winter swans

• 'the waterlogged earth/ gulping for breath at our feet'

  • personification of earth's desperation indicates their relationship is struggling for life
  • waterlogged and gulping, semantic field of heaviness and struggle
• 'with a show of tipping in unison. As if rolling weights down their bodies to their heads'

  • metaphorically weighed down by problems
  • rolling weights part of semantic field
• 'icebergs of white feather, paused before righting again/ like boats ringing through weather'

  • imagery of iceberg symbolises tip of the iceberg- depth of issues
  • icebergs part of semantic field
• 'porcelain over stilling water'

  • porcelain is beautiful and white, reflects hope
  • verb stilling represents disruption in relationship settling
• ' and folded, one over the other/ like a pair of wings settling after flight.'

  • final stanza is couplet, poem closes in same way a sonnet would, suggests reconciliation
  • no longer separate entities
  • full stop emphasises resolution
• ''they mate for life' you said as they left'

  • only monologue in poem emphasises importance
  • turning point/ volta
• Who is the poet of the poem "Winter Swans"?

  Owen Shears
• Where was Owen Shears born?

  Fiji
• In which collection is "Winter Swans" found?

  Skid Hill
• What does the Welsh word "skid" mean?

  Divorce or separation
• What is the main theme of the poem "Winter Swans"?

  The struggles and recovery in a relationship
• How does the poem "Winter Swans" begin?

  With heavy rain and a break in weather
• What does the waterlogged earth symbolize in the poem?

  The overwhelming negativity in the relationship
• What do the swans represent in the poem?

  Unity and commitment in a relationship
• How does the structure of the poem reflect the relationship?

  Three-line stanzas suggest imbalance and disconnection
• What does the final couplet in the poem signify?

  Improvement and optimism in the relationship
• What literary device is used with "the clouds had given their all"?

  Personification
• How does winter function as a symbol in the poem?

  It represents harshness and negativity in the relationship
• What does the imagery of "gulping for breath" suggest?

  The suffocating nature of the relationship
• What does the metaphor "icebergs of white feather" imply?

  There are hidden depths in the relationship
• How does the poem transition from negative to positive imagery?

  Through the introduction of the swans
• What does the simile "returning again like boats righting in rough weather" suggest?

  The couple can survive their relationship challenges
• What does the phrase "the hands swam the distance between us" signify?

  The couple is reconnecting and growing closer
• What does the use of half rhyme in the poem indicate?

  The relationship is problematic and imperfect
• How does the poem's ending reflect the relationship's status?

  It suggests that troubles have come to a close
• What does the punctuation at the end of the poem signify?

  The end of the couple's troubles