UP-HILL

Class notes on Rossetti's poem 'Up-Hill':

Rossetti uses landscape in a similar way:

• 'The road' is symbolic of a life's path
• 'Up-Hill' represents struggle and suffering
• Night/Dark are a metaphor for spiritual darkness/doubt
• 'Inn' is a place of refuge from doubts and insecurities
• 'Other wayfarers' - people who have already completed the journey
• 'That door' the division between life and death
• 'Beds for all' - welcome rest for spirits who arrive in the kingdom which belongs to god.

'Up-Hill' has two voices; Voice one is considered to be a fearful/doubtful speaker who asks questions about the journey to the kingdom. Whereas voice two is a confident speaker who's thought to represent Jesus and answers voice one's questions.

Voice One

• Fearful Questioning
• The speaker needs reassurance
• Insecure-Lack of acceptance
• Anyone who seeks redemption, who's traveling to heaven
• If a person who is lost (from their faith), God will guide you

Voice Two

• The speaker who knows all the answers symbolises God
• Empowered role
• Strong and Bold
• Parental guidance  as the speaker answers through the use of a reassuring tone
• No modal verbs
• Ends all parts with an end-stop which shows they hold comfort and knowledge
• Speaker in a riddle like way.

Two voices may represent two halves of one self or may act as a conversation between God and an individual who seeks heaven
The two voices are completely equal in speech unlike Rossetti's other poems
Structure of the poem is like a journey and the end of the poem represents the speaker's death.

Good Friday

Key points expressed in Rossetti's poem 'Good Friday.'

• Religion
• Links to Jesus' death

Crucified on the cross/ Nailed to the cross/ Died next to thieves

• Betrayal (Between Peter and Jesus)
• Darkness
• Death

Within Rossetti's poem 'Good Friday' there is a lack of  human emotion:
'Am I a stone and not a sheep' - 'Am I' highlights the fact the speaker is questioning who they are and where they fit into society. The speaker believes they don't fit in with the crowd. The word 'stone' acts as a metaphor for the speaker's lack of feeling, this is shown as a stone is a bleak, unimportant object. The word 'sheep' acts as a metaphor for masses or society.
'Not so those women loved' 'Not so the thief was moved;' - The speaker isn't defined by love the same way 'those women' are which hints she's challenging women status which links with Rossetti's other poems 'No, Thank you, John' and 'Maude Clare.' The speaker feels guilty they cant feel grief or pain when Jesus died as a women and criminals can.
'Yet give not o'er.' 'true Shepherd.' - The word 'Yet' illuminates that the speaker still believes there's hope left in society and in God/Jesus. The speaker won't give up, there's a change in emotion within stanza four which contrasts the poem.

Echo Worksheet

1)    Summarise the poem’s content briefly.
The poem ‘Echo’ is about the speaker whose gender is unclear longing to see a lost/dead loved one once again through the use of their dreams. This is shown through lines such as ‘silence of the night’ and silence of a dream.’ The poem is addressed to an absent individual who the speaker misses. The individual that the speaker misses is clear but acts as a metaphor for various things such as religion or God, a lover, memory etc. However it is clear that the individual is linked with the speaker through a strong bond of love.
2)    What tone is used by the speaker at the start with the imperative verb in in ‘come to me’?
The use of the imperative verb ‘Come’ at the start of the poem creates a direct address to the reader. The tone is commanding and acts as an order to the absent individual. The speaker is showing authority to highlight their desperation to see their loved one. By using a strong tone, the reader empathises the transgression of the line ‘in the silence of the night.’ To the speaker, the word ‘silence’ acts as a comfort place which they long for to contact their lover and create a clear communication between speaker and the reader.  
3)    In stanza 2 the speaker imagines paradise. What is it like? How does (s)he use poetic techniques to describe paradise. Explain the impression given by the language.
The paradise created by the speaker is first described as being ‘sweet’ but the progression of the word turns to ‘too bitter sweet’ which highlights the fact the paradise the speaker talks about has been corrupted and tainted. The repetition of the word ‘sweet’ suggests the speaker’s remembering the sensuality of the world. The modal verb ‘should’ in the line ‘should have been’ suggests that the paradise the speaker talks of is imperfect. 
Within the line ‘Watch the slow door’ the door acts as a metaphor for a barrier to another world or gates of heaven which separates the speaker and their loved one. It also shows how each individual is defined by love which links to Rossetti’s other poem Good Friday through ‘those women’ who wept for God.
4)    In the final stanza there is a change in the tone with the connective ‘yet’, how will the speaker’s problem be solved?
The final stanza acts as a turning point for the speaker through the word ‘Yet.’ The final stanza shows the change in the speaker’s emotions in case they can’t see their loved one again. The tone changes to create a sense of understanding for the speaker, this is shown as the word ‘live’ is emphasised through the use of enjambment. The speaker’s problem is suggested to be solved that they live their life again to gain the full potential of it. The line ‘My very life again’ hints at the thought of resurrection through dreams ‘cold in death.’
5)    What is the final impression of the speaker’s emotions?
The final impression we gather from the speakers emotions is that they feel regret over the loss of their loved one. The final line ‘how long ago’ is nostalgic which illuminates the speaker’s longing for a new connection through the use of dreams. Also the irregular rhythm pattern shown in the line ‘pulse for pulse, breath for breath,’ highlights the sensual need the speaker has. The silent sleepiness world acts as a pathway for the speaker and the absent individual.
6)    How does Rossetti use poetic techniques to shape her text and its meaning? Use the bingo card terms to explain three in some detail.
Through the use of poetic techniques Rossetti creates a personal and meaningful poem which holds many different interpretations. The use of present continuous tense intensifies the need the speaker has for their lost individual. The use of the words ‘thirsting’ and ‘longing’ shape the speaker’s desperation. Another poetic technique Rossetti uses is sensuality to express the speaker’s emotions and bond through love for her ghostly other. The line ‘pulse for pulse, breath for breath’ create an intimate feeling between the speaker and reader as it empathises the speaker’s emotional need.   

Quotes for Stella (A Streetcar Named Desire)

•          Can I come watch?’- Obedient/Stanley’s object

•          ‘a gentle young woman, about twenty-five and of a background obviously quite different from her husband’s’

•          ‘She cries out in protest…then laughs breathlessly.’ – Attempting to stand up to her husband and for herself. Highlights male dominance.

•          ‘You haven’t given me a chance to honey! She laughs… her glance at Blanche is a little anxious’- examining Blanche, checking her for mental signs as she’s over talkative.

•          ‘Stella laughs and complies’-Overpowered.

 

Arthur Miller's introduction to 'A Streetcar Named Desire.'

Within Miller’s introduction to ‘A Streetcar Named Desire’ he expresses the experience of watching the play for the first time ‘had thrown open doors to another theatre world.’ Being invited by Elia Kazan to watch Williams play Miller illuminates that it wasn’t the play’s structure but the writing that left him ‘excited and elevated.’ Miller talks about how Streetcar engaged him and he ‘truly heard every word of it in the (that) first production.’ On stage, Williams was able to express any and all things beautifully.  In Miller’s opinion the audience was moved by the effect streetcar created, ‘I can still recall the inhaling breath across the auditorium when Blanche said ‘kindness of strangers’ line.’ Miller was inspired and held a new perspective on theatre through the work of Tennessee Williams and the characters. ‘Their character have turned to stone, their eyes to marble. Streetcar is a cry of pain; forgetting that is to forget the play.’