11:00 Baldovan: Stanzas 6-8

11:00 Baldovan: Stanzas 6-8

Overview and Setting - Stanzas 6-8

• Stanzas 6-8 continue where the previous stanzas of “11:00 Baldovan” left off.
• The setting remains fixed at Baldovan, the mental health institution.

Context and Themes - Stanzas 6-8

• Empathy and human connection emerge as strong themes in these stanzas.
• Suffering is further explored, particularly the deep, internal sufferings of the inmates, indicated by terms like “a hole in the heart”.

Structural Analysis - Stanzas 6-8

• The free verse style continues, reflecting the irregular and tumultuous lives of the inmates.
• There is a shift to a more personal narrative, as indicated by the phrase “You boys who can only…“, involving and implicating the reader more directly.
• The stanza length decreases in these sections, endowing them with a slightly staccato feel – possibly illustrating the disjointed thoughts of the subjects.

Tone and Language - Stanzas 6-8

• In these stanzas, Paterson develops a profoundly empathetic tone, deepening the emotional impact of the narrative.
• The plainspoken language remains, but is offset by more emotive vocabulary, such as “abandon”, “loss”, and “emptiness”.
• The language becomes increasingly direct; this bluntness further imparts the harsh reality of mental illness.

Poetic Techniques - Stanzas 6-8

• Paterson makes strategic use of simile, comparing the inmates’ suffocating emotions to something as physically obstructive as “a knee in the chest”.
• The repetition of the word “you” adds weight to the empathetic shift, bolstering the poem’s call to reader reflection.
• Strategic use of alliteration is seen in phrases like “Baldovan bachelor”, enhancing the message’s rhythmic delivery.

In these stanzas, understanding Paterson’s techniques will allow a deeper appreciation of the poem’s radical messages and the poet’s defiance of societal norms.