Context Flashcards
1
Q
When We Two Parted
A
An English Romantic Poet
Poem about a love affair with Lady Frances Wedderburn in 1813 when she was married
2
Q
Love’s Philosophy
A
- A strong atheist and wrote a pamphlet on the rejection of religion which was shocking to a deeply religious 19th century society and got him expelled from oxford
- Shelley eloped with 16 year old Mary Godwin to europe despite already being married and his wife being pregnant
3
Q
Porphyria’s Lover
A
- Browning was interested in exploring the minds of people who had an abnormal psychology and wrote poems about it
- New scientific theories made population question their beliefs
- Victorian Era had patriarchal society
4
Q
Sonnet 29
A
- Elizabeth and Robert Browning eloped to Italy in 1846
- Victorian era had a patriarchal society which browning subverts
- Women being openly sexual would have been viewed as shocking during the victorian era
- Elizabeth was very religious which is shown through bible imagery of vines, tree and palm trees
- Sonnets were meant to be personal but Robert insisted that they were published
5
Q
Neutral Tones
A
- Hardy married Emma Gifford in 1874 later separated from her
- Hardy faced many disappointments from personal relationships however it is unclear if this poem is written about a specific relationship or general experience with women
- Published in 1867, this poem was one of Hardy’s earlier romanticism poems
6
Q
Letters from Yorkshire
A
- Dooley worked in yorkshire before moving to london and writes about her experiences
- Dooley has written other poems which focus of the theme of communication, such as ‘the message’
7
Q
The Farmer’s Bride
A
- 2 of Mew’s siblings were mentally ill and put into institutions so Mew had a good understanding of mental health problems and their effect on relatives
- Mew fell in love with May Sinclair however Sinclair did not feel the same way so many of Mews poems revolve around frustrated emotional attachments
- The rural 19th century that this poem is set in it was common for Farmers to chose a bride
- In this society a wife could not legally refuse the sexual demands of the husband
8
Q
Walking away (Cecil Day-Lewis)
A
- Mother died when he was young and he was bought up by his father
- Poem describes his first son Sean’s first day at school as a 7 year old in Devon
9
Q
Eden Rock
A
- Causley’s father died when he was 7 and at the time of this poem being written, both his parents were dead
- Causley’s poems often contain strong spiritual and christian references
10
Q
Follower
A
- Heaney’s father was a farmer and heaney was bought up on a farm
- Heaney’s poems are influenced by his surroundings and the details of his upbringing and is known for its aural beauty and finely -wrought textures
11
Q
Mother, any distance
A
- Adolescence and growing up are common themes in Armitage’s work
- He was born in West Yorkshire and lived for most of his life in the area (he could maybe want freedom)
12
Q
Before you were mine
A
- Duffy was a raised catholic
- Her mother would often invent fairytales for her which is a common theme in Duffy’s writing which often explores and manipulated feminine archetypes
- Duffy evokes to Glasgow in the 1950s with its dance halls and fashions influenced by american icons like Marilyn Monroe
- Monroe was a hollywood actress in the 1950s and 60s has was portrayed by the media to live a glamorous life and be the ideal women or sex symbol.
- The polka dot dress in the first stanza recalls 2 famous photos of marilyn monroe with friends and other when her dress flew up after stepping over an air vent
- Women’s roles in society at the time we’re staying at home, being a mother and raising a family
13
Q
Winter Swans
A
- Sheers often writes about places, landscapes and people that live in them
- His work explores history, identity and relationships and he likes to explore the difficulties people face in life
- Poem published in the collection ‘skirrid hill’ which comes is welsh meaning divorce or separation which is the core theme in this collection
14
Q
Singh Song!
A
- Nagra was born to sikh punjabi indian parents and his poetry explores experiences of first generation immigrants to britain and their children and grandchildren with a focus on the indian working class in britain
- Poetry is vividly concerned with experiences of ‘Asianness’ - racism, arranged marriage, content shops and faith
- Nagra often used a hybrid accented language which imitates the english spoken by Indian immigrants whose first language is punjabi, sometimes called ‘Punglish’
15
Q
Climbing my Grandfather
A
- Waterhouse worked on a farm as a young man and went on to study environmental science before lecturing on environmental studies at Kirkley Hall College
- Waterhouse wrote verse which explored relationships between parent and child and this poem continues the family theme
- Waterhouse’s interest in the natural world is reflected in this poem and he wrote a series of walking guidebooks, so this interest too helped to inspire the mountaineering theme
