Isabella: or The Pot of Basil A02 Flashcards
1
Q
Allusion
A
- “A young palmer in Love’s eye.” is a reference to Shakespeare’s ‘Romeo and Juliet.’ –> Foreshadowes the tragic ending.
- “Thesus’ spouse” Refernce to Greek Mythology, Theseus killed herself. Foreshadows Isabella’s later, presumed, suicide.
2
Q
Narrative bias
A
- “Why were they proud? Because their marble founts gushed with more pride than do a wretch’s tears?” Accusatory and interrogative sentences convey Keat’s frustration and reinforces the cruelty of the brothers. Rhetorical question showcases anger at the brothers as they represent logic which Keats, as a romantic poet, despised.
- “Why in the name of Glory were they proud?” Repetition of “why” highlights bitterness in the narrative voice. Reference to religion. The brothers are the antithesis to what is holy?
3
Q
Pathetic Fallacy
A
- Season imagery: “A whole long month of May,”
“cheeks paler by the break of June,” “Thou art leading me from wintry cold.” “Thou leadest me to summer clime,” “Grew, like a lusty flower, in June’s caress.”
“In the mid days of Autumn,”
“the breath of Winter comes from far away,” Shows the beauty but morality of their love. - Summer/Spring = Height of their love, natural and beautiful.
4
Q
Parallels
A
- Themes of love and death are interwoven throughout the poem. Love cannot exist without sufferage.
- Emphasises the inevitable tragic downfall.
- Mental anguish can tarnish the physical body. People can grow sick when they can’t confess their love.
- Lorenzo’s cheeks grow “paler” the more he suppresses his love for Isabella.
5
Q
Dramatic Irony
A
- “She chanted merrily” - shows Isabella’s naivety, ignorance and innocence to the villany of her brothers.
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“Their murdered man.” Past tense. Lorenzo is unaware of his tragic fate.
Amplifys the cruelty and wickedness of the brothers while simultaneously emphasising the purity and beauty of Isabella and Lorenzo.
LZ and IS ignorance to the Brother’s malicious plan conveys their innocence and heightens the tragedy.
6
Q
Setting
A
- Florence: Civilised and wealthy. Hotspot for industrialisation in the 18th centry.
- Keats travelled to Italy in his final stage of Tuberculosis.
7
Q
Flower Imagery
A
- Symbols of IS and LZ’s love.
- “Like a lusty flower in June’s caress,”
- “Twin roses by the zephyr blown apart.”
- Roses = Summer, Passion.
- Twin = Equal love, destiny.
- “There’s richest juice in poison flowers.” Deception. love = suffering. -> Hostility of nature.
8
Q
Repetition
A
- “they could not” Suggests entrapment in their love. –> Class divide? They can never truly be together.
9
Q
Brothers Resemblance
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Epitome and symbol of capitalism, exploitation and hubris.
“Enriched from ancestral merchandise,”
“many a weary hand did swell.”
“torched mines.”
“Noisy factories,”
10
Q
Semantic field
A
- Semantic field of marriage emphasises the tragedy of loss, of what could have been. “Pleasant veil,” “Been wed.”
- Semantic field of suffering when describing the brothers workers –> “seethe” “sharp,” “pinch” “peel” = unsettling emphasise cruelty of the brothers.
11
Q
Personification
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- ‘Love’ is personified in the poem.
12
Q
Bird Imagery
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- ‘Fair Isabella in her downy nest?’
13
Q
Maternal Imagery
A
- ‘By every lull to cool her infant’s pain.’ -> Men in Keat’s works are often infantalised or inferior to a higher status women. -> Reflects class and wealth difference between Keat’s and Fanny Brawne. -> Links to Keat’s maternal issues as he lost his mother at 10 years old.
- ‘Yet brought him to the meekness of a child.’ Example of when Keat’s infantilises Lorenzo.
- ‘That old nurse stood beside her wondering,’ Motherly symbolism -> Isabella is unearthing the rotting corpse of Lorenzo.‘Dismal labouring,’-> Birth imagery, horrific descriptions of the discovery of Lorenzo’s corpse. ‘They laboured,’
14
Q
Marriage Imagery
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