Vitaï Lampada Flashcards
Title analysis
The title is latin for ‘Torch of life’ referring to handing off a torch in a relay race
“There’s a breathless hush in the Close tonight”
This alliterative phrase alludes to the difficult circumstances the young students will have to overcome in order to win their match
The sibilance in the opening line helps reinforce the tension and excitement felt by the schoolboys in their cricket match
Speaker situates the poem in a cricket field in Bristol’s Clifton College where the poet himself attended
“Red with the wreck of a square that broke;”
Repetition of ‘red’ illustrates the death and chaos the soldiers are faced with
The soldiers have been overrun by the enemy and their military formation has been compromised
Caesura at the end of the first two lines slows the pace of the poem. This reinforces how the soldiers aren’t succumbing to fear and panic- they are remaining calm and dignified. There is a quiet, defiant strength about them due to their upbringing
“Bear through life like a torch in flame,”
Verb reinforces how the lessons instilled within them won’t negate life’s difficulties, but they will ease individuals through it
Simile- the men will always be in possession of an inner strength. The individual will always be part of something bigger than themselves, making them stronger as a result
