What has happened to Lulu? by Charles Causley

What has happened to Lulu?

by Charles Causley

Image source:
https://hinterlandblog.wordpress.com/tag/charles-causley/

What has happened to Lulu, mother? 

What has happened to Lu? 

There's nothing in her bed but an old rag-doll 

And by its side a shoe. 

Why is her window wide, mother, 

The curtain flapping free, 

And only a circle on the dusty shelf 

Where her money-box used to be? 

Why do you turn your head, mother, 

And why do tear drops fall? 

And why do you crumple that note on the fire 

And say it is nothing at all? 

I woke to voices late last night, 

I heard an engine roar. 

Why do you tell me the things I heard 

Were a dream and nothing more? 

I heard somebody cry, mother, 

In anger or in pain, 

But now I ask you why, mother, 

You say it was a gust of rain. 

Why do you wander about as though 

You don't know what to do? 

What has happened to Lulu, mother? 

What has happened to Lu?

Questions:

1. Who wrote the poem “What has happened to Lulu?”?

2. What are the things the persona and his mother found or did not find in the room?

3. Why do you think the persona is concerned about the window and the curtains?

4. In stanza 3, list the three actions of the persona’s mother that showed her feelings.

5. Does the lines “And say it is nothing at all” ring true about the mother’s feelings? Give a reason for your answer.

6. Describe what the persona heard the night before.

7. How does the persona’s mother explain the sounds the persona heard? Do you think the persona accepts the explanation? Why?

8. What moral values have you learnt from the poem?

Useful links:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/english_literature/poetry_wjec/relationships/whathashappened/revision/1/