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In his poem ‘The Spring’, Thomas Carew explores, the relationship between love, joy, new life and the loss of love. Indeed, he does this through the representation of the changing seasons and the complex feelings of his persona.

Firstly, ‘The Spring’ opens by personifying the earth in the line ‘the earth hath lost/ her snow-white robes’ which evokes an image of the end of winter. The concept of loss and of it being ‘no more’ hints at a a sense of disappointment at its end, particularly as the weather is described with adjectives such as ‘icy cream’, ‘crystal lake’ and ‘silver stream’ which convey an almost romanticised and luxurious image which exists no longer. However, despite the use of nostalgic personification, such as ‘the frost candies the grass’, the phonology behind Carew’s description of winter is, in fact, harsh sounding, with the repetition of fricatives providing a cacophonic and unfavourable tone towards winter. This impliesthat winter is not overtly positive.

Moreover, a preference for spring is explored through the lines ‘warm sun thaw[ing] the benumbed earth’ and the ‘valleys, hills, woods in rich array welcom[ing] the coming of the long’d-for May’. The image of the sun thawing the ‘benumbed earth’ is almost maternal in its phrasing which, coupled with the line ‘makes it tender; gives a sacred birth’, suggests that the coming of spring is comforting and secure like a mother’s presence: there is something almost hallowed in the process.

Furthermore, the depiction of the animals in this poem, combined with its structure and form, allows Carew to emphasise the energy of new life and love as depicted through the changing of the seasons. More specifically, the ‘drowsy cuckoo’ or the ‘humble-bee’ depict how Carew is able to use pre-modifying adjectives to give favour to the new lease of life that spring brings to both the animals and the natural world. Indeed, the structure reinforces this as Carew’s use of rhyming couplets and iambic pentameter create a sense of harmony and security.

Correct answers

In his poem ‘The Spring’, Thomas Carew explores, the relationship between love, joy, new life and the loss of love. Indeed, he does this through the representation of the changing seasons and the complex feelings of his persona.

Firstly, ‘The Spring’ opens by personifying the earth in the line ‘the earth hath lost/ her snow-white robes’ which evokes an image of the end of winter. The concept of loss and of it being ‘no more’ hints at a a sense of disappointment at its end, particularly as the weather is described with adjectives such as ‘icy cream’, ‘crystal lake’ and ‘silver stream’ which convey an almost romanticised and luxurious image which exists no longer. However, despite the use of nostalgic personification, such as ‘the frost candies the grass’, the phonology behind Carew’s description of winter is, in fact, harsh sounding, with the repetition of fricatives providing a cacophonic and unfavourable tone towards winter. This implies that winter is not overtly positive.

Moreover, a preference for spring is explored through the lines ‘warm sun thaw[ing] the benumbed earth’ and the ‘valleys, hills, woods in rich array welcom[ing] the coming of the long’d-for May’. The image of the sun thawing the ‘benumbed earth’ is almost maternal in its phrasing which, coupled with the line ‘makes it tender; gives a sacred birth’, suggests that the coming of spring is comforting and secure like a mother’s presence: there is something almost hallowed in the process.

Furthermore, the depiction of the animals in this poem, combined with its structure and form, allows Carew to emphasise the energy of new life and love as depicted through the changing of the seasons. More specifically, the ‘drowsy cuckoo’ or the ‘humble-bee’ depict how Carew is able to use pre-modifying adjectives to give favour to the new lease of life that spring brings to both the animals and the natural world. Indeed, the structure reinforces this as Carew’s use of rhyming couplets and iambic pentameter create a sense of harmony and security.