Poetry - Comparisons Flashcards
FORM
A Poison Tree
iambic tetrameter ‘I told my wrath, my wrath did end.’:
* combo between trohaic tetrameter in the first line: ‘I was angry with my friend,’ sounds like stamping, adding to anger
* iambic tetrameter has a sense of movement to it, which helps with adding to theme of the writer’s growth of anger ‘a poison TREE’
* iambic tetrameter has a childish sound to it, contrasting w/ the themes of wrath and anger within the poem, ‘my wrath did grow’, this may represent how ppl attempt to cover up their feelings of anger with positive feelings
* alternatively, it may show how anger is a key emotion, something that kids may even feel
CONTEXT
A Poison Tree
- written during the romantic era - focused on nature (the growth of the tree, the apple), intense emotions (doing it right first time, however bottling it up, letting it grow (nature link)), wanting ppl to understand emotions better, use of everyday language
- religion - blake: devout christian, however he dislike the insitution of the Church = poison tree mimics this bc it criticises chruch’s view on suppresing emotion
STRUCTURE
A Poison Tree
anaphora - conjuction ‘and’ is used at start of many stanzas:
* mimics the growth of the writer’s anger (both metaphorically + literally bc tree)
* when combo with trohaic meter which creates a sense of obsession & reflects stamping, presents an idea of uncontrollable wrath, which warns ppl of supressing emotions
LANGUAGE
A Poison Tree
ambiguity of lang - ‘When the night had veil’d the pole’:
* ‘pole’ =pole star or tree, alternatively may show darkness covered the their malicious relationship meaning the ‘foe’ had managed to sneak in
* shows uncertainty of feelings, warns readers to understand their emotions
* other ambigious words (‘stole’ & ‘glad’) r also in last stanza - highlights loss of control at end
FORM 2
A Poison Tree
themes of anger:
* simple structure + easy to read = more accesible for readers
* first 2 lines shows talking abt feelings helps deal w/ them, however rest of poem
* the length of which supressing anger is talked abt = it makes things more complex + more uncontrollable
CONTEXT
Cousin Kate
- never married
- devoutly religious (christian)
- went thru depressive episodes
- outspoken abt gender & sexuality in work
STRUCTURE
Cousin Kate
ABCB ‘true, sand, you, stand’:
* stable pace
* mirrors constant anger felt to Kate, noblemen of society bc of her situation
LANGUAGE
Cousin Kate
oxymorons, ‘my shame, my pride’:
* talking about her son
* ‘shame’ - had sex before marriage, had a baby, her baby is not legitamite, society has shunned her bc its proof of sex before marriage
‘shameless, shameful life’:
* relfects society’s view on the relationship
* the lord himself is shameless, however the speaker is shameful
* speaker feels shameless when w/ lord
LAUNGUAGE 2
Cousin Kate
zoomorphism
* ‘sit and howl’ - speaker is referred to as a wolf, wolves are usually pack animals, however speaker is alone, outcast by society, feels powerless
* ‘sing’ & ‘wing’ - kate reffered to as a bird, perhaps like a prize, or forced to sing like a caged bird, may link to an earlier refernce of ‘dove’, kate is like a dove, she didnt have sex outside of marriage
CONTEXT
Poppies
- weir has 2 sons - wants to explore feeling of child going to war
- lived thru ‘the troubles’ of 1980s in ireland
FORM
Poppies
dramatic monologue:
* second person to directly address son
* son never replies - absencce of son, implies death and loss
* second person - focuses on mother
STRUCTURE
Poppies
free verse:
* uncensored thoughts to convery emotion
* outpouring of emotion - lack of control over emotions, chaos created by war, doesn’t just effect battlefield, affects everyone
* stream of conciousness
LANGUAGE
Poppies
domestic imagery vs violence, ‘without a winter coat or reinforcments’:
* lack of protection from the cold - violence effects her everyday life
* she needs reinforcments to see her memorial of son - too much emotion
* war prevents everyday life
LANGUAGE 2
Poppies
unconventional bravery, ‘I was brave’:
* opposes coventional ideas of bravery
* acting bravely by carrying on with everyday life
* brave for sending her son to war
