Primary: How do authors use language and form to reflect, define and construct cultural and/or social identity?
This author used language and form to construct identity through creating an extended metaphor of almost a beast or animal-like creature, represented as the nasi lemak. The choice of the word ‘chops’, ‘eyes’, and ‘peacock’s tail’ accentuates the metaphor as it portrays the nasi lemak as almost walking towards the author, in an intimidating sort of way. The phrase ‘breaks teeth’ is also quite a vicious simile, and portrays the strength of the food, and how powerful the taste it. Additionally, the word ‘virgin’ juxtaposes the whole first half of the first stanza by describing it as untouched and innocent, in comparison to the beast that it was initially described as. This almost shows that the poet is both new to this experience, but also familiar with it at the same time, portraying this famously Singaporean and Malay dish in a unique way.
Secondary: How do texts reveal and/or conceal underlying values and attitudes?
The text reveals how the author is both recalling past experiences of eating the nasi lemak, as well as almost ‘renewing’ and ‘re-experiencing’ the journey another time. The choice of beginning and ending the poem with the exact same phrase shows how it is a cycle, and possibly how the poet is experiencing this every time they take another bite, or eat nasi lemak after a long time. Furthermore, the phrase ‘Mama’s pot is the world’ explores the poets underlying values about family and the importance of family, as well as her attitudes towards her culture that she was raised in. The contrast of the ‘pot’ to the ‘world’ shows her experiences of the flavours in the food, and how her mother’s cooking follows her wherever she goes.
