English Notes Latest Questions

  1. Metaphor: It is a common poetic device where an object in, or the subject of, a poem is described as being the same as another otherwise unrelated object. For example, “my angel infancy” Alliteration: It is the repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purposRead more

    1. Metaphor: It is a common poetic device where an object in, or the subject of, a poem is described as being the same as another otherwise unrelated object. For example, “my angel infancy”
    2. Alliteration: It is the repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purpose is to provide an audible pulse that gives a piece of writing a lulling, lyrical, and/or emotive effect. For example, “A several sin to every sense”.

     

    The Retreat Summary

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  1. Henry Vaughan's poem "The Retreat" talks about a speaker's wish to return to a more innocent, happier time in his past. The speaker laments the passing of his boyhood in the opening lines of the poem. He yearns for a period when he was still in his "angel infancy" and had not yet been shaped by theRead more

    Henry Vaughan’s poem “The Retreat” talks about a speaker’s wish to return to a more innocent, happier time in his past. The speaker laments the passing of his boyhood in the opening lines of the poem. He yearns for a period when he was still in his “angel infancy” and had not yet been shaped by the evil forces of the world. It would be a period when he had not yet left his house or become aware of the internal conflict that would consume him. He is concerned right now with his own feelings and his wicked character. In a way that was not even considered when he was younger, he is concerned about his own well-being. The speaker narrates how his life will come to an end and how he will return to the earth’s dust in the poem’s last lines. This will be the man’s penultimate conclusion in his search for his former life.

     

    The Retreat Summary 

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  1. The rhyming scheme the poet has chosen to use is organized and dependable. The entire paragraph follows the pattern aabbccdd... and so forth. So, rhyming couplets are used throughout the entire poem.   The Retreat Summary

    The rhyming scheme the poet has chosen to use is organized and dependable. The entire paragraph follows the pattern aabbccdd… and so forth. So, rhyming couplets are used throughout the entire poem.

     

    The Retreat Summary

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  1. The themes of corruption, innocence lost, and infancy is all present in "The Retreat." The poem's central theme is the happy stage of infancy. The soul is near the creator at this point. As the body ages, it loses its heavenly characteristics and becomes defiled. Vaughan discusses the idea of spiritRead more

    The themes of corruption, innocence lost, and infancy is all present in “The Retreat.” The poem’s central theme is the happy stage of infancy. The soul is near the creator at this point. As the body ages, it loses its heavenly characteristics and becomes defiled. Vaughan discusses the idea of spiritual deterioration in this way. Materialism, carnal appetites, and worldliness are the root causes of this kind of depravity. Last but not least, another significant component of this poetry is the loss of innocence. The speaker understands the significance of divinity as a result of this loss. He shares his worry about going backward in order to regain purity for this reason.

     

    The Retreat Summary 

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