Dawn has flashed up the startled skies,
Night has gone out beneath the hill
Many sweet times; before our eyes
Dawn makes and unmakes about us still
The magic that we call the rose.
The gentle history of the rain
Has been unfolded, traced and lost
By the sharp finger-tips of frost;
Birds in the hawthorn build again;
The hare makes soft her secret house;
The wind at tourney comes and goes,
Spurring the green, unharnessed boughs;
The moon has waxed fierce and waned dim:
He knew the beauty of all those
Last year, and who remembers him?
Love sometimes walks the waters still,
Laughter throws back her radiant head;
Utterly beauty is not gone,
And wonder is not wholly dead.
The starry, mortal world rolls on;
Between sweet sounds and silences,
With new, strange wines her beakers brim:
He lost his heritage with these
Last year, and who remembers him?
None remember him: he lies
In earth of some strange-sounding place,
Nameless beneath the nameless skies,
The wind his only chant, the rain
The only tears upon his face;
Far and forgotten utterly
By living man. Yet such as he
Have made it possible and sure
For other lives to have, to be;
For men to sleep content, secure.
Lip touches lip and eyes meet eyes
Because his heart beats not again:
His rotting, fruitless body lies
That sons may grow from other men.
He gave, as Christ, the life he hadÑ
The only life desired or known;
The great, sad sacrifice was made
For strangers; this forgotten dead
Went out into the night alone.
There was his body broken for you,
There was his blood divinely shed
That in the earth lie lost and dim.
Eat, drink, and often as you do,
For whom he died, remember him.
Night has gone out beneath the hill
Many sweet times; before our eyes
Dawn makes and unmakes about us still
The magic that we call the rose.
The gentle history of the rain
Has been unfolded, traced and lost
By the sharp finger-tips of frost;
Birds in the hawthorn build again;
The hare makes soft her secret house;
The wind at tourney comes and goes,
Spurring the green, unharnessed boughs;
The moon has waxed fierce and waned dim:
He knew the beauty of all those
Last year, and who remembers him?
Love sometimes walks the waters still,
Laughter throws back her radiant head;
Utterly beauty is not gone,
And wonder is not wholly dead.
The starry, mortal world rolls on;
Between sweet sounds and silences,
With new, strange wines her beakers brim:
He lost his heritage with these
Last year, and who remembers him?
None remember him: he lies
In earth of some strange-sounding place,
Nameless beneath the nameless skies,
The wind his only chant, the rain
The only tears upon his face;
Far and forgotten utterly
By living man. Yet such as he
Have made it possible and sure
For other lives to have, to be;
For men to sleep content, secure.
Lip touches lip and eyes meet eyes
Because his heart beats not again:
His rotting, fruitless body lies
That sons may grow from other men.
He gave, as Christ, the life he hadÑ
The only life desired or known;
The great, sad sacrifice was made
For strangers; this forgotten dead
Went out into the night alone.
There was his body broken for you,
There was his blood divinely shed
That in the earth lie lost and dim.
Eat, drink, and often as you do,
For whom he died, remember him.
Muriel Stuart
Stuart uses a lot of different types of language features throughout the poem. She uses personification an alliteration in the same line,'short finger tips of frost'. The double language device makes the line stand out but also make a point about England because there is always rain and frost in the winter. She uses personal pronouns throughout the poem, common ones being 'I', 'he', 'his' and 'we'. The personal pronouns make the poem more personal to Stuart. Repetition is used on the last line of stanza one and two. 'Last year, and who remembers him?' This is repeated to emphasise the last three words. The rhetorical question is stating that she's asking if they remember him but it is also a bitter accrimination.
ReplyDeleteI agree Rhian - however personification is also used "by the sharp finger-tips of frost". She is trying to use nature to describe the negative tone and feelings throughout. Stuart also uses language features such as repetition of questions at the end of stanza's one and two. This gives an impact on the reader, as it makes them question the answer. She also shows emotive language "the great sad sacrifice was made" - causing the reader to reflect.
ReplyDeleteThroughout the poem Staurt shows layers of bitterness towards the audience, however the dominant feeling of respect for how the men sacrificed their lives for strangers, comes across very strongly. 'and who remebers him?' questions the reader to get the reader to think. It shows bitterness towards the people who didn't recognise the fact that men died to secure a better life for them It is almost accusing them.
ReplyDeletePersonification is used in order to convey her emotions regarding her 'secret' resentment of negating 'lost soldiers' shows she appreciates the sacrifice men made.
In this poem Staurt gives off the impression of not liking the people at home but shows great gratitude towards the men fighting 'and remembers him?' showing that she will never forget the men who lost their lives at war, also is questioning the reader so they don't forget. Staurt shows us that she is really shocked at how people can just go about their lives without giving a thought to the men fighting for them to have a better life 'sad sacrifice was made for strangers'.
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