Page 2: Developing Themes and Conclusion
The second page delves deeper into the characterization of the bride and the farmer's growing obsession. It also explores the poem's use of natural imagery to reflect the emotional state of the characters.
The bride's affinity with nature and animals is further developed:
Quote: "Happy enough to chat and play / With birds and rabbits and such as they / So long as men-folk keep away."
This passage highlights the bride's comfort with nature in contrast to her fear of human (particularly male) contact.
The farmer's perspective becomes increasingly desperate and obsessive:
Quote: "Shy as a leveret, swift as he, / Straight and slight as a young larch tree, / Sweet as the first wild violets, she, / To her wild self. But what to me?"
These lines demonstrate the farmer's conflicted feelings, admiring his wife's beauty while lamenting her inaccessibility.
The poem's conclusion uses winter imagery to reflect the bleakness of the situation:
Highlight: Descriptions of falling leaves, magpie feathers, and holly berries create a sense of decay and impending doom, mirroring the decline of hope in the marriage.
The farmer's desire reaches a disturbing crescendo in the final lines:
Quote: "She sleeps up in the attic there / Alone, poor maid. 'Tis but a stair / Betwixt us. Oh! my God! the down, / The soft young down of her, the brown, / The brown of her - her eyes, her hair, her hair!"
This repetitive, frantic ending reveals the farmer's obsession and hints at potential violence or assault.
Definition: Enjambment - the continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line of poetry to the next, used here to convey the farmer's racing thoughts and emotions.
The page concludes by summarizing key aspects of the poem:
- It is a narrative poem with themes of unrequited love
- It uses extensive imagery from nature
- The rural setting is integral to the story
- The young wife's lack of voice emphasizes her powerlessness
- The poem explores themes of isolation and potential abuse
