Love Poetry

Love poems like love itself can be light hearted,

heavy hearted or passionate compare three poems showing

how relationships can be presented

in different ways. is a modern poem written by Martyn Lowery. The poem is a dialogue of and argument between two lovers. It is written in alternative statements, giving the mans point of view first and the woman´s second. The man in the relationship believes that whatever that has happened can be mended or it will fade, but the woman thinks that it has ruined their whole relationship and cannot be swayed.

The poem shows different attitudes towards something that has happened between two partners. They disagree about the effect of something that has damaged their relationship. In the first stanza he compares the rift in their relationship to a wound. The use of the noun implies that something painful has occurred. The use of alliteration ‘skin slowly´, give the impression that they will need time and patience. On the opposite side of the page we have the woman´s honest and practical viewpoint. She believes that the relationship is permanently damages. On the surface it may appear all right but underneath there will always be pain and resentment ‘there is always a scar, a permanent reminder´ she believes that one never truly recovers. The feelings of love have changed.

Once again the poet has used an extended metaphor in the following stanza ‘observe the scab of the scald´. The use of alliteration, the repetition of the ‘s´ sound suggests that angry words have left them scared. He believes that they can bury the past, start again, hurt will be forgotten. She disagrees, she feels that resentment will remain; one can forgive, but never forget.

In the next stanza he states that they are incomplete without each other. ‘When you cut you hair, you feel different, and somehow incomplete´. His life is empty without her and they should be reunited and enjoy the fulfilling relationship they had experienced. She disagrees and insists although she cut her hair by the time it grows again it will have changed ‘During that time changes must occur, the style will be different´.

He finally compares the relationship to a raging storm. Here he uses nature imagery. Once the storm is over there is peace and tranquility this suggests even after all their quarrels there can be reconciliation ‘the storm is frightening, but it will son be gone´ everything passes, memories fade ‘the breech in us can be mended´.

She echoes his use of nature imagery but feels that the relationship is permanently damaged she has a heart ‘that can never be repaired´ their love is dead.

The poem almost sounds like an argument or a debate of different points of views. Caesura and parenthesis is used to show the thought process. He is trying to convince her, but she is not swayed. The poem appeals to our senses. Effective imagery is used to communicate the hurt, pain and suffering felt in the relationship.

‘I wanna be yours´ is another modern poem written by John Cooper Clark. The person in this poem expresses his love in a series of everyday images. It is written in the form of a rap he uses colloquial speech; there are no capital letters in the title. The poem has no punctuation. The rhythm is established with the repetition of the words ‘let me be´ and each stanza ends with ‘I wanna be yours´. The poet uses everyday objects to express his feelings and to show how much he adores her. We live in a materialistic society; it is a poem of our time.

In the first two lines he explains that he wishes to protect her from harm ‘let me be your vacuum cleaner, breathing in you dust´ This use of alliteration (repetition of the ‘c´ sound) gives a feeling of comfort. He implies that he is dependable and reliable ‘let me be your ford cortina, I will never rust´. He insists that he will be there forever. He tells her that he will give her love, affection and warmth when she is depressed. He will fill her life with passion ‘if you like your coffee hot, let me be your coffee pot´. He uses rhyming for emphasis. He will allow her to have total control ‘you call the shots´.

In the second stanza he continues to express how he wishes to be in her life. He wants to protect her from harsh weather and harsh words. ‘Let me be your raincoat, for those frequent rainy days´. He wants to provide her romance and escapism. ‘Let me be your dreamboat, when you want to sail away´. A rhyming couplet is used to show he is willing to provide her with security. ‘Let me be your teddy bear, take me with you any where´. No matter how much attention she needs he will provide it ‘I don´t care, I wanna be yours´

In the final stanza the poet says his love is boundless and he has lots of energy. ‘Let me be your electric heater, I will not run out´. He will provide her with stability and security. ‘Let me be your setting lotion, hold your hair in deep devotion´ he expresses the depth of his emotion with the use of alliteration ‘Deep as the deep Atlantic Ocean that how deep is my emotion deep deep deep deep de deep deep´ the repetition of the ‘d´ sound shows that his love is sincere and he wants commitment.

At the end of the poem we become aware that he is in a relationship but is unhappy. The use of the possessive pronoun ‘hers´ implies that he feels stifled. He wants to enter a new relationship ‘I don´t wanna be hers, I wanna be yours´.

‘The beggar woman´ was written by William King. The poem is pre 20th century. The poem is narrative and tells a story, it is written in heroic couplets. A gentle man went hunting, but had other thoughts on his mind. He decided to lure the beggar woman into the forest in order to seduce her. The beggar woman went willingly but it becomes obvious from their conversation that she has an illegitimate child tied to her back. We presume that the gentleman is his father and he has taken to responsibility for the ‘bastard´ child.

He suggests that they make love but the beggar woman fears for the child´s safety. The gentleman ‘desperate´ to seduce the poor woman offers to have the child tied to his back, this had obviously been the beggar woman´s plan. She had out witted him and ran off leaving him with the burden and responsibility.

At the beginning of the poem the gentleman has set off to go hunting but changes his mind and decides to ‘hunt down´ and seduce the beggar woman. ‘A gentleman in hunting rode astray, more out of choice, than that he lost his way.´

The beggar woman is described sympathetically. ‘A beggar by trade, yet not so mean, But that her cheeks were fresh and linen clean´. She was a respectable woman; archaic language is used when he propositions her. ‘Mistress quoth he and if we two should retire a little way into the woods´. The beggar woman agreed. ‘She need not courtship to be kind´. It was difficult for her to keep up because she had a baby on her back. This ‘hinders´ her progress. Again she is favorable described.

The gentleman pressurizes her to expose herself but she is afraid and suggests that they retire to a more private place. She makes an excuse when asked to sit ‘sitting´s not usually in my trade´.

Here the poem takes the from of a dialogue. Desperate for satisfaction the gentleman suggests that the woman should untie the child and lay it on the ground. She protests and says the child will cry and draw attention to them; this will stain the gentleman´s honor.

He suggest that child be strapped his back, the woman I quick to untie the child and passes over the burden. ‘With speed incredible to work she goes, and from her shoulder soon the burden throws´. She ties the sheet around him ‘like a cross´ this effective simile implying, like Jesus he will carry the sins of the world on his back.

The beggar woman out wits the gentleman she runs off and leaves him with the responsibility of the illegitimate child, he will pay for his pleasure. This is a poem about lust, not love.