pre14pogrid

Poem/theme	Surface Meaning	Subtle Meaning	Style	Response
On my first Sonne Pg 46 loss families rhyming couplet pattern NB NOT a sonnet	My son has died; why?	I loved him too much, so am to blame He is happier now so I should not grieve He was my best poem (ie, creation)	Strict form to control/suppress strong emotion Iambic metre (rhythm) is calming Authority of the final rhyming couplet is an attempt to suggest the matter is controlled – he has come to terms with the loss.	I am aware that many people's attitudes to and beliefs about death are now rather less certain. 'Farewell': at first we do not realise the poem is about death.
The Song of the Old Mother Pg 46 -youth and age -family	Mother is a non-stop worker while the young laze and dream of fashion	Metaphors of 'seed' and 'fire' in lines 2 and 10 make us realise that all human life begins as 'seed' then flames and finally goes cold. As the real fire needs tending, so children need to be brought up to 'flicker and glow'; but they too will grow old.	10 x 10 syllable lines give a sense of control a nd authority- this is written by a poet who KNOWS. The regular iambic rhythm suggests the relentless nature of the mother's work (eg line 3 ' scrub…bake ….sweep' The AB rhyme scheme makes key words like 'old' and 'cold' stand out	The generation gap is nothing new! This poem is dated 1899. The last two rhyme words are a grim reminder that we are only young once and that old age ends in death ('cold').
The Eagle -nature (power/hostile)	The eagle clasps the crag, watching, then swoops.	The bird's power is awe-inspiring yet alarming; it could be a symbol of the unpredictability of death.	Alliteration emphasises meaning, as in the 'c's of ll. 1-2, suggesting the grip on the crag Iambic metre makes key words such as 'watches' stand out Only 6 lines, yet economically gives a vivid picture of the bird	The eagle sounds human: like a tyrant?
Sonnet : I love to see the summer.. -nature -happiness	The poet expresses a simple love for nature, especially the flora and fauna of summer.	People are absent: is the company of nature preferable? And does 'summer' symbolise the good times in life – with winter a perhaps inevitable counter-balance?	Rhyming couplets Iambic pentameters 14 line sonnet rhythm and form suggest a calm, happy mood	Knowing that Clare spent most of his life in an asylum, I wonder whether the calm and order of this poem contrast with the noisy crowded chaos of his accommmodation and day to day life
Patrolling Barnegat -nature (hostile)	The poet describes experiencing a storm in Barnegat Bay	The 'savage trinity' of the storm ('waves, air, midnight') seem stronger than the human 'savage trinity' watching in line 14	a sonnet BUT all one sentence and only ONE rhyme – effect is to make the reader feel caught up in the words as if in the storm dramatic use of 's' alliteration suggest the fierce movement of the sea and sounds threatening rich sensory descriptions of what is heard, felt and seen	Does the poet admire the strength of the storm and the fact that it is stronger than the human trinity?
The Affliction of Margaret -loss -family -language (simple)	A mother's 7 year anguish for her missing son; she does not know whether he is alive or not	The emotions of ordinary lowly people are a fit subject for poetry; the strict form of this poem both expresses and contains/objectifies grief (cp Sonne)	Dramatic Disciplined form 'contains' the emotions Alliteration and rhyme emphasise key words Some language is ordinary and everyday, to match the poet's choice of an ordinary person's experience for his poem	A powerful expression of the effect of grief on imagination; interesting to feel the power of more or less everyday language of the time in places in this poem