Neutral Tones Flashcards
1
Q
Who wrote Neutral Tones?
A
Thomas Hardy
2
Q
‘And the sun…
A
… was white, as though chidden of God’
- ‘chidden’ means to be scolded or condemned
- used more commonly in the 12th century, does the archaic language suggest the speaker is stuck in the past?
3
Q
‘And a few leaves…
A
… lay on the starving sod;’
- imagery of suffering
- lifeless ground and leaves could symbolise their struggling relationship
4
Q
‘tedious…
A
… riddles’, ‘words played’ ‘lost the more’
- game imagery suggests the playful intentions of the relationship contrasted with deceitful and manipulative connotations of games
5
Q
‘Like an ominous…
A
… bird a-wing…’
- bird imagery suggests a raven?
- almost a deathly omen symbolising the end of the relationship?
- ambiguity compounded by elipsis creating suspense
6
Q
‘Since then…
A
… keen lessons that love deceives’
- pessimistic generalisation that all love is deceptive
- perhaps he is reminded of this when future relationships fall apart
7
Q
‘And a pond…
A
… edged with greyish leaves’
- the poem ends where it begins at the pond
- cyclical structure represents his entrapment in a moment that is replayed in his mind constantly, unable to move forward
8
Q
What are the themes in Neutral Tones?
A
- death imagery
- loss of love
- bitterness
9
Q
What can you compare Neutral Tones to?
A
- When We Two Parted
- Winter Swans
