Analyse how the Larkin's use of form,structure and language shape meaning in MCMXIV .

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comment on and analyse how the writer's use of form,structure and language shape meaning in MCMXIV .

The poem MCMXIV (1914) by Philip Larkin is a poem written in the early 1960’s. Philip Larkin uses Roman numerals to let the reader know that he is writing about the past. The langauge used in this poem is simple however the style has a double meaning which could suggest that the poet is lost in nostalgia.

The poem is divided into four stanzas. Each stanza addresses different things, thus Larkin split the poem to separate the different areas of focus. In the poem Larkin repeats the line "never such innocence" at the beginning and end of the last stanza to obviously prevail that their innocence has, obviously, disappeared. This repetition emphasises the author’s message, and further depicts the loss of innocence that can not be replaced.

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Larkin uses a single sentence for his entire poem, and in each of the stanza’s the last words of lines four and eight ryhme. The use of loose verse resembles the long uneven lines introduced in the first line of the first stanza.

Futhermore the use of repetition of pessimistic lines supply an eerie afteglow tot he poem which suits it considering it is a poem based on the First World War. 

The language of the poem is which could suggest that the poet is lost in imagination visualising the hazy glimpses or scenes of past. “Standing as ...

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