Rain by ted hughes

Publication

Ted Hughes released “Rain” on December 4, 1973

Rain, floods, frost and after frost rain"

Fricative alliteration mimics the rain falling,

syndetic list, slowing the pace, creating a heavy,somber rhythm.

This mimics the weariness of enduring constant battering by nature.

🧠 Effect: The slow, heavy rhythm reinforces the oppressiveness of the natural world.

Words like “rain,” “floods,” and “frost” belong to a semantic field of natural forces — not just nature, but harsh, destructive aspects of it.

• Hughes utilises the lexical field to symbolise the inevtiable suffering in the natural world

🔗 Contextual link: Hughes was heavily influenced by the brutality of the natural world, often viewing it as unforgiving and primal. His rural Yorkshire upbringing, and fascination with myth, survival, and nature red in tooth and claw, shaped this outlook.

Free verse

it does not follow a specific rhyme scheme the lack of structure mirrors the themes of chaos and natural power in the poem - emphasising the power of nature is uncontrollable unpredictable

it also reflects the organic flow of natures

Skin beaten off brains and bowels beaten out

-plosive alliteration,harsh abrasive

mimics the sound of physical blows

-the visceral imagery emphasise sthe intense violence and decay conveying the harsh power of nature and the destruction it causes

• Predatory verb “eaten” conveys a ravenous,decaying almost parasitic force

• the repetition of violence through abusive verbs reflect the cyclical and never ending suffering in the natural world

• (destruction and rebirth)

Brown water backing and brimming in grass.

Harsh plosives give the line a sense of a bubbling, gurgling rhythm, echoing the sound of water backing up, building pressure, and overflowing.

• It creates a sense of force as if the water is physically forcing its way forward.

• emphasising natures quiet violence and power low-frequency aggression.

• The water is not calm — it’s encroaching, filling, pushing boundaries.

🧠 Effect: Hughes uses plosives to show how even ordinary natural processes (like flooding) carry an undercurrent of threat.

Post war - britain

• Hughes grew up during and after World War II, witnessing or inheriting the cultural memory of violence, destruction, and trauma.

• Many critics read his poetry as shaped by this context, with nature often depicted as violent and chaotic, reflecting human suffering and turmoil.

Contextual link: The brutal images of “mutilated leaves” and “skin beaten off” evoke not just physical damage but psychological trauma — the poem can be read as a metaphor for post-war emotional devastation or the scars left by conflict.

Influence of Myth, Shamanism, and Primitive Ritual

• Hughes was fascinated by mythic themes and primitive rituals, including shamanism.

• He often explored the idea of nature as a sacred, yet violent force, a place of sacrifice and transformation.

Contextual link: The violent imagery in “Rain” can be read as symbolic of a ritualistic or mythic cycle — rain is not just weather, but a force that washes away and destroys, making way for renewal, though often through suffering.

Snipe go over, invisible in the dusk,
With their squelching cries.

• the ending line

  • The adjective “invisible” suggests nature’s quiet, supernatural like presence,

  • The “dusk” setting symbolizes twilight, uncertainty, and transition — possibly between life and death, or visibility and invisibility.

• The alliteration of the harsh “s” and “qu” sounds in “squelching cries” creates a wet, sucking sound, vividly evoking the muddy environment.

• The word “squelching” is onomatopoeic, enhancing the sensory experience — the cries are not melodic but raw, unpleasant, almost grotesque.

The use of short sentences

• The use of short, sharp, simple sentences and listing with full stops creates a staccato rhythm.

Effect: This punchy opening line mimics the relentless, harsh weather cycles, as if the natural world is delivering short, sharp blows to the land. It sets a tone of harshness and inescapability

Enjambment

Enjambment is used frequently within the poem

Enjambment creates a flowing, continuous feeling like the ongoing rain. It prevents the reader from pausing, mimicking the relentlessness of the weather.