Leeroy & Shayne & Jade First Love John Clare

Background of the Author John Clare was a poor agricultural laborer born in England, He was discovered for his talent in writing poems and he spent the rest of his life writing powerful, natural poems. The poem “First Love” was written by John Clare about his first love, Mary Joyce. Mary Joyce was the daughter of a wealthy farmer, however he did not allow John to see Mary. John Clare eventually married to another young woman in But soon stress and depression overtook John Clare and he was admitted to a mental asylum in He had become delusional, and imagined himself to have married Mary Joyce. John Clare spent the rest of his life in the mental asylum and eventually died in 1864.

First Love I ne’er was struck before that hour With love so sudden and so sweet, Her face it bloomed like a sweet flower And stole my heart away complete. My face turned pale as deadly pale. My legs refused to walk away, And when she looked, what could I ail? My life and all seemed turned to clay. And then my blood rushed to my face And took my eyesight quite away, The trees and bushes round the place Seemed midnight at noonday. I could not see a single thing, Words from my eyes did start – They spoke as chords do from the string, And blood burnt round my heart. Are flowers the winter’s choice? Is love’s bed always snow? She seemed to hear my silent voice, Not love’s appeals to know. I never saw so sweet a face As that I stood before. My heart has left its dwelling-place And can return no more.

Summary of the poem First Love refers to John Clare’s first love and how he didn’t manage to stay with that love. He expresses how tragic he had felt about love; the first love that had no future. He also describes the painful experience he had when he mentions words such as “blood” which symbolizes the agony and all the suffering he went through without his one true love. This poem can be seen to be an irregular poem as it starts off with a happy feeling of love. However, as the poem progresses, it gets blood-stained with sorrow and pain since he cannot be with her.

Literary devices & its significance “Many forms of figurative language such as metaphors, personifications and hyperboles were used to show the negative impacts of love throughout the poem. ‘Face turned pale a deadly pale” and “stole my heart away” show that Love shocked him as if he was a dead ghost and as if life was taken away from him. He can no longer live. Love has scared Clare and he cannot act normal anymore.

“Life and all seemed turned to clay” and “took my eyesight quite away” are all negative and depressing too. It is as if love has modeled him like clay and destroyed Clare and he cannot see anymore. Clare is not only “blinded by love”, but also very affected by it too. These pieces of imagery show that the impacts on Clare were enormous and radical, leaving him changed for eternity, shown by the last line “and can return no more”.

First Love compared with The Voice Hardy makes use of various figurative devices to reflect his feelings. Stanza one and two talk about “our fair days”. He uses calm and happy phrases to show their period of love. The Woman’s “air-blue gown” has connotations with summer and the happiness it brings.While, stanza three describes the complete opposite.

“breeze”, “wet mead” and falling leaves all resemble an autumn environment. It creates a negative tone and it is as if Hardy is “dying” along with the plants and life of nature. His soul is distressed by the happy memories they had together. ‘And blood burnt round my heart.’ This gives us a feeling that his heart is feeling very warm due to this new feeling. He describes how his heart will never go back to the same way after meeting her.

First Love compared with SONNET 43 The poem "First love" looks at the emotions evolving around sudden love while "Sonnet 43" focuses on the devotion and maturity of a more experienced lover.

Elizabeth B Browning and Robert Browning

In "First love", the narrator views love as something physical, describing all the effects love has on his body, such as "His [my] legs [that] refused to walk away", "Took his [my]eyesight quite away" and turned his face a "deadly pale". The descriptions express the changes that occur in a young man and how first love can lead to a confusing yet strong passionate desire.

However, in "Sonnet 43", the narrator views love as something that has to be build from a trusting friendship; for her, love is something spiritual, even religious. "I love thee to the level of every day's/most quiet need, by sun and candlelight." Her feelings are deeper and controllably obsessive. "First love" is a romantic love that is inspired by a brief visual attraction rather than the love that grows as a result of friendship and familiarity.

First Love compared with MARRYSONG First Love and Marrysong justify the power of love and its eternality. In First Love there is a sense of time striking at one hour, as if pointing to him that this time of his life has come. Love is described ironic, however joyful and unexpected.

In Marrysong, a mention of time, “year after year,” implies that time goes on; yet no matter what happens by then, it is still his time to fall in love for her. Although both poems experience diverse phases of love, both Marrysong and First Love express love as an influential force. Both narrators are greatly affected by their lovers, emotionally, and distressed by their lack of understanding.

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