Bruce Dawe's Poetry: Sometimes Gladness - Discuss the ways in which at least two of Bruce Dawe's poems use sound to contribute to their meaning.
Yr 11 English Lit. Long Essay Emma Bright Bruce Dawe's Poetry: Sometimes Gladness Discuss the ways in which at least two of Bruce Dawe's poems use sound to contribute to their meaning. The sounds created by the words, language and techniques in a poem can greatly add to the meaning, as Bruce Dawe demonstrates in several of his poems within Sometimes Gladness. Dawe carefully makes use of the language he selects, the pace, rhythm and flow of the poem, the sounds of words, which evoke certain feelings, and the use of such poetic techniques like onomatopoeia to contribute to how we perceive his poetry. This is especially evident within his poems "Weapons Training" - a poem about training soldiers for the war, and also "Homecoming" - which describes the stages of bringing the dead bodies home from war. The sounds created in these poems help the reader contemplate what is trying to be said, and what message Dawe would like to portray. Use of poetic techniques is an evident method of creating these sounds to reveal more about the meaning of the poem. Bruce Dawe's use of poetic techniques within his poem "Weapons Training" creates sounds, which are able to give more meaning to the words and the context within the poem. The poem is a dramatic monologue, using the voice of the Drill Sargent, who is preparing his soldiers for the brutality of war. The poem consists of an
Comparison of Poems Elizabeth Jennings: "My Grandmother" Carol Ann Duffy: "In Mrs. Tilscher's Class
Comparison of Poems Elizabeth Jennings: "My Grandmother" Carol Ann Duffy: "In Mrs. Tilscher's Class "Looking back for both poets includes reference to a child - adult relationship. In your comparisons make close references to the poets' use of language. Make clear, in your view, which poem is more successful." There are many differences AND similarities between the two poems, including use of language, both being autobiographical, and use of smell, but I find that the main difference between the two poems is the way that the past experiences were reflected upon; Elizabeth Jennings looks back on her history with a sense of guilt and regret, but Carol Ann Duffy reminisces about puberty with feelings of fondness and joy. This essay will chart this main difference using the poets' use of language. In Jennings' poem "My Grandmother", she uses the art of consonance to express her regret in verse one: "The faded silks, the heavy furniture, She watched her own reflection in the brass Salvers and silver bowls, as if to prove Polish was all, there was no need of love." All the underlined words are examples of this. The poet also seems fond of using metaphor in her language; the mention of cleaning ('polish was all, there was no need of love') relates to verse two, where the poet as a child refused to go out with her gran, it states that 'Though she never said / That she was
Comparing 'Hide and Seek', 'Half past Two' and 'Leaving school'
Comparing 'Hide and Seek', 'Half past Two' and 'Leaving school' For this essay I am going to compare the language in three poems and how they show the persons feelings. These poems are 'Hide and Seek' 'Half past Two' and 'Leaving School'. Hide and seek is written in a 3rd person perspective. The language is descriptive, simple, atmospheric and childlike in the way that it uses personification (giving things human names). The poem suggests that it is in a 3rd person perspective by the use of the word 'you' at the end of the poem. The end of the poem is also very sad and lonely, enhanced by the darkness described. All these factors together produce a dark, lonely and upsetting mood, these factors are easily shown by the child's character which is soft, small, frightened and easily upset from the description that we get. Half past Two is also written in a third person perspective. The language and viewpoint of the entire poem is that of a young child's point of view, this is shown in the language. The language shows this by its simplicity, its child like words and the way that the writer puts words together with no spaces. The language also has some rhyming words in it. The child's character is simple, he knows what he knows, but that's it and he shows innocence in the way he thinks. The mood is not really set because the description does not include the weather, of a
GIRLFRIENDS
The poem is about "girlfriends" hence the title, having an erotic passionate night. It says in the first line of the first stanza "we slept in a single bed". This introduces the readers to the theme and subject of the poem. The poem is written in a dramatic monologue with a female voice and her perspective, she reveals her the affection. The unknown female uses of lexical choices describe and show the readers what's happening in the poem. For example, here is a list of verbs used in the poem ("reached", "pressed", "kissed"). All this verbs are past tense and monosyllabic verbs. The unknown female cleverly uses the simplicity of verbs to describe the lust and sensational erotic actions in the poem. The verbs used by the unknown female are dynamic and feminine verbs used to paint a vivid imagine for the readers to imagine as the erotic actions of the poem is taking place. Adverbs are use in the poem: "clearly/ distantly". They are used to create internal rhymes in the poem, also to make the poem sound more feminine hence that the poem is about two women making love. Moreover, adjectives are included in the poem: "ferocious". Duffy implies that women as well as men can be aggressive at sex. She is saying that lust between two women is not boring but fun and exciting. It can build up your adrenaline. Duffy uses a past progressive verb: "remembered hearing". Duffy sends a
English Literature Comparing Poems
English Literature Comparing Poems Compare 'Homecoming' and 'Before you were mine' which concentrate on relationships? The poem 'Homecoming' is about the poet (Simon Armitage's) wife's childhood and about their relationship at present. The poem begins with the poet talking about his wife at nursery. The poet shows us that it is about a child by describing a character wearing 'one canary - yellow cotton jacket' as it signifies childhood. The child gets her jacket 'scuffed' and 'blackened' in the cloakroom and her mother makes 'proper fist of it'. In the next paragraph the character 'sneaks' out of the house and plans to run away but end up retracing her 'walk towards the garden gate' and goes home. In the last paragraph it talks about the poet's relationship with his wife. Carol Ann Duffy's 'Before You Were Mine' is about her feeling guilty that she was born as she believes that she ruined her mother's life. The poet describes her mother as being a 'high - heeled red shoes relics'. Both poems 'Homecoming' and 'Before You Were Mine' themes explore relationships. In 'Homecoming' Simon Armitage concentrates on relationships by describing the events of his wife's childhood showing her conflict with her parents at different ages and stages of her life. When Armitage's wife was at nursery she conflicts with her parents after scuffing and blackening her coat and her mother
Discuss 'Queen Kong' By Carol Ann Duffy
Essay One Queen Kong 'Discuss a poem of your choice from 'The World's Wife'. Queen Kong, in relation to the monstrous gorilla King Kong is a somewhat peculiar character that thinks of herself as a human being. Although she is an enormous, terrifying animal, she shows love, affection and passion for a male human. Her devoted nature is a complete contrast to her appearance. Her temperament is undeniably opposite to King Kong, who acted aggressively and with hate towards humans. She thinks of herself as quite normal, and falls in love with a male human. The difference in species does not alter her affection; in fact I'm not sure she even notices. She is so wrapped up in devotion and love for this man, nothing else matters to her. The first few stanzas of the poem lead you to believe that Queen Kong is not actually a gorilla, but a real person. 'Staying in 2 quiet hotels in the village, where people were used to strangers and more or less left you alone.' Obviously it would be impossible for a gorilla to comfortably stay in a hotel suite, but the way that Carol Ann Duffy portrays her character is that of a human. The first mention of her beloved is in a dominant way; almost the approach we are led to believe that men take over women, one of ownership and possession, 'My little man'. By using such a small, snappy sentence, Duffy emphasises the upper-hand she has over her man,
Compare the methods Armitage and Duffy use to convey their ideas about change in the poems you have read so far.
Catherine Gee 18/10/02 Compare the methods Armitage and Duffy use to convey their ideas about change in the poems you have read so far. Both Carol Ann Duffy and Simon Armitage use a range of methods in their exploration of the theme of change. Duffy's poems tend to be more personal although in her poems about change, such as 'Pluto' and 'The Captain of the 1964 Top of the Form Team' she writes in a male voice which then distances her from the speaker. Armitage writes more universal poems, few of which are written of personal experiences in the first person. Both write about change in a mostly negative manner, particularly seen in 'Pluto', 'The Captain of the 1964 Top of the Form Team' and 'Afterword. The use of form and structure contributes considerably to the exploration of the theme of change. It is used variably through their poetry. In 'Man with a Golf Ball Heart' by Armitage, he uses what could be a sonnet to express change. The poem has fourteen lines and at the sixth line begins with 'but' which signals change. It could therefore be a modernised petrarchan sonnet. This would be appropriate as one of the poem's themes is change and would be an original way to explore that theme. The poem is written in prose-like free verse as Armitage is telling a story of what happened when he opened up a golf ball and is then likening it the man's heart. By doing so he uses more
Duffy Published 'Mrs Midas' Several Years Before Its Inclusion in The Worlds Wife - To What Extent do you agree With the View That, In Terms of Subject Matter and Style, This poem is Key to the Whole Collection?
Duffy Published 'Mrs Midas' Several Years Before Its Inclusion in The Worlds Wife To What Extent do you agree With the View That, In Terms of Subject Matter and Style, This poem is Key to the Whole Collection? As 'Mrs Midas' was published several years before 'The Worlds Wife' was you may think that this poem may be the key to all the others within the collection as Duffy would have been able to build the collection on the base that 'Mrs Midas' set with its views on male weakness and female superiority. Indeed this poem has a lot of links to other poems through their different subject matters and also they have very similar uses of different styles and devices used in poetry. 'Mrs Midas' is about a woman who finds out that her husband has wished for everything he touches to be turned to gold as he was owed a favour by Apollo, who gave him this gift of turning everything to gold. However King Midas doesn't think about the consequences of his actions and it turns out that indeed everything he touches turns to gold and so he cannot eat because his food turns to gold. Mrs Midas becomes scared that he will turn her to gold and sends him to a she always wanted. This poem is about male weakness, the fact that he didn't think about his actions and how they affected other people but however cruel he was to her in her mind she always sticks with him even though he was
An appreciation of "Wasp's Nest" and how Rosenberg uses words to communicate themes in his poem and how the poem is made memorable.
Name: Akosua Mate Grade: 9a Subject: English Literature Project title: "Wasp's Nest" Project focus: An appreciation of "Wasp's Nest" and how Rosenberg uses words to communicate themes in his poem and how the poem is made memorable. The Wasp's Nest Conceptualize a world full of people that isolate and alienate you-a place where you don't count or make a difference. This is one of the major concerns in the Wasp's Nest. Rosenberg appeals to our intellect utilizing technical literary ingredients to spice up and flavour the poem. My project is an analysis of his use of words and phrases to communicate themes in his poem and to see how the poem has been made memorable. To me, the poem on its own is a metaphor portraying life and its elements of uncertainty and others. In line 1'' Two aerial tigers...'', the wasps are being referred to as ''aerial tigers'' because they do all their activities in the air (aerial). They are referred to as ''tigers' for two reasons. The main one being that they are ragingly ferocious and much undomesticated. The second one is describes their physical outward appearance as they are yellow with black stripes just like the tiger. The use of language here is very descriptive and this line being a metaphor aids the picture to be conceived on the mental canvas. Line 1 is memorable because it is quite unique the way one can find such descriptive to
Before you were mine was written by Carol Ann Duffy.
Before you were Mine Before you were mine was written by Carol Ann Duffy who writes about her mother before the poet was born after seeing a photo of her when she was a teenager. She is inspired to write the poem because she thinks her mother was happier then. She begins the poem by setting the scene and portraying her to be romantic and attractive, the poet dos this by comparing her to Marilyn Monroe in her 'polka-dot dress' that 'blows round your legs' There is internal rhyme in these quotes which was' probably used to emphasise the similarity of her mother to Marilyn Monroe. The idea of the poem being written in the present tense, and the use of onomatopoeia, 'fizzy' shows how the poet is trying to make her mother's past as real as possible. This word creates the imagery of champagne and therefore it might portray her bubbly character. The use of enjambment, 'I'm ten years away from the corner you laugh on with your pals...' may have been used to stress the importance of how long ago it was when her mother was a teenager. Carol Ann Duffy fantasises about her mother as she is imagined 'in the ballroom with the thousand eyes.' The thousand eyes could be the glitter balls in the room but could also be the thousand eyes of men admiring her mother. The poet creates a positive and bright atmosphere in the poem to emphasise how happy her mother must have been when she was a
