This study notes covers 💬 Anchor Quote: Paper Money within Tissue (Dharker) for GCSE English Literature. Revise Tissue (Dharker) in Power and Conflict Poetry for GCSE English Literature with 10 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic appears regularly enough that it should still be part of a steady revision cycle. It is section 8 of 20 in this topic. Use this study notes to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
💬 Anchor Quote: Paper Money
"credit crackles, / might fly, might float"
Why this quote matters: Dharker applies the same fragility argument to economic power. "Crackles" is a sound — the texture of paper money — made audible and therefore felt as thin. "Might fly, might float" introduces uncertainty: the very medium of capitalism could simply blow away. Dharker uses the physical quality of paper currency to argue that economic systems built on paper are no more permanent than the paper itself.
Use this quote when answering: How Dharker challenges the authority of economic and political power; the repeated emphasis on the fragility of man-made systems; comparison with poems that show power as rigid and enduring (e.g. Ozymandias).
Practice questions for Tissue (Dharker)
In 'Tissue', what is the final image Dharker uses at the end of the poem?
How does Dharker use form in 'Tissue' to enact her argument about power? [2 marks]