Poetry Analysis

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Remember Me?

Original Poetry

Translation

Remember Me?

Do you remember me?

I am the boy who sought friendship;

I am the boy who wanted to be friends;

The boy you turned away.

The boy you rejected.

I the boy who asked you

I am the boy who asked you

If I too might play.

If I could join in your play.

I the face at the window

I am the face looking in the window

When your party was inside.

While your party was happening inside.

I the lonely figure

I am the lonely person

Who walked away and cried.

Who walked away in tears.

I the one who hung around,

I am the one who lingered around,

A punchbag for your games.

A target for your bullying.

Someone you could kick and beat,

Someone you could hit and hurt,

Someone to call names.

Someone to insult.

But how strange is the change

After time has hurried by,

After time has passed quickly,

Four years have passed since then,

Four years have gone by since then,

Now I’m not so quick to cry.

Now I don’t cry as easily.

I’m bigger and I’m stronger,

I have grown and become stronger,

I’ve grown a foot in height.

I've gained a foot in height.

Suddenly I’M popular

Suddenly I am popular

And YOU’RE left out the light.

And you are left in the dark.

I could, if I wanted,

I could, if I chose to,

Be so unkind to you.

Be very cruel to you.

I would only have to say

I would just have to say

And the other boys would do.

And the other boys would follow.

But the memory of my pain

But the memory of my suffering

Holds back the revenge I’d planned

Prevents me from taking revenge I had planned

And instead I feel much stronger

By offering you my hand.

By extending my hand to you.

Explanation

In the poem 'Remember Me?', the speaker reflects on his past experiences of bullying and rejection, ultimately showcasing a journey from victimhood to empowerment. The speaker, once a boy who sought friendship and was turned away, recalls his loneliness and pain with lines like 'I the lonely figure / Who walked away and cried.' This imagery evokes a sense of deep emotional hurt, as he describes himself as a 'punchbag for your games,' illustrating the cruelty he faced from peers.

As the poem progresses, the tone shifts from sorrow to strength. The speaker notes, 'But how strange is the change / After time has hurried by,' indicating a significant transformation over four years. He has grown physically and emotionally, becoming 'bigger and stronger' and now finds himself in a position of popularity, while the former bully is 'left out the light.' This reversal of roles highlights the dynamics of power in social relationships, particularly in childhood.

The emotional arc transitions from feelings of hurt and vulnerability to empowerment and forgiveness. The speaker acknowledges the temptation to retaliate against his former bully but chooses instead to offer a hand of friendship, stating, 'And instead I feel much stronger / By offering you my hand.' This act of kindness demonstrates personal growth and resilience, emphasizing the theme of overcoming past pain.

The poem employs various literary devices, including metaphor and repetition, to enhance its emotional impact. The metaphor of being a 'punchbag' effectively conveys the speaker's experience of bullying, while the repetition of 'I the' emphasizes his identity and the weight of his past experiences. Ultimately, the poem speaks to the universal themes of childhood, resilience, and the power of forgiveness, reflecting a broader commentary on human relationships and personal growth.

Word Dictionary30

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
sought	wanted	to look for or try to obtain something	sawt
turned	rejected	to change direction or position, often implying refusal	tərnd
asked	requested	to pose a question or make a request	askt
play	engage in games	to participate in fun or recreational activities	plāy
face	front of the head	the surface of a person’s head that has eyes, nose, and mouth	fās
lonely	alone	feeling sad because one is alone	lōn-lē
figure	shape	a person or object that can be seen	fig-yər
walked	moved	to move by putting one foot in front of the other	wôkt
cried	wept	to express sorrow or pain by shedding tears	krīd
hung	stayed	to stay in a place without leaving	həng
punchbag	target for hitting	a bag used for practice in boxing or a metaphor for someone who is bullied	pənch-bag
kick	hit with foot	to strike with the foot	kik
beat	hit repeatedly	to strike someone or something repeatedly	bēt
names	labels	words by which a person or thing is known	nāmz
strange	odd	different from what is normal or expected	strānj
change	alteration	the act of becoming different	chānj
hurried	moved quickly	to act or move with speed	hər-ēd
passed	went by	to move from one place to another or to elapse in time	pāst
quick	fast	done with speed	kwik
cry	weep	to express sorrow by producing tears	krī
bigger	larger	of more size or magnitude	big-ər
stronger	more powerful	having more strength	strông-ər
height	tallness	the measurement of how tall something is	hīt
popular	well-liked	liked by many people	pŏp-yə-lər
light	brightness	the natural agent that stimulates sight	līt
unkind	mean	not nice or considerate	un-kīnd
revenge	payback	the act of harming someone in return for a wrong	ri-vendj
planned	arranged	to decide on a course of action	plænd
offering	giving	to present something for acceptance	of-ər-ing
hand	part of the body	the end part of a person's arm	hænd

Poet & Context

Poet—

EraContemporary

The poet remains anonymous, but the themes reflect common experiences of childhood, bullying, and personal growth. The poem captures the emotional journey of a boy who transitions from victimhood to empowerment.

WhenContemporary period, likely in the late 20th or early 21st century.

WhyThe poem addresses themes of childhood friendship, bullying, and personal growth, reflecting on the emotional impact of social dynamics among children.

FormFree verse

Themes & More

Themes

bullyingfriendshippersonal growthforgiveness

Literary devices

metaphor: the speaker compares himself to a punchbag, illustrating his role as a victim of bullying.repetition: the use of 'I the' emphasizes the speaker's identity and past experiences.

Poetry Analysis

Back to Explore

Remember Me?

Original Poetry

Translation

Remember Me?

Do you remember me?

I am the boy who sought friendship;

I am the boy who wanted to be friends;

The boy you turned away.

The boy you rejected.

I the boy who asked you

I am the boy who asked you

If I too might play.

If I could join in your play.

I the face at the window

I am the face looking in the window

When your party was inside.

While your party was happening inside.

I the lonely figure

I am the lonely person

Who walked away and cried.

Who walked away in tears.

I the one who hung around,

I am the one who lingered around,

A punchbag for your games.

A target for your bullying.

Someone you could kick and beat,

Someone you could hit and hurt,

Someone to call names.

Someone to insult.

But how strange is the change

After time has hurried by,

After time has passed quickly,

Four years have passed since then,

Four years have gone by since then,

Now I’m not so quick to cry.

Now I don’t cry as easily.

I’m bigger and I’m stronger,

I have grown and become stronger,

I’ve grown a foot in height.

I've gained a foot in height.

Suddenly I’M popular

Suddenly I am popular

And YOU’RE left out the light.

And you are left in the dark.

I could, if I wanted,

I could, if I chose to,

Be so unkind to you.

Be very cruel to you.

I would only have to say

I would just have to say

And the other boys would do.

And the other boys would follow.

But the memory of my pain

But the memory of my suffering

Holds back the revenge I’d planned

Prevents me from taking revenge I had planned

And instead I feel much stronger

By offering you my hand.

By extending my hand to you.

Explanation

Word Dictionary30

Word	In English	Plain (English)	Pron.
sought	wanted	to look for or try to obtain something	sawt
turned	rejected	to change direction or position, often implying refusal	tərnd
asked	requested	to pose a question or make a request	askt
play	engage in games	to participate in fun or recreational activities	plāy
face	front of the head	the surface of a person’s head that has eyes, nose, and mouth	fās
lonely	alone	feeling sad because one is alone	lōn-lē
figure	shape	a person or object that can be seen	fig-yər
walked	moved	to move by putting one foot in front of the other	wôkt
cried	wept	to express sorrow or pain by shedding tears	krīd
hung	stayed	to stay in a place without leaving	həng
punchbag	target for hitting	a bag used for practice in boxing or a metaphor for someone who is bullied	pənch-bag
kick	hit with foot	to strike with the foot	kik
beat	hit repeatedly	to strike someone or something repeatedly	bēt
names	labels	words by which a person or thing is known	nāmz
strange	odd	different from what is normal or expected	strānj
change	alteration	the act of becoming different	chānj
hurried	moved quickly	to act or move with speed	hər-ēd
passed	went by	to move from one place to another or to elapse in time	pāst
quick	fast	done with speed	kwik
cry	weep	to express sorrow by producing tears	krī
bigger	larger	of more size or magnitude	big-ər
stronger	more powerful	having more strength	strông-ər
height	tallness	the measurement of how tall something is	hīt
popular	well-liked	liked by many people	pŏp-yə-lər
light	brightness	the natural agent that stimulates sight	līt
unkind	mean	not nice or considerate	un-kīnd
revenge	payback	the act of harming someone in return for a wrong	ri-vendj
planned	arranged	to decide on a course of action	plænd
offering	giving	to present something for acceptance	of-ər-ing
hand	part of the body	the end part of a person's arm	hænd

Poet & Context

Poet—

EraContemporary

WhenContemporary period, likely in the late 20th or early 21st century.

WhyThe poem addresses themes of childhood friendship, bullying, and personal growth, reflecting on the emotional impact of social dynamics among children.

FormFree verse

Themes & More

Themes

bullyingfriendshippersonal growthforgiveness

Literary devices

metaphor: the speaker compares himself to a punchbag, illustrating his role as a victim of bullying.repetition: the use of 'I the' emphasizes the speaker's identity and past experiences.