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The Anniversary (John Donne)
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A2 Unit 1-John Donne notes
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By: mjeg2003 • 3 year ago
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The AnniversaryFORM AND STRUCTURE
- The poem consists of three, 10 line stanzas. The regularity of the stanzaic
form is used to underscore and emphasise the inevitable and inexorable
movement of time.
- The poem is iambic tetrameter and is made up of rhyming couplets. This
creates a gentle tone
- The poem has an argumentative, dialectical structure that is typical of
metaphysical verse
- The poem is an apostrophe as the male speaker addresses his mistress
LANGUAGE AND IMAGERY
Subject of the Poem
- The poem describes the one year anniversary of their meeting
- One of the dominant themes of the poem is the contradiction between the
timelessness of love, the inexorable movement of time and the inevitability
of mortality.
Title
- The title introduces the dominant theme of love and time in the poem
Anniversaries are celebrations of love but they can only exist because of time.
This contradiction is established from the beginning of the poem
Body of Poem
Stanza 1
- Line 1: The opening lines of the poem assert how everyone in existence is
trapped by time. The dominant patterns of plurals, “all kings…all their
favourites” emphasises the all-encompassing nature of time. The linguistic
pattern of “all” evokes he ubiquitous nature of time. Through the reference
to “favourites” the poet acknowledges the nature of human existence- the
constant seeking of approval and advancement (link to court of St James)
- Line 2: The list of three, “All glory of honours, beauties, wits” evokes the all-
embracing nature of time. All worldly behaviour is subject to time.
- Line 3 and 4: A paradox is created, “The sun itself which makes time…is
elder by a year now than it was.” Although the sun is the creator of time, it is
presented as another victim of time. Through this paradox, the poet
dismisses the life-giving force of the sun. He implies that it is not the monarch
of the temporal world but a victim of time.
- Line 5: The deliberate inversion of the line, “When thou and I first one
another saw” emphasises the dramatic occasion (their first meeting). The use
of personal pronouns creates an intimate tone and emphasises the
apostrophic nature of the poem
- Line 6: The linguistic pattern “All” emphasises the universality of time. The
use of alliteration, “destruction draw” evokes the inevitable and inexorable
movement of time
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