Life and Women Bearing Women
Harwood’s poetry are valued texts because they explore challenging ideas of nostalgia and mortality. Discuss this statement in light of your understanding of the poetry of Gwen Harwood.
Gwen Harwood’s mournful laments Mother Who Gave Me Life and Father and Child explore the challenging ideas of nostalgia and mortality to provide valued texts.
Harwood’s elegy Mother Who Gave Me Life nostalgically explores the confronting concepts of the unavoidability of death and past bleak memories. Harwood explains explores the fragility e nature of life through the fabric motif symbolism; “fine threadbare linen” depicting symbolising the frailty image of her mother and the inevitability of her demise. Similarly, the reminiscent cosmic and iconic imagery depicts the futile effort to extend life “I prayed you would see live to see Halley’s Comet a second time.” Furthermore, the reference to Halley’s Comet informs the audience of the persona’s short-lived hope for human immortality, on to be brought back to the reality of death. In addition, the author speaks ofoutlines a cycle of death and the continuity of life, shown through repetition that is as perpetuated through motherhood shown through repetition; “I think of women bearing women” which utilises gender specific diction to highlight the significance of women as a . Thus, the cycle of women bearing women is shown as a symbol of life and continuity. Likewise, through cumulative listing, Harwood provides an insight into the human history of motherhood, noting that that it transcends all temporal restraints indicated through cumulative listing “your mother, and hers and beyond”, and its ability to never cease. Though Harwood constantly implies of her desire to be able to extend life she acknowledges that in reality death is inevitable through the use of elegiac language; “you left the world so”. Finally through elemental references and natural imagery, Motherhood is portrayed to be infinite and as the link between
Gwen Harwood’s mournful laments Mother Who Gave Me Life and Father and Child explore the challenging ideas of nostalgia and mortality to provide valued texts.
Harwood’s elegy Mother Who Gave Me Life nostalgically explores the confronting concepts of the unavoidability of death and past bleak memories. Harwood explains explores the fragility e nature of life through the fabric motif symbolism; “fine threadbare linen” depicting symbolising the frailty image of her mother and the inevitability of her demise. Similarly, the reminiscent cosmic and iconic imagery depicts the futile effort to extend life “I prayed you would see live to see Halley’s Comet a second time.” Furthermore, the reference to Halley’s Comet informs the audience of the persona’s short-lived hope for human immortality, on to be brought back to the reality of death. In addition, the author speaks ofoutlines a cycle of death and the continuity of life, shown through repetition that is as perpetuated through motherhood shown through repetition; “I think of women bearing women” which utilises gender specific diction to highlight the significance of women as a . Thus, the cycle of women bearing women is shown as a symbol of life and continuity. Likewise, through cumulative listing, Harwood provides an insight into the human history of motherhood, noting that that it transcends all temporal restraints indicated through cumulative listing “your mother, and hers and beyond”, and its ability to never cease. Though Harwood constantly implies of her desire to be able to extend life she acknowledges that in reality death is inevitable through the use of elegiac language; “you left the world so”. Finally through elemental references and natural imagery, Motherhood is portrayed to be infinite and as the link between