Summary of Ode to a Nightingale The speaker begins by confessing his own heartbreak. He is numb, as if he would just taken a drug. He is addressing a nightingale he hears singing somewhere in the forest and says that his “drowsy numbness” is caused not by envy of the nightingale’s happiness, but by sharing…
The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Tennyson “The Lady of Shallot” is the narrative of a woman who lives in a tower on the island of Shallot, which is connected to Camelot by a river and a road. Each day, the woman weaves a tapestry depicting the scene visible from her window, which includes Camelot….
Thrushes by Ted Hughes Summary “Thrushes” depicts birds as efficient, instinctive killer robots. The poet is watching some thrushes on his lawn, and his observations lead him to compare them to humans, such as himself, whose noblest acts appear to be achieved by the suppression of such energy as the birds express, and at great…
‘On the Move,’ by Thom Gunn About the Poem “On the Move” is one of the famous poems of Thom Gunn. It is included as an opening poem of his poetry collection “The Sense of Movement.” The poem is described as “a sociological footnote of the 1950s.” Motorcyclists have come to represent reckless vitality and…
Summary of First Neighbours First Neighbours is a poem written by Patricia Kathleen Page (Pseudonym – Judith Cape). In this poem, Page has conveyed the sense of alienation of a resident in a new location. She was named the best Canadian poet and a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada. Her native land is…
Epithalamion by Edmund Spenser Epithalamion is an ode written as the finale of Amoretti, commemorates Spenser’s marriage to Elizabeth Boyle, daughter of James Boyle, the relation of Earl of Cork, Richard Boyle, on June 11, 1594. The music begins before sunrise and continues through the wedding ceremony and into the newlywed couple’s consummation night. Throughout…
The Thought Fox by Ted Hughes Introduction The most of Hughes’ poetic work is inspired by nature, particularly the innocent savagery of animals, which he has been fascinated by since a young age. He frequently wrote about the natural world’s contrasts of beauty and violence. Animals serve as a metaphor for his philosophy of life:…
Summary of ‘The Tyger’ The poem “The Tyger” is arguably the most famous poem by William Blakes. It is the best example of pre-romantic poetry. The poem is divided into six short stanzas of four lines each. The sixth stanza is a restatement of the first. It has an end rhyme pattern of AABB, CCDD….
Imagery and Symbolism in The Tyger by William Blake Blake’s poetry has several connections to Greek and Roman mythology. Myths are more than just stories; they were told to propose truths about human nature and experiences, or to explain how the world came to be the way it is. They are relevant in presenting The…
London by William Blake London is a poem composed by William Blake and published in Songs of Experience in 1794. It is one of the few poems in Songs of Experience that has no counterpart in Songs of Innocence. Analysis of the Poem “London” Historically, London was a place of honest work, where merchants and…
Holy Thursday (Songs of Experience) William Blake’s poem “Holy Thursday” was first published in Songs of Innocence and Experience in 1794. Unlike its companion poem in “Songs of Innocence” (1789), this poem focuses on society as a whole rather than on the London ceremony. Holy Thursday (Text) Is this a holy thing to see, In a rich…
Holy Thursday (Songs of Innocence) William Blake’s poem “Holy Thursday” appears in his 1789 collection of poems Songs of Innocence. (Songs of Experience also contains a Holy Thursday poem that contrasts with this song.) The poem describes a ceremony held on Ascension Day, which in England was then known as Holy Thursday, a name that…
