GCSE LOVE AND RELATIONSHIPS

WHEN WE TWO PARTED - LORD BYRON

When we two parted - key themes:

-Romantic love - longing

-Distance

-Death

-Memory

Context of When We Two Parted:

Byron (1788-1824) published this poem in 1816, but he claimed to have written it in 1808 to conceal the identity of the woman in the poem, who was marries - Byron was notorious for his scandalous affairs.

Form of When We Two Parted:

-Consists of four line stanzas, and has a strong ABAB rhyme scheme and regular rhythm.

-The rhythm emphasises certain syllables which (e.g. Cold and kiss), which highlight the speakers pain.

Structure of When We Two Parted:

-Moves through time

-Juxtaposition of the past and present shows there's no change in his feelings

-Its a cyclical structure "silence and tears"

Language of When We Two Parted:

Semantic field of death:

-The imagery used in "pale grew thy cheek cold, colder thy kiss" acts as a metaphor to compare the poets former lover to a dead body.

-This shows that his lover no longer has love or warmth for him and it could imply that he is dead to her.

Silence and secrecy:

-The narrator and lover are silent when they part and the narrator is silent about the affair both in the past and present.

-This silence contrasts with voices of his friends in the third stanza, which draws attention to the fact that the speaker is unable to express how he feels

What are the feeling and attitudes of When we Two parted?

-Grief - the narrator mourns the end of a relationship

-Anger - he seems angry that his lover has broken promises and is having affairs with other men. He imagines seeing her with silence and tears, suggesting how much she's hurt him.

-Regret - He regrets the relationship due to the way he suffered at the end.

Key Quotes - "Half broken hearted"

-This could suggest that there love for each other was never true

-However, it is clear that the narrator was deeply affected by their parting, so perhaps he is accusing his lover of only being partially in love with him.

-He may also be referring to himself as "half" of the couple, suggesting that he is broken hearted, but she isn't

Key Quotes - "A knell in mine ear"

-"knell" alludes to the sound of funeral bells, furthering the theme of death in the poem, and adding to the impression to the speaker being n mourning.

-This also introduces the effect of synesthesia (experiencing one of your senses through another), as he later references the physical sense of a "shudder" and here he has referenced noise. The overwhelming nature of the senses could be mirroring the all - consuming nature of the couples relationship.

Key Quotes - "In secret we met"

-The poem uses collective pronouns very infrequently, therefore this highlights this line as a significant point in their relationship.

-This, is conjunction with the past participle "met", suggest that they used to enjoy unity but now they have reverted to being separate enteties.

LOVES PHILOSOPHY

Loves Philosophy - key themes:

-Romantic love - longing

-Desire

-Nature

Context of loves philosophy

Romantic poet

Emphasises nature and emotion

Form of Loves Philosophy:

ABAB rhyme scheme, but two lines in each stanza don't fully rhyme, this reflects the way that all of nature is in harmony except for the narrator and his loved one

Structures of Loves Philosophy:

-The poem is tightly structured to be persuasive

-The narrator uses each stanza to build up evidence on how everything in nature is supposed to come together.

-He uses a short line at the end of each stanza to as a rhetorical question - which emphasises the contrast between nature and the writers situation

Language of Loves Philosophy:

Natural imagery:

-"The winds of heaven mix forever with a sweet emotion" This shows how how feels loving emotions so intensely that he begins to see them everywhere. The expression of intense emotion in the context of nature is characteristic of romantic poetry.

Repetition:

-Used to show how everything in nature repeatedly conects with everything else. Repeating words such as 'Mingle', 'kiss', and 'clasp' emphasises the physical relationship he wants.

Religious Language:

-Language to do with God suggest that love isn't just natural, it's also Godly.

The feelings and attitudes in Loves Philosophy:

-Longing: He is frustrated that his love is't returned when he sees all the bonds that exist in nature.

Key Quotes: "The fountains mingle with the river"

-Shelby establishes the theme of nature from the outset which is common for romantic poetry.

-The idea of mountains mingling in the river evokes passive imagery implying that it is only natural for them to be together.

Key Quotes: "Why not I with thine?"

-We learn that the speaker is suggesting unrequited love

-The monosyllabic nature of the line adds to its impact, making the stanza more persuasive.

-This is the first time the pronoun 'I' is being used, which suggest the speaker is relying on the impact of natural imagery to convince the woman he wants to be in a relationship with him.

Key Quotes: "If though not kiss me?"

-The final line in each stanza is monosyllabic and only has five syllables - this increases the impact of the questions and makes them stand out. They're separated from the rest of the poem just a the narrator is separated from his lover.

SONNET 29 - 'I THINK OF THEE!'

Sonnet 29 - Key themes:

-Romantic love - Longing, fulfilment

-Distance

-Desire and longing

-nature

Context of Sonnet 29:

-Elizabeth Browning wrote this poem for her lover Robert Browning whilst courting, and they were not meant to be shared publicly.

-Her father did not allow the marriage so they met in secret, wrote hundreds of letters of letters to each other, and eventually eloped.

Form of Sonnet 29:

-This sonnet is loosely written in the Petarchan form, with eight lines (octave) followed by six lines (sestet)

-The octave usually presents a problem and the sestet finds the solution.

-However, the solution comes in the middle of line seven.

-Having it come early and int the middle of the line reflects that natures impatience to t see her lover.

Structure of Sonnet 29:

-The transition from problem to solution reflects the difference between the narrator thinking about her lover and being with him.

-Its emphasised in the reversal of the first and last line from "i think of thee" to "to near".

-She imagines that when she is with her lover, she will no longer have to think of him because shes now near him

Language of Sonnet 29:

Language about nature:

-The narrator uses an extended metaphor throughout the poem - her lover is the tree and her thoughts are the "wild vines" that cover him.

-This shows how her thoughts are constantly growing and unrestrained.

-The image of the tree casting off the vines reflects how she wants her lover to he a strong, permanent part of her life.

Excited Language:

-Exclamation marks show that the narrator takes joy is thinking about her lover and feels excitement at the thought of being with him.

-Plosive sounds and the dynamic verbs emphasise how much she wants to be with him

Key Quotes: "I think of thee! - My thoughts do twine and bud"

-The poem is an extended metaphor, he is a tree and her thought of him are the vines.

-Her use of an exclamation mark shows the depths of her feeling and may also appear as defensive, perhaps as a response to an accusative letter.

-By directly addressing the poem at her lover, making it more intimate.

Key Quotes: " burst,shattered, everywhere!"

-Use of three different words yo describe the way his presence replaces her thoughts emphasises her excitement.

-Caesura contributes to the dramatic effect of it.

Key Quotes: "I do not think of thee - I am too near thee"

-Reversal of the first line highlights the difference between thinking about him and being with him

-She doesn't have to think of him when she's with him, he's better than anything that she is capable of imagining.

-She finally breaks free from her obsessive thoughts and they are free to love each other.

NEUTRAL TONES - THOMAS HARDY

Neutral Tones - Key Themes:

-Romantic love - loss

-Distance

-Death

-Memory

-Nature

Context of neutral tones:

-Hardy was known to be insecure, depressed and sensitive as result of two unhappy marriages.

-Much of his work is regarded as pessimistic and bleak

Form of Neutral tones:

-Is written from the point of vies of a man addressing a past lover

-The first and last lines rhyme, which shows how the memories of the past return to affect the writer in the present.

-It has a slow pace, which hints his sadness that the relationship has failed

Structure of Neutral tones:

-Time shifts - past and present but grief is constant

Cylical structure returning to the pond.

-Represents how he's been repeatedly hurt by love since that way at the pond, and the way these experiences remind him of that day.

Language of Neutral tones:

Metaphors:

-shows how Hardey intends to depict the harsh reality of the loss of a relationship.

-The speakers lovers smile is describes as "Alive enough to have strength to die", this metaphor is hyperbolic so it exaggerates the animosity between the characters.

Death imagery:

-frequently creates an ominous mood.

-His former lovers smile is describes as "The deadest thing"

Key Quotes: "We stood by the pond that winter day"

-Hardey uses pathetic fallacy in his reference to "winter" to establish the sadness and coldness from the start.