Coming, Going and Poetry of Departures

Question 1

‘Light, chill and yellow, __________ the serene foreheads of houses’ (Coming)

Answer 1

bathes

Question 2

In Coming, why is the light described to ‘bathe the serene foreheads of houses’?

Answer 2

Larkin is perhaps trying to evoke an image of baptism, suggesting that the coming spring is purifying the landscape from the ravages of winter.

Question 3

In Coming, what phrase is repeated in the middle chorus part of the poem?

Answer 3

‘It will be spring soon’

Question 4

In Coming, why does Larkin repeat the phrase, ‘It will be spring soon’?

Answer 4

To convey the speaker’s excitement and anticipation of the coming spring. The monosyllabic nature of this phrase also conveys the simple beauty of the new season.

Question 5

‘Feel like a ____________’ (Coming)

Answer 5

child

Question 6

In Coming, why does the speaker ‘feel like a child’?

Answer 6

When observing spring and the return of life, he feels a sense of innocence and child-like wonder.

Question 7

What technique is used here: ‘And I, whose childhood is a forgotten boredom, feel like a child’ (Coming)?

Answer 7

simile

Question 8

How is the structure of Coming different to most other Larkin poems, and why?

Answer 8

In contrast to most other Larkin poems, which are structured around tight, regular stanzas, Coming is very different as it is a single stanza with enjambment across most lines. This is perhaps intended to represent the overflowing passion and excitement of the main character, as he observes the coming of new life.

Question 9

Which type of shrub is referred to in Coming, and why?

Answer 9

Laurel (the thrush is described as being ‘laurel-surrounded’). Laurel wreaths are often give out at sporting events, so this is perhaps intended to reiterate that spring is a time of celebration and joy.

Question 10

‘There is an __________ coming in’ (Going)

Answer 10

evening

Question 11

In Going, what does the coming evening represent?

Answer 11

The disappearing light might be seen as a metaphor for the inevitability of death.

Question 12

‘That lights no ____________.’ (Going)

Answer 12

lamps

Question 13

In Going, why does the speaker say that the coming evening ‘lights no lamps’?

Answer 13

To suggest that death offers no hope or possibility of an afterlife - it is final and absolute.

Question 14

‘___________ it seems at a distance’ (Going)

Answer 14

Silken

Question 15

In Going, why does death seem ‘silken at a distance’?

Answer 15

To suggest that when viewed from afar - when a person is younger - death seems almost like an easy and comforting resolution to life.

Question 16

When it is drawn up over the knees and breast//It brings no ___________.’ (Going)

Answer 16

comfort

Question 17

How is there a shift in the penultimate stanza of Going?

Answer 17

The tone becomes interrogative (questioning) with three questions in succession.

Question 18

Why is there a shift to a more questioning tone in the penultimate stanza of Going?

Answer 18

To show how, above all, death brings confusion and uncertainty.

Question 19

Where has the __________ gone, that locked//Earth to the sky? (Going)

Answer 19

tree

Question 20

In Going, why does the speaker question: Where has the tree gone, that locked// Earth to the sky?

Answer 20

The tree is a metaphor for stability that connects life on ‘earth’ with the hope of something after (‘sky’). As the speaker confronts death, he questions whether such a link really exists.

Question 21

What is the name for a three-line stanza, like those used in Going?

Answer 21

tercets

Question 22

In Going, why is the tercet structure broken down at the end of the poem, as Larkin uses a single-line final stanza?

Answer 22

The sudden break down in structure perhaps represents the speaker’s increasing confusion and uncertainty. The single line might be seen as symbolising the notion that ultimately we all have to face death alone.

Question 23

The focus on death in Going might have been shaped by the the beginning of which war in the 1950s, which brought with it the threat of nuclear apocalypse?

Answer 23

The Cold War

Question 24

In what year did Britain test nuclear weapons?

Answer 24

1952

Question 25

The focus on death in Going may have been influenced by the fact that the poems were written soon after the end of which war?

Answer 25

WWII

Question 26

Sometimes you hear, _________ - ____________,//As epitaph’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 26

fifth-hand

Question 27

In Poetry of Departures, why is it significant that the story of a man leaving society is heard ‘fifth-hand’?

Answer 27

This suggests the story was perhaps unreliable or untrue, with the speaker therefore questioning whether escaping society is actually realistic.

Question 28

What does the word ‘epitaph’ mean and in which poem does it feature?

Answer 28

epitaph = words spoken at a funeral. This is featured in Poetry of Departures.

Question 29

In Poetry of Departures, why does the speaker describe that the story of a man leaving society is told like an ‘epitaph’?

Answer 29

An epitaph is a speech delivered at a funeral. The speaker is perhaps mocking the way that stories of societal rebellion are told in such a dramatic manner.

Question 30

‘audacious, purifying, _____________ move’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 30

elemental

Question 31

What technique is used here: ‘audacious, purifying, elemental move’ (Poetry of Departures)?

Answer 31

tricolon

Question 32

Why does the speaker describe the story of a man escaping mainstream society as an ‘audacious, purifying, elemental move’?

Answer 32

The triplet of hyperbolic adjectives is intended to mock the idea that escaping mainstream society is actually that significant or meaningful.

Question 33

‘specially-chosen __________’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 33

junk

Question 34

What technique is used here? ‘specially-chosen junk’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 34

oxymoron

Question 35

Why does the main character of Poetry of Departures describe his possessions as being ‘specially chosen junk’?

Answer 35

The oxymoron conveys how the speaker feels material possessions, something we take great time and care to amass, are actually worthless.

Question 36

‘the ________ books, the __________ bed’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 36

good

Question 37

What is the intended effect of the list in Poetry of Departures: ‘Books; china; a life’?

Answer 37

The speaker is perhaps suggesting that life itself (like books and china) can become a commodity.

Question 38

‘Reprehensibly ____________’ (Poetry of Departures)

Answer 38

perfect

Question 39

What technique is used here: ‘Reprehensibly perfect’ (Poetry of Departures)?

Answer 39

oxymoron

Question 40

Why does Poetry of Departures end with the oxymoron ‘reprehensibly perfect’?

Answer 40

The speaker suggests that the idea of a ‘perfect’ life is ‘reprehensible’ and something to be entirely rejected.

Question 41

What is the significance of the title ‘Poetry of Departures’?

Answer 41

Larkin is mocking the idea that there is anything poetic or romantic about the idea of ‘departing’ society.

Question 42

‘___________ it seems at a distance’ (Going)

Answer 42

Silken