Compare and Contrast the Two Poems

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Compare and Contrast the Two Poems “Porphyrias Lover” and “Not To Blame” Examining the Imagery, Themes and Poetic Devices

These two poems are similar in content as they both look at a dominant male Character who think they have the right to abuse women. Although they are similar they do have some differences which might be caused by the time in which they are written “Porphyrias Lover” was written in 1836 whereas “Not To Blame” was written much later in the1970’s. This affects the way the poems are developed and the way we as women respond to the poems.

 “Porphyrias Lover” was is written by Robert Browning in 1836. “Porphyrias Lover” is written in a way where you know the mood of the poem when you first start to read it.

The atmosphere in the opening scene is scary and eerie. This effect is built up by the use of pathetic fallacy

                                   “And did its worst to vex the lake”

This builds up mystery and tension as we read more of the poem.This makes the reader feel uneasy and reflects the mood of the man inside the cottage so we expect that something bad is going to happen.

This poem is written from the view of a man who loves Porphyria and we get given the impression that Porphyria is the only good thing in his life as when she walks in he says

“She shut the cold out and storm

She Kneeled and made the cheerless Grate”

This is saying that all the coldness and angry atmosphere from outside is being blocked once she comes. Her beauty takes over and warms up the cottage.

The Title “Porphyrias Lover” does not really tell you very much about the poem. It tells you that it is about a man who loves Porphyria but it is not clear whether it is about the man who is telling his story or another man who Porphyria maybe seeing.

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“A sudden thought of one so pale

For love of her, and in all in vien”

This gives the impression that Porphyria does not love him with all her heart and maybe there is someone else. We already know that she is the powerful, leader of the relationship when he says

“And called me. When no voice replied,

She put my arm around her waist.”

This could tell us that he is jealous of her and her beauty and that he wants the power over the relationship because he is the man and he thinks that ...

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