Poetry quotes Flashcards
“Look on my…
…works ye mighty and despair” - Ozymandias
“I am…
…Ozymandias, king of kings”
“My boat was…
… heaving through the water like a swan” The Prelude
“The horizons…
…bound. A huge peak, black and huge.” The Prelude
“Our brains…
…ache in the merciless iced east winds that knive us” Exposure
“Sudden successive…
…flights of bullets streak the silence” Exposure
“his bloody…
…life in my bloody hands” Remains
“Sleep, and…
he’s probably armed, possibly not” Remains
“After you’d…
…gone I went into your bedroom, released a songbird from its cage” Poppies
“Later a single…
…dove flew from the pear tree” Poppies
“Look on my works, he mighty and despair” Analysis
- inscribed rather than spoken which gives the poem a third speaker
- irony
- supposed to strike fear
- supposed to be triumphant. People gazing were supposed to see the empire
- at once a piece of macho bravado from a mighty ruler, it is also a poignant reminder that all empires fade to nothing, until only a few remnants are left in the dust or desert sand.
“My boat went heaving through the water like a swan” Analysis
- “My boat” but it is stolen. Reveals the boy’s understanding of his own ability to control nature
- Simile, Create a vivid image in the reader’s mind, helping to engage and absorb them.
“The horizons bound, a huge peak, black and huge” Analysis
- turning point of the poem
1 simple, repetitive language to show awe and shock - the languages shifts to become more dark and threatening, contrast
“Our brains ache in the merciless iced east winds that knives us” Analysis.
- personification of the wind to develop an emotional connection with a non - human concept such as weather.
- not only during war, but nature has also turned against them
“Sudden successive flights of bullets streak thee silence” Analysis
- sibilance To make certain phrases or words more memorable for the reader.
To create a musical effect within the writing as it generates a specific rhythm.
To force the reader to engage with the text.
To slow down the process of reading, which, in turn, makes the reader pay more attention to the text. - shows that nature and snow have the same threat as bullets.
“Sleep, and hes probably armed, possibly not” Analysis
- he can’t forget that he might not have been armed, that they shot at someone who possibly couldn’t have defended themselves.
- he always sees it again when he closes his eyes
- he can’t even forget it when he sleeps
“His bloody life in my bloody hands” Analysis
- repetition for Emphasis: The repetition of a word or phrase naturally serves to highlight its importance within a text or idea.
- blood stains permanently
- symbolises guilt - ‘being caught t=red handed’
“Later a single dove flew from the pear tree” Analysis
- symbolic of peace and new life or ironic because her son is going to war and could die
- single dove could foreshadow something bad happening to the son. Isolation (being singular) can create a sense of broken hope
