Thursday 5 March 2015
Here
" By describing a physically journey from the industrial city to the farming rural village, Philip Larkin’s Here shows that human existence is essentially meaningless, despite the superficial luxuries present in industrial life. "
Stanza One : A general description of the beginning of Larkin's train journey, he is leaving the city and heading to the countryside.
> "rich industrial shadows" - Larkin recognises the wealth that is within a city, however the 'shadows' sound dark and dangerous, does this represent Larkin's feeling towards industry or the city in general.
> " fields /: Too thin and thistled to call meadows" - the imagery of the degrading countryside on the edge of a railway line, however Larkin gives connotations that the degradation has spread further.
> "swerving to solitude" - Larkin sees the countryside as a lonely place, yet he still goes there. This implies Larkin likes a life of solitude.
> The "piled gold clouds" and "shining-mud" make the countryside seem pleasant and hopeful, the oxymoron Larkin uses for the shining mud demonstrates Larkins preference for the countryside, everything is good there.
Stanza Two: Larkin's train passes through an industrial town and criticizes not only it, but the residents too.
> The proximity between the traditional "statues, spires and cranes" demoralises the traditionality of even the most long standing city features, implying the area has been taken over by industrialisation.
> "gathers to the surprise of a large town" - Is this a sarcastic tone, with Larkin showing how he disapproves of the sudden build up of towns?
> Larkin's description of the people is negative, he talks about the 'raw estates' they come from (raw can mean sore and painful, or strong and undisguised), the people stealing 'flat-faced trolleys' and visiting department stores to buy 'cheap suits' and 'ice-lollies'. None of these images are that positive, they are almost grimy. This shows Larkins snobbish side.
> 'swing doors to their desires' sums up what the whole poem is about - the silly desires of human people, the idea that material things like 'red kitchen-ware' and 'cheap suits' are all they desire. This makes the residents seem materialistic and have distorted views on what's really important in reality.
Stanza Three: Larkin continues to gibe at the city-folk, before his train finally reaches the countryside.
> "cut-price crowd, urban yet simple" - the idea of a cut-price crowd implies that the people in this city are left over stock, nobody wants them so they flood to the city in groups in order to dwell. Urban areas are said to be highly advanced, Larkin seems to disagree calling the area 'simple'.
> "fishy-smelling" - does the area smell of fish or is it suspicious? Could Larkin be referencing to the suspicious nature of the port - possibly referring to a black market kind of event?
> "tattoo-shops, consulates, grum head-scarfed wives" - Larkin mentions things he seems in the area he thinks of, the non-traditional tattoos do not please Larkin, neither do the consulates that allow immigration and the 'head scarfed' wives whose grimness makes them seem unladylike.
> "mortgaged half-built edges" - the government and banks own everything in the city, even things that are incomplete.
Stanza One : A general description of the beginning of Larkin's train journey, he is leaving the city and heading to the countryside.
> "rich industrial shadows" - Larkin recognises the wealth that is within a city, however the 'shadows' sound dark and dangerous, does this represent Larkin's feeling towards industry or the city in general.
> " fields /: Too thin and thistled to call meadows" - the imagery of the degrading countryside on the edge of a railway line, however Larkin gives connotations that the degradation has spread further.
> "swerving to solitude" - Larkin sees the countryside as a lonely place, yet he still goes there. This implies Larkin likes a life of solitude.
> The "piled gold clouds" and "shining-mud" make the countryside seem pleasant and hopeful, the oxymoron Larkin uses for the shining mud demonstrates Larkins preference for the countryside, everything is good there.
Stanza Two: Larkin's train passes through an industrial town and criticizes not only it, but the residents too.
> The proximity between the traditional "statues, spires and cranes" demoralises the traditionality of even the most long standing city features, implying the area has been taken over by industrialisation.
> "gathers to the surprise of a large town" - Is this a sarcastic tone, with Larkin showing how he disapproves of the sudden build up of towns?
> Larkin's description of the people is negative, he talks about the 'raw estates' they come from (raw can mean sore and painful, or strong and undisguised), the people stealing 'flat-faced trolleys' and visiting department stores to buy 'cheap suits' and 'ice-lollies'. None of these images are that positive, they are almost grimy. This shows Larkins snobbish side.
> 'swing doors to their desires' sums up what the whole poem is about - the silly desires of human people, the idea that material things like 'red kitchen-ware' and 'cheap suits' are all they desire. This makes the residents seem materialistic and have distorted views on what's really important in reality.
Stanza Three: Larkin continues to gibe at the city-folk, before his train finally reaches the countryside.
> "cut-price crowd, urban yet simple" - the idea of a cut-price crowd implies that the people in this city are left over stock, nobody wants them so they flood to the city in groups in order to dwell. Urban areas are said to be highly advanced, Larkin seems to disagree calling the area 'simple'.
> "fishy-smelling" - does the area smell of fish or is it suspicious? Could Larkin be referencing to the suspicious nature of the port - possibly referring to a black market kind of event?
> "tattoo-shops, consulates, grum head-scarfed wives" - Larkin mentions things he seems in the area he thinks of, the non-traditional tattoos do not please Larkin, neither do the consulates that allow immigration and the 'head scarfed' wives whose grimness makes them seem unladylike.
> "mortgaged half-built edges" - the government and banks own everything in the city, even things that are incomplete.
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