'Porphyria's Lover'

Robert Browning wrote this dramatic monologue in the first person as well as it also been written using the lambic tetrameter device.

The poem gives many different responses on why the male character has this powerful obsession over his lover. Why did he want to kill her? Why does he want to keep her pure? Why does he not feel guilty after killing her? These are some of the questions that I try to work out whilst reading the poem. However, when trying to answer these questions I discover new questions.

From reading the first line you are automatically forced to discover the rest of the poem due to using the pathetic fallacy effect. Describing the weather gives the reader an image of how the setting and how the poem may continue. Browning then introduces ‘Porphyria’s Lover’, she is introduces as a very strong women, very independent and in a sense dominant. However, her dominances slowly starts to weaken as ‘Porphyria’ wants to be the one in control and from this the poem explains his love for her and what he does to keep her pure. In a sense, ‘Porphyria’ may be doing this because it was the only way he could have her to himself and this is shown by line 9 and 17. Line 9 shows that ‘Porphyria’ lives in a cottage however, his lover could be suggested to be upper class due to her being pale and white; ‘her smooth white shoulder bare’.

The whole poem gives a sense that ‘Porphyria’ is overwhelmed with what is happening and even though she is scared to admit that she loves him she still lets him love her in the beautiful way he does. Using ‘and’ over and over again gives the effect that ‘Porphyria’ will never know how she actually feels towards him. Towards the end of the poem, she starts to realise that what ‘Porphyria’ is doing and does not struggle to save herself from it.

Overall, I think this poem is pretty but in a very deep way. It describes his feelings for her and how he would do anything just to be with her. The thought and narrative change within the poem expresses emotion to powerful for one to keep to themselves and after everything has he done, he still doesn’t feel guilty or emotionless to the murder of love he caused.

THE WASP FACTORY

MY MUM HAS ORDERED ME THIS BOOK! 

I ACTUALLY CAN'T WAIT TO READ IT! 

WOO.

''When I woke up the knife was still there"

When first reading this short story there was many different perspectives, and everyone in our class had their own meaning of the short story and how it came across. The first thing I picked up on when Don read the story out loud to all of us, was the narrative voice and how it caused a certain atmosphere. Using 'I' instead of 'them' makes the extract more personal to the reader. In a way, it let's the reader be that character and choose how the story will end, it gives them a chance to decide why the knife was there in the first place and whether the connotations were good or not. At the beginning, many of our class thought the knife connoted something bad e.g. a murder had happened. However, some people also thought the knife could be a metaphor or represent something good, or that someone. I came to the conclusion that there was no right or wrong answer to this short story and depending on how the story reaches out to you, depends on what your perspective would be.

The Jewel of St Petersburg

"As the countess drifted from the room with a rustle of her silk skirts, there was an unmistakable look of triumph in her cool blue eyes."

The extract that I took from 'The Jewel of St Peterburg' was written by Kate Furnivall.
The novel is set in 1910 in Russia, when young Valentina Ivanova charms St Petersburg's aristocracy where her classic Russian beauty and her talent as a pianist.

The novel comes with a sense of love and courage, revenge and heartache in the last days of the Romanov Empire.