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Comparing poems- Death and Memory - Coggle Diagram
Comparing poems- Death and Memory
'REMEMBER' KEY QUOTES
"And afterwards remember, do not grieve"
by 'remembering', the narrator hopes to overcome death
"If you should forget me for a while"- volta
Romantic era: the true glory of poetry was that one was made immortal through the lines written
narrator changes her mind- allows reader to forget her
"Remember me when I am gone away, Gone far away into the silent land"
desire to be remembered, but only if it does not cause pain
euphemistic phrase to describe death
anadiplosis (gone away, gone far away)
painful separation of two lovers?
"silent land"- Heaven? Hell?
metaphor- barren land of death
silence/rejoycing
You tell me of our future that you plann'd:
what future plans- marriage?
Rossetti rejecting two suitors in her life
Romantic partner?
death in unplanned/inevitable
shift in pronouns "our" "you"- controlling/possessive
"It will be late to counsel then or pray."
power/rebellion of women
taking back power from the man who has controlled her life
what this man has done is 'unforgivable'
not even God can save him
"Forget and smile...remember and be sad"
melancholy tone
futility/pointlessness (of life?)
doesn't want the reader (lover?) to be sad
ends somewhat peacefully
ambiguous
Rossetti had depression and understood what it felt like to feel such a deep sadness- perhaps wanted to spare her (lover?) this pain
'FROM THE ANTIQUE' KEY QUOTES
"Still the world would wag on the same"
playful expression appears to be bleak coming from this woman
attempt at a joke to make the most of the dire situation
the world is indifferent to the pain of women
women are treated as objects for other peoples pleasure
disregarding the feelings of women
"Cherries ripen and wild bees hum"
natural/beautiful imagery
nature does not enrich her life, she finds no joy in this
idea of the freedom she seeks
"None would miss me in all the world"
negativity throughout- highlights futility of life
reader is left with a feeling of sadness
"I wish and wish I were a man"
devaluating women
its a "weary life" for a woman (in this time period)- relates to modern context: being a woman is still difficult
emphasis that life is joyless for women
idea that it is better to not exist than to exist as a woman
"Not a body and not a soul"
idea of nonexistence
religious element
even if she was destined for Heaven, she simply wishes she did not exist
questioning religion?
'JHANSI' KEY QUOTES
"The swarming howling wretches below"
population of India seen as inferior to the English army
Rossetti was fairly liberal although she still shared some contemporary values
animalistic imagery
savagery
"'I wish I could bear the pang for both.' 'I wish I could bear the pang alone'"
child-like tone
sense of generosity- theme of love
urging to have courage
both appear to have a sense of fortitude
"Young, strong and so full of life: The agony struck them dumb"
early dramatic climax
foreshadowing the tragedy to come
rhythmic triplet
"God forgive them this!"
the Church deemed it a sin to commit suicide
the couple would rather commit a sin than give up and become victims
"One kiss more. '--And yet one again.'-- 'Good-bye' 'Good-bye"
intertextuality- Romeo and Juliet, dying with a kiss
repeated goodbyes- unspoken words between the couple. All that needed to be said was said in that goodbye
'WHEN I AM DEAD, MY DEAREST' KEY QUOTES
"Nor shady cypress tree"
tree is evergreen
symbolic of everlasting love
cypress trees found in graveyards
speaker does not want romantic love
"And if thou wilt, remember, And if thou wilt, forget"
personal relationship
doesn't affect her- impassive
plant wilting- natural imagery
change in personal pronouns- 'I' to 'thou'
"Haply may I remember, And haply may forget"
adds to ambiguity
telling the reader its okay to forget her without knowing for certain if the forgetting will be mutual
Rossetti believed that when you die you fall into a 'soul sleep'
"Sing no sad songs for me"
speaks similarly to how Jesus did at The Last Supper- religious imagery
sibilance, mono-syllables and elongated vowels- mimicking sad song?
wants them to be happy, not upset about her death
"I shall not see the shadows...hear the nightingale"
reference to the 10 commandments
shadows- ancestors?
rain- tears?
nightingale- symbolic of freedom/life
connotes purity, creativity and virtue
Philomena: Greek myth about a woman who was raped and had her soul put into a nightingale by the Gods who had sympathy for her
Theme of Love
'Remember'
The narrators love overpowers her desire to be remembered ('Better by far you should forget and smile')
Petrarchan sonnet form (16th century Italian poet) who wrote about courtly, noble love.
Context: Gabriele Rossetti (Rossetti's father) was a prominent Italian scholar, poet. and political exile.
'Jhansi'
‘When I am Dead, my Dearest’
‘Be the green grass’ is a metaphor for
her lover enduring despite
facing difficulty (e.g grass bring trodden)’
The strong word choice of ‘dearest’ instils
deeply felt emotional in the first line of the poem
Love for her own life: “I shall not feel the
rain” emulates tears at her own feeling of loss
Theme of Death/Memory
'Jhansi'
Rossettis own mental and physical health made her
often ponder mortality e.g her nervous breakdown at 14
“And if thou wilt” emphasises the self centred
nature of grief, as it only affects the person
grieving
“I shall not” she does not know what will become
of her: shows the unfathomable nature of death
'|When I am Dead, my Dearest.
The speaker doesn’t wish to die and have a spiritual body
(unusual for Rossetti and her religious imagery) she simply
wishes that she never existed
“And still the world would wag on the same” alliteration emphasises that nature does not worry about society
or triviality such as death or gender
'From the Antique'
CONTEXT
'
When I am Dead, my Dearest'
written in 1848 at age 18
published in 1862 in 'Goblin Market and Other Poems'
focuses on death and mourning
speaker urges the reader to not worry about remembering her after death, as she won't be able to tell either way
plays with the fear of death
'Remember'
written at 1849 at age 19
rhyme scheme ABBA
reaction to death- memory is important, it should not become a burden/prevent the living from finding joy
Petrarchan 14 line sonnet
traditionally written by aristocratic men to boast their literary skills
iambic pentameter
'Jhansi'
love, sacrifice, religious forgiveness, colonialism
explores gender roles- submissive women/dominant, powerful men
based on real historical events- 1857 Indian Rebellion
depics the final moments of Captain Skene and his wife
historical inaccuracy? more likely that Captain Skene and his wife were captured and killed
uses repetition and dramatic irony
intertextuality- British soldiers against all odds also explored in 'Charge of the Light Brigade'
'
From the Antique
'
Women's Property Act 1888
devout Anglo-Catholic: bleakness of life without religion/spiritual longing
fallen women+ Rossetti's work with them- belief that they also deserve societal redemption as well as religious
Religious views on feminism
belief that women deserved more rights than they had, however did not support womens suffrage
LINKS TO AN IDEAL HUSBAND
REMEMBER
memory/guilt
'Remember'- memory is used as somewhat manipulative
AIH- Chiltern's actions built on his past questionable moral actions
memory is portrayed as a means to hide the truth
forgiveness
Rossetti forgives her lover for potentially forgetting her
Rossetti forgives the controlling nature of her lover
AIH- Gertrude forgiving Robert
loyalty
'Remember'- nature of devotion in the face of death
self sacrificial love- wishes for her lovers happiness, no matter the cost
FROM THE ANTIQUE
gender roles
FTA- speaker expresses dissatisfaction/distress she feels with being a woman
AIH- society's expectations of how a woman should act
Wilde typically disagreed with these ideals- 'Women's World': wanted to change the content as he believed women were more intelligent than they were given credit for
self realisation
AIH- Robert realising his mistakes- attempts to hide them first but eventually comes clean to his social group
idea that men do not fully have to admit to everything they have done- 'happy ever after' ending for Robert
FTA- realisation of how terrible it is to be a woman in this time period
identity is shaped by society- lack of sense of self
JHANSI
love and sacrifice
Skene's love for his wife mirrors that of Gertrude's love for Robert in 'An Ideal Husband'
morality
'Jhansi'- soldiers actions are fulfilled because of duty/loyalty to his country
Robert Chiltern's journey of personal redemption- attempts to protect his reputation
Robert's actions are based off of personal gain
fate
Skene's fate is sealed- he must succumb to the inevitable death which faces him
Chiltern is still able to change his fate- his actions determine the course of the rest of his life
WHEN I AM DEAD MY DEAREST
reality vs illusions
AIH- Robert being 'ideal' is established to be an illusion
Wilde criticises human tendencies to make idols of people, and highlights the consequences of this
WIADMD- earthly love is imperfect
love of God is eternal
death tears lovers apart
acceptance of the inevitable
WIADMD- death is inescapable
accepting loss as a part of life and attempting to recover from grieving a loved one
AIH- facing the truth
Gertrude ends up accepting her husbands flaws and allows us to see that there is no such thing as an 'ideal' husband- everyone is flawed