Poetry- Where the Picnic Was

Question 1

Context of Where the Picnic Was

Answer 1

1912.
Thomas Hardy was poet, wrote about SW England
Autobiographical, Thomas Hardy visits place where he, his wife and friends used to picnic.
Dedicated to his dead wife Emma, their relationship struggled towards end, who suddenly died
Influenced somewhat by Romanticism

Question 2

Form of Where the Picnic Was

Answer 2

Elegy- poem of mourning dedicated to someone who has died.
3 stanzas of unequal length, last also split apart, representing their estrangement and separation
Irregular rhyme scheme shows unpredictability of life, enjambment and irregular metre used to show how happy times were quick and sad times are now slow

Question 3

Where we made…

Answer 3

“Where we made the fire, In the summer time,
I slowly climb/ Through winter mire”
-Juxtaposition between past and present and weather highlights contrasting emotions. Past tense to present
-1st person pronoun plural to 1st person singular shows how he was once accompanied by friends but is now alone and lonely
-Adverb of slowly suggests dreariness and sadness in his later life
-Goes from summer to winter, pathetic fallacy, happy past and love to coldness and loneliness

Question 4

And scan and trace…

Answer 4

“And scan and trace/ The forsaken place/ Quite readily.”
-Internal rhyme and couplet creates pace in the quote, suggests desperation as he scans for traces of the fleeting past
-Adjective forsaken shows it has been abandoned, could reflect his wife and friends which he regrets
-Adverb suggests that he is happy to be there and relive the past

Question 5

Now a cold wind…

Answer 5

“Now a cold wind blows, And the grass is grey”
-Present tense from past tense, time moving fast for him
-Pathetic fallacy of cold wind blowing symbolises his loneliness
-Colour symbolism suggests the grass and place is lifeless, representing the loss of life (wife) and friends

Question 6

Yes, I am here…

Answer 6

“Yes, I am here/ Just as last year, And the sea breathes brine/ From its strange straight line”
-Rhyming couplets
-Shows his dedication to his wife and tradition as he wants to visit annually and reminisce on his brighter past
-Personification of sea and description of horizon suggest continuity in the location, repeated sibilance also shows continuity, showing that only he is changing but the memories live on