This image reveals to us the different lenses that we may use based on youth or age. Some may see it as a complete mess, but others may see it as an organized art piece.

“no u”

My mom told me to clean my room,

But I looked on the floor and it’s spring’s bloom,

“Son, get up, pick up that shoe”

But I laid back and mumbled, “no u”.

With the devil’s screech, “GeT yOuR eYeS oFf YoUr ScReEn,

And turn down that rubbish rappin’ ‘bout lean.”

Dragging my shoulder, with a menacing stare,

She doesn’t understand that I really don’t care.

But finally, I rise up from the lively grave,

But not just to behave,

But to show my gratitude,

By fixing that attitude.

The poem “no u”, by John Goh, is a brilliant, closed, narrative masterpiece that reveals to us that despite the differences between youth and age, there is still respect between the two, despite the generational gap. It primarily uses metaphors and allusions to memes to reveal the difference in thinking between the two generations.

The title, “no u”, is an allusion to a relevant meme commonly used by today’s youth. The meme is a satirical reference ridiculing the way that children and adolescents will often use a nonsensical rebuttal, such as “no u”, rather than a rational, comprehensive response to criticism. Lines 1-2 first talk about how the mother wants her son to clean his room, but the son doesn’t seem to recognize the issue. Rather than seeing the mess on the floor, the son sees “spring’s bloom” on the floor. “Spring’s bloom” is a metaphor for the way that colourful clothing spread across the floor, through the right lens, can look like the beauty of flowers blooming during the spring. Lines 3-4 continues this narrative as the mother continues to hassle the son to clean his room. Showing little care for what his mother is saying, he lays back unbothered, responding with a carefree “no u”, putting no effort into his response. Line 5 contains two different devices as the mother starts to become more aggravated. “The devil’s screech” is a hyperbole that provides some imagery into the way that the mother angrily speaks to her son. The irregular capitalization in the phrase, “GeT yOuR eYeS oFf YoUr ScReEn”, is an allusion to another meme that is commonly used by today’s youth. The meme, from the point of view of a child, satirizes the irritating way that adults criticize their children. This helps enforce the imagery of the main character in the poem being an annoyed adolescent who doesn’t understand the why his mother is telling him to do this. The phrase “rubbish rappin’ ‘bout lean” uses alliteration with the “r-” sound. It also reveals the way that the older generation tends to perceive modern rap/hip-hop that often references drugs such as lean. The mother calls the music “rubbish” due to the generational gap and different tastes in media/entertainment. The first two stanzas reveal the differences in thinking between the younger and older generation. The main character is shown to be a carefree adolescent who doesn’t care about the neatness of his room. This is revealed by his allusions to memes, taste in music, and his positive perception of his messy room. The mother is revealed to be an organized, responsible adult who understands the need for a clean room.

In the last stanza the son decides to listen to what his mother is saying. “Rise up from the lively grave” in line 9, is an oxymoron as well as a metaphor. Rising up from the lively grave is a metaphor for “getting out of bed”. The oxymoron “lively grave” is compared to a bed that you sleep in. Sleep not only gives you rest, like how a grave would help you “rest in peace”, but it also gives you life. In lines 9-11, the author continues to repeat “But” at the start of each line. At the end of the poem, the main character still doesn’t understand why his mother is telling him to clean his room because of his different understanding of life. Despite that, he decides to clean his room anyways because of the respect and gratefulness he has for his mother and what she does for him. The gifted poet reveals to us that despite the differences in generational thinking we may have, we can still respect each other. This theme is universal because different generations with different mindsets will come and go until the end of humanity.