London

• What’s the structure of London?

  • dramatic monologue -> reflects the suffering he sees
  • ABAB rhyme scheme -> unbroken , echoes relentless misery of the city
• What are the big ideas of London?

  Anger, hopelessness, control, corruption of society
• What’s a summary of the poem?

  • A narrator describing a walk around London
  • Everywhere he goes is affected by misery and despair - it’s relentless
  • People in power are behind the problems and are not helping it
• “I wander through each chartered street”

  • “I” - individual
  • “Wander” - verb - observing , criticising it
  • “Chartered “ - adjective - control
  • Despair, slaughter house, no escape
• “Mind forged manacles”

  Metaphor - people are trapped (even their thoughts and attitudes)
• “Every”

  Collective suffering - cruel
• “Blackening church”

  Juxtaposition- no hope, poison,

  people in power aren’t changing anything
• “And blights with plagues the marriage hearse”

  • Plosive alliteration - uncontrollable, destined to affect a lot of people
  • Semi-oxymoronic phrase - married to death, everything has been destroyed, nothing innocent remains