Madison Ryan

Mann

AP Lit & Comp - Block 4

15 November 2017

On the Road to the Sea by Charlotte Mew, Explication

TEXT:

We passed each other, turned and stopped for half an hour, then went our way,
I who make other women smile did not make you--
But no man can move mountains in a day.
So this hard thing is yet to do.

But first I want your life:--before I die I want to see

The world that lies behind the strangeness of your eyes,
There is nothing gay or green there for my gathering, it may be,
Yet on brown fields there lies
A haunting purple bloom: is there not something in grey skies
And in grey sea?
I want what world there is behind your eyes,
I want your life and you will not give it me.

Now, if I look, I see you walking down the years,

Young, and through August fields--a face, a thought, a swinging dream
perched on a stile--;
I would have liked (so vile we are!) to have taught you tears
But most to have made you smile.
To-day is not enough or yesterday: God sees it all--
Your length on sunny lawns, the wakeful rainy nights--; tell me--;
(how vain to ask), but it is not a question--just a call--;
Show me then, only your notched inches climbing up the garden wall,
I like you best when you are small.

Is this a stupid thing to say

Not having spent with you one day?
No matter; I shall never touch your hair
Or hear the little tick behind your breast,
And as a flying bird
Brushes the branches where it may not rest
I have brushed your hand and heard
The child in you: I like that best
So small, so dark, so sweet; and were you also then too grave and wise?
 Always I think. Then put your far off little hand in mine;--
Oh! let it rest;
I will not stare into the early world beyond the opening eyes,
Or vex or scare what I love best.
But I want your life before mine bleeds away--
Here--not in heavenly hereafters--soon,--
I want your smile this very afternoon,
(The last of all my vices, pleasant people used to say,
I wanted and I sometimes got--the Moon!)

You know, at dusk, the last birds cry,

And round the house the flap of the bats low flight,
Trees that go black against the sky
And then--how soon the night!

No shadow of you on any bright road again,

And at the darkening end of this--what voice? whose kiss? As if youd say!
It is not I who have walked with you, it will not be I who take away
Peace, peace, my little handful of the gleaners grain
From your reaped fields at the shut of day.

Peace! Would you not rather die

Reeling,--with all the cannons at your ear?
So, at least, would I,
And I may not be here
To-night, to-morrow morning or next year.
Still I will let you keep your life a little while,
See dear?
I have made you smile.

EXPLICATION:

SPEAKER: The first stanza acts to introduce the main

The speaker is directly involved in, even
narrating, this poem. The speaker is in first
person voice, speaking to an unnamed woman
of whom did not initially smile at the speaker.
The poems occasion is a conversation from
one person who loves the woman but does so
casually enough that it can be forgotten in a
day and amounts to nothing.
characters of this poem. There is the first
person I who is known to make other
women smile. There is also the woman, with
whom the speaker stopped and was
unsuccessful at charming. The first stanza acts
to introduce the speakers intentions, yet to
do this momentous task of winning a smile,
and the last line of the poem, I have made
you smile indicates that the speaker was
successful in this endeavor.

PARAPHRASE: The first stanza, the introduction and setup,

A person and a woman crossed paths on their establishes the connection made between the
way to the ocean. They stopped and spent
some time together before parting; however,
the person, who is a charmer, did not succeed
in charming the woman. This pitfall is
accentuated by the person discussing how
they had fallen in love with this disinterested
woman, wanting everything about her but not
so passionate as to force it. The person uses
this love, and the impermanence of the
moment of life, as encouragement for the
woman to smile. The person eventually
succeeds.
FORM:
This is a lengthy, 57 line poem, with no
steady line count per stanza. The poem can be
best classified as an ode.
two characters when they turned and stopped
for half an hour. The next few stanzas are the
speaker declaring how much they feel for this
woman, the entire world that lies behind the
strangeness of [her] eyes, and continues on
about how no matter how much they want it,
they will never get it, and perhaps this is a
stupid thing to say/ Not having spent with
[her] one day? The speaker mentions that
they like [her] best when [she] is small,
meaning that they love the childlike wonder
behind the womans hard facade. This
continues on as they good naturedly tease her
sternness, then stop themself from continuing
lest they actually bother her. This nagging
continues on, pointing out how quickly their
time together will end by how soon the
night comes. Theyll forget each other, and
smile is not a lot to ask. Still the speaker
attempts at seriousness by remarking how
they would want their death exciting, and that
theymay not be here/ To-night, to-morrow
morning or next year, then finally letting the
woman go and halting their revelry and desire
for her, to which the woman smiles.
The poem is extraordinarily colloquial,
providing exposition by speech and
hindsight alone. The spaces between each
stanza act as a pause, a changing from one
line of thinking to another, giving the piece a
flighty feel. The lineation of the lines is
irregular as well, the lines farthest to the left
more factual and calm, and those farther to the
right more emotional and impulsive, the
combination of which portraying a sense of
emotional conflict, though the struggle is not
life-shattering. Towards the end of the poem,
most lines are indented towards the right,
exemplifying the quickness of the climax that
leads to the cherished smile. Given the
inconsistency of the lines, there is no
distinguishable meter. However, it does
possess a rhyme scheme, though
unconventional. The speaker is addressing a
woman and the emotions they feel for her in

FIGURATIVE ELEMENTS:
The poets use of imagery evokes a vivid
image of the beauty and whimsy of which the
speaker views the woman. The poets diction
is also indicative of the briefness of this
encounter and the levity of the relationship,
despite the speakers infatuation. The diction
additionally serves to develop the wanting
nature of the speaker, which adds to the
lightheartedness.
TONE:
The tone of this poem is very playful,
reflecting the lack of seriousness in the
relationship between the woman and the
speaker. However, this lightness highlights
how noncommittal love can be in modern
times.
depth. The poem also has considerable length
and loose, free form structure, absolving it
from fixed form or lyric classification.
The entirety of the poem takes place on a road
near the sea, a sunny place in general
assumption. But the real imagery is used when
the speaker beseeches the woman about how
much they love her. There may be nothing
vibrant, yet inside her there still is on brown
fields...A haunting purple bloom. The stark
contrast creates a sharp, provocative image for
the reader to delve into. Such intense images
continue, the speakers imagination about how
the woman once was, young, and through
August fields - still a muted image, but
impactful nonetheless, as the woman has
impacted the speaker. They want the woman
to show [them] then, only your notched
inches climbing up the garden wall,
indicating the depth of how much the speaker
wants to be involved with this woman. But
how soon the night! Their moment together
is laughably impermanent, and despite the
cheerful vices of the speaker, they want
only a little smile, something near worthless,
before the two of them forget each other. So
the speaker wanted and...sometimes got--the
Moon!, their continued jokes interjecting
between the heavy declarations of infatuation
numb the words of the heavy meaning.
The poem begins sweetly, the two of them
passing by for just a moment, yet such a deep
connection made. However, it can be assumed
that its one-sided, given that the woman did
not smile. The poem continues on to sweet,
though with a hint of longing. The speaker
sees something special, yet knows they cannot
have it. The speaker acknowledges their
foolishness throughout the poem, adding a
hint of gaiety to the exchange as they mock
themselves. Anything serious attempted by
the speaker, for example noting how they may
not be alive anymore very soon, is all done in
petty just, simply for the little handful of the

TITLE:
The title acts only to set the scene for the
events of the poem.
THEME:
This poem indirectly discusses the
development of love from a heavy, life-
changing matter to an easy, whimsical
attraction. The love is not expected to be
returned, nor is it meant to be used as means
to influence the freedom of the womans, or
any lovers, choice; instead is an emotional
experience that can be felt and then discarded.
gleaners grain that the smile is worth from
the woman. It all holds this hint of light
hearted, accepted heartbreak that will be
quickly forgotten, any woe from the encounter
so minimal and silly it shant make a
noticeable difference on their lives.
The Road to the Sea evokes a breezy, sunny
image of an afternoon by the seaside. This is a
light setting. However, it also creates a feeling
of impermanence; the sea is often a temporary
vacation spot rather than a place for life long
commitment. That, as well as the fact that
they were both traveling to their respective
destinations, assigns the exchange as
something fleeting.