winter swans

Question 1

summary

Answer 1

a couple are walking along together, in a brief patch of good weather after two days of rain, and come across some swans. it is suggested that the couple have had an argument or disagreement which has separated them, however by the end of the poem they have reunited.

Question 2

themes

Answer 2

nature, unity vs separation, conflict and resolution, romance

Question 3

context

Answer 3

• sheers’ work focuses on relationships and how people live close together in society
  -from his most famous collection ‘skirrid hill’

Question 4

structure and form

Answer 4

• no rhyme scheme: doesn’t use a rhyming scheme or consistent syllable line count, which could be interpreted
  as a commentary on the unpredictable and flexible nature of relationships.
• is structured into four sentences stretched over
  twenty lines, which continues the theme of symmetry and
  pairings into the format of the poem.
• use of enjambment
• reflects the fluidity of the conversation the couple are
  having and makes the pace of the poem feel more natural.
• couplet could suggest a resolution to the separation or tension between the couple but it doesn’t rhyme so may exhibit some remaining tension
• uses caesura to reflect the break in the relationship and conversation, and arguably to symbolise the cracks in the couple’s relationships or the breaks they take to contemplate

Question 5

winter swans/love’s philosophy

Answer 5

• both poets personify nature to make it easier to compare to the human relationship.
• both poets focus on a romantic / sexual relationship, using natural imagery to suggest that romantic relationships are crucial and important.

Answer 6

+ display the effects of disruption and separation in a relationship.
+ natural imagery is utilized to create a vivid setting.

• in letters from yorkshire, the characters are physically separated, whereas in winter swans, the characters are only emotionally detached.
• letters from yorkshire deals with a familial relationship (it is assumed),
  whereas winter swans concerns a romantic / and or / sexual relationship.

Question 7

winter swans/when we two parted

Answer 7

+ both poems explore the difficulties encountered within a relationship
- both attribute some of the difficulties encountered in the relationship towards a lack of communication - WS describes the couples as “silent and apart” and WWTP described the speaker as “in silence and tears”.

• in WWTP, the couple is already separated and do not reunite, however in
  WS they begin separated however reunite at the end of the poem.
• both poems have stanzas of a set length, eight for WWTP and three
  (mostly) for WS

Question 8

“the cloud had given their all - two days of rain and then a break”

Answer 8

• pathetic fallacy and personifcation, setting the stormy, turbulent scene, and metaphorically represents the couple who have also ’given their all’.
• break in terms of the relationship as well after two days of arguing

Question 9

“the waterlogged earth gulping for breath”

Answer 9

• speaker feels like he is weighed down and drowning in their problems. it may be the last breath of their marriage.
• onomatopoeia and personification
• awkward time in their relationship and quite suffocating but they’re trying to make it work - may be a metaphor for their unresolved conflict

Question 10

“we skirted the lake”
“silent and apart”

Answer 10

‘silent and apart’ juxtaposes the pronoun ‘we’ (which is repeated throughout the poem) -

Question 11

“swans”, “stopped” and “show of tipping in unison”

Answer 11

• ‘unison’ juxtaposes them being ‘apart’
• sibilance - soft sound symbolising unity and togetherness

Question 12

“they halved themselves” / “icebergs of a white feather”

Answer 12

• metaphor for separating but eventually joining together again
• ## they distract the couple by exhibiting their togetherness

Question 13

“they mate for life, you said”

Answer 13

• representative of their unity and long-lasting love

Question 14

“slow-stepping in the lake’s shingle and sand”

Answer 14

• they are dancing, although slowly. the sibilance creates a soft, calming sound, helping to heal their problems.
• serenity of their relationship and how it has started to flow once again

Question 15

“like a pair of wings settling after flight.

Answer 15

• couplet - symbolises them being together in the end
• “pair” “half” - couples imagery suggests that they are destined to be together
• suggests commitment