The tone of this poem is very nostalgic and sentimental it creates a sense of longing for his childhood. The tone used also captures his gratitude this is shown when he describes how the sun rises each morning “ the little window where the sun came peeping in at morn”. This suggests the appreciation he felt for each day. We can comprehend his fantastic childhood and the amazing memories he possesses. The poet’s naivety as a child is shown when he writes ‘ I used to think their slender tree tops were close to the sky’.
The second poem ‘to the virgins, to make much of time’ is similar to the first poem in that it deals with the passing of time and the changes that happen. Robert Herrick lived in the Elizabethan era, this was the time where life expectancy was a lot shorter than today. The short time he had on earth may have encouraged him to urge people to live life to the full. The theme of this poem is different as it focuses on the poet giving instructions and advice from a much older, wiser perspective. “Then not be coy but use your time” he tells the youth to use their time wisely and to live life to the full; this also shows how inspired the poet feels about young life. Herrick advises the audience, “the virgins” to make the most of their childhood while they can. I believe that this poem is purely written for the younger generation. The way the poet refers to the young as “virgins” suggest the poet is saying the young are inexperienced, this can be interpreted in different ways, the above being a possibility or maybe he could be relating this to the innocence of youth, or to the lack of life experience. Herrick chooses to infer that it is possible to live life the way you want but you must take responsibility. The poet goes as far as saying ‘for having lost, you may forever tarry’ this refers to the loss of early life and not regaining it. This is similar to the first poem in the sense that it also looks at this loss.
Both poets use language very effectively to convey their feelings about childhood and adulthood. In ‘ I remember, I remember’ the way the poet uses his language give us a vivid image of his happy childhood. The use of ‘I’ makes it personal and this makes the reader feel as if his feelings are real therefore we sympathise with him. The use of the exclamation mark reinforces his feeling of childhood excitement and wonderment. A description of nature is also mentioned “those flowers made of light” and “the lilacs where the robin built”. This implies that nature is constant regardless as to what happens in our lives. This also reveals a continuing growing and blossoming each new day. The house he describes is almost like a perfect illusion of a child’s idyllic house. “The little window came peeping at morn”. This symbolises youth, hope and activity, it shows how as young children we want to live perfect lives as children, however the reality of it is that we will not end up living our dream. The use of the sun highlights warmth and hope. Many of hoods techniques include the use of colours, he uses the colours of ‘the violet, and the lily cups’ to also create an idyllic childhood atmosphere. However, further on in the poem he contrasts this with the use of dark dreary colours ‘ the fir trees dark and high’. This symbolises how quickly things can change. This has an impact on the reader as we realise that we may not have enough time to accomplish all that we set out to do. On the other hand, he uses phrases that portray images of his present life “to know I’m further off from heaven, then I was a boy” this gives us the sense of loss, grief and loneliness he know faces.
The techniques used in this poem include personification. The poet refers to the sun as “he”. This gives the poem a more personal touch. Hood uses repetition at the beginning of each stanza ‘ I remember, I remember’. Here we begin to realise that the reader is reminiscing his past and not focusing on his future. This use of repetition also reinforces that his childhood memories ended long time ago. His child hood innocence continues throughout the poem again giving the audience a stronger image of hoods childhood. The poet starts each stanza with a reflection of his happy childhood ‘the roses, red and white” and finishes it very poignantly “often wish the night would bourne my breath away!” This shows the poets inner emotions effectively, he feels excited at the thought of childhood memories but hatred towards the present life he faces. This small line can open the readers’ eyes to how quickly things can deteriorate if we do not focus on the future and what it has to offer.
The tone in “to the virgins, to make much of time” is written formally. The poem has a sense of simplicity to it as the poet issues us with instructions like ‘gather ye rosebuds, while ye can’ and ‘be not coy’ because if you do he warns us ‘you may for ever tarry’ it is possible to say that Herrick got to the end of his life and enjoyed it but now he wants to tell others to do the same. This represents a level of knowledge that the younger generation are drawn to because the poet is older and useful advice can be obtained. The language used is very direct, he uses ‘ye’ to get his message across. We feel that we are directly involved and should listen to the advice he is giving. We see the contrasts of the poem at the end of the sentences, for example if we follow his advice we will be ‘flying’ but if we don’t we will be ‘dying’. He contrasts the speed of flying and the suddenly to dead and this indicated just how fragile life is. Contrasting pairs is a powerful technique because it shows the positive and negative. Another example is warmer/former. Both poems use metaphors to enhance the images they are trying to create. A powerful metaphor can be found in the line “gather ye rosebuds” He is advising us to make the most of opportunities that come our way while it is still possible. He refers to the sun as ‘he’ and like in ‘ I remember’ this represents personification and hope in his life.
Both poems clearly reveal the poets’ attitudes towards life. Thomas hood chose to present his as a reflection of his past, with a sense of regret. Robert Herrick, on the other hand has chosen explain to the audience that it is possible to live life the way you want but you need to take responsibility. My favourite poem is ‘ to the virgins to make much of time’ because this poem, I feel is very appropriate for this generation as it gives out a powerful message. It explains to us that we should live life to the full, especially while we young or otherwise we will regret it. Additionally I thought the first poem, ‘I remember, I remember’ was not as interesting because I believe it did not give a clear understanding of what the poem was about, I felt it was too personal. But overall the two poems have made me realise that we should live everyday as if it were our last.
