'There are as many different ways of interpreting and valuing texts as there are readers.'
             One way in which we can read Harwood's poetry is by considering the significance of the numerous religious imagery in her poems. Christian beliefs and values are strongly shown in her poems.
             In 'The Glass Jar', it addresses the struggle between good and evil from a Christian viewpoint, finally offering hope through Christ's resurrection, symbolised in the last stanza as 'the resurrected sun.'
             The Christian perspective prevalent in 'The Glass Jar' is established early on in the poem, with such words as 'disciples', 'monstrance', 'bless', 'exorcize' and 'holy' which all contribute to the poems unfolding spiritual meaning.
             The child's awareness of evil expressed in his fear is a reminder of Adam and Eve's loss of innocence, an act which condemned humans to pain and suffering. 'The Glass Jar' is overlaid with Christian imagery which highlights the struggle between good and evil which is shown in the boy's dreams.
             Through Christ's sufferings on the cross, Christ defeats death and offers hope for all of humanity. For the boy, his glass jar, which he 'soaked in light', which suggests how desperate the boy is to defeat his demons, is his final weapon against the dark.
             However, as the poem develops, we see that it is not the monsters and demons that haunt his dreams that are the problem, but it is in fact his 'most secret hate' which is causing his nightmares, but he is too young to realise what it is.
             There is a feeling of hope in the last stanza of 'The Glass Jar', which is shown from the religious imagery in the stanza. Christ, who is the 'resurrected sun', defeated death and evil, and while the 'crumpled scarf' and the abandoned 'glass jar&...