Poem Comparison

When we two parted, Neutral Tones, Winter Swans (heartbreak)

When we two parted x Neutral Tones

similarity: both poets explore feelings of sadness after the end of a relationship

similarity: both poets explore feelings of ongoing suffering, and unable to move on from heartbreak even as time passes

p1 - sadness

WWTP

• “pale grew thy cheek and cold, colder thy kiss”

• “dew of the morning”

• “thy vows are all broken”

NT

• “the sun was white”

• “starving sod”

• “winter day”

p2 - ongoing suffering

WWTP

• “silence and tears” → cyclical structure

• “long, long shall I rue thee”

• "regular ABAB rhyme scheme against changing tenses

NT

• “keen lessons that love deceives”

• “grey leaves” → cyclical structure

• regular ABBA rhyme scheme

Neutral Tones x Winter Swans

similarity: both poems use pathetic fallacy of a winter setting and natural imagery to present the problems in their relationships

difference: In Neutral Tones the relation ends, leaving Hardy bitter and suffering, while in Winter Swans after seeing the pair of swans they end up more united with hope for their relationship to survive their troubles

p1 - natural imagery to show problems

NT - lack of love/emotion

• “the sun was white”

• “starving sod”

• “winter day”

WT - problems/conflict

• “the clouds had given their all”

• “waterlogged earth gulping for breath”

p2 - ending

NT - end of relationship + bitter feelings

• semantic field of game play

• “smile on your face was the deadest thing”

• “greyish leaves” → cyclical structure, no change

WT - meeting Swans → hope

• tercet stanzas → couplet

• “like boats righting in rough water”

• “porcelain”

• “like a pair of wings settling after flight”

Mother, Any Distance, Walking Away (parental love)

Mother, Any Distance x Walking Away

similarity: separation between children and parents over time

difference: in MAD, the mother is unable to accept her son is becoming independent, while in WA, the father accepts his son is becoming independent as natural and let’s him go

point 1: growing distance

MAD:

• “unreeling the years between us”

• enjambment + extended metaphor

WA

• “hesitant figure eddying away”

• “like a satellite wrenched from orbit”

point 2: parent’s acceptance to children growing independent

MAD:

• “anchor.kite”

• “fingertips still pinch the last one-hundredth of an inch”

WA

• regular structure

• “like a winged-seed loosened from its parents stem”

• “love is proved letting go”

Follower, Climbing My Grandfather, Before You Were Mine (child admiration)

Follower x Climbing My Grandfather

similarity: admiration for elder relative

difference: Follower progresses from his happy childhood to the depressing present while CMG progresses from the challenges of getting to know each other to the happy ending of having a close connection

point 1: admiration

Follower

• “his shoulders globed like a full sail strung”

• enjambment

• abab rhyme scheme in 1st 3 stanza’s

Climbing My Grandfather

• extended metaphor of a mountain

• “at his firm shoulder I rest for a while”

• “thick hair soft and white”

point 2: progression

Follower

• “I stumbled in his hob-nailed wake”

• “.But now he’s the one stumbling behind me”

• “will not go away”

Climbing My Grandfather

• “free, without rope or net”

• “knowing the slow pulse of his good heart”

Follower x Before You Were Mine

similarity: admiration for a parent in the past

similarity+difference: both poems describe a change in parent over time, but in Follower it’s due to his father aging, and in BYWM it’s due to her mother entering motherhood

point 1: admiration

Follower

• “his shoulders globed like a full sail strung”

• enjambment

• abab rhyme scheme in 1st 3 stanzas

Before You Were Mine

• “Marilyn.”

• “sparkle and waltz and laugh”

• “In the ballroom with the thousand eyes, the fizzy, movie tomorrows the right walk home could bring”

point 2: aging

Follower

• “.But now he’s the one stumbling behind me”

• “will not go away”

Before You Were Mine

• “the decade ahead of my loud, possessive yell was the best one, eh?”

• “the wrong pavement”

• “relics”

Eden Rock, Letters from Yorkshire (nostalgia)

Eden Rock x Letters from Yorkshire

similarity: both poems explore the idea of separation from loved ones. For Eden Rock he’s separated from his parents through life and death, while Letters from Yorkshire talks about being separated through living in different cities with different lifestyles

difference: In Letters from Yorkshire by the end the 2 people seem to have overcome the problems that come with distance, while for Eden Rock they remain separated

point 1: separation

Eden Rock

• “driften stream”

• “somewhere beyond Eden Rock”

• “her hair, the colour of wheat takes on the light”

Letters from Yorkshire

• tercet stanza structure

• “knuckles singing as they reddened in the warmth”

• “feeding words onto a blank screen”

point 2: separated → together?

Eden Rock

• “waiting for me somewhere”

• “the sky whitens as if lit by three suns”

• last line

Letters from Yorkshire

• “pouring air and light into an envelope”

• “our souls tap out messages across the icy miles”

• half-rhyme → full rhyme “light” + “night”

Porphyria’s Lover, The Farmer’s Bride (possessive men)

Porphyria’s Lover x The Farmer’s Bride

similarity: Both use a dramatic monologue to explore the effects a patriarchal society has on a relationship, leading to men having power over women.

similarity: Both poets explore the idea of female vulnerability and powerlessness inside a relationship with a controlling man

writer’s message? → consequences of a power imbalance in a supposed loving relationship

p1: patriarchal power

PL - (power dynamic)

• “Porphyria worshipped me”

• “Only, this time my shoulder bore her head”

• her → I

TFB - (ownership/control)

• “I chose a maid”

• “turned the key upon her, fast”

p2: female vulnerability/powerlessness

PL - (powerless through objectification)

• “smooth white shoulder bare”

• “little”

• “she” → “it”

TFB - (vulnerable through youth)

• “like a mouse”

• “straight and slight as a young larch tree”

Singh! Song!, Sonnet 29, Love’s Philosophy (passionate love)

Singh! Song! x Sonnet 29

similarity: both poets explore the idea of passionate love in a relationship and admiration for their partner

similarity/difference : both poets explore the idea of a problem in their relationship, in Sonnet 29, Browning is overwhelmed with her thoughts of her partner as they remain apart. In Sing! Song! Mr. Singh has the trouble of balancing his work and his marriage.

p1 Problem in relationship

S29 - longing/overwhelmed + distance

• broken sonnet form → early volta + imperfect iambic pentameter

• “my thoughts do twine and bud about thee”

• “wild vines”

SS - balancing money/work with marriage

• “I do di lock”

• stanza structure/shifts in focus

• “silver stool”

• “priceless baby”

p2: Passionate Love/Admiration

S29

• extended metaphor of vines + tree

• “drop heavily down, - burst, shattered, everywhere!”

• “I am too near thee”

SS

• “tiny eyes ov a gun”

• “tummy ov a teddy bear”

• “my bride”

Sonnet 29 x Love’s Philosophy

similarity: both poets explore the idea of longing for a physical connection and passionate love through natural imagery

difference: in Sonnet 29 by the end of the poem Browning has united with her love and escaped her overwhelming thoughts of longing, while in Love’s Philosophy by the end, despite his desperation Shelley’s love is still unrequited

p1 - longing

S 29 - vines + tree

• “My thoughts do twine and bud about thee”

• “as wild vines about a tree”

• imperfect sonnet form - early volta + broken iambic pentameter

LS

• “fountains mingle with the rivers”

• “moonbeams kiss the sea”

• idea of growing intensity

p2 - ending

S 29 - peace/unity

• “Drop heavily down - burst, shattered, everywhere!”

• “I am too near thee”

LS - unrequited love

• “Nothing in the world is single; all things by a law divine”

• “What are all these kissings worth if thou kiss not me?”