On the Sea Flashcards
1
Q
“eternal whisperings”
A
- Onomatopoeia
- Personifies the sea as wise and beyond humanity
eternal = timeless - implies the vast nature of the sea
- emphasises and makes humans aware of their transience
2
Q
“with its mighty swell gluts twice ten thousand Caverns”
A
- Emphasises the seas power and aggression
3
Q
“Till the spell of Hecate”
A
- Referencing the Greek God that has power over the sea
- Portrays the sea as mysterious and spiritual, reinforces eternal nature
- The sea has been their since Ancient Greece - emphasises eternal, timeless aspects
4
Q
“Gentle temper found”
A
- contrasts aggression, instead portraying the sea as delicate
- Portrays the sea as enigmatic and beyond comprehension (various moods)
5
Q
“That scarcely will the very smallest shell”
A
- Vast different image to aggression
- Sibilance, evokes the sound of the sea
6
Q
“your eyeballs vexed and tired”
A
- image of tiredness and strain - due to London smog?
- Eyeballs instead of eyes, emphasising the physical feeling of strain
- Addressing a reader (city dweller) portrayed as disconnected from nature
- Overwhelmed by the sensory impressions (mimics Keats’ feelings)
7
Q
“Feast them upon the wideness of the sea”
A
- Metaphor, indicating the need for nourishment of sublime nature
- Imperative command, “feast”, provides a sense of comfort/ nourishment, needed for survival
- “Wideness” suggests pervasive nature of the sea, vast and eternal
8
Q
“ears are dinned with uproar rude”
A
- Reader presented as overwhelmed with sensory impressions
- “uproar rude” - gossip, industrial noise, etc
- Romantic views of the city as having a corrupting force
- Auditory imagery
9
Q
“Fed too much with cloying melody”
A
- “cloying melody” - Insincere talk, overly sweet and fake
“fed” - semantic field of eating and nourishment
10
Q
“Sit ye near some old Cavern’s Mouth and brood”
A
- “old Cavern’s Mouth” - a timeless, eternal location
- “brood” - Keats wishes his audience can be thougtful and reflective, and to allow themselves to feel all of the emotions that they may not have been able to as they were too overwhelmed with sensory impressions
11
Q
“Until ye start”
A
Nature’s healing qualities are fast
- When the audience starts, they will be awakened and have a spiritual moment where the individual engages with the sublime
12
Q
” as if the nymphs quired”
A
- Simile, optimistic and positive image “quired” - harmonic
- reflects the idea that this is a spiritual yet timeless experience
“nymph” - reflects Ancient Greece
13
Q
Sonnet form
A
Petrarchan sonnet
1-8: talking about the greatness of the sea”
volta
9-14: attempting to restore the city dweller
