Thorough analysis and summary of Larkin's poem 'Toads', produced by all A* achieving student at A level.
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Course
Unit 3 - Poetry
Institution
PEARSON (PEARSON)
This is a 3 page document that acts as a thorough essay plan and revision resource, produced by a student who achieved all A* at A level. It is split into an analysis of the poem itself, context, form, structure, language and ideas. (Hence touching upon all A0s assessed in the A level poetry exam.)
The toad is a symbol for something
dark and brooding that squats on
our lives.
Toads
This poem explores the confinements of everyday life, and the toad symbolises two kinds of
pressures that mean the speaker is unable to change and perhaps find happiness. Firstly, the speaker
feels pressured by the amount of work and complains that he has not enough free time, yet then as
the poem progresses, he explains there is also something ‘toad like’ in him too- he is compelled to
work and not brave enough to turn his back on civilisation and all the benefits it brings. Things will
never change- mundane cyclic nature of both life and the poem.
Different themes:
Escapism
Work
Isolation and detachment
Social expectation
Key poems to link to and why:
Arrivals, Departures- inability to leave life behind, and wondering if you could ever be happy
had you made the opposite decision.
Poetry, Departures- escapism, desire for the life of another
Next, Please- inability to find satisfaction in life.
Triple time- bleakness and monotony of life.
Contextual links:
After WWII, English society was changing and with the introduction of the new Welfare
State, work became more industrialised and routine.
Larkin, himself, throughout his life only worked one position as a librarian and never sought
to change his career or progress in society as he did not see the appeal
Key aspects of form and structure:
Rhetorical questions are used at the beginning of the poem to make the reader question
their own purpose.
The ‘Ah’ in stanza 6 signals a shift and change in poem.
Regular form and regular ABAB rhyme scheme. This regularity could reflect the way in which
the speaker is constrained by society and the world of work. Even though he tries to free
himself from this, highlighted by the half-rhyme, he is unsuccessful.
Almost all rhymes are half rhymes- could emphasise speaker’s feelings of dissatisfaction, due
to the rhymes (and him) being unfulfilled.
The rhyme scheme also reflects how this is an unconvincing argument against work.
Key methods and arguments of poem:
The toad is used as a metaphor for work:
Like work, a toad is unflattering, traditionally perceived as ugly but also with poisonous
qualities.
Toads are considered servile- the word ‘toady’ is formed off the back of the animal, and
denotes someone who is sycophantic and eager to please. The speaker is toad like because
he could never turn away from social expectation.
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