OCR A2 English Literature 2013

Basically, just how the first half of the play oscillates between Rome
And Egypt scene by scene, mirroring the division in Anthony- the scenes are pretty lengthy. Act 3 scene 4 when Anthony and Octavia are in Athens is the turning point of the play. It's the midpoint of the action, and Athens is also midway between Rome and Egypt- it's significance is summed up by Octavia 'no midway twixt these extremes at all'. From here, the scenes become more condensed, mirroring Caesar's advancement, and the tension builds up as Anthony and Cleo's deaths approach- that's pretty much all I have!


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I thought this exam was today at 2 rather than tomorrow at 2 i'm so glad i have another day to revise...

does anyone have any predictions for what character they might ask us about for king lear? I really hope the fool *_*

HI! your points are really good!
I'm finding it very difficult to compare between both the texts and would be eternally grateful if you can post a few more points for comparisons!

x

Thanks
I have studied 6 main poems so I will give you the points I have found for each.
The Garden: There is a contrast here between the purity of the garden and the corruption of Venice, so you can talk about how the speaker finds 'Innocence' and 'Quiet' in the garden, while Venice is the exact opposite, full of corrupt, Machiavellian characters and a preoccupation with material posessions.
On A Drop of Dew:
The drop of dew pines to be delivered back to heaven, where it is pure, from the corrupt earth which it has descended to. It rejects the 'purple flower', which parallels to Celia's rejection of Volpone's temptations - "Thy baths shall be the juice of July flowers" - and Celia, like the soul, pines and appeals to God to be delivered from Volpone's chamber and the corruption which surrounds her. Both are eventually delivered from the corruption and thus rewarded for their faith, while Volpone is ruined as a result of his lust - thus showing the repercussions of yielding to temptation.
Damon The Mower:
The Mower speaks of heat as a metaphor for his love for Juliana, saying it burns him and the fields both. Volpone, after seeing Celia, speaks of Cupid shooting into him like a flame, and burning him. Thus both characters are in pain as a result of their burning passion for a woman. Both characters, furthermore, are driven mad by this. Volpone is so obsessed with his lust for Celia that he no longer cares about his money, and ends up being ruined as a result, and Damon is so preoccupied by his unrequited love for Juliana that he cuts himself down with his own scythe and is ruined by his sorrow - "the mower mown". You could also talk about misogyny - how Celia is presented as typically virtuous, while Juliana is presented as an Eve character who ruins Damon (Adam) and separates him from his garden (Eden).
The Mower's Song:
Similar points to the above - Volpone is ruined by Celia and The Mower is ruined by Juliana. You can talk about setting here - Volpone is already corrupt, his lust for Celia corrupts him further, and he is in a corrupt setting (Venice). By contrast, the mower starts out as pure and naive, and at one with nature - "My mind was once the true survey/Of all these meadows fresh and gay" - and he is corrupted by Juliana and his lust for her, and his relationship with nature and his meadows is ruined - again there is a comparison here to the Garden of Eden.
A Picture of Little TC in a Prospect of Flowers:
TC is a virtuous, pure character, so there is an obvious comparison to Celia. They both fight against lust - Celia against Volpone's lust and TC against 'Wanton Love' with their chastity - and both are victorious. Again you can talk about setting - TC is in a garden, an appropriate setting for her purity, while Celia is out of place in Venice, a city which is full of corruption. Both Celia and TC are also very beautiful, so there is an association of purity with beauty.
To His Coy Mistress:
This, in my opinion, is the best to compare to Volpone (fingers crossed I get an essay title that works so I can write about this!). Volpone presents a song to Celia while attempting to seduce her, which parallels with this poem and follows the same CARPE DIEM tradition. Both talk of Time, and its passing, and use this as an argument that their respective mistresses should yield to their seduction - "Time's winged chariot" and "Time will not be ours forever". Volpone, however, spends a long time trying to seduce Celia, which eventually leads to him failing, while To His Coy Mistress does not beat around the bush, so to speak, and is very fast-paced to try and persuade the mistress as quickly as possible.

Thank You SOOOO MUCH!! your a life saver ! I'm sure you'll do exceptionally well in your exam!

That is a really good point - do you have any references to how the play was performed/ presented to the audience as my teacher told me yesterday and I have nothing!

You can talk about how it would have been a boy in the part of Cleopatra, and refer to the quote "Some squeaking Cleopatra boy my greatness". My teacher made the point that this was one of three tragedies with strong female characters which Shakespeare wrote in a row, (Macbeth and Coriolanus beint the other two), so he may have had a particularly skilled boy actor in his troupe of actors at the time, who could have manage to portray such strong female roles.

I'm really struggling to find critics for Blakes Songs of Innocence and of Experience... I've got a few from Northrop Frye but thats all!! Anyone doing this too have any to share??

I'm really struggling to find critics for Blakes Songs of Innocence and of Experience... I've got a few from Northrop Frye but thats all!! Anyone doing this too have any to share??

I do I've taken pictures of it because it's handwritten (I hope my writing is legible hahah) and I only got 26 out of 30 because I didn't include enough contextual knowledge to satisfy A04. The question was about the effects of emotion on the characters' decisions in the play.

Margaret Bottrall: “Their apparent simplicity has been their chief passport to popularity” “They repay pondering, investigation and analysis”
When Blake died in 1827, obituaries in papers and magazines described him as a designer and illustrator... NOT a poet.
Garth Wilkinson was the first to put the songs onto the market in 1839. It was done so anonymously.
H.G. Hewlett called Blake an “imperfect genius” while Margaret Bottrall thought he was an “isolated dreamer.” M.H. Abrams considered him a “phoenix among poets”
In an essay, David V. Erdman described the songs as “a poets interpretation of the history of his own time.
Northorp Frye said of Experience; “Contempt and Horror have never been more clearly spoken in English poetry”
Rossetti found some of his poems to be “cryptic”
Bottrall commented that “What you find in Blake depends largely on what you expect to find”
Hazard Adams wrote that “[They] evoke a vast world of particulars, shading and shifting into one another”
Hazlitt described the songs as “beautiful”
Coleridge named him a “genius” but found himself being “perplexed” by some poems, such as ‘The Blossom’ and ‘A Little Girl Lost’
Caroline Bowles said of Blake, “Mad though he might be, he was gifted.”
James Thomson said “Blake was always poor in world’s wealth, always rich in spiritual wealth”
T.S. Eliot said that Blake’s philosophy “resembles an ingeneous piece of home-made furniture”
Catherine (His wife) said “I have very little of Mr. Blake’s company; he is always in paradise”

Wordsworth referred to him as an “unfortunate lunatic”

A. Gilchrist called him a “divine child” “whose playthings were the sun, moon, the stars, the heavens and the earth.”

Thank you!
so the same boy played Cleopatra and Lady Macbeth i am guessing?
Why did they use boys to play them?

for king lear I have character essay plans on edmund/lear/the fool/women .... do you think these are enough? Can they really ask us a question on kent/edgar....or Gloucester or albany?

Cannot believe the exam is tomorrow - Sooo nervous because I need an A and cannot afford to muck up tips tips tips pleeaasse!