English poems

• The Manhunt, Simon Armitage


  Themes

  -- Patience, love and marital relationships

  -- Impact of war on individuals and the morality of war

  -- Memories and emotional pain

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1963, West Yorkshire

  -- Studied geography at uni and was very vocal about social issues

  -- Noted for his 'ear', has a strong sense of rhythm / meter

  -- This poem was taken from Channel 4 documentary on permanently injured soldiers. Armitage listened to the stories and turned them into poetry. It is from the p.o.v of the wife of a soldier who was shot in Bosnia, and shows her helping him recover and trying to reconnect with him emotionally.
• Sonnet 43, Elizabeth Barrett Browning


  Themes

  -- Love in a spiritual way

  -- Loss of religious faith

  -- The idea that love / compassion is powerful

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1806, Kelloe, prominent Victorian poet

  -- Took laudanum for chronic pain, which was known for making people vividly imaginative but frail

  -- Very well educated, home educated (rich family)

  -- This poem was taken from 'Sonnets from the Portuguese', a collection of 43 love sonnets for her husband. The name made it less personal (she was worried they were too personal to publish), and may be a reference to her pet name, 'My Little Portuguese
• London, William Blake


  Themes

  -- The gap between the rich and the poor

  -- Corruption and loss of innocence, exploitation

  -- Portrayal of London as a dreary, negative place

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1757, London

  -- Attended school until he could read and write (age 10), then home educated. Attended Royal Academy

  -- Known for idiosyncratic views, he opposed organised religion and embraced the 19th century 'free love' mmt
• The Soldier, Rupert Brooke


  Themes

  -- Patriotism and warfare

  -- The inevitability of death

  -- Man and the natural world

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1887, Rugby

  --

  --
• She Walks in Beauty, Lord Byron

  Themes

  -- Women and femininity

  -- Platonic, rather than romantic love

  -- Awe and amazement, almost worship

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1788, Dover

  --

  --
• Living Space, Imtiaz Dharker


  Themes

  -- Fragility of human life

  -- Faith

  -- Boldness

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1954, Pakistan

  --

  --
• As Imperceptibly as Grief, Emily Dickinson


  Themes

  --

  --

  --

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1830, Massachusetts

  --

  --
• Cozy Apologia (-for Fred), Rita Dove


  Themes

  -- Biography and memory

  -- Relationships with men

  -- Weather

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1952, Ohio

  --

  --
• Valentine, Carol Ann Duffy


  Themes

  -- The danger of love

  -- Rejection of typical romantic practices / imagery

  -- Nature of relationships

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1955, Glasgow

  --

  --
• A Wife in London, Thomas Hardy


  Themes

  -- War

  -- Death of loved ones and mourning

  -- Grief and sadness

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1840, Stinsford

  --

  --
• Death of a Naturalist, Seamus Heaney


  Themes

  -- Nature

  -- Coming of age and childhood experiences

  -- Transformation

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1939, Castledawson

  --

  --
• Hawk Roosting, Ted Hughes


  Themes

  -- Abuse of power and violence

  -- Nature and its delicate balance

  -- Tries to 'show nature thinking'

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1930, Mytholmroyd

  --

  --
• To Autumn, John Keats

  Themes

  -- Man and the natural world, mortality

  -- Time and transformation

  -- Awe and amazement

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1795, Moorgate

  --

  --
• Afternoons, Philip Larkin


  Themes

  -- Seasons

  -- Relationships / family life, memories

  -- Aging and time

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1922, Coventry

  --

  --
• Dulce et Decorum Est, Wilfred Owen

  Themes

  -- Warfare and suffering

  -- Patriotism

  -- Varying views of reality

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1893 Owestry

  --

  --
• Ozymandias, Percy Bysshe Shelley


  Themes

  -- Art and culture

  -- Pride, man and the natural world

  -- Transience (nothing is permanent)

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1792, Horsham

  --

  --
• Mametz Wood, Owen Sheers


  Themes

  -- War and its consequences

  -- Death and loss, suffering

  -- Remembrance

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 1974, Fiji

  --

  --
• (Excerpt from) The Prelude, William Wordsworth

  Themes

  -- Humanity does not have authority over nature

  -- Loneliness and nighttime

  -- The beauty of nature

  Contextual information

  -- Born in 117, Cockermouth

  --

  --
• Poems: The quiz card of dates and poetic movements

  -The Manhunt

  -Sonnet 43

  -London

  -The Soldier

  -She Walks in Beauty

  -Living Space

  -As Imperceptibly as Grief

  -Cozy Apologia

  -Valentine

  -A Wife in London

  -Death of a Naturalist

  -Hawk Roosting

  -To Autumn

  -Afternoons

  -Dulce et Decorum Est

  -Ozymandias

  -Mamtez Woods

  -The Prelude

  Poems: dates of writing and poetic movements

  -The Manhunt, pub.2008, post-modernism

  -Sonnet 43, pub.1850, Victorian, romantic?

  -London,

  -The Soldier

  -She Walks in Beauty

  -Living Space

  -As Imperceptibly as Grief

  -Cozy Apologia

  -Valentine

  -A Wife in London

  -Death of a Naturalist

  -Hawk Roosting

  -To Autumn

  -Afternoons

  -Dulce et Decorum Est

  -Ozymandias

  -Mamtez Woods

  -The Prelude
• Poems: The quiz card of names and dates

  -The Manhunt

  -Sonnet 43

  -London

  -The Soldier

  -She Walks in Beauty

  -Living Space

  -As Imperceptibly as Grief

  -Cozy Apologia

  -Valentine

  -A Wife in London

  -Death of a Naturalist

  -Hawk Roosting

  -To Autumn

  -Afternoons

  -Dulce et Decorum Est

  -Ozymandias

  -Mamtez Woods

  -The Prelude

  Poems: Poets and Dates

  -The Manhunt, Simon Armitage, b.1963

  -Sonnet 43, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, b.1806

  -London, William Blake, b.1757

  -The Soldier, Rupert Brooke, b.1887

  -She Walks in Beauty, Lord Byron, b.1788

  -Living Space, Imtiaz Dharker, b.1954

  -As Imperceptibly as Grief, Emily Dickinson, b.1830

  -Cozy Apologia, Rita Dove, b.1952

  -Valentine, Carol Ann Duffy, b.1955

  -A Wife in London, Thomas Hardy, b.1840

  -Death of a Naturalist, Seamus Heaney, b.1939

  -Hawk Roosting, Ted Hughes, b.1930

  -To Autumn, John Keats, b.1795

  -Afternoons, Philip Larkin, b.1922

  -Dulce et Decorum Est, Wilfred Owen, b.1893

  -Ozymandias, Percy Bysshe Shelley, b.1792

  -Mamtez Woods, Owen Sheers, b.1974

  -The Prelude, William Wordsworth, b.1770