Poetry: Afternoons

Question 1

Whys: 1

Answer 1

Larkin laments the loss of youth and vitality in women during the 1960s as a result of
prescriptive gender roles and societal expectations.

Question 2

Whys: 2

Answer 2

Larkin is critical of the negative impact the pressure and tedium of family life and
responsibilities has on relationships, reflecting his unsentimental and pessimistic views about
love and marriage.

Question 3

Summary

Answer 3

Afternoons explores the quiet sadness in the lives of young mothers, focusing on how their freedom and excitement have faded. Larkin observes them in a park and reflects on how time, routine, and responsibilities have worn them down. The tone is detached but quietly melancholic—he sees their lives as repetitive, almost empty.

Question 4

Context 1

Answer 4

Philip Larkin was known for being a pessimistic, observant poet who often wrote about ordinary people’s lives, especially the passing of time and lost opportunities.

Question 5

Context 2

Answer 5

He was deeply sceptical of romantic ideals, family life, and societal expectations—he never married and often criticised the monotony of suburban life.

Question 6

Form

Answer 6

Written in free verse—no strict meter or rhyme, which mirrors the mundane, unstructured lives of the women.

Question 7

Why is form significant to content?

Answer 7

The lack of form reflects how the mothers’ lives feel uncontrolled or shaped by outside forces, not by passion or purpose

Question 8

Structure?

Answer 8

3 stanzas of 8 lines – a very balanced structure, which could reflect the routine and order in their lives.
But within that order, there’s a sense of loss and emptiness—the structure is neat, but their lives are emotionally flat.
The speaker is observational, not involved—creating a detached, almost voyeuristic tone.

Question 9

Rhyme

Answer 9

There’s no regular rhyme scheme – it’s written in blank verse.
This helps the poem feel natural, reflective, and conversational, just like the quiet setting of the park.
The randomness reflects how life has lost excitement for these women.

Question 10

Summer is fading

Answer 10

Time, Change
Pathetic fallacy

Sets the tone of decline and loss—summer (youth, fun) is ending, just like the mothers’ freedom.

Question 11

Young mothers assemble

Answer 11

Routine, Conformity
Collective noun, irony

“Assemble” sounds mechanical—no individuality, just going through motions.

Question 12

Behind them, at intervals, / Stand husbands in skilled trades

Answer 12

Gender roles, Distance
Enjambment, irony

Husbands are passive and backgrounded, while women do all the childrearing—lack of support.

Question 13

An estateful of washing

Answer 13

Domesticity, Monotony
Metaphor

Suggests their lives are overrun with chores—no glamour, just endless housework.

Question 14

Their beauty has thickened

Answer 14

Ageing, Loss
Euphemism, ambiguity

Delicate but cutting—shows how youth fades, how they’re no longer seen as attractive or full of promise.

Question 15

Something is pushing them / to the side of their own lives

Answer 15

Powerlessness, Identity
Enjambment, metaphor

One of the most important lines—women are losing control, marginalised in their own story

Question 16

Which poems link?

Answer 16

To autumn
As imperceptibly as grief
Death of a naturalist

Question 17

Which themes?

Answer 17

Love and relationships
Passage of time
Change and transformation
Sense of place