Remember - Poem Analysis

A poem about grief told not from the perspective of a mourner but rather the person who's to be mourned. The speaker addresses her beloved and encourages him to remember her after her death. It is only near the end of the poem that the narrator changes her mind that she changes her mind and allows him to forget her. The poem has been written like a monologue directly addressed to the lover. the poem is an apostrophe, a direct address to someone. Remember Straight-forward demand highlights the urgency and Remember me when I am gone away, creates a commanding tone. Paradox- The speaker requests that they are remembered by their beloved. But, the speaker insists that, if their beloved remembers the speaker only to grieve their death, they should, in fact, forget them. repetition emphasises the vast boundary between life and death. Metaphor Biblical meaning Euphemism: death is like a country- silent land Gone far away into the silent land; Physical motion Assonance is a notion of eternal life (heaven or hell) When you can no more hold me by the hand, Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay. A repetitively done event. She has accepted her death Symbol of love and trust She no longer make as if she’s leaving, but then turns back and stays- reflects her indecision. Remember me when no more day by day They had their future planned out- Death is unplanned- Ironic You tell me of our future that you planned: long-term commitment is permanently lost. Direct demand creates a Pleading tone. This adds to the lilting pace of the poem, growing Give advice slower and slower as it reaches towards the volta. Only remember me; you understand Assonance It will be late to counsel then or pray. VOLTA Replaces remember. Yet if you should forget me for a while Chance Her attitude softens. caesura The demands of living will cause him to forget her. She is being realistic. And afterwards remember, do not grieve: Her disease For if the darkness and corruption leave Imperative verb creates a command- she is consoling him (contrasts the octave). Hint/trace Euphemism “Because if darkness and rot don't destroy A vestige of the thoughts that once I had, the traces of my thoughts in you” renounces the need to be remembered, which is ironic She is certain Better by far you should forget and smile because the poem is titled “Remember.” Then that you should remember and be sad. This change of heart symbolizes the speaker's love, as she would rather sacrifice her memory, than ask her lover to endure any pain. She sacrifices her personal desire in an expression of true love. It is as though the speaker is fading away with every reiteration of the word ‘remember,’ and thus, by the middle part of the poem, the word ‘remember’ doesn’t have the same punch of meaning as it had in the beginning. This can be taken as the narrator losing her will to force her lover to remember her. Emphasises that the person left behind must remember. The repeated use of 'you,' addressing the beloved of the speaker, indicates the importance of this person in the life of the speaker. The message that this sonnet wants to give is that death is inescapable, but it must not gobble up the lives of those who are still alive. Life and Death are the antithesis (oppositions) to each other. STRUCTURE • • • • Petrarchan (Italian) Sonnet- written in Iambic Pentameter which isn't perfectly regular, this makes the speaker sound insistent. Octave has a structured rhyme scheme (ABBA ABBA) = highlights death is inevitable (everyone follows the structure of life then death)- mirrors the simplicity of the speakers’ request. Sestet has a complex rhyme scheme (CDD ECE) = that highlights the change in the speakers’ mood (from persuasive to peace-making)- creates deeper emotions. The speaker is self-centred except is sestet. TONE • • In octave= Melancholy/ Nostalgic/Demanding In sestet= Tolerant (about death)- tolerates/ understands the fact that she'll be forgotten/Consoling MOOD • Poignant and melancholic(sad) ALLITERATION “When you can no more hold me by the hand,/ Nor I half turn to go yet turning stay” That /h/ is a gentle sound, and it subtly draws together images of touch and connection. The soft, repeated sounds suggest the tender affection between the speaker and her beloved. “Yet if you should forget me for a while/ Better by far you should forget and smile” Connecting "forget" and "for a while" makes it clear that the speaker isn't imagining being forgotten forever, and connecting "far" and "forget" emphasizes the speaker's insistence that her beloved's happiness is more important than his constant attention to her memory.