Faith Healing

Faith healing from naomil16

For Sidney Bechet

Broadcast

Essential Beauty

Theme:

The poem is still very much relevant to modern day advertisement. In magazines, posters, TV adverts and billboards beauty is always a major theme. Whether it be the beauty of a product or a person. Beauty is appealing to the public, although less realistic. Larkin's idea that beauty is 'essential' shows that without it nothing or no one will be attractive. 

Content:

Essential Beauty is a poem about the contrast between life in advertisement and reality. 

Analysis:

Links to other poems:

Whitsun Weddings - He doesn't believe in the show of happiness; the couples are happy, he is not therefore it is not real. They fake their happiness so they almost believe it themselves. They don't fool him.

Talking in Bed - Being a couple should be happy. Larkin doesn't see it as this and we are expected to enjoy lying in bed side by side but this is just images and ideals not reality.

An Arundel Tomb - Both poems have a false show, the adverts hold false happiness and the tombs show an eternal love. Larkin assumes that because he is not happy or doesn't experience the adverts that they are not real and no one is happy.

Love Songs in Age

Theme:

The theme of love is symbolised through music and nature, described how love runs its cause over time and changes, usually failing to deliver. 

Content:

Found music sheets take the persona back to moments and memories and certain emotions that are full of the happiness and sadness of love.

Analysis:

• Young love is presented as: fresh, new, exciting, full of life, fun, free, the 'best feeling' invincible, seems to last forever, foolish and deluded.
• Older aged love is: tarnished, worn, less exciting, unsatisfying, a dying dream, not what they thought it was, old, steady, more of a commitment, all about the children, tired and hopeless.

Self's The Man

Theme:

Larkin looks at the theme of marriage, and whether the choice is in love or ignorance. There is the argument that love is never selfless, and Larkin is attached to the idiocy of marriage. Selfishness is the main reason for staying single, though it becomes a realisation that marriage is a rite of passage.

Content:

Within the poem Larkin compares a single man and married man with each other. Arnold, the married man, has different views compared to the bachelor, however it's evident that the single man wants to get married but is worried about the concept, and suddenly confesses to his uncertainty.

Structure:

The poems structure is a 7 stanza poem with 4 lines on each. Larkin also uses the rhyming structure AABB, almost representing the change of opinion on marriage throughout the poem and the ordinary, repetitive nature of marriage.

In the sixth stanza the use of 'but' signifies a change in the poem. There is a change of pace, and the caesura makes it quicker with shorter lines. This displays the change in views, asking whether every choice is selfish whether this be to stay single or that Arnold's selfish because he chose to get married. 

Voice:

The casual tone in this poem is used by colloquial language like 'kiddies' clobber' and deflects on his worries in this way. 

Analysis:

• The persona in this poem is isolated, selfish, pitiful and in denial. His views are split and he changes his mind towards the end of the people because he knows what he can put up with/bear. 'Without them sending a van or I suppose I can', implies marriage is insanity, that he is still uncertain but could try and handle it even though he is doubtful.
• Larkin's view of marriage is stereotypical and cynical. People don't have time for themselves and marriage becomes tiring and annoying. 
• The view of women in this poem is negative and degrading. 'She' implies that the woman is objectified and anonymous, only known for her role and actions. Larkin complains, women always nagging and controlling, telling men what to do. They are lazy, relying on a man and just using them for their money whilst they go out and shop. The mother in law in this poem is formidable, a chore in itself to go see her and the persona really doesn't want to, with no freedom but to obey the rules. 

Home is so Sad

Theme and Content:

This poem is a personification/anthropomorphism of a home, suggesting Larkin was sad at home. The pessimistic, depressing voice holds a sense of nostalgia. The persona feels rejected, brokenhearted and becomes lonely and forgotten.

Analysis:

• 'Home is so sad.' metaphor for the persona
• 'Shaped to the comfort of the last to go', better then than now, lost all personality and features.
• 'bereft of anyone to please', no one to satisfy or fulfil, just alone and abandoned
• 'withers', like a flower, dying slowly
• 'how things ought to be', reminiscing on the past
• Larkin describes the memories and personal items that made the home. These include 'pictures and cutlery', resembling the people, company and loved ones that used to be there. The family setting makes it warm and comforting but the house is left cold, no longer any happiness there.
• 'That vase.' - used to hold beautiful flowers, representing love, life and beauty, this is a reminder of the affection and adoring company that people used to have towards their home.

Take One Home For The Kiddies

Theme:

There is a morbid theme to this poem about pet shops, especially children wanting a new pet to have. The poem is about loss, death and fickle life, as well as highlighting families and children and how children behave.

Content:

The pets are lonely, and described waiting to be selected. Larkin is sarcastic with the children, and the poem is based on his walk past a pet shop.

Structure:

The simple ABAB rhyme scheme of the short poem suggests the simplicity view of life in this poem.

Analysis:

• 'Kiddies' implies immaturity and youth, almost harmless and affectionate. This also makes it sound sarcastic, parents calling their kids a nickname.
• 'Shallow straw, shadeless glass' - the pets are kept like stock and have a meaningless existence. Larkin is anti-confidement of animals and the cruelty of keeping pets is unpleasant and depressing.
• 'No dark, no dam, no earth, no glass' - the light is always on, taken away from their mothers too young, no earth to dig and no glass, no welfare
• 'Mam' - italics means another voice, common and of a working class who is ignorance and careless.
• 'Living toys' 'novel' - new and exciting, the children are uncaring, fickle and only have a short care for the pets until they get bored then neglect them. The animals are easily forgotten.
• 'Fetch the shoebox, fetch the shovel' - afterwards the children aren't even upset by the death. They had no devotion or care for the animals.
• 'Playing funerals' - new games, heartless, resilient

Talking in Bed

Content:

Talking in Bed is about the relationship of two people that feel isolated with each other and fail to communicate anymore. The poem title implies that a 'bed' would be a comfortable, private location to talk, a bed suggests intimacy.

Structure:

The poem is quite short with 12 lines, expressing Larkin's negative view of relationships, and how short they are, that relationships can't last forever and will fail.

Theme:

Larkin places a negative view on relationships, and the fall of intimacy that leads to isolation and loneliness. He creates this as a way of human nature, that relationships run their cause and become unhappy and almost makes it seem like he's anti-females.

Analysis:

'Lying' in bed has two connotations. Physically laying in bed with someone suggests closeness and affection, however 'lying' also means telling untruths and being false. The relationship in this poem have trouble communicating, no longer being honest with each other.

Dockery and Son

Content:

Larkin's persona is reflecting on his time at university in a thoughts process as he reminisces on certain people and compares himself to Dockery who is different to himself. The persona has to live with the choices, dislikes the present and feels isolated on the return to his youth. 

Theme: 

This poem is a reflection on the past and there is a theme of time, growing up, journeys and repetition. 

Analysis: