Afternoons Flashcards
time is passing on is introduced right at the beginning
Summer is fading
this language introduces the recurring idea of couples and singles
leaves fall in ones and twos
nature is surrounding
trees bordering
the are is a new government housing estate most likely
new recreation ground
afternoons seem almost empty
hollows of afternoon
mothers are generalised showing there is no individuality
Young mother
men are more important than women
Behind them
parents control their children, perhaps reflects Larkin’s lack of children, jealous
Setting free their children.
men are presented as skilled and better
husbands in skilled trades
it is a working class community as rich people did not have their washing visible
estateful of washing
love wears off and becomes less special over time as indicated by this
‘Our wedding’ lying/ near the television
enjambment used to reflect how people meet up here
wind/ is ruining their courting places
the places are still there but not where the ‘older’ lovers
That are still courting places
parenthesis used normally to show something is less important but here it is used to emphasise how the children are important
(But the lovers are all in school)
their (the women’s) children are referenced to want unripe acorns, reflecting how young they are, not ready for relationships
Their children, so intent on/ Finding more unripe acorns,
children feel entitled for their parents to do what they want them to
Expect to be taken home
the women are described as aging in an unusual manner
Their beauty has thickened
the mothers are being pushed out by their children being more important
Something is pushing them/ To the side of their own lives
why did the poet write about other normal lives
he was very unsuccessful in his love life, he had 3 relationships at once!
where was he educated
Oxford and home-schooled until he was 8
what could the poem be considered
a tableau as nothing happens
what did he deny
poet laureate, he was highly decorated
what is the tone
passive aggressive and somewhat jealous of the normal lives he observes
what collection did this come from
Whitsun Weddings where he wrote with an observational tone
what do children show
that life is cyclical and you become cynical when you get older
