Comparative Analysis of Poetic Themes and Structures in Key Literary Poems

What semantic field does Kipling use to present resilience?

A semantic field of balance and endurance, including phrases like 'keep your head' and 'trust yourself.'

How does Thomas dramatize resistance in his poem?

Through a motif of light versus darkness, exemplified by the phrase 'rage against the dying of the light.'

What contrasting imagery systems do Kipling and Thomas use to define strength?

Kipling employs calm rationality, while Thomas uses fiery vitality.

How does Kipling personify 'Triumph and Disaster'?

He personifies them as 'impostors,' aligning with his motif of stoic equilibrium.

What does Thomas's anthropomorphism of 'good night' create?

It renders death intimate and seductive, creating tension between surrender and revolt.

How does Kipling's sentence structure reflect his moral message?

The formal control of his extended periodic sentence mirrors the idea that order equals mastery.

What poetic form does Thomas use to express compulsion?

A villanelle, which enacts compulsion through cyclical refrains.

What motif links Kipling and Thomas in their poems?

The motif of paternal guidance, with Kipling addressing 'my son' and Thomas addressing 'my father.'

What semantic field does MacNeice construct in 'Prayer Before Birth'?

A semantic field of corruption and violence, using phrases like 'bloodsucking bat' and 'tall walls.'

What motif does Duffy explore in 'War Photographer'?

A motif of light and dark, highlighting guilt and revelation.

How does MacNeice's anaphoric structure function in his poem?

It mimics liturgy, expressing desperate innocence.

What does Duffy's photographic lexical field reflect?

Methodical detachment, with terms like 'spools,' 'solutions,' and 'shutters.'

What imagery of entrapment do both poets use?

MacNeice's 'walls' and 'bloodsucking bat' parallel Duffy's 'darkroom.'

What does Dharker's semantic field in 'Blessing' portray?

Water as both necessity and miracle, using phrases like 'the skin cracks like a pod.'

What does Duffy critique in her poem 'War Photographer'?

Hypocrisy in human responses to suffering, using a semantic field of religion and ritual.

How does Dharker's structure mirror the theme of her poem?

Her free-verse structure with enjambment mirrors the abundance and release of water.

What does Agard's phonetic spelling in 'Half-Caste' reclaim?

Voice as cultural assertion, mocking imposed identity categories.

What is the significance of the imagery of decay in Bhatt's poem?

It transforms into regeneration, symbolizing cultural loss and renewal.

How do both poets address the theme of identity?

By fusing personal experience with collective identity, exploring how memory shapes identity.

What semantic field does Fanthorpe use in 'Half-past Two'?

A semantic field of time and innocence, depicting a child's abstract understanding.

What does Scannell's motif of concealment symbolize?

The transformation of play into existential fear.

How do the poets manipulate structure to shift tone?

Fanthorpe's irregular stanzas move from routine to transcendence, while Scannell's tight stanzas culminate in anticlimax.

What does Lawrence's semantic field in 'Piano' evoke?

Nostalgia and regression, using sound imagery like 'softly, in the dusk.'

How does Walker's poem celebrate legacy?

Through a semantic field of domesticity, portraying everyday activities with admiration.

What contrasting emotional outcomes do the forms of Lawrence and Walker reflect?

Lawrence's form reflects constraint and imprisonment in sentiment, while Walker's mirrors freedom and acceptance.

What does Browning's semantic field in 'My Last Duchess' reveal?

Control and pride through art and possession.

How does Keats's semantic field evoke desolation?

By using nature and enchantment, portraying the aftermath of seduction.

What structural technique does Browning use to expose psychopathy?

Dramatic monologue with enjambment and ironic politeness.

What themes do both Browning and Keats explore through beauty?

The intertwining of beauty with power and loss, revealing destructive desire.

What semantic field does Blake use in 'The Tyger'?

Creation and fire, exemplified by phrases like 'burning bright,' 'hammer,' and 'furnace.'

What semantic field does Kipling develop in 'If'?

Endurance and composure, illustrated by phrases such as 'keep your head' and 'trust yourself.'

How do Blake and Kipling approach the theme of mastery?

Blake questions divine power through awe, while Kipling prescribes human strength through control.

What motif does Blake use to explore balance between good and evil?

The motif of symmetry, particularly seen in the phrase 'fearful symmetry.'

How does Kipling achieve moral symmetry in 'If'?

Through structured quatrains and balanced clauses.

What type of rhythm does Blake employ in 'The Tyger'?

Trochaic rhythm, evoking relentless energy.

What rhythm does Kipling use in 'If'?

Iambic pentameter, reflecting steady rationality.

What moral question does Blake pose in 'The Tyger'?

He questions the morality of creation with the line, 'Did he who made the Lamb make thee?'

What moral instruction does Kipling assert in 'If'?

He emphasizes personal responsibility with the line, 'Yours is the Earth...'

What semantic field does Rossetti use in 'Remember'?

Memory and peace, highlighted by phrases like 'remember me' and 'forget and smile.'

What semantic field does Thomas develop in 'Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night'?

Rebellion and light, as seen in phrases like 'burn' and 'rage.'

How do Rossetti and Thomas engage with mortality?

Rossetti presents it through serenity, while Thomas approaches it with defiance.

What structural form does Rossetti's poem take?

A Petrarchan sonnet that moves from possession to release.

What structural form does Thomas's poem take?

A villanelle that loops endlessly, denying closure.

How does the rhythm in Rossetti's poem affect the reader?

Her restrained rhythm and soft consonance soothe the reader.

How does Thomas's use of sound manipulate emotional response?

His use of plosives and repetition creates a sense of overwhelming turmoil.

What semantic field does Shakespeare use in 'Sonnet 116'?

Navigation and permanence, with phrases like 'ever-fixed mark' and 'star to every wandering bark.'

What semantic field does Browning develop in 'My Last Duchess'?

Art and ownership, illustrated by 'my gift of a nine-hundred-years-old name.'

How do Shakespeare and Browning explore devotion?

Shakespeare idealizes love as constant, while Browning exposes possessive love.

What motif binds both 'Sonnet 116' and 'My Last Duchess'?

The motif of time, with Shakespeare defying it and Browning distorting it.

What structural difference exists between Shakespeare's and Browning's poems?

Shakespeare's strict sonnet structure enacts balance, while Browning's enjambed monologue reveals instability.

What does Keats's semantic field in 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' focus on?

Nature and decay, with phrases like 'the sedge has withered' and 'no birds sing.'

What recurring motif does Keats use in his poem?

The motif of the dream, blurring illusion and reality.

What is the structural form of Keats's poem?

A ballad that enacts cyclical entrapment.

How does Lawrence's semantic field in 'Piano' relate to memory?

It evokes sound and nostalgia, highlighting the sensory power of memory.

What motif connects Walker's 'Poem at Thirty-Nine' and Bhatt's 'Search for My Tongue'?

The motif of inheritance, with Walker focusing on moral and familial inheritance and Bhatt on linguistic and cultural inheritance.

What structural difference exists between Walker's and Bhatt's poems?

Walker's free verse mirrors reflection, while Bhatt's bilingual form literalizes cultural duality.

What does Kipling's semantic field in 'If' codify?

Endurance and order, emphasizing moral discipline.