Example unseen poetry Q1
essay 2

In ‘The washing never gets done’, how does the poet present ideas about daily life and connecting with the natural world?

In ‘The Washing Never Gets Done’, Jason Kaplinski presents the idea that daily life is hard and definitely not perfect; it needs constant maintenance. However, it’s okay because the natural world is completely different and is full of endless opportunities that are beautiful and normal.

Jason Kaplinski presents daily life as unfulfilling and difficult in this poem. He uses the repetition of “never” – “the washing never gets done / the furnace never gets heated.” The repetition and anaphora emphasise the abundance of things that are never finished – how daily life is a series of never-ending chores that are never perfect. Kaplinski uses end-stop at the end of each line to emphasise how frustrating the daily life can be – it is so difficult to make it perfect – it never is, and it is never-ending. Never is a very definitive word, emphasising the extent of how difficult it is to go about daily life. Kaplinski is implying daily life is a struggle and is draining as it is monotonous (emphasised by repetition). He uses the simile “life is like a ball that one must continually catch and hit so it won’t fall.” The enjambment here drags out the simile, emphasising how long and boring daily life is – it is unrelenting as it does not stop. The simile conveys the idea of constantly putting in effort every day but you can never stop or all the previous effort will be for nothing. Therefore, the chores of daily life are never complete, so it is unfulfilling.

On the other hand, Jason Kaplinski presents the comfort and constance of the natural world and how people can always revert to it as a form of break from the depressing, monotonous daily life. The speaker states that one can notice the spring which is “so full of everything.” This implies that despite the hardships of daily life, you will always have time to notice all the beauty of nature, and this connects back to it – it is peaceful. It is not possible for something to be “so full”, however the intensity here emphasises the abundance of opportunities there are to connect with nature, and it is everywhere – “in all directions”, so you must connect with it to experience the alternative life to daily life for relief. The speaker uses two images of the “drop of dew on every blade of grass in the meadow.” This imagery is vivid and implies the perfection of nature but also the importance of acknowledging the beauty. Kaplinski is implying you must not miss the details of the natural world by being so caught up with daily life, therefore implying it is important to connect with nature or you will miss the little details like the “drop of dew” – the artwork of nature. Finally, the poem is all one stanza, therefore implying how connected daily life is to the natural world or hinting at the importance of being present in both lives at once because “one can’t keep everything in mind.” It would be too much to separate them, so live them instead.

In conclusion, Jason Kaplinski is suggesting that if you are too caught up in the unfulfilling, boring, never-ending daily life, you should still make the most to connect to the natural world so you can be fulfilled by the “so full” perfection and beauty of it.