Ben Jonson: On My First Sonne

Ben Jonson - On My First Sonne

• The poem is about the loss of the writer's son and is written from his perspective.
• It is an elegy, focusing on the loss and mourning of the son.
• It uses iambic pentameter.
• The rhyme scheme is aa, bb, cc, etc.
• The speaker had too many expectations for his son.
• "Just day" is the day of passing; the speaker expresses a desire to die, stating the dead do not suffer.
• A metaphor from the text: "thou child of my right hand, tho'wert lent to me."
• The speaker finds it difficult and questions how to compensate for this pain.
• He believes his son is in heaven and no longer has to live in this bad world.
• Sonnets consist of 14 lines.
• Italian sonnets follow a rhyme scheme of abba abba cde cde.
• Shakespearean sonnets follow a rhyme scheme of abab cdcd efef gg.
• The theme of the poem is love.
• It utilizes iambic pentameter.
• Alliteration is the repetition of the same beginning letter.
• Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds.

Walt Whitman - Patrolling Barnegat

• Describes a large storm on the beach in the middle of the night.
• In the storm, the wind causes hard waves to come towards the shore (lines 1-6).
• From lines 7-14, people appear on the beach, observing the storm on the sea and wondering if they see a shipwreck in the distance.
• Walt Whitman, the narrator, lived in the Barnegat Bay area of New Jersey later in his life.
• Onomatopoeia is used, with words sounding like real sounds when spoken.
• Example: "slush and sand spirts of snow," represents the sound of the waves.
• It is a free verse, without a set rhyme scheme.
• Every line ends with "-ing," reflecting the continuous waves.
• It cannot be called an end rhyme because it’s not always emphasized.
• Alliteration: "piercing and pealing, swirl and spray."
• Assonance: "hoarse roar, trinity warily."
• The people in the poem find the storm scary and dangerous.

Tichborne's Elegy

• Describes anxieties and regrets as the speaker faces execution for plotting against Queen Elizabeth.
• Each couplet ends with the same line, emphasizing the speaker's limited time.
• The poem is written by the poet himself while imprisoned.
• The first part highlights how much potential the speaker's life had, which is now lost.
• The second part reflects on how he led his life, comparing himself to a green fruit tree, as if he still had much to offer.
• It also notes that people have listened but not understood.
• In the final part, the hourglass runs out, and death approaches.
• It's not about grief from another person but about oneself and the loss of a young life.
• The speaker wants to communicate this with his wife.
• The rhyme scheme is ababcc dedecc fgfg cc.
• Metaphor: "feast of joy is but a dish of pain."
• Irony: "vain hope of gain" - suggests all his good is just vain hope for gain while something bad has clearly happened.

My Last Duchess

• A dramatic monologue where one person speaks at length to another, revealing their character and history.
• The Duke of Ferrara tells the messenger from his potential bride's family about his late wife, the "last" duchess.
• He uses a painting of her as a conversation piece.
• He describes her perceived infidelity and arrogance, implying that he prefers her as a painting rather than as a living woman.
• The Duke's views reveal his belief that women are objects to be controlled, owned, and discarded.
• The Duke's treatment of the painting mirrors his treatment of women as possessions.
• Describing the painting as a "piece" and a "wonder" portrays it as art rather than evidence of past love.
• He values the painting for its status as an object showcasing his wealth and influence.
• The painting is meant to glorify the Duke rather than honor the woman depicted.
• The Duke displays the painting in a public space in his palace to proudly show seated guests who he invites to look at her.
• He plans to make his new bride one of his possessions.
• In the eyes of the Duke, women are mere decorative objects rather than individuals.
• It is strongly implied that the Duke had the "last duchess" murdered, as he was so angered by the idea that his late wife had an inner life of her own
• The line "they would ask me, if they durst" suggests people are afraid of him.

The Laboratory

• A dramatic monologue where a single person speaks to someone, revealing something about her character.
• A woman orders poison for the woman her husband would cheat with.
• Illustrates actions of jealousy & revenge, with no fear or second thoughts about murder.
• The character wants her target to experience a gruesome death.
• The speaker declares to pay her entire fortune to witness the death, all goes to the apothecary.
• There are critics about the color because it has to be realistic & there has to be more; because the woman is a great woman & the target.

Havisham

• Many colors give it a visual image
• Probably a monologue where Miss Havisham is thinking out loud.
• Miss Havisham’s fiancé betrayed and abandoned her on their wedding day.
• Duffy brings to light her trauma on the wedding day and hatred toward her fiancé.
• In addition the poet gives a creative version of what she might of been considering after that awful event.
• There is no rhyme pattern.
• First part reveals her mixed feelings: beloved sweetheart bastard.
• The dress cited is her wedding dress she always dressed in.
• Miss Havisham is seen requesting a corpse/body for a wedding night.
• Suggesting, if she cannot marry her partner, she might as well murder him.
• Last line adds credibility to the upsetting notion that more than just heart breaks.
• She has letdown in men.
• "curses that are sounds not words" implies there’s no words to say the severe upset/discomfort she experienced.
• With the words "who did this" → wants to hold someone accountable of how she is living now & feels.

Before You Were Mine

• The narrator expresses about the time before her mother gave birth to her, once was radiant.
• Seeming it all disappeared, which leads her to think she held her mom back from joy.
• The concept is more reinforced in the last sentence when her mother is compared to Marilyn Monroe happily.
• She puts herself down by describing herself as “possessive.”
• Duffy reveals that her hands sit in ‘high-heeled shoes,' it helps to add that idea that best/finest years of her mother is behind her.

Salome

• The main person awakens everyday with a different person, mainly a head.
• All the names mentioned are bible names/references.
• Salome is Herodes' daughter, requested a head of a man.
• The dramatic monologue viewpoint is of Salome, gaining her perception about character.
• The scene takes place on the AM after Johannes the Doper's passing.
• She was undisturbed that she aided in the killing of a man.
• As she begins dinner, she attempts to recall his first name.
• She ends poem explaining that her bed sticks because of the blood, which is of disturbance.
• Metaphor in the scene = colder than pewter.
• An example to to liken the dead man's head to pewter.
• Alliteration in the scene = done and doubtless, beater or biter.
• Colloquial Speech - common slang/utterances.

Sonnet

• Discusses about affection/love of summer.
• States a summer vibe complete of life
• Drawing pictures of swaying flowers and flying bugs/insects in hay.
• The poem is a sonnet complete of 14 lines with iambic pentameter.
• Think of uncomplicated repeats "I love,” to show it is more than a pretty list.
• Everything is lively and alive, complete with tunes and motion.
• Final 2 lines emphasize nice sunny weather with 'bright day' and 'bright beetles,’ where the bugs “frolic around the meadow - making a feeling for fun of the season and the sun.
• Onomatopoeia in scene = rustle word.
• Meter = aabbccddeeffgg.
• Alliteration is word/start sounds in section = wind shook wood, flag nest floating.
• It lacks on specifics allowing you to come up with own version of imagination.