1) The poem explores themes of cultural identity and belonging through the voice of a shopkeeper with an Indian background married to a strong-willed wife. 2) It uses elements of Punjabi-influenced English to represent the speaker's experience of straddling two cultures. Imagery celebrates the romance between the speaker and his wife despite pressures from their different cultural backgrounds. 3) The author, Singh, frequently writes about the experience of British Indians and attempts to represent their community's experiences through English language poetry that incorporates aspects of their native languages.

1. PLASTICPoetryNotes – GCSE EnglishLiterature Pastand Present:PoetryAnthology –Love andRelationships –SinghSongP.21
Poetic devices and their effects – form
(ballad,sonnet,free verse, dramatic monologue),
alliteration, rhyme, rhythm, onomatopoeia,
Rhyme of ‘clock’and ‘lock’ The regularityof hisworkis stressed,butitthen
buildsamysteryas to whythe speakerislocking
the shop
The alliterationof ‘highheel’ Mirrors the noise of the highheelsonthe ground
and stresseshowdifferenthiswife istonormal
Sikhbrides
Alliterationof ‘concrete-cool’ Suggeststhe movementfromdaytonightas the
heatslowlydissipates –movingtoa calmer
atmosphere
Language and its effects – what sortof words
are in the poem? Violent, loving, colloquial,archaic,
semantic fields,diction,religious,romantic language
Language of togetherness:vee share Sense of bothof themas equalsinthe
relationship
Semanticfieldof cat/mouse Ironicallyflipsthe notionof whoiscatchingwho
and punson mouse tomeancomputermouse.
Showsthat someone seeminglysmall and
insignificantcandobig things
Playful language of ‘meatandcheese’ Continuesthe metaphorof catand mouse – puns
on meet/meat–suggeststhe wife doesn’tcare
aboutthem– justthe moneyshe ismaking.She is
a hard-nosedbusinesswoman.Strong and
independentincontrasttothe speaker
Alternative interpretations – Can quotations
be read in two ways for different meanings?
Eyesov a gun Suggests she is dangerous or couldsuggest she knows exactly
what she wants to target in life
Like vee rowingthroughPutney Showstheirlove isleisurelybutcouldalsosuggest
howBritishtheyfeel,givenhowstereotypically
Britishthisactivityis.
Yor lemonsare limes Outwardlyhe appearstobe one way,butin
actualityhe issomethingcompletely different
Structure and its effects – tonal shifts,pace,
caesura,whatrhyme stresses,beginning, middle,end,
repetition,dialogue and where it happens,enjambment
Enjambmentinthe firststanza Constantlyspillingoverline afterline–suggests
the never-endingnature of hisjob –the pressure
that the culture putsitself under
Rhyme of ‘chutney’and‘Putney’ Stresseshowthe loversfall betweentwocultures
– BritishandAsian
Voice of the customersrepeated Juxtaposeshisfiercelyidiosyncraticwife andhis
lack of care – theydemandcertainexpectations
that he is happyto ignore.

2. PLASTICPoetryNotes – GCSE EnglishLiterature Pastand Present:PoetryAnthology –Love andRelationships –SinghSongP.21
Tone and its effects – talking aboutmoods
which are evoked and where, narrative voice
‘ishalf di cost of yoobaby’ Playful andromantic– stressesthe sense of love
he has for hiswife asshe ismore importantthan
the moon
‘di shoppersalwayspointandcry’ Accusatory – theyare angry at how he is
betrayinghishard-workingculture
‘vee cumdownwhisperingstairs’ Sense of quietandcalmin the eveningwhenthey
can finallyenjoyone another’scompanyproperly
Imagery and its effects - metaphor,simile,
personification,visual sense
‘Redcrewcut’ Signifiesshe isperhapsdangerous(redisoftena
warningcolour) – the fact she has herhair cut so
close showshowdaringand differentshe is
(punkish)
‘Di tummyov a teddy’ Suggestsbeneathherfeistyexteriorshe issoft,
gentle andbringshimsolace
‘di brighteymoon’ Punon Blighty,meaningBritish –sense of
romance and sense of how muchtheyhave
integratedintothe Britishwayof life.Alsohasa
sense of romance
Context – authorial,social and historical
His poemsrelate tothe experience of Indiansborninthe UK(especiallyIndian Sikhs),andoften
employlanguage thatimitatesthe EnglishspokenbyIndianimmigrantswhose firstlanguage is Punjabi,
whichsome have termed"Punglish".[
He hasdescribed attempts to represent his community’s
experiences in English as 'overheating'. The name 'Singh' comes from a Sanskrit word
meaning 'lion' and it is an essential part of the name of any Sikh male. However, he is clearly in
between two cultures – ‘my identity is in flux’ he once commented, and ‘Britishness’ is also a
central theme in his work. Nagra says of his poetry that he tends to use traditionally ‘English’
poetic forms, but ‘what’s speaking on the page is quite brown. I like the idea of this splurge
of…darkness. The voice in this poem is more of a celebration of this distinctive speech, than a
simple stereotype.
‘SinghSong!’is,like manyof hismonologues,concernedwiththe themesof racism,belonging,
alienationandassimilation,butinsome waysitisalsoa romanticurban love poem.Nagra’shumorous
verse plotsthe passionate sensualityof the shopkeeperand hiswife againstthe ‘concrete-cool’
precinctsetting,where they‘stare pastdi half-price windowsigns’andlookatthe moon.