Poetry Flashcards
(20 cards)
What is the form of ‘Sonnet 29’?
It is a sonnet – a 14-line love poem focusing on intense romantic emotions.
Quote: ‘My thoughts do twine and bud about thee, as wild vines, about a tree’ – what does this show?
Shows obsessive love; thoughts wrap uncontrollably around the lover like wild vines. Love is beautiful but overwhelming.
Quote: ‘Renew thy presence’ – what does this imperative suggest?
The speaker is frustrated by absence and demands to see their lover. Reflects urgency and emotional intensity.
Quote: ‘I do not think of thee—I am too near thee’ – what structural device is used?
Juxtaposition between the start and end shows emotional development: from longing to fulfillment.
What is the mood and tone of ‘Neutral Tones’?
Melancholic and cold – explores emotional detachment and the end of love.
Quote: ‘The sun was white, as though chidden by God’ – what does this use?
Pathetic fallacy and personification to show how nature reflects emotional sadness and divine disapproval.
Quote: ‘The smile on your mouth was the deadest thing’ – what does this imply?
Love is forced and lifeless. The smile is a chore – love has died.
Quote: ‘Since then, keen lessons that love deceives’ – what is the effect?
Volta reveals the speaker’s disillusionment. Love is painful and deceptive.
What is the form of ‘The Farmer’s Bride’?
Dramatic monologue – only the farmer’s point of view is given.
Quote: ‘Three summers since I chose a maid’ – what does this reveal?
Patriarchal control; the wife is objectified and treated like property.
Quote: ‘I turned the key upon her fast’ – what does this show?
The wife is imprisoned. Love is replaced by control and fear.
Quote: ‘A lone poor maid is but a stair betwixt us’ – what technique is used and what does it mean?
Caesura shows emotional distance. The relationship is cold and disconnected.
What is the event described in ‘Walking Away’?
The father sending his son to boarding school – a painful separation.
Quote: ‘Like a satellite wrenched from its orbit’ – what does this simile show?
Sudden separation and loss of control. Reflects deep emotional pain.
Quote: ‘The hesitant figure, eddying away’ – what does this describe?
The child didn’t want to leave. Suggests vulnerability and reluctance.
Quote: ‘Love is proved in the letting go’ – what does this reveal?
A bittersweet truth or coping mechanism. Suggests that love requires sacrifice.
What is the central theme of ‘Before You Were Mine’?
Parental sacrifice – a daughter reflects on her mother’s lost youth.
Quote: ‘The thought of me doesn’t occur in the ballroom with the thousand eyes’ – what does this suggest?
Mother’s freedom and glamour before motherhood. Caesura emphasizes separation between past and present.
Quote: ‘The decade ahead of my loud possessive yell was the best one, eh?’ – what is the tone?
Regretful and reflective. The daughter sees herself as the reason her mother lost her joy.
Quote: ‘Glamorous love lasts’ – what does this imply?
Love is maintained through appearances, not depth. Juxtaposes real and performative love.
