After the Lunch

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  • Post 1900 poem 'After the Lunch' - Wendy Cope
    • Summary - internal monologue taking place upon Waterloo Bridge after a first date
    • Structure
      • Three 4 line quatrains. Her changing attitude to love can be seen in each stanza
      • rhyming  couplets is classic to the love poetry, create image of two lovers  reflected through the paired couplets.
      • final line shows that the mental argument has only taken a few moments, arriving at her conclusion before she even reaches halfway across the bridge.
    • Rhyme
      • AABB
      • songlike rhythm evoked by the rhyme scheme gives the poem a childlike cadence, further relating to the idea of falling in love and the giddy emotions surrounding it.
    • Context
      • Waterloo Bridge is a bridge in central London, so this busy metropolitan setting
        • important element because it could be interpreted as showing love within a fast paced environment.
      • Built 1817  commemorate battle of Waterloo. Suggests love is a battle
      • Reputation for suicides - ominous end for relationship
    • Ideas
      • Bridge symbolic of journey
      • Short sentences reflect rapid workings of her internal monologue argument. sentences that consist of few syllables,  poem reads incredibly quickly, reflecting the rapid thought process of falling in love.
      • apart from within the first line, exclusively using ‘you’ and ‘I’ pronouns. The use of ‘I’ gives the poem an intimate feeling, reflecting its personal content.
      • sudden emergence of ‘love’ made more impactful by  enjambment  third line, meaning  rhythm of the stanza propels the reader onto the sudden end stop following ‘love’, elevating the word through poetic rhythm.
      • I don’t care’ can be understood as the point where she relinquishes all resistance, telling herself it’s okay to act ‘a fool’ when falling in love.
  • Stanza 1 - denial
    • Stanza 2 - reasoning
      • Stanza 3 - acceptance
      • Three 4 line quatrains. Her changing attitude to love can be seen in each stanza

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