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1.Larkin Poems > Next, Please > Flashcards

Next, Please Flashcards

1
Q

how does Larkin use rhyme in Next, Please to explore his themes?

A

Rhyme scheme: rhyming couplets which creates an upbeat, child-like tone which represents society’s naivety and immaturity

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2
Q

analyse the quote ‘always too eager for the future, we / pick up bad habits of expectancy.’ from Next, Please

A
  • fronted adverbial ‘always’ in conjunction with ‘too’ suggests the reality of the future cannot resemble our high hopes
  • ‘bad habits’ suggests society is optimistic for the future but impatient about its arrival, necessarily leading to disappointment
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3
Q

analyse the quote ‘something is always approaching […] Till then, we say’ from Next, Please

A
  • ‘something’ is abstract, suggesting our expectations of the future will never be able to materialise, as they are not specific
  • ‘till then’ is also an intangible timeframe, suggesting our hopes for the future are ungrounded and elusive so our notion of yearning for the future is unsubstantiated
  • ‘we’ collective pronoun included Larkin himself in the voice of society
  • ‘always’ and ‘every’ suggests the feeling of impatience is inescapable and demonstrated by all
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4
Q

analyse the quote ‘sparkling armada of promises draw near’ from Next, Please

A
  • ‘draw near’ suggests that society makes no actual effort to achieve what they want; they are passive
  • ‘sparkling’ suggests the promise of the future is rare and our expectations are hard to find
  • contrast within the metaphor, between luxurious ‘sparkling’ and dangerous ‘armada’ reflects the hidden dangers of relying on our expectations of the future; it will never materialise and we are destined to be disappointed in our superficial desires and consumerism mindset
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5
Q

analyse the quote ‘refusing to make haste!’ from Next, Please

A
  • repeated exclamatives are emphatic of society’s impatience as a childish voice of frustration
    ‘- refusing’ shifts the blame away from our own impatience to the movement of time itself
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6
Q

analyse the quote ‘holding wretched stalks of disappointment’ from Next, Please

A
  • metaphor suggests we cling to the promises of the future and can’t move on; we are stuck in a cycle of romanticising the future and watching it never come to fruition as our romanticised notions of the future cannot materialise
  • the ‘disappointment’ reflects society’s disillusionment as a result of our impatience
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7
Q

analyse the quote ‘brasswork prinked […] wit golden tits’ from Next, Please

A
  • ‘brasswork prinked’ suggests grandeur, the sublime; reflective of how society sees the future, suggesting the idea of the future is better than the reality
  • bathos exposes the contrast of ideal and reality, making society seem foolish and idiotic
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8
Q

analyse the quote ‘no sooner present than it turns to past’ from Next, Please

A

reference to time reflects the incessant, unstoppable, and inevitable passage of time suggesting our opportunities are fleeting and transient

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9
Q

analyse the quote ‘all good into our lives, all we are owed / for waiting so devoutly and so long’ from Next, Please

A
  • repetition of ‘all’ highlights our greed and self-entitlement
  • ‘devoutly’ = religious lexis
  • suggests society feels entitled to the exaggerated version of the future; semi-sarcastic and mocking tone is indicative of Larkin’s own self-loathing
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10
Q

analyse the quote ‘but we are wrong’ from next, Please

A
  • monosyllabic; Larkin emphasises that we are, in actuality, undeserving of our own romanticised notions
  • acts as a soft volta separating the foolish illusions of society from reality
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11
Q

analyse the quote ‘black-sailed unfamiliar […] huge and birdless silence’ from Next, Please

A
  • metaphor for death
  • ‘black’ vs ‘golden tits’; colour imagery suggests the reality of the future is bleak and mundane compared to our romanticised ideals, but it also more serious and less trivial
  • ‘unfamiliar’ suggests we are avoidant of the truth and actuality of the future and instead focus on romantic notions; death is fundamentally unexpected and unknowable
  • ‘huge’ suggests it is all-consuming and overwhelming; future is characterised by hopelessness and nothingness, an absolute end
  • negation of birds in ‘birdless’ suggests death is restrictive as birds are symbolic of freedom
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1.Larkin Poems (21 decks)

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