James Honeyman

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  • James Honeyman
    • Form
      • Final stanzas like a lament - 'oh'
    • Language
      • Themes of war, love, family, isolation, ambition and death
      • Hyperbolic- 'silent child'
      • Scientific lexis- Auden loved Science, also suffered isolation
    • Destination
      • Following James to his death, every moment leads to the final event
      • Chemistry most important- continued throughout- final line- central theme
      • Final killing stanza- his ambition has caused the ones he loves to die
      • Journey through life, feel empathy with central character
      • Ambition and intelligence can be dangerous- only wanted to be rewarded- isolation- unconventional
    • Voice
      • Different voices- subjective opinions
      • Speaker is unknown- detached narrative- no opinion- sees whole situation
      • Female speech perceived as positive- wife
      • Many speakers- all give different opinions on James, shaping readers
      • Final conversation-almost like he is speaking to conscience and not wife
    • Character
      • Two opposing sides: scientist and family man
      • Eponymous character like Miss Gee
      • James does not fit the stereotypes- pressure to fins wife- social isolation
      • James is smart yet isolated and different- clear all the way through
      • Sympathy with James and family- distance between them all
      • Different opinions- where James is important- his potential- morality- smart is not bad
      • James changes, feels guilty and wants recognition- becomes less of a hobby and more of a obsession
    • Point of View
      • Third person narrator- omniscient
      • Third person point of view does not change
      • James point of view changes- a the end he is guilty and remorseful- he is frightened because of what he has done
      • Different voices show different perspectives- give impression of many lives associated with James through life- his characters development
    • Time
      • Speeds up in Stanza 6, final stanzas are extremely slow- to put significance on pain and guilt
      • Chronological time order- through his life, all the way to death
      • Opening is unknown but finishes at the point of death- context behind why he is dying
      • Age unknown- is not relevant- actions are important
      • Uses seasons to show life is moving on, progress doesn't take notice of it
    • Setting
      • Several domestic/real settings- Narrative moves through locations
      • Shed- his isolation, where danger occurs- shut from family
      • Great West Road- symbolic of local industry
      • The Bombs get closer to home- finally in garden, near shed, main place of danger
      • Different settings, different characters, through his life
    • Structure
      • ABCB rhyme scheme from 2nd stanza- James didn't fit in from the start
      • Stanza 6- rapid pace, then slows down- James' ambition succeeds quickly
      • Chronologically linear poem

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