when we two parted Flashcards
Lord Byron
who wrote when we two parted
lord byron
CONTEXT - what type of lifestyle did byron lead
debauchery lifestyle
CONTEXT - what type of poet was he
romantic poet
CONTEXT - who was this poem written about
lady frances webster
who he was having an affair with at the time
she ended relationship with him
CONTEX - quote about byron
mad bad and dangerous to know
CONTEXT - what was byron veiwed as by people
- a celebrity
- popular eith women and conducted a vast number of affairs with women of high status
why did byron write this poem
to shame the woman
what type of poem is when we two parted
lyric poetry = expresses emotions
how does byron depict himself in the poem
a passive victim of decietful women
LANGUAGE - what does the use of “thee” show us
- thee shows intimacy
- thee had gone out of fashion so he uses archaic language to show his love and grief is timeless
- thee is still found in religious circles and in marriage vows = shows relationship is sacred (along with “vows”)
LANGUAGE - what does “half broken - hearted” show us
- both are partially broken
- the more liekly he is the only one broken
- shows us the relationship is not loving or equal
- byron wants to seem victimised by heartless woman as he is broken and she is not
- shows us the relationship is not loving or equal
LANGUAGE - sensory description quotes
“hear” “knell” “ shudder”
LANGUAGE - what do the sensory description laguage tell us
- the relationship is only physical and not serious (then I will contrast this by showing how he thinks it is serious)
LANGUAGE - “vows” shows us
- could be her affair
- (in depth) = him and her are meant to be together as he uses marriage language to suggest they had an as sacred realtionship as a marriage (contrats sensory description point)
LANGUAGE - “knell” (funeral bell)
- feeling he has for her are dead
- or relationship has ended
- as “they name thee before me” comes before this line it could show when he hears of her it kills him emotionally
LANGUAGE - what type of word is “knell”
shows a metaphor, noun
LANGUAGE - what type of word is “vows”
solemn promise
abstract noun
LANGUAGE - what are the quotes that show anaphora
- in the last stanza
“IN secret we met - // IN silence i grieve, “ - at the start
“ IN silence and tears,”
LANGUAGE - what does the anaphora show us
(anaphora is repeating same first word)
- the poet is doomed to repetitive nature of feelings and loss of grief
- inability to move on
LANGUAGE - what is the quote that shows poetic inversion
” in silence i greive”
LANGUAGE - what does the poetic inversion on “in silence i grieve” show us
- it emphaiszes the noun “silence” using the poetic inversion and shows the poet is silent due to his grief and is broken
LANGUAGE - how is there religious context/imagery on the quote “ they know not i knew thee”
- to “know” someone according to the bible, old testement - means sex
- because byron uses other religious language like “vows” we can interpret it this way
- this biblical reference shows us he felt the relationship was honourable and sacred even though he was commiting adultery
LANGUAGE - what does the very last line “with silence and tears” show us
- repetition to the start of the poem
- cyclical nature of love he feels
- also stuck in in an inescapable, repetitive, cyclical nautre of relationship and the pain he feels
- which overall shows us his inability to move on
LANGUAGE - what other word is there repetition on
- long
- “long, long shall i rue thee”
- “after long years”
-> adjective repeated 3 times shows us he is unable to move on
STRUCTURE - when does the sonnet stop
at line 13 “thy vows are all broken” is the first line to break the sonnet form
STRUCTURE - what does the break of sonnet form show us
- the poet originally follows sonnet form at the beginning showing us he though the relationship was true and worthy of sonnet form which shows love poetry
- but it stops when he hears of he infidelity with a different man (could link to context here)
STRUCTURE - what else symbolises the stop of sonnet form
- the caesura on the last line of the “sonnet”
-> “ Of what i feel now.” - the fullstop is crucial as it physically reflects the stop in the sonnet
STRUCTURE - where do the tense shifts happen
- the first stanza is in the past
- the present starts at the end of the sonnet
- the future is at the very end, in the last stanza
STRUCTURE - what does the tense shift to future at the end show us
- the pain afflicted on him will last forever
- unable to move on
STRUCTURE - what does the tense shift to the present show us
- relationship changes with information
- (of her affair with somone else (context)) and perfect sonnet form dissapears
- shows us he feels heartbroken ?
STRUCTURE - what type of verse is used in the poem
accentual verse
STRUCTURE - when does the accentual verse end
“pale grew thy cheek and cold,”
- she is becoming cold to him which is reflected in the structure as the strutcrue is broken and he is rejected
STRUCTURE - what does it tell us that the accentual verse stops
- shows a break in a pattern as sturcture is broken
- so he feels broken and rejected
- reflects shock he felt when rejected
is there a regular rhycme schee
yes, regular = links to his repetitive grief
MEANING - what is the general idea of WWTP
a deciet poem, he is wanting to be percieved as a perfect gentleman and the woman broke his heart, so he shames her with this poem
important quotes
- “pale grew thy cheek and cold”
- ” thy vows are all broken”
- ” a knell in mine ear”
- ” in silence and tears” , “in silence we met - // in silence i grieve”
- “they know not i knew thee”
- “thee”
- “half broken hearted”
- “long, long shall i rue thee” , “after long years”
how is “they know not i knew thee” ambiguous
- we don’t know who “they” is
- it could be the public or his social circle as he is trying to shame Lady. F W
LANGUAGE - “a knell to mine ear”
- metaphor
- hyperbolises grief and anguish
