when we two parted - lord byron

“half broken-hearted”

he isn’t whole without her

he’s playing the victim by implying that only half of the pair of them are upset

presenting himself as unbothered to protect his ego in the context of victorian toxic masculinity

“to sever for years”

aggressive verb suggests that the break up was painful and messy

suggests that the break up is completely over and irreversible; a harsh reality check

semantic field of death: “sever” “knell” “grieve”

he feels as if she’s dead to him because of his strong sense of betrayal

context: associated with hate towards with parents as he was abandoned by his father and he lost Lady Webster to Lord Wellington

“a knell in mine ear”

a reminder of the death of their relationship which is an uneasy sound bringing resentful thoughts

“why wert thou so dear?”

he questions why the relationship (affair) matters so much to him when he had numerous others; his ego feels bruised and he can’t understand why he’s let this break up hurt his pride

structure + rhyme scheme

octet = ababacdcd / 4 stanzas, 4 couplets

planned out and meticulously structured so it doesn’t show raw emotion; he puts up a front so he is perceived the way he wants to be as emotional doesn’t fit his image as a rebellious victorian male poet

cyclical structure

the grief chases him in an endless loop which he cannot escape