Revised Clocks and Lovers Prompt

Clocks and Lovers by W.H. Auden

In the poem “Clocks and Lovers” by W. H. Auden, there is a clear and concise difference in the attitude of the clock and that of the lovers. The poem initially starts off with a narrator, whom we assume is the lover, professing his love for another. This gives the presumption that this is going to be a beautiful poem, especially when the lover states that “love has no ending.” Additionally, Auden’s choice of diction when using the phrases, “brimming river” and “salmon sing”, portrays the attitude of the lover to be optimistic. However, as the poem continues, several clocks decide to rebut the words of the lover.

When the clocks speak there is an evident shift in the tone and mood of the poem. It becomes more serious and macabre. The “whirring and chiming” of the clocks provides the image of a slow yet steady paced movement. Also when the clocks says, “In headaches and in worry/ vaguely life leaks away”, it can be taken in two ways. The clocks can be literally talking about life or it can be talking about love however Auden seems to hint towards the idea that they are talking about love since he previously mentioned the idea of “love being eternal.” Since this is the clocks rebuttal against the lover, the clocks seem to be saying that love cannot be eternal because time is the only thing that can be eternal. Lines 23-24, “O let not Time deceive you,/ You cannot conquer Time” support the idea that time is the one that is eternal rather than love. The ideas that Auden provides allows one to conclude that the attitude of the clocks are more “realistic” than the lover. The clocks see things “clearly” and are wiser since they can be considered older than the lovers by way of allusion to Father Time.

The two attitudes, the optimistic one of the lovers and the “realistic” one of the clocks, are clearly depicted and differ in a manner supported by the imagery Auden provides. For example, the lover’s idea that “love has no ending” and the he will “love [her] till China and Africa meet” are clearly optimistic and the clocks’ idea, “O plunge your hands in the water,/ plunge them up to the wrist” shows a realist idea of “waking up” from a dream. The reason for such a drastic contrast is not only to add to the beauty of the poem but to add to the meaning of the poem as well. It shows that love clouds the mind into believing the impossible, the impossible being “endless” love because in the end time will time will remain while something like love will diminish either due to a death or over time.

AP English Prompt Richard II

           In the passage from Shakespeare’s Richard II, the Queen decides to eavesdrop on a conversation between two commoners, a servant and a gardener, in an attempt to learn more about the state of the King. Aided by the multitude of figurative language, which serves as a means to dramatize the situation, used by the commoners, the Queen will learn much about the state and of the King from eavesdropping from the shadows in which she hides.

The servants begin their conversation by talking about what they have to do to take care of the garden but then they slowly begin to transition into talking about the state using the garden as an extended metaphor. One of the servants orders the other to “cut the heads of too fast growing sprays that look too lofty for [their] commonwealth. The other responds by questioning why they have to “in the compass of a pale keep law and form and due proportion, showing… [their] firm estate” when it is “swarming with caterpillars.” That was the other servant’s way of asking why they were required to maintain order in their garden, rather within their social class, when the higher-ups became disordered. As the Queen listens in on the conversation, she learns that the King may soon be deposed and possibly “taken care of” just as “the weeds which his broad spreading leaves did shelter”, his allies the Earl of Wiltshire, Bushy and Green, all of whom the country views as leeches that do nothing but suck up the nutrients of their country, by a man who goes by the name of Bolingbroke.

            The figurative language used by the commoners successfully dramatized the King’s dire situation. For example, “He that hath suffer'd this disorder'd spring/Hath now himself met with the fall of leaf”, shows the use of using the seasons to describe the rise and fall of the King. Since spring is usually the birth, this means that the King had a disordered rise to power and now he will meet his fall from power with the fall of leaf, which is synonymous to autumn, a time a death. Also the use of the extended metaphor of a garden to represent the state adds to the dramatization of the King’s situation because as the King is clearly in a difficult spot, the imagery of weeds, insects and chaos in the garden adds the effect that nothing is going well. The use of the extensive figurative language by the commoners emphasizes the King’s dismal situation.

From dusk to dawn, and dawn to dusk

From dusk to dawn, and dawn to dusk,

It is you, who is on my mind,

Always, always, always, on my mind.

In the little crevice you hide

Not letting me remove you, stripping you from my thoughts.

Why? Oh, Why? Why will you not leave?

Just hide away, come back another time

A time when you are wanted, not now of all times

Free me from your hold, release me you Heathen!

Stop, no, do not forever leave me—I say Stop!

Return to me, oh please, just return to me,

What has happened what has changed?

I need you now, this time, this moment.

Why, why, oh heavens, why now of all times?

Why have you forsaken me at this time, this moment?

Oh Sleep!

Law Like Love by W.H. Auden

            In the poem, “Law like Love” by W.H. Auden, there is a clear difference between the conceptions of what “law” is shown as in the lines 1-34 and the lines 34-60. In the first half of the poem, “law” is clearly defined as something that is distinct to the person who seems to be explaining law. Auden shows this with the lines, “Law, say the gardeners, is the sun” (line 1), “Law is the wisdom of the old” (Line 5) and “Law is the Law” (line 18).  Auden uses the gardeners, elders and judges to exemplify how some believe that there are some who believe that they have a definite answer to things.

However, in the next half of the poem, the idea of “law” shifts to a more uncertain definition. Auden compares law to love, one of the most uncertain aspects of humans. This comparison is to show that there are those who believe otherwise; that nothing really has a definite answer. The second half of the poem is where the main idea of the poem really shines. “Law” is something that people create and is relative to people, that is why it cannot have a definite answer or meaning much like love is. Love is bizarre and strange and many people have tried to define what it is, just as they have tried to define what “law” is, yet there is no answer. That is what Auden attempted to portray in this poem by utilizing the different conceptions of “law”.

Clocks and Lovers Prompt

Clocks and Lovers by W.H. Auden

In the poem “Clocks and Lovers” by W. H. Auden, there is a clear and concise difference in the attitude of the clock and that of the lovers. The poem is introduced with the lovers first speaking. This gives the poem the initial presumption of being a beautiful love poem where the lovers state that “love has no ending.” That statement is reinforced by the diction chosen by Auden. Auden uses phrases such as “brimming river” and “salmon sing” which in themselves portray things of beauty. This leads us to believe that the attitude of the lover is optimistic. He feels as if his love has no bounds and is not constricted by the rules of time. However, as the poem continues it becomes the clock’s turn to offer a rebuttal to what the lover said.

 When the clock speaks, there is an evident shift in the tone and mood of the poem. It becomes more serious and macabre. The “whirring and chiming” of the clocks provides the image of a slow yet steady paced movement. Also when the clock says, “In headaches and in worry/ vaguely life leaks away”, it can be taken in two ways. The clock can be literally talking about life or it can be talking about love or in actuality it can be about both. But whichever way it is taken it holds the same meaning, that time is eternal; it is the only thing that can be eternal. This provides us with enough information to come to the conclusion that the clock’s attitude is that of a more “realistic” one and also a feeling of being more superior

The two attitudes, the optimistic one of the lovers and the “realistic” one of the clocks, are clearly depicted and differ in a manner supported by the imagery Auden provides. However, the reason for this drastic contrast is not only to add to the beauty of the poem but to add to the meaning of the poem as well. It shows that love clouds the mind into believing the impossible, the impossible being “endless” love because in the end time will time will remain while something like love will diminish either due to a death or “crooked hearts”.

One Art Prompt

One Art by Elizabeth Bishop

In the poem “One Art” by Elizabeth Bishop, the narrator shows two distinct attitudes-- her attitude for the most part of the poem (lines 1-15) and her attitude for the last part of the poem (lines 16-19)—which differ quite a bit. For the majority of the poem, the speaker remains quite indifferent about loss. The very first line, “the art of losing isn’t hard to master” says many things about the speaker. The speaker judging from her tone and the lines in the poem has gone through many losses in her life “lost of door keys….places, and names and where it was you meant to travel”, “her “mother’s watch” and her “three loved houses”. All of these, from the smallest thing such as door keys to larger ones such as a lost vacation or a house, all of which had the same effect on her. Throughout the majority of the first portion, the narrator seems indifferent to her losses. She believes that though she has lost something, it was not detrimental to her.

            However as the poem comes to a close she seems to be talking about a significant other that she may have come in contact with. This is different than the rest of the poem because she is talking about her love for another human being rather than materialistic items such as a watch or a key or even a house. Also because the very last line “Though it may look like (Write it!) like disaster” shows that she actually feels like it is detrimental losing someone she loves. Whereas in the previous portion of the poem she clearly states “None of these will bring disaster” and “it wasn’t a disaster”. Her shift from being definite about something to being unsure of it shows the reader what can only be the effect of love. It shows that love can change the way one views things, such as the narrator’s views on losses.

Questions, Questions and More Questions

Aren’t the two stories The Metamorphosis and The Stranger quite similar? The events, the characters and the theme, don’t they seem to have something in common? Or do they? Shouldn’t you see for yourself if they do or do not? In The Stranger, didn’t the main character Meursault shoot a man? Throughout the whole event, did he even care at all that he killed a man? Did he even care that he could be sent to jail? Shouldn’t you now be looking at The Metamorphosis? In that story, wasn’t Gregor supposedly transformed into a bug? Was he really concerned about being a bug or was he more concerned about missing work? Wouldn’t it be more natural to be worried that you are a bug rather than worried about missing work? Don’t these two stories seem worlds apart? But in the end, doesn’t it just boil down to two stories about two men who do not seem to care about one of the most dramatic events of their life?

However, shouldn’t the real question here is should they have cared about any of that but then would it have mattered if they cared or not? If it did matter, what would caring have done for them? Wasn’t what happened inevitable? If they cared would they have been able to change anything? So wasn’t it better to not care at all? What if it was not inevitable? If they cared would they have been able to change the course of events that occurred? Although didn’t it seem like nothing could have changed what happened? Wouldn’t you like an easier wording such as is it better to care or not to care in their cases? Wouldn’t you say it was better not to care? If they cared wouldn’t that just cause more problems? If they cared, wouldn’t they freak out about the events? Wouldn’t freaking out just speed up the process to death because in the end both characters ended up dead? So if caring and not caring both end up to the same result, what does it really matter?