Summary

“The Lofts” continues Jackself’s exploration of his identity as he climbs into the lofts of his family home, Lamanby, and finds an array of “skeletons of past Selves” waiting for him there, including “Edwardself, Billself/and Wulfself” (13). “Thanks a fucking bunch” Jackself cries at the skeletons, who seem to pay him no mind in response as “his cry echoes back/echoes back” (14). In the final stanza of the poem, Jackself is seen shying away from the skeleton’s and the past they represent “too afraid to stay and hear/the silence that was [his]by birth” before he “thundered down the stairs” (14).

The poem “Lessons” is about Jackself’s experiences at school with his teacher Miss Clout and the headmaster Mr. Workbench. Most days Jackself is made to sit in the corner and stare at the wall, and when it comes time...