Lesson 6 Journal Entry # 9 of 13

Journal Exercise 6.4B: Responding to Literature

Modern British Poetry

Lesson 6 Journal Entry # 10 of 13

Journal Exercise 6.5A: Responding to Literature

The poem was written in 1919, which is immediately after the First World War. I think that Yeats is, on one hand, enthusiastic about the end of the world and the coming of a new era. On the other hand, I think he is also a bit circumspect about what this new era is likely to bring about: more anarchy? The fact that the world has escaped the tragedy does not mean that it is over the hurdle yet: it can still spiral out of control, just like the hawk in the poem.

The second poem refers to the death of one's father, while the first has an ever presence of nostalgia throughout the writing. In both cases, many...
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