Partings- When We Two Parted and Walking Away Flashcards
‘Eighteen years ago…I can see/you walking away’
L=present tense even though in the past- memory still vivid and painful. Structure: line break separates pronouns- emphasises son parting from father. Direct address to son- suggests feelings unresolved in speaker.
‘Pale grew thy cheek and cold/colder thy kiss’
L= the comparative adjective intensifies her emotionally cold feelings for him, suggesting that her love for him has died.
‘Gnaws at my mind still’
L= powerful verb suggests ongoing pain and guilt of parting from son. C= Day- Lewis dedicated the poem to his son Sean; he divorced Sean’s mother and left the family home. D= (maybe I= alternatively and on a deeper level, about his guilt at leaving the family, not just leaving his son at boarding school. S= caesura emphasises impact of parting. R= sympathy for father’s pain.
‘A knell to mine ear… long, long shall I rue thee’
L= metaphor. Hearing her name is like a death knell, reminding him of the death of their relationship I= alternatively L= repetition and assonance of ‘long’ emphasises long lasting nature of his regret at loving her.
‘Drifting away/ behind a scatter of boys’
S= enjambment across line break emphasises son’s growing independence as he moves away from his father but also his father’s desire to hold on to him ( there is no end stopped line).
‘Silence and tears’
S= Repeated at the beginning and ending of the poem. Structurally, this emphasises his inability to move on from their parting emotionally.
I=(silence)1- anger so won’t speak to her.
2- secret relationship so won’t speak.
‘What god alone could perfectly show… love is proved in the letting go’
C/L= Christian reference to God, who let his son Jesus go and be crucified for the good of mankind.
Speaker acknowledges his imperfection, but also the necessity of proving his love for his son by letting him go, and become independent.
‘ I hear thy name spoken/ and share in its shame’
L= alliteration and hissing sibilance emphasises his shame at hearing her name and in having an affair with her. C= subject of the poem= Frances Webster, a married women with whom Byron had an affair. Despite the fact Byron has many affairs, as a women in a patriarchal society, she is judged more harshly for her behaviour.
‘Eddying… like a winged seed loosened from its parent stem’
L= simile. A seed (child) must become independent from its parent if it is to grow. I= alternatively,Verb ‘eddying’ suggests child is vulnerable; no clear direction. Must fine it’s own path.
‘Pathos of a half-fledged thing’
L= emotive metaphor. Son = vulnerable. Not ready to become independent. R= pity for him.
‘Like a satellite wrenched from its orbit’
L= simile. Verb= painful . Not ready for parting. Sons life revolves around him
TS1: In both poems, the speakers recall memories of the pain of parting, which still haunts them. (say quotes)
‘Eighteen years ago… I can see/ you walking away’
‘Pale grew thy cheek and cold/Colder thy kiss’
‘Chill’
TS2: Both poets use vivid imagery to describe their feelings about parting from loved ones.
‘Gnaws at my mind still’
‘A knell to mine ear… long, long shall I rue thee’
‘Half broken hearted’
‘Eddying… like a winged seed loosened from its parent stem’
‘Pathos of a half-fledged thing’
‘Like a satellite wrenched from its orbit’
TS3: However, whilst Byron’s speaker still feels distress, Day Lewis’ speaker becomes philosophical about the parting.
‘I hear thy name spoken/ And share in its shame’
‘What God alone could perfectly show… love is proved in the letting go’
Structure: Whilst ‘When We Two Parted’ has a cyclical structure that reflects the speakers’ inability to move on emotionally from the painful experience, ‘Walking Away’ uses line breaks and enjambment to reflect the need for the son to part from his father to become independent.
‘Drifting away/ behind a scatter of boys’
‘Silence and tears’
