Raffles Girls’ School
Year 2 Literature
SingLit Reader 2022
Image credit: Singapore Writer’s Festival Facebook Page
This Reader belongs to:____________ (
1
) of Class 2___
Foreword
This package of SingLit texts has been put together for your reading and enjoyment, as well as to
facilitate our exploration of some key themes that Singaporean writers often write about. The themes
selected are by no means exhaustive, nor are the texts that have been selected in each of them.
Your teachers hope that this will be a springboard for you to continue reading and exploring the SingLit
genre, perhaps chancing upon new and different perspectives on some of these themes, and that your
reading will also inspire your own writing.
Happy reading!
As you read the texts, consider applying the 4 Quadrant Routine for Close Reading.
2
SOCIAL DIVIDES
Title
Excerpts from ‘Normal’ by Faith Ng
• Introduction to Ms Hew
• What’s in a Name
• Nametag
In Our Schools by Gilbert Koh*
Page
5-8
9
Old Folk’s Home by Gilbert Koh*
10
What are you doing here ? by @beckypie24
11
Foreign Worker Dreams by Janet Liew*
12
Lamentations by Amanda Chong
13
The Howling from ‘Malay Sketches’ by Alfian Sa’at*
14-17
2 mothers in a hdb playground by Arthur Yap
19
2 socially distanced mothers in a hdb playground by Gwee Li Sui
20
Neighbours by Alfian Sa’at
21
IDENTITY AND BELONGING
Title
Places and Our Singaporean Identity – Who are We really?
Postcards from Chinatown by Terence Heng*
Bumboat Cruise on the Singapore River by Miriam Wei Wei Lo
Page
23
24
Change Alley by Boey Kim Cheng
25-26
Merlion Speaks by Darren Shiau
27
How to fly the Singapore Flag by Darren Shiau
28
Development in Singapore - Impact on Our Identity and Sense of Belonging
The Planners by Boey Kim Cheng*
29-30
Trees are only temporary by Leong Liew Geok
31
Cutting Grass by Aaron Maniam
32
Excerpts from ‘Boom’ by Jean Tay
33-41
Mid-Autumn by Hwee Hwee Tan
41-48
*CORE TEXTS
3
Theme 1: Social Divides
A. EDUCATION SYSTEM
Normal by Faith Ng
Introduction to Ms Hew
Ms Sarah Hew is a new teacher who has joined the school where Ashley
and Daphne are Secondary 5 Normal (Academic) students. The scenes
who how Ms Hew is inducted into the school, and meets her class for the
first time. Marianne is a classmate of Daphne and Ashley, and is a school
prefect.
Refer to the text in this LINK
Questions:
• Have you experienced the impacts of a class divide in Singapore?
• Should we be worried about a class divide? Why?
• What are your thoughts and feelings towards the characters in the play?
• Having read the excerpt, form a thematic statement that brings out the playwright’s
message on class divides.
4
What’s in a Name?
In this excerpt, Ms Hew address the students.
The classroom.
Hew
(reading from the Romeo and Juliet book in her hand) Act II, Scene II.
What is the
context of this
scene?
Juliet says, “ ‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy. Thou art thyself,
though not a Montague. What’s a Montague?”
ASHLEY passes DAPHNE a note. HEW notices.
Hew
What do you
know about R &
J?
Ashley!
ASHLEY looks up.
Hew
Give me that paper.
5
ASHLEY rolls her eyes and hands HEW the paper. HEW looks at it.
Hew
Ashley, why are you here?
Ashley
Huh?
Hew
You’re clearly not interested in studying. Why don’t you just stay at
Ashley
home?
Hew
I dunno.
Ashley
I think deep down inside, you still want to pass your ‘O’ Levels.
Hew
Who dunno? Who don’t want to pass?
Ashley
I want to help you pass.
Hew
Yah, sure. Help me go to Mrs Lim’s1 office and pass right.
Ashley
But I didn’t send you there in the end, right?
Hew
…OK. No you didn’t.
Ashley
And why do you think I didn’t?
Hew
(folds her arms; reluctantly)…OK, so maybe you were trying to be
Ashley
nice.
Hew
Thank you.
10
Look, I think we got off on the wrong footing… And I just want to say
that I am sorry to you and the rest of the class, for the way things have
gone. It’s my first time being a teacher… I was scared and nervous,
and I didn’t handle things well. I’m sorry. I hope that we can try again.
Can?
HEW catches ASHLEY’s eye. ASHLEY looks down.
DAPHNE tentatively raises up her hand.
1
What is your
impression of
Ashley at this
point?
Mrs Lim: Principal of Trinity Girls’ School (fictitious)
5
How does the
playwright use
dialogue to
vividly portray
Ashley’s and
Daphne’s
characters?
15
What is your
impression of
the relationship
between Ashley
and Ms. Hew?
20
What can you
infer about Ms.
Hew from her
actions and
speech?
Why does Ms.
Hew use
colloquial
language
(“Can”) here?
Daphne How? I don’t even understand why we must study Shakespeare.
Ashley
… Because they always think everything Western is better mah.
Hew
(smiles, surprised that ASHLEY has spoken up) That’s a valid
25
Enact L24 – 37.
What are
Daphne and
Ashley’s tones
as they say
these lines?
Daphne argument.
It’s true. They don’t even trust our teachers to mark our ‘O’ Level
Ashley
papers. They send them to Cambridge to get graded. Except for
Chinese and Malay.
30
Daphne But then maybe one day they’ll send those to China and Malaysia to
How does the
playwright
create humour
here?
get graded too.
Ashley
I think maybe Singapore still thinks we are part of UK, that’s why we
Hew
have to do Shakespeare and ‘O’ and ‘A’ Levels.
Daphne But then because we’re also Chinese, we must do better than them.
Ashley
35
And what happens when you don’t succeed?
What kind of
irony is present
in L24 – 37?
Why does the
playwright
employ irony
here?
Daphne You feel like a failure.
Hew
What literary
device is used in
L36 – 37? For
what purpose?
They say that you’re rebellious.
They say that you’re ‘normal’ lor.
Ashley
You know, Romeo and Juliet are like you guys. They have to carry the
Hew
names of their households; names that they didn’t choose for
40
What do
Ashley’s and
Daphne’s
reactions to Ms.
Hew tell you
about them?
themselves.
Oh my god—
Just hear me out for a second…
ASHLEY and DAPHNE are rolling their eyes at this point.
Hew
What if Juliet had said, “ ‘Tis but thy name that is my enemy. Thou art
How has this
changed /
remained the
same at the end
of the excerpt?
thyself, though not a ‘Normal’. What’s a ‘Normal’? It is nor hand, nor
foot, nor arm, or face, nor any other part belonging to a man. O, be
some other name! What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by
any other name would smell as sweet.”
DAPHNE claps triumphantly. ASHLEY grins and shakes her head.
Questions:
• What are your impressions of Ms Hew and the students in the
play?
• What is the purpose of the playwright?
6
45
What is the
underlying
message of Ms.
Hew’s words?
Nametags
The following excerpt “Name Tags” is from Normal, a play by Faith Ng.
In this excerpt, Ashley has written a monologue about why she does not like wearing her
name tag.
The classroom. ASHLEY is reading out her monologue, with HEW and DAPHNE watching on.
Ashley
On the first day of school, the prefects lined all the new students up
1
according to our classes. One by one, we were told to follow our prefect to
our new classroom. 1A, 1B, 1C… As each class stood up, they looked back
at the rest of us and began to chatter. I just looked down and prayed that
the ground would open up and swallow me. At last, only two classes were
5
left behind—the N.A. girls. N.A., I read in the dictionary, is an abbreviation,
for Not Applicable, Not Accountable, Not Available. And the N.T. girls. N.T.,
a contraction of ‘not’: didn’t, couldn’t, isn’t.
One week later, we were each given white nametags with our full names
spelt out in big red letters. They said that we have to wear our nametag to
10
school every day. But my name is precious to me. My parents took the time
to come up with my name, and if you want to know it, you should ask me for
it, and you should get to know me first. Every day after school, the first thing
I did was to take off my nametag and put it in my pocket.
Later I realized that every new batch of students get a new name tag colour.
15
Our name tags were white, Sec 2s red, Sec 3s blue, Sec 4s green and Sec
5s yellow. I hardly ever saw the yellow ones, and when I did, I couldn’t help
but stare at the girl wearing it and wonder what happened to the rest of her
batch. Now I know. They were Sec 4s who had graduated, leaving only the
Sec 5s who hadn’t dropped out, been kicked out, or transferred out of school
yet.
20
Now there are only 26 of us left, and when we wear our name tags, people
stare at us with so much pity and fear that I wish I could disappear. That’s
why I hate my name tag. That’s why I don’t wear my name tag. That’s why I
don’t agree that students should wear name tags in school.
7
In Our Schools by Gilbert Koh
My Notes:
Some are Special,
or Express. A few are
Gifted. The others
Based on the title, what themes might be
explored in this this poem?
are merely Normal
(a polite lie).
2nd reading: highlight striking words /
imagery
3rd reading: Qns / thoughts about the
poem
5
Who do you think is the speaker?
What is the speaker’s tone when s/he
says “The others / are merely Normal / (a
polite lie)”?
All are classifiable,
like chemical compounds,
lists of Chinese
What is the purpose of the parenthesis,
“(a polite lie)”?
proverbs,
or lab specimens of
10
Who came up with words like “Special”,
“Express”, “Gifted” and “Normal”, and for
what purpose?
dead insects -
preserved, labelled,
What is the literary device used in “All are
classifiable / like chemical compounds”,
and for what purpose?
pinned by a cold
needle
through the
15
Notice the use of words like “classifiable”,
“chemical” and “compounds”. What
device is used, and why has the poet
chosen to do so?
2
unfeeling thorax .
What imagery is the poet creating in the
use of words like “chemical compounds”
and “Chinese proverbs” and “lab
specimens”?
What do you notice about the lines,
“preserved, labelled, / pinned”? What is
the image created by the poet here, and
what do you think is his message about
the people in the poem?
How do you feel about the poem?
thorax: the middle section of an insect’s body, to which the legs and wings are attached (Oxford Learner’s
Dictionary)
2
8
Old Folk’s Home by Gilbert Koh
In this poem, Koh highlights the students’ visit to a nursing home as part of their
school experience. In groups, please annotate this poem.
All day long they lie on the
straight rows of white beds or sit
in the heavy-duty wheelchairs
pushed out into the breezy sunshine
of the gardens.
[Annotation]
5
Trapped in the prisons
of their own failing bodies,
they drift in and out of the haze
of senility, patiently serving
out their sentence.
10
Still the bright-eyed teenagers come,
on Saturday mornings, by the busloads,
sent by their schools
on compulsory excursions
to learn the meaning
of compassion
as outlined in the CCA syllabus.
15
They bring gifts of Khong Guan biscuits,
they help to mow the lawns,
they clap their hands performing happy songs
and valiantly they attempt the old dialects
trying to communicate.
Later they will clamber noisily
back up the departing school buses,
and next week in class
they will write startlingly
similar essays
on what a meaningful,
memorable experience they had
At the old folks’ home
last week.
20
25
30
Question:
1. What do you think is the poet’s message in this poem, and how has he
conveyed the message in his poem? Support your argument with close
reference to the excerpt.
9
B. MIGRANT WORKERS
Consider the perspectives presented regarding migrant workers in ‘What Are You
Doing Here’ , ‘Foreign Worker Dreams’ and Lamentations .
What are the thoughts and feelings of the subject? How does the poet effectively bring
across their plight ? What is the poet’s perspective on social divides?
What Are You Doing Here by @beckypie24
So sorry, sir
No, not drunk, sir
Just tired, sir
Taking rest, sir
No fighting, sir
5
Just stress, sir
Didn’t know, sir
Will go now, sir
It’s ok, sir
Just your job, sir
10
Understand, sir
Thank you too, sir
10
Foreign Worker Dreams by Janet Liew
Based on the title, what themes do you think
this poem may explore?
The sun is incandescent.
What is the setting like?
In the void deck,
the labourer rests his burnt head
on a bleach bottle, emptied,
and stretches out on a flattened carton
as if fatigue has pinned him to it
like a specimen in a dissection class.
Dust from the site has coloured his hands
grey as ashes, and stained his nails.
A mynah pecks at the remains
Of his polystyrene-boxed lunch nearby.
His arm lies heavy as a fallen tree branch
over his eyes, which flicker under their lids,
as if he is reading a secret letter,
or watching a hazy memory
being screened on the canvas of his
retina.
Who knows whose face—
perfect, whole—
he hides in his heart
like a photograph creased and crumpled,
its edges worn soft by callused fingers?
What does this reveal about the labourer’s
working conditions?
5
Notice the word, “emptied”. What is the
poet’s purpose in isolating it with punctuation
marks?
What devices are used in L6 - 7 “fatigue has
pinned him to it / like a specimen...”, and for
what purpose?
10
What feelings do you have for the labourer?
How does the poet evoke such feelings in
the audience?
What is the device used in the phrase, “grey
as ashes”, and what image is the poet trying
to create here?
15
What is the poet trying to suggest in the
phrase, “fallen tree branch”?
Why is the labourer’s memory “hazy”?
What is this “whole” face contrasted with?
20
What does “like a photograph creased and
crumpled” mean?
How does the labourer feel in the last 2
stanzas?
Why is the third person used?
11
LAMENTATIONS by Amanda Chong
Perhaps all this was to awaken us to shapes
of suffering: the bruise encircling
a nurse’s mouth as she peels off her mask.
Malls sparkling expectantly for no one.
The migrants who built them huddled
shoulder to shoulder on backs of trucks
—all this we allowed to go past us
without second glance.
All this, we only began to see
when we were made to stand a metre apart:
a woman amid laden grocery carts
cradling a bag of rice because all you need
for porridge is water. A security guard
falls asleep on his feet, then dreams
of his daughter across the closed border.
She wobbles on a stool, lathers her small hands
with suds—I love you. Don’t be sick.
I love you again—her voice wanders
through lonely cities once thronged
with people. Death distends, numbers
lose their weight. At home, statistics split
workers’ dorms from the rest of us.
Our comfort feels like shame at first,
then swells into an unsettling need
for change. We must find the cracks
where light comes through, then prise
them wider. On Sunday, a taxi driver muses
to his only passenger: How beautiful
the empty roads, now we see more clearly
the trees. I finally hear something
shaped like praise. Each morning,
there is a moment before anything
bad happens—I see this as promise.
Each morning, the dark side of our planet
curves towards a certain sun. I call this grace.
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Enrichment:
Read the poems written by migrant workers and compare them with the 2 poems
in the reader.
Migrant Worker Poetry Competition
View under the tab ‘Poets’
https://www.singaporeworkerpoetry.com/copy-of-poets-4
12
C. COMMUNITY
The Howling from ‘Malay Sketches’ by Alfian Sa’at
Based on the title and
intro, what themes do
you think this text may
explore?
The first time Zaiton saw Sinta was when the latter was walking her
employer’s dog. Sinta was the domestic worker for the neighbours two
houses down the street, a childless husband-and-wife couple in their 40’s.
Sinta herself was in her 20’s, with a family consisting of a husband and two
young children in Pacitan, East Java.
5
Zaiton and those neighbours were just nodding acquaintances, and all she
What is your initial
impression of Zaiton
and her neighbours?
knew of them was that the husband drove a big, maroon Mercedes-Benz,
and that the wife did not cook. She deduced this from the fact that the car
would leave the compound every evening, as the occupants of the house
drove out for dinner.
She was watering the plants in her garden when Sinta approached her
10
How does the writer
use dialogue to vividly
portray Zaiton and
Sinta’s characters?
gate, smiling, while at the same time trying to restrain the dog. It was a
German Shepherd, its tongue lolling out of the side of its mouth like a long,
deflated pink balloon.
“Ibu, do you mind if I ask you something?”
To the Indonesians, ‘Ibu’ was an honorific for older women. In Malay,
15
however, it was the term for ‘mother’. Zaiton immediately felt a maternal
What can you infer
about Zaiton from her
words and actions?
affinity towards Sinta.
“What is it about?” Zaiton asked.
“I was wondering if you could tell me where I can find some clay around
here.”
“What do you need clay for?”
20
13
Enact L12–27, and
L30-51. What are
Zaiton’s and Sinta’s
tones as they say these
lines?
“I want to clean myself after handling the dog. I try not to touch it, but
sometimes I can’t avoid it.”
Zaiton understood. Muslims were forbidden to come into contact with
dogs, which were considered unclean animals. If one had touched a dog,
then one had to perform a specific cleansing ritual, known as sertu. It
25
involved washing the affected part not only with water several times, but also
with a concoction of one part clay mixed with six parts of water.
“If it was back at my village I can find clay anywhere,” Sinta said. “But
around here I don’t know where to look.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” said Zaiton. “Why don’t you come and see me this
30
Sunday?”
On Sunday morning, Sinta visited Zaiton. Her employers had gone to
church. Zaiton opened a plastic bag and took out three bars of soap,
encased in individual white boxes.
From whose point of
view is the story told?
“I went to Johor to get these,” Zaiton said.
“What are they?”
35
What advantages and
disadvantages are
there for this viewpoint?
“They’re sertu soap,” she replied, with a tinge of pride in her voice. “Things
are very modern nowadays. The soap is mixed with the correct amount of
clay and water. It’s approved by the religious authorities in Malaysia.”
“Thank you so much, Ibu,” Sinta said. “I had just given the dog a bath this
morning.”
Zaiton tried to control herself from showing displeasure on her face. She
asked Sinta, “Do you mean that your employers make you wash the dog?”
“The dog can’t wash itself.”
14
40
What is Zaiton’s
attitude and impression
of her neighbours?
How do this attitude
develop and / or
change throughout the
text?
“I know that,” said Zaiton. “But don’t they know that you’re a Muslim? Do
you pray at home?”
“Of course,” Sinta replied. And to prove that she did, she pointed towards
45
Zaiton’s kitchen and said, “That’s the direction towards Mecca, right?”
Why do you think Sinta
continues to work for
her employer despite
her difficulties with the
dog?
“Correct. If you need any prayer mats or whatever you can tell me. We
have a lot in this house.”
What is the internal
conflict that Zaiton
faces?
The week after, Zaiton met with Sinta again. She told Sinta that as a fellow
Muslim, she was concerned that Sinta had to manage the dog as part of her
50
duties.
“I’ve spoken to my husband,” Zaiton said. “Even though we don’t really
What repeated image
of Zaiton’s neighbours
is conveyed here? Why
do you think Zaiton has
this view of her
neighbours?
need a maid, we don’t mind being your employers if you want to leave that
house.”
“But Ibu,” Sinta said. “I’ve been using your soap. There’s really no
problem.”
55
Why does Zaiton say
this?
“Yes, Sinta,” Zaiton said. “But using the soap isn’t going to get rid of the
real problem. The problem is that your employers care more for their dog
than they care about you.”
What kind of irony is
present in L52 – 93?
Why does the writer
employ irony here?
The next evening, Sinta’s employer turned up at Zaiton’s gate. When she
recognised him, Zaiton started to panic. She did not like confrontations. Now
the man would start telling her to mind her own business.
60
“I’m sorry, my husband is not in,” was the first thing she said to him.
“I’d like to have a talk with you, actually,” said the man. He was wearing a
shirt and long pants, as if he had just arrived home from work. Zaiton invited
him into the house and served him some tea.
65
15
“I know we haven’t really introduced ourselves,” the man said. “My name is
Wee Keong. My wife’s name is Lindy. She wanted to come today, but she’s
at her counselling session.”
What is the conflict
here, and how does the
writer create tension
building up to the
conflict?
“My name is Zaiton. Your wife is a counsellor?”
“No, she’s not. I think I’ll get straight to the point. Today Sinta told me that
70
she wants to work for you. And she said it had something to do with the dog.”
“Muslims are not supposed to touch dogs,” said Zaiton.
“I know that,” said Wee Keong. “And we did ask her from the beginning
whether she was comfortable with it.”
“If she said she’s not comfortable then you won’t give her the job.”
“Madam Zaiton, we really like Sinta, even if she’s just been with us for a
75
month. If she doesn’t want to take care of the dog, it’s fine with us. But she’s
a great cook.”
Somehow, Zaiton felt relieved. She was having second thoughts about the
cost of hiring Sinta.
“My wife stopped cooking after our son died. It reminded her too much of
Go back to the
beginning of the text.
What
misunderstandings did
Zaiton have about her
neighbours, and how
did the writer use
diction and irony to
create these
misunderstandings?
80
him. She wanted to get rid of all the things that brought back memories of
What is your
impression of Wee
Keong and his wife
now?
him. The only thing we couldn’t get rid of was the dog. Because the dog was
the boy’s favourite thing in the world. And I know it’s stupid to say this but I
sometimes think there’s a bit of our son that lives in him. Because unlike our
son’s books, or his toys, this thing…he’s alive, you know?”
85
“It’s not stupid,” Zaiton said.
“So what I wanted to say is…the dog, to us, is more than just an animal.
Sometimes when he howls at night I feel that he understands my wife and
16
The writer tells the
story through a specific
character’s viewpoint.
What effect does this
have on you as a
reader?
myself more than any other person can. But at the same time we’ve never
treated Sinta as anything less than one of us.”
“I’m sorry,” Zaiton said. “I didn’t know.”
90
What do you think are
the key message(s) of
this text?
Wee Keong rose to leave. The confession had left him somewhat drained.
“Sorry for taking up your time. If your family is free I’d like to ask you round
for dinner. Sinta only cooks halal food.”
“Anyway, what’s his name?”
“Our son? Andrew.”
It wasn’t the answer that Zaiton expected. She had wanted to ask for the
dog’s name, as if that would lead her to understand Wee Keong’s loss. She
decided to ask Sinta the next time. Then she would try to figure out – the
boy’s name, the name of the dog – which one was the echo of which.
QUESTIONS:
What is the writer’s message? What is the theme of the text?
• GENERATE: Read the text and generate your observations about the text
• CONNECT : Synthesize the key observations into clear points.
• ELABORATE: How these ideas contribute to our understanding of the characters
and key message? What literary strategies are used (e.g. point of view,
irony, juxtaposition,foreshadowing, dialogue, tone)
CHARACTER STUDY CLOSE READING QUESTIONS
Study the characters of a) Zaiton b) Wee Keong and Wife c) Sinta
a. What is their relationships and perspective of the other characters ?
b. What is your first impression of her? Does it change by the end of the text?
Why/why not? What is the significance of point of view?
IN SUM, what could be a thematic statement that sums up the message of the text in
relation to the theme of social divides ?
17
2 Mothers in a HDB Playground by Arthur Yap
Listen to the reading. Compare it with 2 socially distanced mothers in a hdb playground.
ah beng is so smart,
already he can watch tv & know the whole story.
your kim cheong is also quite smart,
what boy is he in the exam?
this playground is not too bad, but i’m always
so worried, car here, car there.
5
at exam time, it’s worse.
because you know why?
10
kim cheong eats so little.
give him some complan. my ah beng was like that,
now he’s different. if you give him anything
he’s sure to finish it all up.
sure, sure. cheong’s father buys him
vitamins but he keeps it inside his mouth
& later gives it to the cat.
i scold like mad but what for?
if i don’t see it, how can i scold?
15
on Saturday, tv showed a new type,
special for children. why don’t you call
his father buy some? maybe they are better.
20
money’s no problem. it’s not that
we want to save. if we buy it
& he doesn’t eat it, throwing money
into the jamban is the same.
ah beng’s father spends so much,
takes out the mosaic floor & wants
to make terazzo or what.
25
we also got new furniture, bought from diethelm.
the sofa is so soft. i dare not sit. they all
sit like don’t want to get up. so expensive.
nearly two thousand dollars, sure must be good.
that you can’t say. my toa-soh
bought an expensive sewing machine,
after 6 months, it is already spoilt.
she took it back but … beng,
come here, come, don’t play the fool.
your tuition teacher is coming.
wah! kim cheong, now you’re quite big.
30
35
come, cheong, quick go home & bathe.
ah pah wants to take you chya-hong in new motor-car.
18
2 socially distanced mothers in a hdb playground by Gwee Li Sui (2020)
Ah beng! You dun go so near to
that kim cheong! Dunno where his
backside went –
I hear he still go for tuition
Corona until like this still can tuition
what is his mother thinking ah ?
lucky I got experience can
help you with simi
home-based learning
so no problem one.
Now you just play ! play !
Oi! Dun run so far! Come back!
play around here, around here!
kim cheong! You oso dun go
over there! That side not safe!
That ah beng’s mother
Mouth so smelly dunno what
Kind of thing their family eats.
Must be they once pm make
Announcement run to ntuc typeNow their house full of rubbish !
You play with ah beng
Sure will kena morona.
Maybe even corona they got
Still say other peepur! You see
A bit siow-siow
Oredi means what.
Come, cheong, play around here!
around here can!
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Neighbours by Alfian Sa’at
During Hari Raya she knocks on my conscience,
I knock on her door and I give her cakes.
She says she likes them and gives me
Sweets with gelatine inside. I throw them away.
Poor woman, doesn’t know how to make cakes.
Her children eat Maggi after school every day.
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That's why the elder one is in Normal stream
And the younger one can't spell her name.
If I was her age I wouldn't be wearing shorts at home.
No shame, she doesn't know how to hide her womanhood.
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When the children are naughty and I beat them
I close the door: I hear she's a gossip.
But she beats her children harder than I do
What to do her children are like that.
I once hear her scream she wanted to kill herself.
These people never value their own lives.
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Other times I see her I smile and she smiles back
And her children smile and call me auntie.
But in our hands we hold with fists clenched tight
The keys to our homes, each night we slam the bolt shut.
QUESTIONS:
Compare ‘Howling’, 2 Mothers in a HDB Playground, ‘Neighbours’.
What are similarities and differences in the
a. purpose of the writers
b. attitudes of the subjects towards one another
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Theme 2: Identity and Belonging
Compare the 2 quotes, which do you agree with ?
"If you care too much about
Singapore, first it'll break your
spirit, and finally, it will break
your heart."
-
Alfian Sa’at
If you cannot learn to love
(yes love) this city
you have no other.
-
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Simon Tay, Singapore Night Song
Read the following about places in Singapore and consider how the poets comment on
what makes up the Singaporean identity. Who are we really ?
Compare ‘Postcards from Chinatown’ with ‘Bumboat Cruise on the Singapore River’ and
Change Alley.
• What is similar or different in the message and craft ? Which poem do you think is more
effective ? Which can you relate better to? Do you agree with their perspectives ?
• Try writing your own poem in response to a place in Singapore. Accompany it with a
visual ( photo/artwork) with the place.
Postcards from Chinatown by Terence Heng
My Notes:
Racks of clothes along racks of clocks, as
if ticking away the fashion of the eras.
Fortune telling weight machine, I never
stepped on one before. Durian sign sale,
bicycle underneath no-bicycle sign.
Rusty trishaw parked outside renovated
lifts. And an old dental surgery somewhere
next to an older barber in the HDB.
Urn, three joss sticks burnt out sometime ago.
That was in the background where I walked,
background of the closed down emporium,
background of the foreign worker outside
an unopened shophouse. Background wet market,
background unanswered responses to the cajoling
from the hawkers in the background hawker centre.
Background, backstage.
Our performance dictates a different set of scripts.
Souvenir shops selling Chinese hats and fake
pigtails stapled to the end.
Umbrellas for holding water.
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Postcards of nothing that we really do.
I’ll sell this as distinctly local. Our whole stage of
rojak culture and the embracement of strolling
down the street back into the tour bus. Shiny shiny
trishaws and fluorescent T-shirts peddle you around
the incorporated country. This is Singapore,
ladies and gentlemen, although you don’t see
the locals anywhere.
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Bumboat Cruise on the Singapore River by Miriam Wei Wei Lo
Rhetoric is what keeps this island afloat.
Singaporean voice with a strong American accent,
barely audible above the drone of the bumboat engine:
“Singaporeans are crazy about their food.
They are especially fond of all-you-can-eat buffets.
Why not do as the locals do and try out one of the buffets
at these hotels along the waterfront.” The Swissotel looms.
The Grand Copthorne. The Miramar. All glass
and upward-sweeping architecture. Why not do
as the locals do. Here in this city where conspicuous consumption
is an artform. Where white tourists wearing slippers and singlets
are tolerated in black-tie establishments. Dollars. Sense.
How did I ever live in this place? Sixteen years of my life
afloat in this sea of contradictions, of which I was, equally, one;
half-white, half-Chinese; the taxi-driver cannot decide
if I am a tourist or a local, so he pitches at my husband:
“Everything in Singapore is changing all the time.”
Strong gestures. Manic conviction. “This is good.
We are never bored. Sometimes my customers
ask me to take them to a destination, but it is no longer there.”
Strong gestures. Manic conviction. “This is good.
We are never bored. Sometimes my customers
ask me to take them to a destination, but it is no longer there.”
We tighten our grip on two squirming children and pray
that the bumboat tour will exist. Nothing short of a miracle
this small wooden boat which is taking us now past Boat Quay,
in its current incarnation, past the Fullerton Hotel
To the mouth of the Singapore river, where the Merlion
still astonishes: grotesque and beautiful as a gargoyle.
The children begin to chafe at confinement. My daughter wails
above the drone of the engine. There’s talk of closing the mouth
of the river. New water supply. There’s talk of a casino.
Heated debate in the Cabinet. Old Lee and Young Lee
locked in some Oedipal battle. The swell is bigger out here
in the harbour, slapping up spray against the sides of the boat,
as if it were waves that kept it afloat, this boat,
this island, caught between sinking and swimming,
as I am caught now. As if rhetoric mattered.
As if this place gives me a name for myself.
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My Notes:
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Change Alley by Boey Kim Cheng
Alley of change utterly changed.
The name of the place names
the lost decades, the places and times
gone with our belongings, migrated
along the routes buried or closed
to the country of changelessness.
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Many dark tunnels ago, a child rode
on his father’s back through the trades of tongues,
the bazaar of puzzling scents and smells,
an underwater world of sailors
stale from the sea and travellers
drowned in dreams of home,
floating through its length skeined
with striplights and bare bulbs, the stalls
spilling over with imitation wares
for the unwary, watches, bags, gadgets and tapes;
in each recess he heard the conspiracies
of currencies, the marriage of foreign tongues
holding a key to worlds opening on worlds
for the wakening senses of the child.
And then the laughing clowns
in the toy shop at the end of the Alley,
secreting peals of ghostly glee, derisive
and disembodied, keeping the child
enthralled and fathoming through the years
as if the future was then foretold
before the Alley’s enchantment broke
in the dazzle of a weekend afternoon.
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Later the grown man in loneliness
would return as evening snuffed out
the life of trade and the Sikh nightwatch
hauled from its silent depths a worn string bed.
Standing at its mouth the man cast his stones
of questions to plumb the depths, to fetch
the echoes of consequence and distance
off all the alleys he had wandered.
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It seemed he had come through the changes
unchanged, searching still the place
for signs leading home, or out of the streets
emptying into loss, whichever turn he took.
And while he waited the country flipped
the book of changes; streets lost their names,
the river forgot its source, soaring towers
policed the skies and before the answer
could come like the laugh heard changes ago
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the Alley packed its stalls and followed
the route to exile, its nomadic spirit
inhabiting now the country of the mind.
All is utterly changed, the map useless
for navigation in the lost city. Only an echo
remains, the man haunting and sniffing
where the Alley had been, measuring
its absence till the spirit of place returns,
till a door yields at the end and he walks
out free, changed beyond all changes.
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Compare the poems regarding icons of Singapore? How representative are they of our Singapore
identity? What is the poet’s message ?
Merlion Speaks by Darren Shiau
i am tired of being upright, erect on my tail,
posing for pictures, posed poems by ponderous
poets like Thumboo, Lee and even young Sa’at
an afterthought in the sixties,
i know i have lost my relevance:
why else am i no longer
watching over the estuary,
my view obscured by the colossal Esplanade Bridge?
Why else is there an image of
myself on a Southern Isle
taller, fiercer and with burning eyes
to watch over the sea,
watch over
me?
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if i am to be nothing but a landmark and a reminder,
of our sea-faring past
then let me sit like the Danish Mermaid;
but if i have to stand here forever,
stand like the Statue of Liberty,
then for the country’s sake
let me stand for something
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How to Fly the Singapore Flag by Darren Shiau
last week of July,
the Straits Times bore an article with a simple tag it told us: How to Fly the Singapore Flag
it told us that
we could display it in August
but remove it by September
no other flag or emblem above, or to its right
no words or graphics upon it, and if it might
be torn or worn
hand it to the RC;
if not, wash it separately –
dry it indoors
i've seen it flown at construction sites,
on bamboo poles outside provision shops,
at farm-huts in Lim Chu Kang
and the neon brothels in Geylang
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i've seen it planted on a lonely crane, hanging over Shenton Way
and grasped in a toddler's sweaty palms
waving it frantically as her mother held sway,
refusing to let it be coaxed away
- we cannot decide how a flag is to be flown;
we can only raise it, give it winds
and let it make change, on its own
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Compare the following ‘The Planners’, ‘Trees Are Only Temporary’ , ‘Cutting Grass’ and ‘Boom’.
What are the sentiments about the development of Singapore on our identity and sense of
belonging ? How do the poets use craft in similar or different ways to convey their message ?
The Planners by Boey Kim Cheng
They plan. They build. All spaces are gridded,
filled with permutations of possibilities.
The buildings are in alignment with the roads
which meet at desired points
linked by bridges all hang
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in the grace of mathematics.
They build and will not stop.
Even the sea draws back
and the skies surrender.
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They erase the flaws,
the blemishes of the past, knock off
useless blocks with dental dexterity.
All gaps are plugged
with gleaming gold.
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The country wears perfect rows
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of shining teeth.
Anaesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis.
They have the means.
They have it all so it will not hurt,
so history is new again.
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The piling will not stop.
The drilling goes right through
the fossils of last century.
But my heart would not bleed
poetry. Not a single drop
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to stain the blueprint
of our past’s tomorrow.
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Trees are only temporary by Leong Liew Geok
The one and a half day weekend
Past, I can no longer place the familiar
Albizia; vanished without smoke, kaput.
Just like that, with half of Saturday,
All of Sunday, from my office window.
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Monday says trees are only temporary.
Take the saga down the slope:
Three trunks shot from one spot.
No bleeding, no scars to mention;
Woodshavings mark a triple execution.
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If trees could yell in decibels,
Drown the drone of saws
In final screeching falls,
We might be less careless
To cut and carry so efficiently.
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There is no place for shooting splendours
In the fever of estates and shopping centres;
Cut to pieces, where have all the rugged gone?
Boles which leave no bloody stump,
But baldness flush to the ground?
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Do not weep – crying’s not in.
Do not sigh – time goes wating by.
Screaming is unproductive,
For instant trees come
Quick from any nursery.
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Trees are only temporary
In a flourishing garden city.
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Cutting Grass by Aaron Maniam
What seems at first
a million murmuring bees
becomes a burst
of sound that stills the trees.
The cutters’s shrill wire scream
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To drink green; mowing down
Lallang, cow and shaving bush
Till, with cropped crown:
even the field of dreams
after the rush
an orator’s silence remains
amidst the shaken pods
and emerald stains
sparrows peck the earthen sod;
the grass grows broad and strong and lush
to quench the wire’s thirst
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again.
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Boom by Jean Tay
Act 1 Scene 2
INTRODUCTION
Welcome to the surreal world of Boom, where civil
servants wake the dead, corpses are terrified of
cremation, old women are besieged in their homes, and
Ah Bengs still dream of being Superman. Boom tells the
story of an elderly woman and her property agent son in
Singapore, who are struggling over the potential en bloc
sale of their home. Their destinies become interwoven
with that of an idealistic civil servant, Jeremiah, who is
facing the greatest challenge of his career—persuading a
reluctant corpse to yield its memories. Boom is a quirky
yet poignant tale about the relocation of both dead and
living, and how personal stories get left behind in the
inexorable march of progress.
Written by economist-turned-playwright Jean
Tay, Boom was conceptualised at the Royal Court
Theatre in London in 2007, and developed and staged by
the Singapore Repertory Theatre in September 2008. It
was nominated for Best Original Script for The Straits
Times’ Life!Theatre Awards in 2009.
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Act 2 Scene 7
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Act 2 Scene 19
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Enrichment;
Interview with Jean Tay:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4eB2eZPGR8
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Read Mid-Autumn by Hwee Hwee Tan and consider what shapes our identity? What are the tensions and priorities we have to
negotiate? Consider the significance of the use of craft (e.g. language, symbolism.)
Mid-Autumn by Hwee Hwee Tan
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Other Resources:
Common Life Drawings and Poems by Anne Lee Tzu Pehng /Ho Chee Lick
Singapore Literature:
qlrs
http://www.qlrs.com/issue.asp?id=77#ss
SingLit Station
http://www.singlitstation.com/spots
Singapore Memory Project
https://www.singaporememory.sg/collections/11?nextrecord=9&listtype=collectionMain&id=11.
Poetry.Sg
https://www.poetry.sg/
Migrant Worker Poetry Competition
View under the tab ‘Poets’
https://www.singaporeworkerpoetry.com/copy-of-poets-4
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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Ng, Faith, ‘Normal’ in plays. Volume 1 / edited by Lucas Ho, with an introduction by Philip Holden, Checkpoint Theatre,2015
Koh,Gilbert, ‘In Our Schools’
http://www.softblow.org/gilbertkoh.html
Koh,Gilbert, ‘Old Folks Home’
http://www.qlrs.com/poem.asp?id=179
Chong,Amanda, ‘Lamentations’
http://www.amandachong.com/poems#lamentations
Sa’at ,Alfian, ‘Howling’ in Malay Sketches,Ethos Books, 2012
Yap,Arthur, ‘2 mothers in a hdb playground’
https://www.lyrikline.org/en/poems/2-mothers-h-d-b-playground-14731
Gwee ,Li Sui, ‘2 socially distanced mothers in a hdb playground’
https://gweek.wordpress.com/2020/04/03/2-socially-distanced-mothers-in-a-hdb-playground/
Sa’at, Alfian, ‘Neighbours’
https://genius.com/Alfian-saat-neighbours-annotated
Heng,Terence, “Postcards from Chinatown”
https://www.singaporememory.sg/contents/SMB-fd7433ef-4727-46f5-9e9f-a1a0d2daee8d
Lo, Miriam Wei Wei, ‘Bumboat Cruise on the Singapore River’
https://readiscovery.com/2009/12/29/two-poems-about-singapore/
Boey, Kim Cheng, ‘Change Alley’
https://www.singaporememory.sg/contents/SMB-ca925876-8e5d-41e3-bf922e1db175fdf0#:~:text=Change%20Alley%20by%20Boey%20Kim,to%20the%20country%20of%20changelessness.
Darren Shiau, ‘Merlion Speaks’
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Darren Shiau, ‘How to fly the Singapore Flag’
http://singaporeist.blogspot.com/2005/08/how-to-fly-singapore-flag.html
Boey Kim Cheng, ‘The Planners’
http://poetryprosedrama.blogspot.com/2010/10/planners-by-boey-kim-cheng.html
Tay,Jean. ‘Boom’, Epigram books, 2009
Maniam, Aaron. ‘Cutting grass,’ Morning at Memory’s Border, firstfruits Publications, Singapore, 2005
Tan, Hwee Hwee, ‘Mid-Autumn’, Angeline, Sim Wai Chew (Eds.). Island voices: a collection of short stories from Singapore (pp.
176-188)
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