The Planners: 7 Discussion Questions

1.      A Summary Of The Content Of Each Stanza

Stanza 1:

I've always felt that this poem starts off very strongly. The poet wastes no time in dilly-dallying about or giving an introduction to his subject - he jumps right in. His very first word refers to The Planners, and the second word refers to what they are doing. This, coupled with the repetition of the word "they" as well as a verb to follow ("plan", "build") brings about a sense of urgency. We feel like what the poet describes is happening now and that he wants to escape it. Pronto.

Over all the first stanza speaks of what "they" are doing - planning, building, gridding. The sameness and consistency of the poet's environment is expressed in the phrases "in alignment with the roads" and "desired points", as well as the phrase "grace of mathematics" which is a juxtaposition used to depict that the poet finds what the planners are endeavouring to accomplish (or, perhaps, already accomplished) rather baffling.

Additionally, the personification in the last two lines ("the sea draws back", "the skies surrender") briefly explores the utter power of the planners, and the terrific hold they have even over nature. The verbs draws (to pull away) and surrender (to give up) begins to give the poem its negative tone, which will be further emphasized in the next two stanzas.

Stanza 2:

In this stanza, the distress of the poet leaks through. We have an extended metaphor of dentistry running throughout the paragraph; this further emphasizes how the poet feels towards the planners, for the idea of dentists never does bring about good memories.

Furthermore, the poet points out that the "flaws" and "blemishes" of the past are knocked off with "dental dexterity". He goes on to say that the "gaps" that knocking off these blemishes leave behind are filled up with gleaming gold à new buildings. It feels like an elaborate project that the planners are carrying out, what with the use of vivid verbs such as "knocked" and "plugged" to describe their actions.

Halfway through the stanza, the poet has had enough. We have a broken phrase in line 17, simply stating "Anaesthesia. Amnesia. Hypnosis.". It feels by now that the poem is so numbed by the actions oft the planners that he is not capable of forming a complete phrase to depict their effect on him. Instead, he uses these three words detachedly and with no context. Interpreting these words, while it may be a free interpretation, is also rather fixed, because he follows this line quickly with a decisive phrase.

They have the means / They have it all so it will not hurt,

And so overall we can conclude that in this stanza the poet depicts clearly and with an extended metaphor how cruel and ruthless the actions of the planners seem to him.

Stanza 3:

This is the shortest stanza, perhaps because the poet has by now become so overwhelmed by the actions of the planners that he is barely able to give the poem a suitable ending.

The first line starts with "but", once again bringing about a sense of urgency in the fact that the poet couldn't be bothered starting the stanza more appropriately. But my heart will not bleed/poetry. Not a single drop à a very stark contrast to the first two stanzas of the poem.

This stanza concludes the poem rather unexpectedly, with a conclusion we were not expecting to find. While from the first two stanzas we could feel the frustration and itchiness of the poet to do something, the last paragraph seems like the poet has given up, much like how the sea surrendered to the force of the planners.

(Alternatively, the poet did manage to escape the wrath of the planners, seeing as Boey Kim Cheng left Singapore not long after writing this poem - probably to seek inspiration somewhere else.)

2.      From Stanza 1: What does the use of the words "gridded", "permutations of possibilities", "points", "grace of mathematics" (which are associated broadly with mathematics) reveal about the speaker's attitude towards planners and city planning?

These are generally very technical points. The poet incorporates these words into the first stanza of his poem with ease, giving us the impression that he is well used to thinking or using these words daily or regularly. Some of these words vividly describe the poet's surroundings - the very surroundings he is rather unhappy with - and the nature of words like "gridded" and "points" informs us that the poet is not happy with the rigidness of the landscape, the sameness and uniformity that the planners seem to be enforcing on everything.

Additionally, the two phrases permutations of possibilities and grace of mathematics help emphasize the power of the planners. They are so powerful in their actions that their options are limitless, and they can bend even something so exact and concise as mathematics into a graceful, almost delicate art. The poet seems to be resentful of the planners, this assumption being backed by the fact that this is the only stanza in which these technical terms are used. (After proving his point, the poet moves on to prove other points.)

3.      Explore the personification of the sea and skies in the final two lines of stanza one. What do the images suggest about the relationship between man (more specifically, planners) and nature? What do you think is the speaker’s view of planners?

Personification: Even the sea draws back/And the skies surrender.

This line is the first of many that depicts the control of the planners: they are described to exert power even over nature, and the imagery induced by the verbs "draw" (withdraw) and "surrender" depicts nature as a small, even scared animal scuttling away into safety.

From here we can also sense of foreshadowing as to what the poet is about to speak of. In the first stanza (excluding the last two lines) he explains what the planners have been doing to his country, but immediately after he tells us that the planners are unstoppable, he points out the effect that their invincibility is having on nature.

We can deduce from this that the planner has noticed the way nature has been shrinking, perhaps diminishing at the hands of the planners. This can also be related to the general idea of globalisation that has taken over the world: the defeat of nature in lieu of making new buildings, more offices, more homes. Humans have begun preceding over nature, and the poet is bewildered by this observation.

4.      Consider the effect of the repetition of the word ‘They’ and also where each instance of the word appears in the poem.

The word 'They' is repeated generously throughout all three stanzas of the poem, and in all cases the word is immediately followed by the actions that the planners are taking.

They plan.
They build.
They build and will not stop.
They erase the flaws.
They have the means.
They have it all so it will not hurt.

If we read the above lines by themselves, the story they spell out is a dark, foreboding one. These words alone induce a kind of dread in the reader, and create the impression that "They" are an unstoppable, undefeatable and infinite force. They will not stop. They have the means (so it will not hurt). These phrases also call to mind a doctor, who must inflict pain occasionally in order to bring about a desired resolution, and it also calls to mind anaesthesia (will not hurt) which the poet mentions in line 17 ("Anaesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis.").

5.      List each reference to dentistry and dental work in stanza two, and consider closely the effect created by using each word/phrase. Does it enhance your appreciation of the poem to relate the descriptions here to your own experiences of going to the dentist?

"They":
 >erase the flaws
>knock off blemishes of the past
>with dental dexterity

Dexterity à skilfully, gracefully, quickly, cleverly.

Erase the flaws à most literal definition of perfection

The use of the metaphor in these lines gives the illusion that "they" are on a mission of erasing the past. The poet interprets their efficiency by using the metaphor of dentistry, reminding us of how big a perfectionist a dentist can be. A dentist, who leaves no trace of stain or decay behind, is in the poet's point of view an accurate representation of the planners.

The short and snipped phrasing of the first three lines of this stanza helps to carry across the displeasure of the poet.

All gaps are plugged
with gleaming gold.
The country wears perfect rows
of shining teeth.

The metaphor is further extended in these lines.

The phrase gleaming gold restates perfection (later mentioned as 'perfect rows' again). This phrase cannot be taken literally because the newness to a country can't actually shine like gold. But it is evident that to the poet, these buildings stand out like sore thumbs. Most people would see these new buildings, a stark contrast to the old (probably dysfunctional) structures that they have replaced, as a development for the better.

However, the poet uses evident exaggeration in line 15: perfect rows of shining teeth. The poet sounds resentful in these lines, like a little boy looking on at a beach party that he's excluded himself out of. First, the planners had erased away the "blemishes of the past"  and now we realise that the poet was rather fond of these blemishes. The poet then goes on to describe the new country he sees around him, a country full of perfect rows of shining teeth, a country whose past he misses so dearly and whose present he will never grow to love.

This is where the extended metaphor ends. An overall view of the effects of the metaphor:
>it is used to depict the perfection of progress

>it also depicts the resentment of the poet towards progress
>the efficiency of the planners in taking away everything that the poet held dear to himself is vividly described
>the poet mocks the planners by exaggerating their perfection, and is bitter towards them.

6.      Consult a dictionary for relevant meanings of the words in the line ‘Anaesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis’. Then consider what contribution this line makes to the poem as a whole. What does it reveal about the speaker’s attitude towards ‘They’?

Anaesthesia
Relevant definition: the loss of sensation with or without loss of consciousness

By using this word the poet tries conveying that the entire city, its people and the future and fate of his country is in the hands of the planners, and he - the citizen, onlooker and possibly the only one conscious of thought - is also aware of the fact and inevitability that he cannot do anything to change the destiny of his landscape.

This word also depicts the planners as some sort of all-powerful force that has robbed the poet of his ability to respond, so that now he is just sitting there on the fence, in a detached sort of panic akin to a Sherlock Holmes who can't quite use his brilliant mind to process anything anymore.

Finally we can conclude that:
In this case the poet is speaking of the kind of anaesthesia in which there is a loss of sensation WITHOUT losing consciousness. Speaking in biological terms, the poet's sensory neuron is working, he can feel the panic and is aware of the detrimental effect of the planners, but his motor neuron has been cut off and so he cannot respond to the situation coherently. Not anymore.

Amnesia
Relevant definition: a condition in which a person is un remember things because of shock

The use of this word after "anaesthesia" continues the medical terminology. The poet has already experienced the horror of progress and now he has been forced to forget. It reinforces the power of the planners in the view of the poet.

First, they have the power to do and they have the power to ruin and now they have the power to take away the poet's memory and manipulate the people into accepting their new fate. It gives the illusion that the poet is staring dumbstruck in the mouth of change, except now when he looks away he can't even remember what he has seen, because he has been shocked into forgetting it all.

Finally; the use of amnesia reinforces the utter power that the planners have over the past. The amnesia that the poet experiences is a result of his previous anaesthesia, due to the trauma of what he has witnessed happening all around him.

Hypnosis
Relevant definition: a state that resembles sleep but in which you can hear and respond to questions and suggestions

Use of this word after amnesia and anaesthesia signifies that the poet is helpless at the hands of the planners. The planners have been successful in manipulating him into accepting the change. The poet can now respond  but only to the planners' suggestions.

The planners are hence all-powerful, manipulative and controlling. First they take away the poet's power to respond, then they steal his memory and then his freedom of choice. A part of the planners' mission of progress may be to change the poet too because they don't want free-thinkers in this new country.

They want robots.

Overall analysis of "Anaesthesia, amnesia, hypnosis."u

Common denominator à power.

Let us also consider the way the poet delivers this phrase. It stops the flow of the stanza and demands attention, almost like the true message the poet is trying to get across.

He is so affected by his despair at what the planners are doing that he can't be bothered putting them into phrases. He just says it out. The detached and broken structure of this line can be directly related to the detached and broken state of the poem.

7.      What do you make of the ‘bleed poetry’ metaphor in the context of the poem? His heart would not bleed ‘a single drop / to stain the blueprint / of our past’s tomorrow’. How do you finally interpret this, and do you find it an effective ending to the poem?

But my heart would not bleed
poetry. Not a single drop
to stain the blueprint
of our past's tomorrow.

Bleed à the poet is hurt, the planners have hurt him. His words are the blood he refers to, and his heart is the past of the city, that has been torn apart.

Poetry à the fourth wall between the poet and the reader is broken. Here the poet is directly referencing his poem. The caesura (pause enforced by the period) in the middle of the phrase calls attention this word. The blood falling from his heart is his poetry, it is all the poet has left and he will not let it ruin or be ruined by anything.

Single drop à nothing at all. The poet is submissive. The poet has given up.

Stain à after illustrating so clearly the pristine environment of progress, this word shows how dirty he regards his poetry in comparison. He is convinced that his words will positively ruin the good future that the country has in store for itself.

Blueprint à the plans for the future of the country have already been made; they are pristine and clean, not blemished and flawless, and are the object of the poet's resentment

Past's tomorrow à the future is now.

Is this ending an effective one for the poem? It surely speaks of a resolution. The poet decides to keep his opinions to himself and shows his poetry to no one, hence indirectly saying that he knows deep down that progress is giving his country more benefits than harm. Despite how he depicts his heart to be bleeding, he is still willing to deal with progress for the sake of his fellow citizens.

(Boey Kim Cheng moved out of Singapore not long after writing this poem, so I suppose everybody was a winner in the end.)

I hope you found this discussion insightful!
With love,
BioKrys