The Whitsun Weddings

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  • The Whitsun Weddings
    • 'Whistun'= may holiday, when jesus told disciple's the holy spirit would appear.
    • Overview: Protaganist on train and larkin brins alive the remarkable sights on encountered on the journey. Spiritual aspect; series of meditations on different journeys of life.
      • Larkin at most positive.
    • Themes: Journeys and visits, place, criticising society, purpose of life, memories, relationships, family.
    • 1st 2 stanza; show detachment. I-we key change.
      • Journeys+visits dominant here.
    • First stanza: trying to recreate the journey on hot day with all senses.
      • Creating sharp shots of things passing by.
    • 'Hurry gone'= rushing to get on train, hot fatigue, relieved.
    • 'Porters larking with the mails'= thinks the noise is the porters at first.
    • 'Heat that slept'= personified, tangible quality to heat.
    • 'And saw it all again in different terms'= notices other people and that parities are all different but the same, cant afford real stuff.
    • 'bunting-dressed'= trying to make look nice when its not that great.
    • 'nylon gloves'= cheap version of silk, cut prize weddings, tacky.
    • 'The secret like a happy funeral'= oxymoron for women, one life ending another beginning. Girls had no idea what marriage meant.
    • Last stanza: changes for everyone, couples new life, larkin realised about weddings. Images of fertility.
    • 'Or how their lives would all contain this hour'= all connected by this train journey in some way.
    • Second to last stanza: you would expect couples to be focused on eachother but they aren't.
      • All so caught up in own world don't meet other couples, pre occupied.

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