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Afternoons by Philip Larkin

            Afternoons is a poem by Philip Larkin that presents time as a destructive force. The poem depicts young mothers in the 50s at a park with their children and goes on to explore the inevitability of change and the passing of youth. He presents the lives of the mothers in the poem to seem melancholy and unfulfilled although we are unsure if this is how they truly feel as he only observes externally and does not consider their feelings. The poet shows time as a destructive force through showing how they are trapped into their daily routines, using the seasons as an extended metaphor and showing how the children in the poem will inevitably follow their mothers example.
             Philip Larkin develops the idea of time as a destructive force through the extended metaphor about the seasons. The poem is set at the end of summer where it is slowly transitioning into autumn. The beginning line 'summer is fading' introduces the symbolic use of time in the poem. Seasons are used in the poem to symbolism certain stages in life. In autumn, most life starts to fade away and diminish and this is the point of their lives in which the mothers are currently at. The bright excitement and summer of their youth has turned into the dull, routine of motherhood symbolizing autumn. The use of the word 'fading' is effective as it creates a negative tone of disappointment and sadness. It gives the image that the mothers are slowly disappearing as they progress on in their life towards their imminent, unavoidable ageing process and mortality. The repeated seasonal imagery relates to the theme as it shows time has destroyed their youth as they prematurely were launched into the responsibility of adulthood.
             The poet effectively presents time as a destructive force by showing how the mothers are trapped into their daily routines. The poet presents their lives as dull, repetitive and empty, which is common to a young women housewife in the 1950s.


Essays Related to Afternoons by Philip Larkin

1. Poems by Philip Larkin

Philip Larkin Larkin goes from general to specific as he takes a momentary experience of observing dancers and explores the meanings of being an individual that is detached yet has some sort of connection that makes him similar with others. ... In the poem, "Ambulances," Larkin speaks of death and how it is inevitable to all. ... However, Larkin contrasts this idea of death as being permanent and blank by characterizing the "poor soul." ... In this poem specifically, Larkin puts into words his perception of death as something to be feared of. In both poem, Larkin uses a momentary obser...

  • Word Count: 1545
  • Approx Pages: 6

2. Larkin: Response to Desire

A critic has said that 'A theme which dominates Larkin's poetry is that desire is ultimately unobtainable' Discuss two or three of Larkin's poems in the context of this statement. In your answer you should consider: - The various forms of desire that Philip Larkin explores - The conclusions that he draws. ... This suggests that Larkin feels a strong sense of content in the natural world. ... The life that Larkin must experience is the 'cheap suits' of modern society. ... Larkin uses the word 'smiling' to portray this revelation. ...

  • Word Count: 2501
  • Approx Pages: 10

3. Is Philip Larkin a Precise Observer of Daily Life?

"Philip Larkin is the precise observer of daily life and class distinctions, the recorder of the ordinary reaching beyond observation." Although I agree that Philip Larkin was on "observer of daily life and class distinctions", I am not sure about how precise his observations actually were. Philip Larkin was highly aware of the world surrounding him. ... In the first verse, Larkin begins his train journey. ... I believe that Larkin was a commitment phobic. ...

  • Word Count: 1185
  • Approx Pages: 5

4. The Use of Allusion in Poetry

Both "A Study of Reading Habits," by Philip Larkin and "Constantly Risking Absurdity," by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, employ allusion, however in "A Study of Reading Habits" Larkin alludes with a sense of irony while in "Constantly Risking Absurdity," the poet does not. In "A Study of Reading Habits," Philip Larkin uses an allusion to cheap fiction throughout the poem in order to draw the contrast between the speaker's adolescence and adulthood, illustrating how over time the speaker could no longer find escape in fiction as it soon becomes his reality...

  • Word Count: 794
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: Graduate

5. Larkin

Andrew Motion has claimed Larkin's poems " explore the gulf between deception and clear-sightedness, illusion and reality, and solitude and sociability- Larkin employs a range of linguistic and literary techniques to enhance continuing battle between illusion and reality, and in looking at "Sunny Prestatyn" and "Essential Beauty", Larkin also focuses on his discontent with modernism. ... These patent foods inflate the idea of value and convey a world of a mass culture that is consumerist; exactly the type which Larkin despised. ... Larkin believed that in order for people to understa...

  • Word Count: 414
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Literature

By examining the literature itself, the readers, and the writers, one can note the differences and similarities in the two types of literature In the poem, "A Study of Reading Habits," Philip Larkin talks of being unhappy both in his home and at school. ... In his adolescent years, Larkin talks of wearing one inch glasses. ...

  • Word Count: 496
  • Approx Pages: 2
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

7. Work Experience

"Toads" by Philip Larkin is a poem in which the writer deals with the negative aspects of work. ... Based on only a week's work experience, I have to disagree with Larkin's view of the world of work. ...

  • Word Count: 886
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

8. With Reference to Three Poems Studied So Far Discuss How Lar

Larkin uses more harsh language, tuberous cock and balls'. ... In this last line Larkin purposely slows it down for emphasis. ... Larkin presents the poem in a very reminiscent tone. In the first stanza Larkin describes the love songs. ... Larkin goes on to mention that She found them, looking for something else'. ...

  • Word Count: 1300
  • Approx Pages: 5
  • Grade Level: High School

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