Next, Please Flashcards
‘Always too eager for the future, we/Pick up bad _______ of expectancy’
habits
‘Always too eager for the future, we/Pick up bad habits of _______’
expectancy
‘the tiny, clear _______ armada of promises draw near’
sparkling
What is the main technique used in Next, Please?
Extended metaphor
How does Larkin mock the attitude of society in Next Please?
By using a voice that is childishly impatient and excitable - via the exclamations
‘How slow they are! And how much time they waste/Refusing to make haste!’ // ‘Yet still they leave us holding wretched ______’
stalks
What technique is used in the phrase ‘they leave us holding wretched stalks’?
Metaphor. This connotes the idea of how we are left clinging on to dead dreams
What is bathos?
Bathos - an abrupt change in tone, normally used to create comedy
In which poem is bathos used?
Next, Please
How is bathos used in this poem?
The ship is initially described as majestic with ‘brasswork prinked’ and ‘each rope distinct’. However, the language then dramatically shifts as Larkin refers to the ‘golden tits’ of the ship’s figurehead
Why is the poem stricter in rhyming couplets?
Larkin is trying to create an upbeat, child-like tone to reorients society’s naivety and immaturity
Why is there an end stop in the penultimate stanza ‘For waiting so devoutly and so long. // But we are wrong’
To separate the foolish illusions of society from the reality. This serves as a volta in the poem
What is significant about the language here? ‘But we are wrong’
It’s monosyllabic - represents the blunt and unavoidable truth
What is the ‘one ship [that] is seeking us’?
Death
How is colour imagery used here: ‘black sailed unfamiliar’
The colour black represents death - a contrast to the ‘golden tits’ of how we falsely view life
