When we two parted

• What is the poem when we two parted about?

  Byron loved a woman he was having an affair with, but she started having another affair after 3 years with a different man. He was heartbroken, but as no one knew about them he had to grieve in silence and pretend not to know her.
• What are the themes of the poem when we two parted?

  • loss
  • distance
  • memory
  • death
• When's the shift in viewpoint in when we two parted and why?

  Line 12. Word 'now' bring shift in viewpoint from the break-up to the present grief he's feeling.
• "Half broken-hearted" [when we two parted]


  Could suggest they weren't fully in love with each other. More likely he is broken-hearted and she isn't, or she only half loved him.
• "Sunk chill on my brow" [when we two parted]


  Cold dew on narrator's forehead reflects coldness between him and his lover - foreshadowing.
• "A knell in mine ear" [when we two parted]


  Metaphor suggests her name sounds like a death knell to him (bell rung to announce death/funeral) - reminder of 'death' of their relationship.
• "Long, long shall I rue thee" [when we two parted]


  Rue = regret. He doesn't just feel sadness - he regrets the relationship. Repetition emphasises how long he will feel regret.
• "Silence and tears" [when we two parted]


  Repetition; cyclical. Links back to start of poem. Shows that he is still hurting and unable to move on.
• [when we two parted] Verses are neat and orderly (ABAB rhyme scheme) but the emotions expressed in the poem are painful and messy. Could represent how he's hiding his pain.
• Relevant context: [when we two parted]

  • Had affairs with both men and women
  • Ran up lots of debts
  • He had an affair with Lady Frances who 3 years later had an affair with Lord Wellington
  • He pretended to have written the poem 5 years earlier so they couldn't be linked to each other
• Who wrote the poem 'When we two parted' ?

  Lord Byron.
• What links are there to death in the poem when we two parted?

  • Pale
  • Cold
  • Knell
• How does when we two parted link/contrast with Porphyria's lover?

  Contrasts:

  • Browning uses language to make it seem like the writers lover is still alive, in contrast with Byron making it sound like his lover has died

  Similarities:

  • Very similair rigid form used to contrast to the narrator's uncontrolled mental state
• How does when we two parted link/contrast to neutral tones?

  Contrasts:

  • Neutral tones has a muted tone which contrasts with Byron's dramatic narration

  Similarities:

  • Circular structure
  • Both narrators stuck in a painful situation
  • Use of death imagery to describe lover
  • Ominous and foreboding language