Context Flashcards
Who’s perspective does Simon Armitage tell this poem from?
(The Manhunt)
By Simon Armitage
The wife of a soldier who has sustained serious injuries at war and has returned home. The poem explores the physical and mental effects of living with injuries sustained when on active service in the armed forces, deals with the idea of PTSD and its impact on the soldier and those around him/her.
What are the possible themes and links?
(The Manhunt)
By Simon Armitage
War and its lasting effects - Mametz Wood, A wife in London and Dulce et Decorum Est.
When did Elizabeth Barrett Browning write this poem?
(Sonnet 43)
By Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Was written before she married Robert Browning to express her intense love for him. Sonnet 43 is the most famous of the 44 sonnets. In it, Browning attempts to define her love.
What does the opening line ‘How do i love thee’, suggest?
(Sonnet 43)
By Elizabeth Barrett Browning
An intimate conversation between lovers.
She is about to talk about all the ways she loves him.
Possible themes and links:
(Sonnet 43)
By Elizabeth Barrett Browning
Relationships and love - Cozy Apologia Valentine, She Walks in Beauty.
What is the context behind this poem?
(London)
By William Blake
The speaker wanders through the streets of London and comments on his observations. He sees despair in the faces of the people he meets and hears fear and repression in their voices. The speaker openly criticizes the church, the monarchy and the government.
Where did Blake live and work?
(London)
By William Blake
In London during the Victorian era, a time of great poverty and industrial change.
Possible themes and Links:
(Lndon)
By William Blake
Welfare and living conditions – Living Space
Power and control – Hawk Roosting, Ozymandias
What is the context of this poem?
(The soldier)
By Rupert Brooke
Describes Brooke’s overtly patriotic view that it is a glorious and honourable sacrifice to die for
your country, and specifically England. The poem acts almost as a love poem to England, which he
romanticises and praises for its beauty and bounty.
Possible themes and links:
(The soldier)
By Rupert Brooke
Patriotism – Dulce et Decorum Est
Impact of war – Dulce et Decorum Est and A Wife in London
Pride – Ozymandias and Dulce et Decorum Est
Context of the poem:
(She walks in beauty)
By Lord Byron
Byron was a leading figure of the Romantic movement and liked to break conventions. Byron’s private life was very public and he was known for his many relationships with different women.
Celebrates female beauty. The beauty of the woman the speaker describes is in both her external appearance and her inner goodness.
Possible themes and links:
(She walks in beauty)
By Lord Byron
Relationships and love – Sonnet 43, Cozy Apologia and Valentine.
Context:
(Living space)
By Imtiaz Dharker
Born in Pakistan but raised in Scotland, Imtiaz Dharker has an interest in representing a different culture.
Poem describes the slums of Mumbai, where people migrate from all over India in the hope of a better life.
What subject terminolgy could be used for the title of this poem?
(Living Space)
By Imtiaz Dharker
The title is ironic as there isn’t much “living space” in the slums of Mumbai.
Possible themes and links:
(Living space)
By Imtiaz Dharker
Welfare and living conditions – London
Fragility of life and resilience of spirit – The Manhunt and Mametz Wood
Context behind this poem:
(As Imperceptibly as Grief)
By Emily Dickinson
About Emily Dickinson’s fear of death and feeling that she is tricked by time passing away. It could also be speaking of how her happiness is disappearing.
Before she wrote this poem several family members and friends had died.
Possible Themes and Links:
(As Imperceptibly as Grief)
By Emily Dickinson
Time passing – To Autumn and Afternoons
The natural world – To Autumn, Excerpt from the Prelude and Death of a Naturalist
Context:
(Cozy Apologia)
By Rita Dove
Waiting for a storm to hit, the speaker hunkers down, snug and safe in her study. Though Hurricane Floyd disrupts the business of daily life, it also allows time for daydreams. So, with time on her hands, the speaker finds herself daydreaming about her partner. Everything the speaker sees, from the rain outside to the ink on the page, reminds her of her partner.
Possible themes and links:
(Cozy Apologia)
By Rita Dove
Relationships and love – Sonnet 43, She Walks in Beauty and Valentine
Context:
(Valentine)
By Carol Ann Duffy
Duffy likes to break conventions and in Valentine she is criticising society’s views of being
materialistic. Duffy’s poetry is often feminist in its themes and approach.
What is the onion a metaphor for?
(Valentines)
By Carol Ann Duffy
Metaphor for love, poem is about love as well as valentine gifts.
Possible themes and links:
(Valentines)
By Carol Ann Duffy
Relationships and love – Sonnet 43, She Walks in Beauty and Cozy Apologia
Context:
(A Wife in London)
By Thomas Hardy
Thomas Hardy was a novelist – so was a storyteller
The poem is probably related to the Boer War but the fact she is ‘a’ wife reflects the tragedy of
how many lives were lost during many wars.
Possible Themes and Links:
(A Wife in London)
By Thomas Hardy
London life, environment – London
Relationships – The Manhunt
Impact of war – Dulce et Decorum Est, Mametz Wood
Context:
(Death of Naturalist)
By Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney’s four year old brother died in a car accident when Heaney was a young boy. The
death affected him badly and many of his poems are about loss of innocence.
Heaney grew up on a farm and many of his poems reflect his upbringing.
Possible Themes and Links:
(Death of a Naturalist)
By Seamus Heaney
Loss of innocence – Afternoons
Childhood memories – Excerpt from The Prelude
Passing of time – As Imperceptibly as Grief, Excerpt from The Prelude and To Autumn
Context:
(Hawk Roosting)
By Ted Hughes
“Hawk Roosting” was published in 1960, a time when the aftermath of World War II and the onset of the Cold War had people reflecting on power, control, and destruction.
The hawk can be seen as a metaphor not only for natural dominance but also for political or military power — cold, calculating, and self-justifying.
The steady and calm pace to the poem mirrors the Hawk’s…
(Hawk Roosting)
By Ted Hughes
measured control over his life and land.
Possible Themes and links:
(Hawk Roosting)
By Ted Hughes
Power and control - Ozymandias
The natural world - To Autumn, Afternoons, Death of a naturalist.
Context
(To Autumn)
By John Keats
He was seriously ill with tuberculosis (which would kill him two years later), and he knew his time was running out.
Peaceful farewell to life.
Romantic era.
Possible themes and links:
(To Autumn)
By John Keats
The passing of time – Afternoons, Death of a Naturalist, As Imperceptibly as Grief
The natural world – Excerpt from The Prelude, Death of a Naturalist.
Context
(Afternoons)
By Philip Larkin
He never married or had children, and his poems often reflect a sense of loneliness, regret, or emotional distance.
Celebrates ordinary details in day to day life.
Possible themes and links:
(Afternoons)
By Philip Larkin
Time passing – To Autumn and As Imperceptibly as Grief
Loss of innocence/growing up – Death of a Naturalist
Context
(Dulce et Decorum Est)
By Wilfred Owen
Wilfred Owen (1893–1918) was a British soldier and war poet during World War I.
He fought in the trenches in France and saw horrific violence and suffering.
He was diagnosed with shell shock (now PTSD) and sent to Craiglockhart War Hospital, where he met fellow poet Siegfried Sassoon.
Possible themes and links:
(Dulce et Decorum Est)
By Wilfred Owen
Impact of war - Mametz wood, The Manhunt
Patriotism - The Soldier
Context
(Ozymandias)
By Percy Bysshe Shelley
Percy Bysshe Shelley was a romantic poet and was a strong believer in the power of nature.
Shelley was considered to be a ‘radical’ and Ozymandias reflects this side of his character. He is writing about the dangers of thinking you are invincible, a timeless message.
Possible themes and links:
(Ozymandias)
By Percy Bysshe Shelley)
Power – Hawk Roosting, London
Nature and time – To Autumn, Mametz Wood
Context
(Mametz Wood)
By Owen Shears
Mametz Wood was one of the bloodiest battles of World War One. As part of the first Battle of the
Somme in 1916, soldiers of the Welsh division were ordered to take Mametz Wood, the largest area of trees on the battlefield.
The 38th Welsh Division lost 4,000 men during the attack which lasted five days.
Possible themes and links:
(Mametz Wood)
By Owen Shears
Impact of war, Patriotism - Dulce et decorum est, A wife in london, The Soldier
Fragility of soliders/ human life - Manhunt
Context
(Excerpt from the Prelude)
By William Wordsworth
Distant relationship with his father.
Mother died when he was 7.
Sent to boarding school.
Contemplated suicide
Believed nature could be like a parent or teacher.
Possible themes and links:
(Excerpt from the Prelud)
By William Wordsworth
The natural world, passing of time - Death of a Naturalist, To Autumn
