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Death of a naturalist
Passage of time
Transformation
Negative emotions
Nature
Place
Heaney’s four year old brother died in a car accident when he was young
In the first stanza, the speaker is full of enthusiasm and enjoys nature.
In the last stanza,this changes as he becomes more aware of the dangers of the world around him.
The Manhunt
Love
Pain and suffering
Effects of war
Told from the perspective of a soldier’s wife – deals with the idea of PTSD and its impact on the soldier and those around them.
The poem is organised into couplets. Initially these couplets rhyme (“first phase…intimate days”), perhaps reflecting the couple’s harmony when they were first reunited. However, as the poem progresses the rhyme scheme falters, reflecting the increasingly disjointed nature of their relationship.
Hawk Roosting
Faith/Worship
Death and loss
Negative emotions
Nature
The clearly organised structure of the six stanzas reflects the hawk’s control over his life and land.
The steady and calm pace to the poem again mirrors the hawk’s measured control over the woodland – he will not be rushed by anyone.
Ted Hughes was Poet Laureate until his death in 1984 and wrote many poems about the natural world
Hughes said the poem wasn’t about cruelty he just wanted to show a hawks ‘natural way of thinking
The Soldier
Faith
Death and loss
Effects of war
Nature
Place
The poem begins with the idea of the anonymous soldier’s death and suggests his decomposing body will infuse the ground around him with a little of his English values and ideals.
The middle of the poem personifies England and considers how beautiful and picturesque the countryside is.
The final stanza suggests that in death he will achieve some form of immortality undera“heaven” that is English, even if the land he lays in is not.
Rupert Brooke was a soldier during WWI and died of blood poisoning.He was buried in“a foreign field” in Cyprus.
He never was involved in active service but this poem shows he felt very patriotic about England.
A wife in London
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Thomas Hardy was a novelist – so was a storyteller
The poem is probably related to the Boer War but the fact she is ‘a’ wife reflects the tragedy of how many lives were lost during many wars.
The poem is divided into two events covering two days: ‘The Tragedy’ and ‘The Irony’.
There is a clear rhyme scheme in each verse, creating a sense of inevitability to these tragic events.
Hardy uses the present tense to create a sense that this is a story unfolding in front of us, making it more dramatic and emotional.
To Autumn
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Keats was a romantic poet and wrote a lot about nature and the natural world.
Keats died at the age of 25, he was worried that he would leave no lasting impression on the world – this poem could be his attempt to leave his mark and be remembered.
The first stanza is a celebration and it suggests that autumn begins in a rich and calm way.
In the second stanza, Keats speaks directly to autumn and makes the suggestion that autumn is in no rush to move on.
The final stanza shows change,just as the season is changing from autumn to winter, Keats recognises this and is accepting of the fact he cannot control this.
Death of a naturalist
quotes
The title is metaphorical–the “death” symbolises the speaker’s loss of innocence a she grows up
The tone of the poem at the beginning is enthusiastic –the verbs “sweltered”, “festered” and “gargled” suggest the speaker is almost relishing the vile smells of the dam.
Language such as “jampotfuls” , “fattening dots” and “mammy frog” suggest childhood innocence.
The tone changes on“Then one hot day”and the tone becomes more aware of the dangers – “angry frogs”.
Final words – “spawn would clutch it” shows the contrast with when he would collect the “jellied specks” – he has grown up and no longer wants to play the games of his childhood.
The Manhunt
Quotes
The title ‘The Manhunt’ suggests a chase for something that he is lost
Images of delicate materials “porcelain” and “silk” suggests beauty and vulnerability
Images of broken body parts “grazed heart”, “broken ribs” suggests human casualties of war and the vulnerability of mind and body
Pain still growing mentally and physically “foetus of metal” and “unexploded mine” suggests potential to still explode or permanent scarring
Final words – “only then did I come close” suggests it is a journey through his pain and healing and their reconciliation as a couple. She is finally closer to ‘catching’ him.
Hawk Roosting
Quotes
In the title of the poem ‘”roosting” suggests the hawk is still, not a swooping bird of prey as we may imagine. This gives a sense of the hawk meditating on his powers of destruction.
The tone is haughty. The hawk is focussed and not distracted – “no falsifying dream”. The language creates an arrogance to the hawk – “I hold Creation in my foot”, “it is all mine”.
There is a sense of control and that the hawk is playing God throughout the poem – “allotment of death”.
Finalwords–“Iamgoingtokeepthingslikethis”shows thepowerthatthehawkhas. Itisa statement suggesting he is king of the animal kingdom and untouchable.
The Soldier
Quotes
The title ‘The Soldier’ suggests an anonymous person,reflecting how many soldiers died during WWI. It is a sonnet, a love poem to England.
Opening line “If I should die” suggests an acceptance of death and modal verb“should” indicates a willingness to die for his country.
The words“richer dust”suggests the remains of his body are superior to the ground he lies in because he is English not foreign. Dust also relates to the religious idea of our bodies becoming “dust” when we die.
“A pulse in the eternal mind” suggests his presence in the soil of foreign land will always live on, making him immortal.
Final words – “under an English heaven” shows his pride in England as he is suggesting England is almost like paradise and to die in England’s name would bring him “peace”.
A wife in London
Quotes
The poem is structured in two halves “The Tragedy” and “The Irony” showing it is like chapters in a tragic story. The two halves could suggest her life has been split into two.
The language is ominous, indicating darkness and tragedy–“tawny vapour”,“webby fold”and “waning taper”. Her whole world is covered in gloom.
“He – has fallen” is a euphemism to shield the widow from the harsh truth but the dashes represent her grief and inability to process the news of her husband’s death.
Pathetic fallacy of the “fog hangs thicker” shows her grief is settling in.
Final words – “new love that they would learn” shows the irony that he was looking forward to their new life together. It heightens the tragedy and heartbreak of his death because they will never be together and rekindle their relationship.
To Autumn
Quotes
‘Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’ the first line of the poem suggests that autumn is a season of change but despite this, it is a calm season.
‘Thee sitting careless on a granary floor’ by personifying autumn it suggests that autumn can be a season which can be quite thoughtless in the changes it brings.
Keats continues to personify autumn and addresses it directly – ‘thou watchest oozings’. He implies that autumn ‘behaves’ as if it hasallthetime in theworldeven though time ispassingby.
The last line ‘And gathering swallows twitter in the sky’ shows that winter is drawing in and time is coming to an end – it could represent the circle of life.
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