Power And Conflict - Poetry Flashcards
Ozymandias Context (What time is it set, what was going on at that time)
- Poem was Written in 1817
- This was written under the Rule of King George III
- King George was seen as the reason for this poem
- He writes against religion and poiltical control in this poem.
- Rameses was like King George in the fact that he wanted to expand his empire.
- This poem was written in a competition Percy Shelley did against his friend and Ozymandias was chosen because recently he had a statue built in the British Museum.
Ozymandias Themes
- Those who have power are dilluded in their belief that their power is supreme and invincible
- The art and the statue does last, while Rameses political power does not
What does Ozymandias mean
Ozy, means Air
Mandias, means Ruler
So Ozymandias is Ruler of the Air, which refers to Rameses II (an Egyptian Pharoah)
Who was Percy Shelley (+ Facts about him)
- Well educated - he knew about history of cultures
- Father was a Politician, and he was an advocate of freedom
- Was a Romantic Poet - so he was up to date on Art, Literature and Music
- This was written under the Rule of King George III
- King George was seen as the reason for this poem
- He writes against religion and poiltical control in this poem.
- Rameses was like King George in the fact that he wanted to expand his empire.
- This poem was written in a competition he did against his friend and Ozymandias was chosen because recently he had a statue built in the British Museum.
What is the Structure and Form For Ozymandias
- 1 Stanza
- 14 lines
- Line 9 is the Volta
- First 8 lines are the Octet
- Last 6 lines are the Sestet
- Sonnet (usually a love poem)
- Syllables per line
- Structure of a Sonnet: ABAB…GG - Rhyming Couplets
- However, this poem doesn’t end in GG like a sonnet, possibly showing that he is rebellious
What Power and Conflict is in Ozymandias
- There is a Power disparity betwen Ozymandias and his people when he was alive
- The power of Nature overcomes the statue
- The power of the living decide not to carry on with building the statue once Rameses II was dead
- There is a Volta after the first 8 lines (octet), which is a turning point
London Themes
- This poem was highlighting the gap in class in London, and how the disadvantaged people will try and change this.
- He explores the idea of these underdogs rising up to overthrow the powerful monarchy.
- The Writer was against insitutions (e.g Church Monarchy, e.c.t) and this may reflects in his writing
- Blake wants to give a platform for disadvantaged people to speak and step up
- It depicts the part of London that was ignored, but the rest of London was a growing metropolis
- STD’s were spread easily and quickly in this area, child labour was common, and the insititution of marriage was seen to be slightly shambolic in this place and time.
Structure and From in London
- 16 Lines in this Poem
- 8 Syllables per Line (Tetrameter)
- The Rhythm is like a heatbeat, as the 2nd syllable is more stressed than the first (each line has an IAMBIC Tetrameter)
- Rhyming Couplets in the formation of ABABCDCD and ect.
- The poem is meant to flow off the tongue, and is quite short in it’s lines, and the poem is not too long.
- There are 4 equal standing quatrains (1-4, 5-8, 9-12, 13-16).
- Anaphora is used in quatrain 2 in the first 3 lines (repitition in the fist few words of a line in a few lines)
Power and Conlfict in London
- Conflict Rich and Poor
- The poem is written in conflict to institutions like the monarchy
- Hiercarchical Power
- The Power of Belief
- The power of experience (experiencing this)
- The lack if power for the helpless
Background on William Wordsworth (+When was The Prelude Written)
Lived 1770-1850 Studied at Cambridge University Developed a love of Poems as a young man He was brought up in the Lake District. Both his parents had died by the time he was 13. Was Composed From 1798-1799
The Prelude Themes
- This was made by a Romantic poet, meaning this would possible include elements Music, Art, Literature, and Nature. (This one includes Nature).
- Nature can have the power to inspire you, and also to destroy you at the same time
Structure and Form in the Prelude
- This is an ‘Epic Poem’ - something that has a revelation.
- It is a 1 stanza poem, and is just an extract from a 7 page poem.
- There is no structure or coherance, just a child-like tumbing out of words
- It’s IAMBIC Pentameter (10 Syllables per line)
Power and Conflict in the Prelude
- Mental Conflict
- Magnitude of nature <> solitude of one perosn
- Self Conflict
- Religious Power
- Power of Nature
- Political Power
- Power of the Mind
- Personal Pride
- Power of Love
Background on Robert Browning (+ When was My Last Duchess Written)
- Browning is best known for his use of the dramatic monologue. My Last Duchess is an example of this and it also reflects Browning’s love of history and European culture as the story is based on the life of an Italian Duke from the sixteenth century.
- Written in 1842
Structure and Form in My Last Duchess
- It is a Dramatic Monolgue
- It has a Rhyming Scheme of AABBCC and so on, so there is a rhyming couplet on the next line.
Themes in My Last Duchess
-The narrator of ‘My Last Duchess’ was – in fact - a real historical figure – Alonso the Duke of Ferrera.
The Duchess he is looking at is the first of three wives who died after two years of marriage under suspicious circumstances. Her name was Lucrezua de’Medici.
-The Duke makes himself look arrogant, insensitive and selfish. The poem is a dramatic monologue.
Words that Describe the Duke in My Last Duchess compared to the Duchess (+2 Quotes to support each)
Duke:
- Proud
- Suspicious
- Possessive
- Powerful
- Ruthless
- Naive
- Happy
- “That’s my last Duchess painted on the wall”
- “Taming a sea-horse”
Duchess:
- Insensitive
- Powerless as well as Powerful
- Gentle
- “her looks went everywhere”
- “She thanked men,—good”
Background on the Charge of the Light Brigade (Crimean War: 1853-1856)
- The Crimean war was fought between Birtain and Imperial Russia from 1853-1856
- For the first time in history, newspapers carried eye-witness reports as well as detailing not just the triumphs of war, but the mistakes and hoors as well.
- The most significant moment in the Crimea came during the Battle of Balaclava. An order given to the British army’s cavalry division (known as the Light Brigade) was misunderstood and 600 cavalrymen ended charging down a narrow valley straight into the fire of Russian cannons, all because of Lord Cardigan’s misunderstanding
- Over 150 British soldiers were killed, and more than 120 were wounded. At home the news of the disaster was a sensation and a nation that had until then embraced British military exploits abroad began to question the politicians and generals who led them.
Structure and form of The Charge Of Tne Brigade
- 6 Stanzas, so 1 stanza equates for 100 people.
- Anappestic Tetrameter symbolises the horse’s sound
- Anaphora used multiple times “Their’s” (3 times) and “Cannon” (3 times
- Lots of Repitition if ‘the six hundred’
London Context on the Writer William Blake (What time is it set, what was going on at that time)
-Poem was written in 1792
Written in George III’s reign
Writer was born in 1757
Written by a Romantic Poet, who felt strongly against Insitutions (Monarchy, Church e.c.t)
He wanted raise lots of oppression issue like class and sexism.
He would expose the rich.
He was a supporter or the French Revolution
Background on Wilfred Owen
Wilfred Edward Salter Owen was born 18 March 1893 in Oswestry, Shropshire. After school he became a teaching assistant and in 1913 went to France for two years to work as a language tutor. He began writing poetry as a teenager.
In 1915 he returned to England to enlist in the army and was commissioned into the Manchester Regiment. After spending the remainder of the year training in England, he left for the western front early in January 1917. After experiencing heavy fighting, he was diagnosed with shellshock. He was evacuated to England and arrived at Craiglockhart War Hospital near Edinburgh in June. There he met the poet Siegfried Sassoon, who already had a reputation as a poet and shared Owen’s views. Sassoon agreed to look over Owen’s poems, gave him encouragement and introduced him to literary figures such as Robert Graves.
Reading Sassoon’s poems and discussing his work with Sassoon revolutionised Owen’s style and his conception of poetry. He returned to France in August 1918 and in October was awarded the Military Cross for bravery. On 4 November 1918 he was killed while attempting to lead his men across the Sambre canal at Ors. The news of his death reached his parents on 11 November, Armistice Day.
Edited by Sassoon and published in 1920, Owen’s single volume of poems contain some of the most poignant English poetry of World War One, including ‘Dulce et Decorum Est’ and ‘Anthem for Doomed Youth’
Connotations of the Title “Exposure”
- No protection
- On your own
- Vunerable
- Helplessness
- Revelation
- Harh Realities
Types of Power in Exposure
- Political Power
- Power of the Mind
- Personal Pride
- Power held by you/enemy
- Power of Man
- Power of Nature
Types of Conflict in Exposure
- Mental Conflict
- Conflict of two sides
What does the Title Storm on the Island suggest?
If you put the first 8 letters together it makes “Stormont”, which links to the Northern Ireland government.
Themes of Power and Conlfict in SOTI
Power:
- Nature
- Fear (Negative emotions)
Conflict:
-Man v Nature
Who is Seamus Heaney and what had he experienced
- He was boen in 1939 and died in 2013
- He experienced the Troubles first hand
- His father was a farmer (could be why he included lots of nature, hay, trees e.c.t in his poem)
- He lost his brother
- Lost his some extended family because of the Troubles
- He’s a republican (in favour of British, but didn’t want any fighting)
