater understanding, she is dead.

19. Themes A lament on the passing away of a beloved aunt.
Perhaps also a lament on the passing away of an entire way of life.
(A lament is an expression of grief or sorrow.)

20. Content Stanza 1 a child’s memory of his aunt
main recollection is her language – Gaelic – which he could not understand
Stanza 2
describes his aunt and how she seemed strange to him e.g. ‘barefoot’, or wearing ‘men’s boots’
his description gives insights into her way of life

21. Stanza 3
he recalls the strange experience of sleeping in a box bed
Stanza 4
vivid images capture aspects of her life e.g. carrying buckets of water as there is no running water
Stanza 5
by the time he learned some Gaelic, it was too late to communicate with his Aunt: she had died

22. Tone and language
some language is plain and factual - e.g. the opening two lines
metaphors seem to define her hard life: ‘She was buckets…’
‘flouncing’ is an example of personification and suggest something about Aunt Julia’s character
her ‘seagull’s voice’ is a metaphor used to describe her loud, incomprehensible voice

23. ‘peatscrapes’ may be a Scottish dialect word – ‘lazybeds’ certainly is
the repetition of ‘getting angry’ emphasises her frustration
dark images are used in the poem e.g. ‘stained with peat’
her loud, fast Gaelic voice is the most memorable thing about her; when she is dead she is ‘silenced’

24. Questions
What precisely does Norman MacCaig remember about his aunt? Make a list of all the details that are mentioned. What do they suggest about her personality and his feelings towards her?
How does he use language and imagery to suggest her character and lifestyle?
Which lines are repeated in the poem? Why are they repeated? How do they link with the closing lines of the poem?
Which adverb is used to describe his aunt’s spinning? What does it add to our understanding of how he sees his aunt?

25. 8. What questions do you think were unanswered for Aunt Julia?
5. From the evidence of the poem, what impression do you form of life on the Island of Harris? Refer to details in your answer.
6. What does the metaphor ‘a seagull’s voice’ tell you about his aunt and his relationship with her?
7. There are lots of images of darkness in the poem. What are they and what do they tell you about his aunt’s life?
8. What questions do you think were unanswered for Aunt Julia?
9. Do you think MacCraig enjoyed spending time with his aunt? What gives you that impression?

26. Annotations

27. Aunt Julia Title by Norman MacCaig
The poem is autobiographical and in it MaCaig remembers his aunt with fondness but also with regret.
The main subject of the poem is introduced in the title.
Aunt Julia
by Norman MacCaig
5 stanzas
The poem is written in free verse which reflects his aunt’s unconventional character.
The subject’s relationship to the speaker is evident from her title: Aunt Julia.

28. A Celtic language spoken in the Highlands of Scotland
A Celtic language spoken in the Highlands of Scotland. This hints she is different – this is not a common language.
Stanza 1
This suggests she is full of energy and is an extrovert, rather than being shy.
This builds on the idea that she has a lot of energy. The repetition of ‘very’ suggests she is an extroverted character.
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. I could not answer her - I could not understand her.
This is literally true – he cannot speak or understand Gaelic. However, it is also metaphorically true: she is eccentric and unlike anyone else he knows.
The repetition emphasises the speaker’s helplessness. He cannot understand her – the implication being that the fault is with him.

29. Stanza 1 Can you identify the techniques?
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. I could not answer her - I could not understand her. ? ? ?

30. Stanza 1 techniques
word choice
repetition
structure (punctuation) – dash introduces more information
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. I could not answer her - I could not understand her.
metaphor
repetition

31. She is quirky and unconventional – not many women wear men’s footwear (or no footwear).
Stanza 2
Her impressive physical strength is emphasised.
She seems to almost be part of the natural world – the environment she lives in has coloured her. ‘Stained’ could have negative connotations, giving the idea that her environment is a hostile one.
She wore men's boots When she wore any. -I can see her strong foot, stained with peat, paddling with the treadle of the spinningwheel while her right hand drew yarn marvelously out of the air.
A pedal of the spinningwheel which is operated by the foot.
This is a dying art and connect Aunt Julia (and the speaker) with the traditions of the past.
This metaphor might make us imagine her as duck, paddling, which (again) connects her to nature.
This is word choice. He is in awe of her – what she is doing is almost magical.

32. A Highland woman using a spinning wheel

33. Stanza 3
The word choice of ‘only’ stresses the uniqueness of Aunt Julia and also of the location.
Small children are scared of the dark; this therefore sounds frightening. The word ‘absolute’ makes it sound final, like death.
Hers was the only house where I've lain at night in the absolute darkness of a box bed, listening to crickets being friendly.
This is a type of bed which is completely enclosed so as to resemble a box. It also suggests a coffin.
Senses – hearing. It is interesting that he cannot understand Aunt Julia but can ‘understand’ the crickets (“being ‘friendly”).
There is a contrast between the ‘darkness’ and the friendly crickets. Despite the darkness, he feels secure and safe.
This is personification – crickets cannot be friendly. The fact the speaker thinks this tell us how much he enjoys being there. The use of the word ‘only’ again suggests that there is a unique friendliness there.

34. Box beds

35. Word choice – flouncing suggests movement, energy, but also perhaps a certain gracefulness.
Stanza 4
The first of a list of metaphors in this stanza that help to describe Aunt Julia’s character. The metaphors all relate to nature and ‘homely’ things.
She was buckets and water flouncing into them. She was winds pouring wetly round house-ends. She was brown eggs, black skirts and a keeper of threepennybits in a teapot.
Enjambment – mimics the movement of the wind.
Repetition of ‘she was’ creates positive affirmations of who she was. Past tense of ‘was’ suggests she is no longer around.
She is being compared to nature / like a force of nature.
Alliteration of ‘w’ sound mimics the sound of the wind.
Word choice – this is a coin that predates decimalisation and, therefore, has links with the past / ways of life that are no longer around.
The metaphors are an unusual selection and create a picture of a gregarious, unconventional, and larger than life character, with links to the past. She combines the strength of nature and the security of a domestic home.

37. This irony is a significant cause of regret for the poet
This irony is a significant cause of regret for the poet. It is too late by the time he has learned his Aunt’s language – he cannot communicate with her.
Stanza 5 (first half)
This is the second times he mentions that she spoke Gaelic – suggesting he is very proud of her Gaelic heritage.
Repetition of lines 1 and 2. This emphasises how loud and energetic she was.
Aunt Julia spoke Gaelic very loud and very fast. By the time I had learned a little, she lay silenced in the absolute black of a sandy grave at Luskentyre.
Makes reference to the sense of hearing
Links back to “absolute darkness” (stanza 3). Here the darkness is symbolic of death.
There is a beautiful beach at Luskntyre.
Reminds the reader of the box bed (coffin) in stanza 3.
A very small village set amidst beautiful scenery on the Isle of Harris.
Shorter lines – final, blunt (like death).

38. Luskentyre Beach - Harris, Scotland (where Aunt Julia is buried)

39. Stanza 5 (second half)
The sound of her voice lives on in his memory.
There are several references to the sense of hearing / sound in this stanza.
This friendliness is part of her character and links to the “crickets being friendly”.
But I hear her still, welcoming me with a seagull's voice across a hundred yards of peatscrapes and lazybeds and getting angry, getting angry with so many questions unanswered.
Metaphor – she is linked to nature, again. This suggests how loud her voice is but also how incomprehensible (to the speaker).
A traditional way of growing crops in small patches of soil using ridges of soil. ‘Bed’ reminds the reader of ‘boxbed’ linking Aunt Julia’s house with nature.
Scars in the bog where the peat has been removed. ‘Scrape’ has possible negative connotations. Word choice – possibly Scottish dialect.
Repetition emphasises how angry Aunt Julia was that he cannot answer her questions. The ‘getting angry’ could also refer to the speaker. He has lots of unanswered questions now that she has passed away.
Repetition - links back to line 3 “I could not answer her”.

40. Peatscrapes

42. Links with other MacCaig poems?
The past / herritage
Family
Regret
Death / lamenting lost things
Finding magic in everyday occurrences
Unconventional characters
Inability to understand something
Inability to communicate

43. Revision
An analysis of ‘Aunt Julia’ (7 minutes):
‘Off the Page’ interview with MacCaig about his poetry in general (25 minutes):