Winter swans (relationships + conflict)

Question 1

Structure

Answer 1

• 6 tercets.
• Breaks form in the last stanza with a couplet. Shows a changing in dynamic + rekindling of the couple.

Question 2

Context

Answer 2

• Swans as a symbol of love.
• In the 20th century there was a drift from typical stable marriages.

Question 3

‘The clouds had given their all -‘

Answer 3

• Pathetic fallacy, symbolizes their relationship being broken.
• Personification of the clouds, reflects this sense of exhaustion + the couples end point.
• (Strong connection between the natural environment and the mood of the people).

Question 4

‘which way we walked, / the waterlogged earth gulping for breath at our feet’

Answer 4

• aliteration of ‘w’ creates a muddy sound.
• personification of the erath.

Question 5

‘as we skirted the lake, silent and apart’

Answer 5

• The use of consonance ‘k’ in ‘skirted’ and ‘lake’, then the ‘t’ in ‘silent’ and ‘apart’. Conveys this harsh sound reflecting the status of their relationships.

Question 6

‘As if rolling weights down their bodies to their heads