Text analysis “Song”

by Christina Georgina Rossetti Approaching Literary Genres p. 53 Millennium

When I am dead, my dearest, Sing no sad songs for me; Plant thou no roses at my head, Nor shady cypress tree: Be the green grass above me With showers and dewdrops wet; And if thou wilt, remember, And if thou wilt, forget. I shall not see the shadows, I shall not feel the rain; I shall not hear the nightingale Sing on, as if in pain; And dreaming through the twilight That doth not rise nor set, Haply I may remember, And haply may forget.

FOCUS ON

THE MEANING

Which situation does the poet imagine?

Whom does she address?

• • • 2.

She imagines being dead and addresses her lover, asking him not to sing sad songs for her nor to plant roses on her tomb.

Is the woman sure about her lovers feelings?

No, she isn’t. She says “If thou wilt, remember / and if thou wilt, forget”. She considers the possibility that her lover might decide to forget her.

• • 3.

Highlight in red the natural elements present in the poem. Do they communicate happiness or not?

“roses” (l.3), “shady cypress tree” (l4), “green grass” (l.5), “With showers and dewdrops wet” (l. 6), “the rain” (l.10), “the nightingale” (l. 11), “Sing on, as if in pain” (l. 12), “the twilight” (l. 13). All these elements communicate a subtle sadness, which pervades the poem.

FOCUS ON

THE MEANING

4. What time and season are described? Do they contribute to the overall tone of the poem?

• The time of day is twilight, when light and darkness are confused and not easily distinguishable and the season might be either autumn (which can be inferred from the reference to rain/showers); or spring (as the poet mentions “roses”, and “the green grass”). All these elements contribute to the tone of gentle sadness of the poem.

FOCUS ON

THE GENRE

Death is the main theme of this poem. Highlight in blue all the expressions in any way connected with it. • “When I am dead” (l.1); “roses at my head” / Nor shady cypress tree “(ll.3-4); “the shadows” (l.9); “the twilight”/ That doth not rise nor set” (ll. 13-14).

FOCUS ON

THE GENRE

6. Both the poet and her lover are involved in the process of remembering and forgetting, but with a different attitude. Can you define it?

• The poet thinks that for her lover remembering and forgetting is a result of a deliberate decision. (“if thou wilt”) whereas for her it is the result of a chance (“Haply I may remember / And haply may forget”). Notice that the doubt is here reinforced by using an adverb and a modal of possibility • 7.

Highlight in pink one more anaphora.

Another anaphora is in ll. 9-11: “I shall not”

FOCUS ON

THE GENRE

• • 7.

Highlight in green one more parallellism.

Another parallelism is in ll. 7-8: “And if thou wilt, remeber, / And if thou wilt, forget”.

The effect of this figure of speech is to create an atmosphere of detachment from reality and of eternity.

8. The tone of the poem is (give resons for your choice/s).

 Dramatic  Desperate  Sad  Dreamy The tone of the poem is slightly sad because it deals with death and remembering and forgetting love. There is also a dreamy aspect given by the indefinite atmosphere of shadows and twilight.

Parallelism= In rhetoric, parallelism refers to using elements in sentences that are grammatically similar or identical in structure, sound, meaning, or meter. In other words, it means giving two or more parts of the sentences a similar form so as to give the passage a definite pattern. This technique adds symmetry, effectiveness and balance to the written piece.