Strange Meeting by Wilfred Owen Study Guide Introduction The poem “Strange Meeting” was written by Wilfred Owen. It is about the horrors committed during World War I. The poem was written in 1918 and was published following Owen’s death in 1919. The poem is narrated by a soldier who goes to the underworld to escape … Read more
Work and Play Poem by Ted Hughes Summary of “Work and Play” “Work and Play” is a lovely poem written by Ted Hughes. The poet draws a contrast between the swallow and the human in this poem. The poet extols the beauty of the shallow bird and despises man for his destructive and serpentine character. … Read more
Alexander’s Feast Or, The Power of Music Study Guide Summary of “Alexander’s Feast” “Alexander’s Feast, or the Power of Music” was composed in November 1697 for the London Musical Society on the feast day of St. Cecilia, the patron saint of music. Similar to the poem Dryden penned ten years earlier on the same day, … Read more
Poem in October by Dylan Thomas Study Guide Introduction of the Poem Dylan Thomas’ ‘Poem in October’ is a seven-stanza poem divided into ten-line sets. Thomas, as was his custom, did not adopt a specific rhyme pattern. However, there are a few instances where end sounds are unified by the use of half rhyme. In … Read more
Next, Please by Philip Larkin Study Guide About the Author Philip Larkin is widely considered as one of the greatest English poets of the second part of the twentieth century. He was born on August 9, 1922, in Coventry, England, to Sydney Larkin (1884-1948) and his wife, Eva Emily Day (1886-1977). His sister Catherine, also … Read more
Ambulances by Philip Larkin Study Guide ‘Ambulances’ was finished in January 1961 and included in Philip Larkin’s third major collection, The Whitsun Weddings (1964). Summary of Ambulances by Philip Larkin ‘Ambulances’ delves into the pervasive sensation of death that exists in restricted cultures; in cities, in particular, death is ever-present due to the varying ages … Read more
Howl by Allen Ginsberg Study Guide Introduction Howl was originally written to be played on stage at The Six Gallery Reading in 1955. The popularity of the event piqued the interest of Lawrence Ferlinghetti, owner of City Lights Publishing, who offered to publish the poem. However, an issue arose upon its initial publication in 1957. … Read more
The Lady of Shalott by Alfred Tennyson Summary The poem opens with Shalott’s description. Shalott is an island on a river near Camelot. The Lady of Shalott lives inside a castle with four grey walls and four grey towers on the island. The lady is incarcerated. She has never been seen by passers-by, but people … Read more
Sunflower Sutra summary “Sunflower Sutra” was composed by Allen Ginsberg in 1955. It encapsulates numerous ideas that Ginsberg would explore during his career. Its underlying message is one of a dismal American landscape ravaged and wrecked by contemporary society’s reckless work. However, unlike Ginsberg’s previous poems, such as “America,” “Sunflower Sutra” concludes on a hopeful … Read more
I Carry Your Heart With Me Introduction “I carry your heart with me” is a modernistic love poem written by E.E Cummings, a well-known American poet. It was released in 1952. This poem exemplifies the purest and most genuine type of love. It expresses the poet’s deepest sentiments for his beloved. The poem is well-known … Read more
A Supermarket in California by Allen Ginsberg Introduction Allen Ginsberg’s poem “A Supermarket in California” written in 1955 and published the following year, is a protest poem aimed at postwar American culture that focuses on consumerist features of society and the lack of connection between the contemporary world and nature. “A Supermarket in California” is … Read more
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 … Read more
