## _Gulls_ ![[_A meadow_transformed_into_a_barnyard_with_puddles_ref_1d882eff-ec9a-43d4-af9c-20b43033779e_2.jpg]] A dozen gulls from the seashore Across the road swim on a pool Of rain spilt on the meadow’s floor, And, being off-white, rearrange Meadow as barnyard, pool as pond, Themselves as ducks, and this exchange At first seems meant to entertain, Merely to fool, or criticise The sort to whom rain must be rain, Gulls gulls; or is this hinted at: No fake is fake – there is no _this_ Less this just for not being _that_?                         KINGSLEY AMIS ## Explanation This poem plays with perception and how we interpret what we see. Here’s a breakdown in plain terms: 1. **First stanza:** The speaker sees a group of seagulls, not at the beach where they belong, but swimming in a rain puddle in a meadow. This is an unusual sight—seagulls in a place that doesn’t seem quite right for them. 2. **Second stanza:** Because the gulls are an off-white colour, they make the meadow look like a farmyard and the puddle look like a real pond. They even resemble ducks rather than seagulls. This suggests that the way we see things can be influenced by small changes in context. 3. **Third stanza:** The scene at first seems like a kind of joke or trick, as if the gulls are deliberately making fun of people who expect everything to stay in its “proper” place (rain should just be rain, gulls should stay by the sea). 4. **Fourth stanza:** The final lines question the idea of “fakeness.” The poem suggests that just because something isn’t in its usual place or doesn’t fit expectations doesn’t mean it’s not real. There’s no strict line between “this” and “that”—things aren’t less true just because they resemble something else. **Main Idea:** The poem plays with identity, perception, and how categories aren’t always fixed. Just because something appears different or out of place doesn’t make it unreal or false—it just means we’re seeing it in a new way. ## Illustrate To illustrate this poem, you could create an image that plays with **perception, transformation, and ambiguity**—blurring the lines between what things _are_ and what they _seem to be._ Here are a few possible approaches: **1. Surrealist Approach (Play on Identity)** • A **meadow transformed into a barnyard**, with puddles reflecting not the sky but a farm pond. • Seagulls with subtle duck-like features, or ducks with faint gull markings, creating a visual overlap. • The meadow’s grass blending into sand or water, making it unclear whether it’s land or shore. **2. Optical Illusion or Double-Image** • A scene where **seagulls and ducks morph into each other** depending on how you look at it. • A reflection in the puddle that **shows ducks instead of gulls**, suggesting an altered perception. **3. Atmospheric and Abstract Approach** • A painterly, dreamlike image where the boundaries between **water and land, birds and reflections, sky and earth** are softened. • A group of gulls in a puddle, their shapes blending into their surroundings so that at first glance, the scene looks like a barnyard with ducks. Would you like a specific visual style (e.g., realism, impressionism, minimalist line art)?