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1. English Literature - Old Spec Master Decks > The Eve of St Agnes > Flashcards

The Eve of St Agnes Flashcards

AQA Paper One Revision

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1
Q

What is notoriously difficult about writing a Spenserian stanza?

A

Having to match the metre but have four of the lines rhyme within the stanza means it is difficult to find the words needed.

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1
Q

What is a Spenserian stanza?

A

A stanza of nine lines. Eight of them are written in iambic pentameter. And the ninth in iambic hexameter. It also has a rhyme scheme of ababbcbcc

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2
Q

What form is The Eve of St Agnes?

A

Spenserian

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3
Q

Who is St Agnes?

A

She is the patron saint of virgins and rape survivors; she died a martyr in 4th century Rome.

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4
Q

Explain the superstition surrounding St Agnes Day.

A

That if a maiden who fasts and neither speaks or looks about before bed may catch sight of her future husband in a dream.

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5
Q

We are introduced to Madeleine as a lady ‘whose heart has brooded’. How does this present here?

A

As someone with an intense desperation to find love (an almost melancholy desperation).

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6
Q

What does Madeleine mean in French and why might this be significant?

A

It means a sweet cake.
It is significant as it implies she might be consumed.

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7
Q

‘her _____ eyes divine’

A

maiden

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8
Q

What does the fact that Madeleine ‘heeded not’ the ‘amorous cavalier’ refer to?

A

It suggests that he she has been avoiding the attention of many suitors, presenting her as pure and somewhat Petrarchan.

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9
Q

Through terms like ‘sigh’d’ and ‘sweetest’, what is Keats implying about her longing for St Agnes’ dream?

A

That there is a sexual longing behind them, similar Isabella’s description as ‘sweet’ in Isabella; or The Pot of Basil.

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10
Q

‘Anxious her lips, her breathing ______ ____ _____.’

A

Quick and short

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11
Q

How is the atmosphere of the party depicted through the quotation ‘Mid looks of love, defiance, hate or scorn’?

A

As one of chaos and threat. Madeleine seems pious and innocent amidst this backdrop.

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12
Q

How does Porphyro’s entrance from ‘across the moors’ present him?

A

As a questing knight, typical of the chivalric Medieval verse that Keats often writes.

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13
Q

‘Porphyro with _____ on fire’

A

heart

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14
Q

What does ‘buttress’d from moonlight’ imply?

A

That Porphyro is veiled in shadow - it is an early suggestion that he is a threat.

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15
Q

Whilst showing his desperate attraction to Madeleine, ‘implores all saints // to give him sight of Madeleine’ also implies what?

A

That Madeleine has no control over what happens to her.

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16
Q

What technique is used in ‘Perchance, speak, kneel, touch, kiss’?

A

Asyndetic listing

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17
Q

‘___ ____, those chambers held barbarian hordes’

A

For him

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18
Q

In Stanza X, how is the poem linked to Romeo and Juliet?

A

The ‘barbarian hordes’ ‘hyena foemen’ in that ‘mansion foul’ remind us of the party in Romeo and Juliet, where Romeo sneak in to the mansion in disguise because of the family feud.

The idea of forbidden love is introduced here.

The beldame could also be linked to the nurse.

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19
Q

Analyse: ‘Brushing the cobwebs with his lofty plume’

A

Porphyro changes the setting, bringing life to the stagnant household and, potentially, the dream Madeleine longs for.

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20
Q

In stanza XIII, why is Porphyro described as being ‘silent as a tomb’?

A

The idea of entrapment is suggested. They are trapped in their love for each other and must escape.

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21
Q

What does Porphyro’s awareness that it is St Agnes’ day suggest?

A

That this is a planned and calculated move, leading to the more predatory reading of the poem.

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22
Q

What does the nurse indicate by saying ‘men will murder on holy days’?

A

That Porphyro is a threat.

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23
Q

What is suggest about Porphyro’s attraction for Madeleine when Keats describes her as a ‘wondrous riddle book’?

A

That his attraction for her lies in her Petrarchan nature. She is out of reach and therefore desirable and has worth. It is the loss of this Madeleine fears when she realises she has lost her virginity at the end of the poem.

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24
Q

How does ‘Madeleine asleep in lap of legends old’ present her?

A

As the typical heroine of a chivalric romance.

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25
Q

‘in his pained heart // made ____ riot’

A

purple

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26
Q

What does the nurses’ reaction - ‘a cruel man and impious thou art’ – reveal?

A

Her shock at Porphyro’s plan, again suggesting the predatory nature of him.

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27
Q

‘Thou canst not surely be the _____ that thou didst _____.’

A

same / seen

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28
Q

‘I will not _____ her, by all saints I swear.’

A

harm

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29
Q

Which Greek myth does ‘believe me by these tears’ link to?

A

Tereus’ rape of Philomela

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30
Q

‘A gentler speech from _____ Prophyro’

A

burning

31
Q

‘And ____ perhaps that night a peerless bride’

A

win

32
Q

In stanza XIX, why does Keats make a reference to Merlin?

A

Merlin was imprisoned by false love. Once again it emphasises the trickery and deceit involved in Porphyro’s plan.

33
Q

What does the nurse seem to suggest she understands when she says ‘thou must needs the lady wed’ in stanza XIX?

A

She seems to understand the sexual nature of Porphyro’s plan and the need for him to marry her or she will be damaged in terms of honour and worth.

34
Q

In chapter XXI, what tricolon does Keats to link Madeleine to the idea of purity?

A

‘silken, hush’d, and chaste’

35
Q

Analyse: ‘Rose, like a mission’d spirit, unaware:’

A

The rising spirit has religious connotations once again linking her to the idea of purity. The caesura used emphasises her lack of awareness showing that danger awaits.

36
Q

In Stanza XXIII, what does the dying of the ‘pallid moonshine’ indicate?

A

Approaching darkness, using the setting to once again warn of danger.

37
Q

In Stanza XXIII, Keats slows the poem down and starts to describe specific details such as ‘she panted’ ‘no uttered syllable’. Why?

A

To slow time and increase the sense of her being watched.

38
Q

In Stanza XXIII, how is the Greek myth of Philomel and Procne once again referenced?

A

‘The tongueless nightingale’ reference Philomel who was raped, had her tongue cut out, got vengeance and then was turned into a bird by the Gods before she could be killed.

39
Q

Why does Keats return to the Greek myth of Philomel and Procne again in Stanza XIII?

A

To once again bring the idea of a sexual assault into the midst of this apparent love story.

40
Q

Madeleine’s bedroom is described as having ‘fruits’ and ‘flowers’ and being ‘diamonded’. How does this link to Keats being a member of the Romantics?

A

Her room becomes linked to nature and purity, a place of positivity and life contrasting the dark castle outside.

41
Q

‘threw warm gules on Madeleine’s ____ breast’

A

fair

42
Q

Analyse: ‘As down she knelt for heaven’s grace and boon.’

A

She is being watched and erotic language surrounds this stanza and following stanzas, as she is watched. However, in the midst of this we are once more reminded of her piety.

43
Q

What does ‘so pure a thing, so free from mortal taint’ suggest?

A

That she will be corrupted by Porphyro’s plan.

44
Q

What are some of the euphemism’s Keats uses when describing Madeleine undressing?

A

‘hair she frees’, ‘unclasps’ ‘loosens’ ‘creeps rustling to her knees’

45
Q

‘trembling in her soft and chilly ______’

A

nest

46
Q

In a more positive reading of the poem, analyse the use of juxtaposition in the opening two lines of Stanza XXVII - ‘chilly nest’ and ‘warmth of sleep’?

A

It perhaps suggests that at the moment her bed - symbolic of her love - is empty. In the dream, she is to find the warmth of love she longs for.

47
Q

‘Porphyro gazed upon her ______ ______’

A

empty dress

48
Q

How do terms like ‘peep’d’ ‘crept’ and ‘hush’d’ present Porphyro?

A

As a voyeur

49
Q

As he approaches the bed, what are the two possible reasons for Porphyro being half-anguished?

A

His anguish at the love he yearns for.
He feels some approaching remorse for the deceit he is about to engage in.

50
Q

In stanzas XXX and XXXI, why does Keats have Porphyro gather such fruit?

A

On the one hand, it is Porphyro’s attempt to impress Madeleine which an ostentatious show of excess.

On the other it builds a sense of sensuous energy and the idea of indulgence.

51
Q

Why does Porphyro refer to Madeleine as a seraph?

A

He is implying she is heavenly and angelic, contrasting the sinful nature of what is about to happen.

52
Q

In Chapter XXXI, why is St Agnes described as ‘meek’?

A

Implying she does not have the power to prevent Porphyro’s will.

53
Q

What does ‘Shaded was her dream’ imply?

A

That Porphyro brings a darkness to he dream, and a sense of deceit. (Think back to how he was described as lurking in the shadows at the beginning of the poem).

54
Q

Analyse: ‘He ceased - she panted quick - and suddenly’.

A

The caesura and pauses are used to build up the sense of sexual tension.

55
Q

What Porphyro sinking to his knees when she wakes indicate?

A

It is an image of submission instead of dominance, suggesting the more loving reading of the poem.

56
Q

What could ‘there was a painful change’ be a euphemism for?

A

The loss of her virginity, or rape.

57
Q

‘How chang’d thou art’ reveals what about their love?

A

That the dream does not match the reality. The Porphyro she sees on waking does not live up to the one she dreamt about. Here Keats is perhaps exploring the idealised nature of love.

58
Q

‘How pallid, chill and drear’ suggests what about Porphyro?

A

A sense of regret or nervous anticipation about what he is about to do.

59
Q

‘Into her dream he ______’

A

melted

60
Q

Ethereal, flush’d and like a ______ _____’

A

throbbing star

61
Q

As it is indicating they are making love, the ‘frost-wind blows’ indicating what?

A

It indicates the danger approaching for her and the cold-dawn that awaits as she she discovers the deception, or realises the loss of her virginity.

62
Q

‘No dream, alas! alas! the ____ is mine.’

A

woe

63
Q

Contextually what does ‘Porphyro will leave me here to fade and pine’ link to.

A

The value of a woman’s virginity at the time. She is afraid he may leave her now that he has slept with her and only she will suffer the damage to her reputation as a result.

64
Q

What contrasting colours are Madeleine and Porphyro associated with throughout the poem?

A

Madeleine - the silver of the moon. (delicacy and purity)
Porphyro - red (at times purple too) symbolising passion and desire.

65
Q

What does Porphyro call her after they have slept together showing he will not discard and instead still holds her in great value?

A

‘Ah, silver shrine.’

66
Q

‘Though I have found, I will not ____ thy nest.’

A

rob

67
Q

Why is it ironic that he wishes to protect her from ‘no rude infidel’?

A

Because he is the infidel who has taken her value through deceptive means.

68
Q

‘Hark, ‘tis an elfin storm from ___ ___’

A

faery land

69
Q

‘For o’er the Southern moors I have a _____ for thee’

A

home

70
Q

In Stanza XLI, what word is repeated that suggests running away into the storm to be more dangerous than they realise?

A

Phantoms - image of death

71
Q

What does ‘an inmate owns’ imply about Madeleine?

A

That she is a prisoner. Now he has taken her virginity, she has little choice but to go with him, even if she wants to. We see her struggle within a patriarchal system.

72
Q

Why does Keats point out that the story was from ‘ages long ago’ in the final stanza?

A

Because it has been told in the present tense. And though it is a past event, clearly the theme of rape, misuse of women (or the story of passioned love) is one that is still relevant and universal.

73
Q

Why is there such a presence of death in the final stanza? Such as the nightmares of the men in the castle and the death of Angela.

A

To add to the ambiguity of the poem. Did the couple fly into the storm to be free or does this suggest that their ruin awaits?

74
Q

Why do Porphyro and Madeleine not discuss in detail the significance of what has happened?

A

To add to the ambiguity of the poem. Porphyro seems to be oblivious that what he has done is rape, Madeleine seems unconcerned as long as maintains her reputation.

1. English Literature - Old Spec Master Decks (15 decks)

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