· web view‘o my palm tree’ – religious allusion – biblical reference – pure / true love...
TRANSCRIPT
WHEN WE TWO PARTED
Byron
‘silence and tears’ – repetition – first and last verse – cyclical structure – his suffering never ends
‘half-broken hearted’ – implies he has never got over her
‘sever’ – emotive / powerful verb – clear sense of loss
‘chill’ – emphasis on the cold, emotionless state of their relationship
‘vows are all broken’ – marriage vows / promises she made to him
‘A knell to my ear’ – symbolism – death – end of relationship
‘Long, long shall I rue thee’ – repetition – suffering has been ongoing
‘deceive’ – felt lied to / cheated
‘In secret we met –
In silence I grieve’ – change in pronouns – emphasises his sense of loss / suffering alone / how he protected her name & reputation
NEUTRAL TONES
Hardy
‘Neutral’ – title seems to attempt to hide the truth as his feelings seem far from neutral
‘We stood by a pond…’ – pronoun – together – but past tense ‘stood’ implies separation – image of the pond is repeated at the end – a time for reflection – creates a cyclical structure – perhaps struggling to deal with feelings / has not moved on
‘winter day’ – cold, emotionless – reflects relationship
‘white’ / ‘grey’ – colourless – symbolism – emotionless
‘starving sod’ – sibilance – earth needs nourishment for life to grow – symbolic of their relationship which was failing
‘The smile on your face was the deadest thing alive’ – juxtaposition – he realises that their relationship was forced / fake
‘love deceives’ – he feels cheated – certainly not ‘neutral’
‘chidden of God’ / ‘God-curst’ – religious allusion – their relationship was doomed to failure
LOVE’S PHILOSOPHY
Shelley
‘Philosophy’ – lyric poem – expresses strong personal feelings
‘mingle’ / ‘mix’ / ‘kiss’ / ‘clasp’ – verbs specifically chosen to evoke the idea of two things coming together
‘fountains’ / ‘mountains’ / waves’ – natural imagery – symbolising how natural their actions would be
‘Heaven’ / ‘law divine’ – religious allusion – their relationship is natural / God would approve / there would be no shame in kissing him
‘kiss’ / ‘kissings’ – repetition – emphasising the purpose of the poem – to persuade her to give in to his desires
‘what are all these kissings worth,
If thou kiss not me?’ – rhetorical question – powerful, emotive idea that life is worth nothing without each other
PORPHYRIA’S LOVER
Browning
‘sullen wind’ / ‘spite’ / ‘vex’ – pathetic fallacy / combination of verbs and adjectives set tone – angry / tense / negative – possible foreshadowing.
‘she shut the cold out’ – literal and metaphorical – she brings warmth / comfort to his life.
‘cheerless grate’ – transferred epithet – the grate reflects the feelings of the man – ‘cheerless’ without his lover.
‘withdrew’ / ‘laid’ / ‘put my arm around her waist’ – her actions are more forward – uncommon for the time period – perhaps adds to his confusion / inner turmoil.
‘from pride and vainer ties dissever’ – she was struggling to leave her life behind – he makes it sound as if it was what she really wanted.
‘As a shut bud that holds a bee’- simile – nature – they were destined to be together.
‘And all night long we have not stirred,
And yet God has not said a word’. – ends with a rhyming couplet – reference to God – assuring himself that his actions were right.
SONNET 29 – I THINK OF THEE
Barret-Browning
‘my thoughts do twine and bud’ – natural imagery – her thoughts are wrapped up in him.
‘as wild vines about a tree’ – simile – more natural imagery – adjective ‘wild’ implies her passion – he is her metaphorical ‘tree’ – gives her support – she relies on him for strength.
‘O my palm tree’ – religious allusion – biblical reference – pure / true love
‘set thy trunk all bare’ – very forward for a Victorian woman – urging him to give himself to her.
‘a new air’ – he metaphorically breathes life into her life.
‘thee’ and ‘thy’ – repetition of pronouns show her thoughts are solely of him – shows constancy of her feelings.
CLIMBING MY GRANDFATHER
Waterhouse
‘the old brogues, dusty and cracked’ – starts at bottom – child’s perspective. Shoes may symbolise grandfather – he too is ageing.
‘rope’ / ‘net’ / ‘traverse’ / ‘ridge’ – terminology / lexical field supports development of extended metaphor. The poet enjoyed climbing and uses this hobby to explore fond memories of his grandfather.
‘like warm ice’ – oxymoron – a man or contradictions / a man of many secrets / a man who could be cool and aloof, but not to the grandchild, to whom he shows great warmth.
‘firm shoulder’ – adjective – implies he was a solid figure in his life.
‘smiling mouth’ / ‘good heart’ – a man he looks up to / a hero / love and warmth.
‘the glassy ridge of a scar’ – metaphor – alludes to the history of the man.
MOTHER ANY DISTANCE
Armitage
‘You’ / ‘me’ – the personal pronouns show the focus of the poem.
‘any distance’ – repetition of the title – knows his mother will always be there to support him. Often this is a positive thing but as the poem progresses we see that this can be stifling.
‘acres’ / ‘prairies’ – hyperbole / metaphor – used to exaggerate distances – how little things make the poet feel out of depth as he attempts to move out of home for the first time.
‘the spool of tape’ – becomes a metaphor for how he moves forward, but knows that his mother is always there, waiting to help.
‘Anchor. Kite.’ – sentence fragments – put emphasis on these words – how he sees his mum. Can infer safety / security – but also hint at how sometimes he feels held back / restricted.
‘space-walk’ – metaphor – tentative steps into the unknown – into adulthood.
‘something has to give’ – relationship is changing.
WALKING AWAY
Day-Lewis
‘like a satellite’ – simile – distance growing between them – but there will always be a connection.
‘wrenched’ – emotive verb – reflects how the father struggled with the idea of letting his son go.
‘drifting away’ – fears that their relationship will drift.
‘a half-fledged thing’ – metaphor – natural imagery – the father knows that this is just the natural course of events, but he doesn’t feel that his son is ready to leave the nest just yet.
‘wilderness’ – reflects the fears he has – the dangers in society / life which he cannot protect his son from.
‘Like a winged seed loosened from its parent stem’ – simile – more natural imagery – his son must develop his own roots.
THE FARMER’S BRIDE
Mew
‘I chose’ – male dominance of the era. Arranged marriage. She did not have a voice – just as her voice is absent from the poem.
‘like the shut of a winter’s day’ – simile shows how cold she was towards her new husband. Symbolism – emotional coldness.
‘we chased her, flying like a hare.’ – sustains dehumanisation through the simile. He sees her as his to own. Pronoun ‘We’ explains her fears – she feels hunted like an animal.
‘like a mouse’ – more imagery related to animals – this simile works to emphasise how timid she was.
‘Not near, not near…’ – repetition – she was scared but he grew more frustrated / angry.
‘The short days shorten and the oaks are brown’ – farmer – measures time with the changing seasons – symbolism here shows he is conscious that he is ageing and that time is running out.
EDEN ROCK
Causley
‘They are waiting for me somewhere beyond…’ – possibly reference to the afterlife when he hopes to be reunited with his beloved parents.
‘same suit’ – memory of father doesn’t change – he doesn’t age because he died so young.
‘Her hair, the colour of wheat, takes on the light.’ – metaphor – there is something ethereal about her. Memory is beautiful.
‘same three plates’ – repetition of three – their family unit – ‘three suns’ – father / son / holy spirit – symbolism? Perhaps reflecting the hope of eternal life / seeing them again.
‘The sky whitens’ – colourless – life changed after his parents’ deaths.
‘stream-path’ – perhaps symbolises the River Styx – the mythological river which separates the mortal world with the after life.
‘Crossing is not as hard as you might think.’ – vision gives him comfort.
WINTER SWANS
Sheers
‘clouds’ /‘two days of rain’ – pathetic fallacy – sets tone from the start – there are troubles in their relationship.
‘tipping in unison’ – the swans work together – they stop and watch the swans.
‘like boats righting in rough weather’ – simile – shows how the swans can find their balance even in troubled times – symbolising the couple.
‘They mate for life’ you said…’ –breaks the silence – implies that she sees hope for their future together.
‘porcelain’ – metaphor – swans are delicate just like their relationship is fragile.
‘slow-stepping in the lake’s shingle and sand’ – adverb slow = it will take time to heal their rift. Sibilance – there will be rough times and smooth times.
‘our hands… swum the distance between us’ – extended metaphor – coming back together.
SINGH SONG!
Nagra
Romantic / light-hearted. Newlywed couple. Title is a pun – a play on a common name – also reflects the lyrical, sing-song nature of the as developed through the rhythm and rhyme.
‘daddy’s shops’ – shows touch of immaturity. Also used to show how his father has controlled his life up to the point of his marriage – now he is distracted by his ‘newly bride’. (Non-standard English – accent comes through.)
‘vee share’ – repetition - unity of their marriage – clear sense of being together.
‘made luv / Like we rowing through Putney.’ – simile – humorous / fun – enjoying life with his new wife.
‘my pinnie untied’ – distracted – hints at what they have been doing – not ashamed of his behaviour but proud of it.
‘di worst Indian shop’ – contrast to his father who put business first.
‘high heel tap the ground’ / ‘Sikh lover site’ – contrast between traditional Indian culture mixed with Western behaviour.
‘my bride’ – possessive pronoun – marriage = ownership = traditional idea in his culture. ‘My bride’ is on a separate line – his thoughts return to her and her alone. Repetition of the phrase shows his obsession.
‘effing at my mum’ – his wife lacks respect but he finds it endearing. The narrator is rebelling against his father’s strict rules.
‘di tickle of my bride’ – euphemism – relationship is affectionate and carefree.
‘Hey Singh, ver yoo bin?’ – chorus – reminder of the poet’s antics.
‘ven yoo shoppers are wrap up…’ – direct address to the reader – we become the shoppers who impinge on the time he has with his wife.
‘she say… I say… baby.’ – repetition / alternating – two-way conversation – working together. Happy relationship.
‘priceless baby-’ poem left hanging – looking towards the future – love is more important than anything.
BEFORE YOU WERE MINE
Duffy
‘I’m ten years away’ – the image is of ten years before she was born.
‘laugh’ / ‘shriek’ – verbs – enjoyment of young, carefree single girl.
‘ballroom’ / ‘dance’ / ‘Cha cha cha!’ – multiple reference to dancing – freedom / excitement of her mother as a young girl.
‘the fizzy movie tomorrows’ – the romance / potential her mother had – she knows that she changed the future for her mother.
‘The decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh?’ – conversational tone. She knows that once she was born her mother changed – her mother’s life revolved around caring for her.
‘I remember my hands in those high-heeled red shoes’ – adds to the wistful tone as the poet remembers her own childhood.
‘relics’ / ‘ghost’ – the person her mother used to be has metaphorically died.
‘lights’ / ‘stars’ / ‘sparkle’ – multiple reference to light – could symbolise how her mother was carefree or how she looks up to her mother or how she wishes she had known this woman – perhaps hinting that her mother changed, but not for the better.
FOLLOWER
Heaney
‘His shoulders globed like full sail’ – simile – begins nautical imagery which is extended throughout – suggests that his father was a magnificent sight to behold when he was at work.
‘rolled’ / ‘dipping’ / ‘rising’ – extended imagery – mirror his father’s movements in the field / the movement of the soil as he ploughed it.
‘horse-plough’ / ‘furrow’ / ‘steel-pointed sock’ / ‘headrig’ – technical terminology – focus on his father at work and his admiration of how skilled he was.
‘His eye narrowed… Mapping the furrow exactly.’ – he’d watched his father many times – admired his skill / accuracy.
‘I stumbled in his hob-nailed wake…’ – he felt clumsy compared to his father.
‘I was a nuisance, tripping, falling, yapping always.’ Triplet shows how he felt; perhaps implies that while he admired his father he never felt too close to him. Present participle – vivid memory.
LETTERS FROM YORKSHIRE
Dooley
‘his knuckles singing’ – personification – the joy / excitement he finds in writing to her.
‘It’s not romance’ – relationship based on friendship.
‘seeing the seasons turning’ – he lives in the countryside – a world away from her life in the city – she loves hearing about this – perhaps a reminder of her roots.
‘feeding words onto a blank screen’ – metaphor – words give nourishment – they sustain people – just like his letters enrich her life.
‘that other world’ – their lives are so different – his letters transport her to a different place – that’s why their communication is so important.
‘pouring air and light into an envelope’ – metaphor – links to ‘feeding’ – that words can be powerful – they give her life and hope.
‘our souls tap out messages across the icy miles’ – their bond is strong – symbolism in the adjective ‘icy’ – her life would be cold without their communication / their relationship.
POSSIBLE LINKS:
Communication – Letters From Yorkshire / The Farmer’s Bride.
Positive relationships – Letters From Yorkshire / Singh Song / Sonnet 29.
Unrequited love - The Farmer’s Bride / When We Two Parted / Love’s Philosophy
Family relationships – Walking Away / Mother Any Distance / Eden Rock / Follower / Climbing My Grandfather.
Separation – Neutral Tones / When We Two Parted / Winter Swans / Eden Rock / Walking Away.
Letting go – Walking Away / Eden Rock / Mother Any Distance
Difficult relationships – The Farmer’s Bride / Mother Any Distance / Porphyria’s Lover
Loss – Neutral Tones / When We Two Parted / Eden Rock / Walking Away
Romantic Love – Love’s Philosophy / Sonnet 29 / Singh-Song
Challenging in relationships – Winter Swans / Love’s Philosophy / The Farmer’s Bride / Walking Away / Mother Any Distance
Admiration – Follower / Climbing My Grandfather / Sonnet 29
Regret – Before You Were Mine / Follower / Neutral Tones
Looking Back – Neutral Tones / When We Two Parted / Eden Rock / Mother Any Distance