Afternoons + AIAG quotes recall Flashcards
Afternoons - overview (time)
Larkin uses ‘Afternoons’ as a vehicle to bring attention to the ………….. ……… of ………….. and its effect on ……….. ………… and …………….. .
Larkin uses ‘Afternoons’ as a vehicle to bring attention to the inevitable passing of time and its effect on personal identity and relationships.
Afternoons - context (time)
Larkin’s self imposed life of ………….. as a life long ……….. meant that he had never …………… experienced a long term …………. yet he ………… to capture such ideas regardless of this.
Larkin’s self imposed life of solitude as a life long bachelor meant that he had never personally experienced a long term relationship yet he attempts to capture such ideas regardless of this.
Afternoons - opening
“………. is ………”
“Summer is fading”
Demonstrates the subtle movement of seasons which mirrors a change in people’s lives.
Larkin begins the poem immediately with the idea of loss or degeneration.
The transition of Summer to Winter is a matter of fact and inevitable. His use of “fading” clearly suggests this is a negative.
Afternoons - opening
“The ……… fall in ……. and ………”
“The leaves fall in ones and twos”
The leaves shedding is a gradual process, adding to the subtlety of change.
The enjambment also suggests freedom, but the freedom is cut short with a full stop.
Additionally, the use of monosyllabic words is effective in slowing the pace and creating a sense of tedium.
Afternoons - opening
“In the ………. of ………….”
“In the hollows of afternoons”
This metaphor suggests the emptiness of the lives of young mothers. The pluralisation once again suggests that this emptiness applies to all afternoons.
Afternoons - opening
“Setting ………. their ……….”
“Setting free their children.”
The word “free” may suggests that domestic life is restrictive implying that young mothers are confined however, the park may also be a place of respite for young mothers.
However, the use of the full stop suggests that their freedom is perhaps cut short.
Afternoons - middle
“……….. ………, at ………, stand …….. in skilled ……..”
“Behind them, at intervals, stand husbands in skilled trades”
The men are supporting their women and families by earning money for the household.
The fathers are not there all the time, and the presence is seen as intermittent. The caesura emphasises the separation between the woman and their husbands Larking is perhaps critical of married life.
Afternoons - middle
“…… estateful …… ……….”
“An estateful of washing”
The apparent vastness of the woman’s domestic chores reminds the reader of the woman’s responsibility and also the setting of the poem.
At the time gender roles were more regimented.
Afternoons - middle
“the ……, ………. Our …….., ……. near the …………”
“the albums, lettered Our Wedding, lying near the television”
Larkin is critical of married life…
The wedding album, a symbol of the love between couples, is now carelessly left out in the open. It suggests increasingly distant relationships between couples as they move into adulthood.
The impression is a wistful one – the albums as a symbol for a lost, romantic past.
Also, lying near the television implies that the screen has replaced intimacy and conversation.
Furthermore, the double meaning of “lying” also means not telling the truth suggesting a lack of truthfulness in their relationships.
Afternoons - close of the poem
“the …… is ruining their ……… ……….”
“the wind is ruining their courting places”
Over the stanza break coupled, with the repetition of courting places suggests that even though the lovers change their lives, still follows the same pattern, therefore suggesting a cyclical structure to the poem.
The steady erosive power of the wind is used as a metaphor for the passing of time.
Afternoons - close of the poem
“……… to be ……. ………”
“Expect to be taken home”
The lives of these young mothers the expectations of others: society, their husbands, and now even the demands of their children.
On the other hand, the word expect is resized the start of the line which is suggesting that the children are restricted by routine.
Afternoons - close of the poem
“……….. is …….. them to the …… of their …… ……”
“Something is pushing them to the side of their own lives”
Larkin seems to be complaining about the nature of adulthood.
That “something” is the responsibility assumed by adults raising children, maintaining livelihoods and keeping up social expectations which has ultimately caused them to abandon control over their own lives.
Places them in a passive role and shows how they have become observers.
As Imperceptibly as Grief - overview (loss)
Dickinson uses ‘As Imperceptibly as Grief’ as vehicle to ……….. the ……….. ……………. …………… of loss and its capacity to ………. ………. over time.
Dickinson uses ‘As Imperceptibly as Grief’ as vehicle to contemplate the complex human experience of loss and its capacity to subtly diminish over time.
As Imperceptibly as Grief - context (loss)
Dickinson’s ……… ………… afforded her the time to contemplate the …………. aspects of ……….. ……….. which was intensified by her own personal experience of ……….. .
Dickinson’s reclusive lifestyle afforded her the time to contemplate the profound aspects of life and death which was intensified by her own personal experience of loss.
Title of the poem?
“As imperceptibly as Grief” ?
Simile is used to make a comparison to a universal experienceof loss in our lives. ‘Grief’ is typically associated to a deep sadness - something that Dickinson is quite familiar with.
The adverb, “imperceptibly” attaches a subtlety and gentleness to something that is deep and all-encompassing.
