Summary OCR Eng Lit GCSE Poetry analysis for conflict
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Course
English
Institution
GCSE
All 15 of these poems are explored in depth with quotes and analysis with about two pages of notes on each poem. Language, form, context and structure are explored for each one.
OCR GCSE Poetry Guide:
Conflict Anthology
By Emily Bird and Jeff Thomas
A Poison Tree by William Blake
Language
The poem relies upon the extended metaphor of the apple tree as a
representation of the narrator’s anger.
The growing tree symbolizes the growing anger that the narrator
harbours for his foe.
Tending the tree with ‘fears’ and ‘tears’ symbolizes the narrator’s
obsessive thoughts about the enemy and the pain caused by the
discord.
The ‘apple bright’ could represent a moment of triumph where the
narrator is victorious over his foe. Maybe some of his ‘deceitful wiles’
have engineered a situation that elevates him and debases the
enemy.
The enemy ‘knew that it was’ the narrator who was the cause of his
disgrace, he seeks revenge on the narrator, but in doing so, gets hurt in
the process when he eats the apple.
The metaphor ‘water’d it in fears’ is used to show that fear is an
underlying cause of anger.
Blake uses sibilance in line 7 with the phrase ‘sunned it with smiles’ in
order to enhance the growing threat of the festering anger.
The image of the apple is an allusion to the fruit eaten by Adam and
Eve.
Just like Adam and Eve, the foe steals forbidden fruit and suffers dire
consequences as a result. Blake is gently reminding the reader to heed
The Bible.
The language in the last line is ambiguous. The reader is told that the
foe lies ‘outstretch’d beneath the tree’, but cannot be certain whether
he is suffering from the poison or actually dead. This language serves to
keep the reader thinking about what really happened, and what
could happen next, thus keeping the poem alive in their imagination.
Form
The poem consists of four quatrains. This gives an illusion of regularity
that is at odds with the highly irregular content of the poem. Blake uses
this form to make his poem as accessible as possible, so that its
message can reach a large audience.
Blake uses rhyming couplets to create a consistent rhyme scheme that
runs throughout the poem. This gives it a ‘sing-song’ quality, and makes
, it sound almost like a nursery rhyme. Nursery rhymes are used to teach
children about the world, and this poem also carries advice for its
readers, both young and old.
Structure
The poem introduces a volta after the first two lines, when the focus
switches from anger between friends, to anger between enemies.
The fact that the scenario where the anger between friends can be
dealt with in two lines shows that the situation was simple to remedy
and that the action of communicating the anger was the right way.
After the volta, the remaining 14 lines deal with the complicated and
destructive results of harbouring anger.
A second volta appears at the beginning of line 15 when the narrator
reveals the shocking fact that he is ‘glad’ his foe has been poisoned.
After this turning point, the reader finds it hard to identify with the
narrator as his reaction is ugly in its celebration of unhappiness.
14 out of 16 lines are end-stopped, giving the poem a measured
quality with the impression that the story is being recounted in a precise
way so that the moral can be easily perceived.
Line 12 into 13 uses enjambment. Here, the foe is invading the
narrator’s garden, and as he transgresses boundaries, so too does the
language, suddenly breaking the structure to flow into the next line.
Context
William Blake was interested in his own literary heritage, loved the works
of Shakespeare and produced many illustrations inspired by
Shakespeare’s plays.
We may also see some Shakespearean influences within A Poison Tree.
In Shakespeare’s Macbeth, ‘fair is foul, and foul is fair’ meaning that
which looks innocent and wholesome, is actually dangerous. Blake
takes up this imagery in his own poem, so the ‘apple bright’ looks
tempting but is actually poisonous.
When Macbeth hears that Duncan isn’t going to make him king, he
says ‘Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires.’
This scene is reflected in A Poison Tree as the foe waits until the ‘night
had veil’d the pole’ star, before he goes to steal the ‘apple bright’. In
both instances, the characters need the cover of darkness in order to
perpetrate their actions because they know that they are doing
wrong.
Blake had a great interest in social reform and used his poetry to try
and improve the lives of all people. This poem seeks to teach people
that communication is the key to avoiding feelings of anger and fear.
, Envy by Mary Lamb
Language
Lamb characterises the flowers with words such as ‘fair’, ‘sweet’ and
‘pretty’, this enhances the idea that they are a model for the reader.
In contrast, the human emotions that Lamb refers to are ‘discontent’,
‘fret’ and ‘envious’ showing that people often struggle with negative
feelings.
The rose is personified as Lamb applies emotions such as ‘discontent’
and ‘fret’ to the plant, this is done in order to draw a comparison
between the flower and humans.
The ‘pretty flower’ in line 17 is a metaphor that describes the talents
and qualities hidden within a person. It’s interesting that here, Lamb
uses the generic word ‘flower’ rather than naming a particular plant;
this reflects the fact that there are as many good and varied qualities
to be found as there are species of flower.
The specific flowers that the narrator does name have distinct qualities
attached to them: red roses symbolise love and passion, violets signify
loyalty and devotion, while lilies stand for purity. In this way, Lamb subtly
uses the language of flowers to introduce a number of desirable
qualities into the subtext of the poem.
The poem makes a pun of the word ‘vain’ to suggest the idea that
trying to change oneself is futile, as well as the idea that people can
become self-absorbed into making themselves better when there is
actually no need.
Lamb’s language often makes an appeal to the senses, for example,
the reader is given the beautiful image of the ‘red-rose’ as well as the
sensation of the ‘rose’s scent’. Such sensory language gives the poem
a tangible feel.
Lamb uses alliteration in the phrase ‘care and culture’ in order to slow
the pace, which in turn suggests that self-reflection takes time.
Lamb presents a very hopeful tone, saying that ‘all may find’ their inner
worth if only they take a little time to look.
Form
The poem takes the form of a lesson, as the narrator gives the reader
food for thought.
It comprises of three stanzas each with 6 lines, and a consistent rhyme
scheme; these elements give the poem a steady tone that is in
keeping with its instructive content.
, Structure
The poem is structured around a logical argument that builds up step
by step, using the extended metaphor of the rose-tree.
In the opening three lines, the narrator reminds the reader that a rose
‘is not made to bear’ any other kinds of flowers.
In the next three lines, this argument is developed as the narrator points
out that the rose would strive ‘in vain’ if it did try and change its
‘natural bent’. It simply isn’t possible for a rose to grow other flowers.
Stanza two then adds another layer to the logic. Here, the narrator says
that if a rose were to try and change, they could only conclude that it
had never been able to appreciate the different ways in which it is
beautiful.
The final stanza draws the logic together, saying that ‘envious persons’
shouldn’t attempt the futile task of becoming something they are not,
instead, they should look within and take time to appreciate the
qualities they already have.
The poem finishes by saying that the talents found within will be ‘rare’,
this leaves the reader feeling that if they do look at themselves they will
be rewarded with a realisation that they are unique and special.
Context
Mary Lamb, and her brother Charles collaborated on many literary
works that were written for children, including their noted Tales from
Shakespeare and Poetry for Children.
Indeed, Envy is the very first poem in the Poetry for Children anthology.
Although Envy was written for children, its message is applicable to
people of all ages. In the modern world, surrounded by images of
airbrushed celebrities, and polished social media profiles, it can be
easy to lose sight of true inner qualities.
Both Mary and her brother were friends with famous Romantic writers
such as William and Dorothy Wordsworth.
The use of nature was a dominant characteristic of Romantic literature
and Lamb picks up this trend in Envy through her use of the rose tree as
an extended metaphor for human emotions.
Mary Lamb struggled with mental illness, and in 1796 she stabbed her
own mother to death. There was an inquest and the coroner returned
a verdict of ‘lunacy’. For the remainder of her life Lamb was cared for
by family members as well as spending periods of time inside asylums.
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