In the first stanza of “When We Two Parted” Lord Byron describes his pain when he had to separate from his lover; the emotional pain is described as having physical effects “Pale grew thy cheek and cold.” The poet is chilled by the separation. Love in this poem was unrequited. He had feelings for her, he admits that he loved her and their parting has caused him pain “Half broken-hearted to sever for years.” Their relationship was secret “In secret we met”. Their parting, like their relationship had to be in secret, so other people do not realise the effect it had on him. People are presumably gossiping about her, it is clear that she does not have a good reputation “And light is thy fame”. Lord Byron also describes how he feels every time he hears people gossip about her “I hear thy name spoken, And share in its shame” , “They name thee before me, I kneel to mine ear” which means he is ashamed every time he hears people gossip about her. He knows that when/if they meet again they will have to retain the secrecy of former times “How shall I greet thee? With silence and tears”. On the other hand in “First Love” John Claire describes love as sudden and sweet, “I ne’er was struck before that hour with love so sudden and so sweet.” The poet describes different steps which love can cause in physical terms writing on his face “My face turned pale as a deadly pale” and feeling unable to walk “My legs refused to walk”. His face suddenly turned red “And then my blood rushed into my face”. The experience was so intense that made everything around him seem unreal “And took my sight away the trees and bushes round the place seemed midnight at noonday I could not see a single thing.” The poet is lost in the intensity of his emotions and can never recover “My heart has left its dwelling place and can never return.” Love in this poem was unrequited and the relationship between the poet and the person he felt in love with has never even started. “Remember” is a love poem and, at the same time, it is a very sad poem. Christina Rossetti asks her lover to remember her when she dies “Remember me when I am gone away, gone far away into the silent land.” She does not want him to be sad every time he remembers her “Only remember me; you understand it will be late to counsel then or pray.” In the last two lines “Better by far you should forget and smile than that you should remember and be sad” she is saying that it is better not to remember her if he is going to be sad every time he thinks about her. Love in this poem is not unrequited and she has very strong feelings for her love.
The relationship in “When We Two Parted” was ended by the poet’s lover. She moved on to someone else. The separation had a very strong effect on the speaker “Half broken-hearted to sever for years.” The poet wonders how he would greet his lover next time they meet “How should I greet thee?” “First Love” ended in heartbreak and grief. The relationship has not even started between the poet and his lover. The poet feels like he will never recover from falling in love with this unnamed girl “My heart has left its dwelling place and can return no more.” There is no chance of their meeting up again. On the other hand, the relationship between the poet and his lover in “Remember” is a happy one and it will end when one of them is gone, but will leave a very strong effect when their relationship is over
The language in “First Love” is simple and uncomplicated vocabulary, which emphasizes the vulnerability of the speaker and the purity of his feelings. There is a rhyme scheme in the poem “When We Two Parted” and alternate lines rhyme throughout the poem, which emphasis how Byron and his lover are now separated. The imagery is cold to describe the effect of lost love “Colder thy kiss.” “Remember” consist of line beginning with “Remember me” making the sentence simple and non-complex. The poem is a short sonnet of 14 lines.
In the poem “When We Two Parted” the poet describes love as a sudden experience. The poet’s love was unrequited and he was left grieving. In “First Love” love is described as sweet, sudden and unrequited. In “Remember” love is described as eternal and unselfish.
