Compare the ways in which the poets present ideas about relationships in "Climbing my grandfather" by Andrew Waterhouse and "Letters from Yorkshire" by Maura Dooley.
In both poems, relationships are presented as strong across both distance and time.
In this essay I will be comparing the poems "climbing my grandfather" by Andrew Waterhouse and "Letters from Yorkshire" by Maura Dooley. Both poems explore the different ideas in relationships and I will be pulling them apart to find the main but shared message between them both. There are many connotations within the poem so there will be a mix of views in this essay so I can further explore any hidden ideas. The poems both centre around a non romantic relationship, which shows that romance is not always a key factor to a relationship and perhaps relationships with out romance (such as friendships, sibling relationships, relationships with parents) are much harder to deal with and be apart of.
In "Climbing my grandfather" Waterhouse presents the idea of nostalgia being a negative and dangerous feeling to have, when he writes the line "Not looking down, for climbing has its dangers". The action of "climbing" exposes the connotation of memories being a struggle to find or difficult to handle after someone you love has died. Whereas the word "danger" suggests that memories could be damaging to the voice, remembering his grandfather could lead to him perhaps having an emotional breakdown and losing control of his life. Moreover in the poem "Letters from Yorkshire" Dooley presents the idea of long distance relationships leaving a feeling of wanting more or missing out on something. She does this when she writes "Still it's you who sends me a word of that other world" the phrase "other world" implies that the two people live in such different places, the voice is longing to be in this "other world". However the person she wants to be with doesn't feel quite the same about where she is, there is no mention of him wanting to go with her. This could mean that maybe he doesn't approve of what she has done with her life or where she lives. The reader may see this as a weakness in a relationship because there is such negativity in both poems, but it could be a strength. The wanting to be with another person so bad that a negative feeling is created could be a sign of how strong the love in that relationship is. Also the emotional struggle of remembering a loved one could be emphasising how strong the relationship is over time that the voice is still grieving for his grandfather.
Waterhouse's poem is an extended metaphor. He uses the amount of time it takes to climb mountain to show that time doesn't effect a relationship negatively. The phrase "glassy ridge of a scar" highlights healing, it could even be a further metaphor for the voice healing from his grandfathers death. However the line "(soft and white at this altitude)" could be imagery for his dead body. Plus as the line is written in brackets it's shows its extra information, which gives of the idea that even thought he feels that time doesn't change his relationship with his grandfather it does because as time increases memories begin to fade (this adds on to the idea of nostalgia being a scary feeling, to remember what you thought you had lost.) Furthermore Dooley also uses metaphors to suggest that distance doesn't effect a relationship either, she shows this with the line "pouring air and light into an envelop" this indicates that although she knows this isn't rational she feels like his words release something positive, they erupt a feeling of being close to one another eventhough they are far apart. Yet this could also have a negative connotation as perhaps maybe the voice is sucking all of the "air and light" out of the relationship with her being so far away. The reader may feel that distance does effect how strong a relationship is. Although both time and distance in a relationship can be seen as negative both poets disagree and use metaphors to explain how it can bring happiness and healing to a relationship.
Both poets use enjambment in their poems to convey storytelling and even create the idea of a fantasy relationship. Dooley writes "seeing the season ... turning" the use of enjambment depicts the changing of the seasons as if the year is continuing. The change in season could also mean the change in the two people, they are evolving different qualities. Becoming new people but still their relationship is as strong as ever even with the distance. This idea of a long distance relationship could be seen as a fantasy by the reader as from their own experience many know these kinds of relationships don't work. The use of enjambment only encourages this idea of the relationship not really being as strong as first perceived, the phrase "icy miles" add on to the idea of the voice beginning to feel cold and lonely because of the distance. Additionally Waterhouse also uses enjambment to creat the idea of the poem being a story, he uses a first person narrative to hint at his journey up the mountain when he writes " Dusty and cracked;... an easy scramble onto his trousers" the continuation of the line illustrates the continuous movement up the mountain, also the fact that he is using a great mountain to depict his grandfather tells us what sort of man he was. He may have been a man of honour a hero in the voices eyes which links to the theme of childhood in the poem instead of scaling his grandfather he has moved onto bigger things. The use of enjambment in both poems creates the sense of a story being told and because the tone in both poems is so causal/conversational the reader feels more comfortable and relaxed whilst reading. They can relate the characters in the poems to people in their lives.
In conclusion I believe that the main message in both poems is that time and distance does not effect a relationship. Although this theme is the most present, there is also hints of the opposing side which leaves me questioning if this is the main message or if in fact the message is that the idea of time and distance not being a problem in a relationship is only a fantasy. The two will always create a struggle in a relationship but it's the strength of character and communication that really makes a relationship strong.
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