Poems

Form - London is a dramtic monologue - the first person narrator speaks passionatley and personally about the suffering he see's.

The ABAB ryhme scheme is unbroken and seem's to echo the relentless misery of the city. The regular rhyme scheme could reflect the sound of his feet as he trudges around. 

Structure - The narrator presents relentless images of downtrodden, deprived people. The first two stanza's focus on people he see's and hear's, before the focus shifts in stanza three to the institutions he holds responsible. The final stanza returns to looking at people, showing how everyone is affected.

Language - The narrator uses rhetorical language to persuade you of his point of view - he uses powerful, emotive words and images to reinforce the horror of the situation. Repetition is used to emphasise the number of the people affected, and to show how society needs to change. 

The poem uses the depressing sights and sounds of the city - the first stanza is about what he see's, the second about what he hear's and the last two stanzas combine the visual and aural. Contrast is used to show how everything is affected and nothing pure or innocent remains.

Power of humans - Ozymandias, My Last Duchess, Storm on the Island, Tissue and Checking Out Me History. 

Loss and Absence - Links to Exposure, Poppies, The Emigree and Kamikaze

Anger - Links to War Photographer and Checking Out Me History

Individual experiences - Links to The Prelude, Bayonet Charge, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, The Emigree and Checking Out Me History. 

Anger - Emotive language and repetition show the narrators anger at the situation. He mentions "every blackening church" and "palace walls", suggesting he's especially angry at the people in power, who could do something to changes things - but they don't. 

Hopelessness - The "mind-forged manacles" suggest that society is trapping the people and giving them no options. 

Form - The narrator uses a mixture of stanza forms, suggesting he's breaking the confining language rules he has been taught. The Caribbean history stanzas have shorter lines and more broken syntax than the British history stanzas - this epmhasises them and makes them seem more serious. 

The ryhme schemes are also differnent - the British stanzas have alot of simpler rhymes, making them seem childish.

Strucutre - The poem alternates between historical and fictional figures from Caribbean and Britsh culture, this makes the differences between them clear. The British characters are skipped over quickly whereas the Caribbean characters are gone into in more depth - showing the narrators respect for them. 

Language - Agard says his education kept his true heritage hidden from him. Images of light represent him finally gettting to know his nations history. 

The narrator uses repetition, stong rythms, chanting and Caribbean creole to create a sense of pride in his background. 

Power of humans - Links to Ozymandias, London, Storm On The Island and Tissue

Anger - Links to War Photographer and London

Identity - Links to Kamikaze, The Emigree, Tissue, Poppies, Charge of the Light Brigade and My Last Duchess

Anger - The narrator's angry because the education system didnt teach him about his culture. He was unaware of his heritage even though it's an important part of who he is. 

Admirtion - He respects the Caribbean figures he describes in the poem. He admires their achievements and wants to tell their stories to show the important role they played in history. 

Celebration - At the end Agard says he will embrace his own identity in a positive way. 

Form - The poem is a sonnet, with a volta at line 9. Ozymandias doesn't follow a regluar sonnet rhyme scheme, this could reflect the way that human power and structures can be destroyed. It uses iambic pentameter, but this is also often interupted. 

The poem is a second hand account, which distances the reader even further from the dead king. 

Structure - The narrator bulids up an image of the statue by focusing on differnent parts of it in turn. The poems ends by desrcibing just how big the desert is, this sums the insignificance of the staute.

Language - Irony is heavily used in the poem, there is nothing left to show for the ruler's arrogant boasting or his great civilisation. The ruined statue can be used as a symbol for the temporary nature of political power or human achievement. Shelley's use of irony reflects his hatred of oppression and his belief that it is possible to overturn social and political power. 

The use of aggresive language suggests the tyranny of the ruler. 

The poem shows the Shelley believed that nature was more powerful than anything else.

Power of nature - Links to The Prelude, Exposure, Storm on the Island, Kamikaze and Tissue

Power of humans - Links to London, My Last Duchess, Storm on the Island, Tissue and Checking Out Me History.

Arrogance and Pride - Links to My Last Duchess and Charge of the Light Brigade.

Pride - The ruler was proud of what he had achieved. He called on other rulers to admire what he did. 

Arrogance - The inscription shows that the ruler believed that he was the most powerful ruler in the world - nobody else could compete with him. He also deemed himself above those he ruled. 

Power - Human civilisations and achievements are insignifcant compared to the passing of time and nature. The poem shows that natures power is above all else - just like Ozymandias thought he was. 

Form - The poem is written in first person, with three eight-line stanzas but no regular rhythm or ryhme scheme. The first two stanzas contain lots of enjambment, In the final stanza there are a few fullstops to reflect the speaker's feeling of confinment in her new city.

Structure - The speaker's memory of their city grows and solidifies as the poem goes on - the city becomes a physical presence for the speaker in the final stanza. Each stanza ends "sunlight" , reinforcing the fact the speaker sees the city in a postive way. 

Language - There are a few lexical sets in the poem relating to war, invasion and tynanny - this shows that the city may not be as perfect as the speaker remembers it. In the second stanza, there's the sense that the speaker is defying the authorities by accessing her "child's vocabulary" thats been "banned".

The city is often personified. In the first stanza it is personified as being "sick with tyrants", where as in the final stanza it appears to have more loving instincts such as "lying down" and taking her "dancing" this shows the speakers love for the city. 

Loss and Absense - Links to Kamikaze, Poppies, Exposure and London 

Memory - Links to The Prelude, My Last Duchess, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, Kamikaze

Identity - Links to Checking Out Me History, Kamikaze, Tissue, Poppies, The Charge of the Light Brigade and My Last Duchess. 

Individual experiences - Links to Kamikaze, War Photographer, Poppies, Remains, Bayonet Charge, The Prelude and London

Nostalgia - The speakers positive memories of the city are unwavering - nothing she hears will change her view of it. There's a sense of yearning for the city and the past, which is partly fulfilled by the city appearing in the final stanza.

Threat - There are suggestions that the city has been invaded or taken over by tyrants, but the speaker chooses to ignore these things. She is threatened in her new city, and seems to have to protect her old city. The poem ends with "sunlight", but this doesnt entirely remove the sense of threat. 

Form - The extract is a first person narrative. It sounds personal and describes a turning point in the poets life. The use of blank verse makes it sound serious and important, the regular ryhme rythm makes it sound like a natural speech. It is set out abit like a fairytail with the beginning being "One summer evening". There is a volta at line 21 where the poem takes a distinct dark turn. 

Structure - There are three main sections in the poem. In the first, the tone is light and carefree, in the second it turns darker when the mountain appears. In the final section, the narrator reflects on how the experience changed him. 

Language - The poem begins with a series of pretty, pastoral images of nature. At first he seems sure of himself, almost arrogant in his view of himself. He gives the impression that he feels powerful. The intital glimpses of threatening language become more intense after the mountain appears. The narrator begins to understand how powerful nature is. By the end of the extact the narrator is far less confient and more fearful. The experience has a lasting, haunting effect on him. 

Power of nature - Links to Ozymandias, Exposure, Storm on the Island, Tissue, Kamikaze.

Memory - Links to My Last Duchess, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, The Emigree, Kamikaze

Fear - Links to Storm on the Island, Bayonet Charge, Poppies

Pride - Links to My Last Duchess

Individual experiences - Links to London, Bayonet Charge, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, The Emigree and Checking Out Me History. 

Confidence - The narrator feels comftorable and in control at the start, but his confidence in himself and in the world is shaken by one event.

Fear - Nature is shown to be more powerful than a human being, the narrator is left with a feeling of awe and respect for nature, but he is also scared by it. 

Reflection - The poem ends with the narrator reflecting on how he has been changed by the event. His thoughts and dreams are troubled by the experience.

Form - The poem is mostly narrated in third person using reported speech of the pilots daughter, but her voice is heard directly in the later stanzas. The absence of the pilots voice shows that he has been cut of from society for turning his plane around. The third person emphasises the distance between him and his daughter. 

Structure - The first five stanzas form one sentence which covers an account of the pilots flight as the pilots daughter imagines it. The end of the sentence represents the plane landing, and the final two stanzas deal with the fallout of the pilots actions. 

Language - There are ironic reminders of how the pilot has abandoned his mission throughout the poem. The way he's treated when he returns is af if he is dead which is ironic as thats what he set out to do. 

Similies, metaphors and detailed descriptions are used to emphasise the beauty of power and nature. This may of been one of the reasons the pilot turned around. The addition of direct speech makes the poem more personal. Hearing the daughters voice emphasises the impact of war on familiies. 

Power of nature - Links to Tissue, Storm on the Island, Exposure, The Prelude and Ozymandias

Loss and Absence - Links to The Emigree, Poppies, My Last Duchess and London

Identity - Links to Checking Out Me History, The Emigree, Tissue, Poppies, My Last Duchess and Charge of the Light Brigade

Individual experiences - Links to The Emigree, Bayonet Charge, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, London and The Prelude

Patriotism - The opening stanza is full of suggestion of patriotic pride and duty - the pilot has the chance to fly "into history". The patriotism of his family and neighbours is shown in their reaction to his return. They treat him as if he is dead because he failed in his duty to his nation.

Shame - The reaction of the pilots wife is one of deep shame - she never speaks to him again.

Regret - The pilots daughters words in the final stanzas are tinged with a sense of regret and loss. The repetition in lines 9 and 41 of "he must have" also hints at a sense of empathy. 

Form - The poem is a dramatic monologue written in iambic pentameter, this reinforces the impression that the duke is in a conversation with his visitor.The rhyming couplets show the dukes desire for control, but the enjambment suggests he gets carried away with his anger and passions. This creates a picture of a somewhat unstable character, who has an unsettling obsession with power. 

Structure - The poem is framed by the visit to the Duke's gallery, but the Duke gets caught up in talking about the Duchess, this leads to the poem resembling a confession. 

Language - Dramatic irony is commonly used within the poem, as the things the Duke says about the Duchess seem innocent but have a more sinister meaning.

Power of humans - Links to Ozymandias, London, Storm on the Island, Tissue, Checking Out Me History

Memory - Links to The Prelude, Remains, Poppies, War Photographer, The Emigree and Kamikaze

Pride - Links to The Prelude and Ozymandias

Identity - Links to The Charge of the Light Brigade, Poppies, Tissue, The Emigree, Kamikaze and Checking Out Me History

Pride - The Duke is very proud of his possessions and his status.

Jealousy - He couldn't stand the way the Duchess treated him like he was an ordinary person.

Power - The Duke enjoys the control he has over the painting as it makes him feel like he finally has power over the Duchess.

Form - The first person narrative means that the reader gets a strong impression of the mother's emotions. There is no regular rhyme or rythm, which makes it sound like the narrators thoughts and memories. Long sentences and enjambment give the impression that the narrator is absorbed in her own thoughts and memories, whilst a caseuara shows how she tries to hold her emotions together. 

Structure - The poem is chronological, describing preparations for the sons depature, him leaving and what the mother does afterwards. However the time scale is ambiguos - memories of the son's childhood are intertwined with memories of him leaving, and they're often not clearly distinguished.

Language - The mothers separation from her son is empahsised by the way she can't touch or hear him. She touches things and listens to his voice "on the wind", but this can not make up for the loss of her son - both metaphorically and physically.

Images of war and violence symbolise the son's new identity and the danger he is in. References it "Armistice Sunday" and the "war memorial" make the reader question whether he is still alive. The images of war are mixed with poignant images of home, which is where the mother wishes her son was.

Effects of conflict - Links to Charge of the Light Brigade, Exposure, Bayonet Charge, Remains, Storm on the Island, War Photographer, The Emigree and Kamikaze

Loss and Absence - Links to London, Exposure, War Photographer, The Emigree and Kamikaze

Memory - Links to The Prelude, My Last Duchess, Remains, War Photographer, Kamikaze and The Emigree

Identity - Links to My Last Duchess, Charge of the Light Brigade, Tissue, The Emigree, Kamikaze and Checking Out Me History

Individual experiences - Links to The Prelude, Bayonet Charge, Remains, London, War Photographer, The Emigree and Checking Out Me History. 

Loss - The mother act's as if she has lost her son - she is stuggling to accpept that her son has grown up and moved on. 

Fear - The mother is anxious and fearful for her sons saftey - the anxiety has a deep effect on her. The poem shows how strong people have to be when loved ones go to war.

Form - The poetic voice is elusive, with the focus on humanity in general rather than a specifc person or speaker. The lack of regular rythm or ryhme and the enjambent across lines and stanzas gives the poem a freedom and openness, reflecting the narrator's desire for freedom and clarity. The short stanzas mean that the poem is built up in layers, just as it suggests human life is.

Structure - There are three main parts to the poem, moving through ideas about history, human experiences and the creation of human life. The final, single line stands out and focuses the reader on their own identity and how it is created. 

Language - Light is presented as a positive force - it enables people to see and understand, it can  move through and beyond boundaries and it can break through objects. There are lots of references to things being created. Man-made constructions like buildings and border lines are compared with the creation of humans.

The homonyms of "tissue" create a link between paper and humans - both paper and human tissue are fragile, but powerful. The noun "tissue" orginally meant something that had been woven, which reinforces the idea that human lives are built up in layers. 

Power of humans - Links to Ozymandias, London, My Last Duchess, Storm on the Island and Checking Out Me History

Power of nature - Links to Ozymandias, The Prelude, Exposure, Storm on the Island and Kamikaze

Identity - Links to My Last Duchess, Charge of the Light Brigade, Poppies, The Emigree, Kamikaze and Checking Out Me History

Control - The poem mentions different things that control human life - there are references to money, religion, nature, pride and governments.

Freedom - The speaker imagines a world that breaks free of some of thesr restrictions, where human constructions are less permanent and important.