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Grace Markel

Ms. Mann

AP English Literature Block 2

22 November 2017

Modern Love Essay

Blazing lava, alive with heat and energy, bursts fresh from a volcano. Still aflame from

birth, the fiery substance trickles to the ground and comfortably settles. Over time, the lava

cools, hardening into a lifeless, stationary rock. With its heaviness, this stone is weighed down

completely; it is unrecognizable from the vivacious form of lava it once was. In George

Merediths poem, Modern Love, a couples troubled marriage is described to be stone-still

(7) nothing like the passionate, lively state of love that a marriage should be founded upon.

Meredith exhibits the rigid qualities of 1800s romance by labeling this relationship stone-like; in

his poem, the unhappy state of marriages is explored however, as divorce was not an option,

partners were helplessly stuck, like a stone, in their confining unions.

It is clear just how much pain is being experienced in the relationship of this poem;

silence is the couples only method of dealing with their fractured marriage. With the inclusion

of strong imagery, it is conveyed just how sorrowful this marriage is. The couples trembling

connection is physically shown with the husbands hands light quiver (2); additionally, the

distressed wifes strange low sobs (3) and muffled pulses (8) illustrate the dismal emotions

that define this relationship. Careful diction is chosen with these snippets of imagery, as auditory

adjectives such as low and muffled exemplify the couples preference of silence to cope with

their anguish. Of all vital human senses, muted sound plays an integral role in displaying the

overall lack of communication in the marriage. This quietness is further displayed through a
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metaphor, as the couple habitually drink[s] the pale drug of silence (10). The comparison of

absence of sound to a medicinal drug demonstrates how silence is the couples hopeless remedy-

of-choice to cure their crumbling relationship. Yet, the couples connection is destroyed by their

silence, as love is nonexistent in this marriage. The declining state of this relationship is

emphasized with the inclusion of another metaphor: the wifes hushed cries are likened to little

gaping snakes / Dreadfully venomous to [her husband] (5-6). With a simple outburst of emotion

considered poisonous to the husband, the behavior of the couple is noticeably unhealthy. The

damaging effects of both partners emotional interactions, or rather the lack thereof, are apparent

with the additional metaphor of a blank wall (13) implied to be separating the couple.

Inevitably, the couples recurrent silence creates clear distance in their marriage enough to

divide the two emotionally and physically. With this, it is explained specifically that the wife is

left to suffer with Her giant heart of Memory and Tears (9); interesting syntax is implemented

here, as both important contents of her heart are characterized with capitalization. The

relationships silence forced the wife to store all of her torment inside; the lead roles that

Memory and Tears play in the wifes heart are evident with this syntactical addition. The

unstable foundation of this relationship consequently led to lasting agony and distance between

the two partners, a recipe for a solutionless marriage, a reality of 1800s love.

With such an unhappy marriage, it would be natural for the couple to consider divorce

however, this was frowned upon and incredibly uncommon in the 1800s, leaving partners

shackled to their unions. In the poem, this miserable couples relationship is even conveyed to be

reminiscent of death, as every lively aspect of love already perished for this couple. The husband

and wife are described to be Like sculptured effigies (14), a simile that encaptures the departed

yet permanent condition of this romance. Although there is not an ounce of passion or
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contentment left in their marriage, this couple will forever be bound to each other similar to

how an effigial husband and wife are permanently engraved beside one another in stone. Just as

an effigy is sculpted with pressure and precision, this couple was carved to fit into the norms of

1800s modern love; this meant that divorce was never even an option. The inescapable fate of

marriage is encaptured with the notion that the couples common bed(3), a timeless symbol of

a shared relationship, transforms into their ultimate marriage-tomb (16), a symbolic

imprisonment of a union that the couple will be trapped in for the rest of time, even though their

love has diminished. With the final line of the poem, it is concluded that the couple lay

completely motionless beside each other, Each wishing for the sword that severs all (16). The

sharp alliteration of this line shows the full certainty of the husband and wife in their desire to

sever ties from each other. However, this was not acceptable within the realm of 1862 modern

love, leaving the couple incapable of separating, and fettered forever to their tragic marriage.

Love, when ignited by passion and thriving, is a beautiful thing. However, when love

turns still as stone, a relationship can be detrimental instead. While couples in the 1800s did not

truly have the option of divorce or splitting, modern times now allow us this privilege

Merediths poem reminds us that we cannot take this for granted. No longer do couples have to

be restricted to an unsatisfactory marriage for the entirety of their lives, and this is important.

Divorce is certainly not a pleasant option; however, it surpasses being trapped in a miserable

union for all of time, which was the unfortunate case with relationships in the 1800s.

Account of Revisions

Revisions I Made: Rationale:


Introductory Paragraph
-I added more detail and depth to my
Icecream introduction, elaborating that
stone originates from the burning state of lava. the stone still marriage described in the
First Paragraph
-I added more commentary on the muted
sound imagery found within the poem.
-I included direct textual evidence about the
husbands hands light quiver, the wifes
cries being little gaping snakes / Dreadfully
venomous to him, and Her giant heart of
Memory and Tears.
Second Paragraph
-I narrowed in on the references to death in
the poem, and how this connected back to
1800s love.
-I added more snippets of direct evidence in
this paragraph in places that could benefit
from textual support.
Conclusion
-I added a conclusion entirely, as the timed in- -My conclusion tied up my essay altogether,
class writing prevented me from getting this
far.
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Introductory Paragraph
-I found that further describing the process of
stones creation fit nicely into the mention of
poem, and enhanced my message about how
this contrasted with true, lively romance.
First Paragraph
-I felt that this better explained the
significance of sounds role in the poem; this
helped me tie back these quotes to the overall
theme of silence in the marriage.
-I realized that I was focusing too much on the
wifes turmoil with the marriage, so I decided
to add a line enacted by the husband, which
additionally showed the marriages trembling
state. I included the quote about the wifes
cries to display another strong metaphor
within the poem, specifically pertaining to
how unhealthy the relationship was. Finally,
the syntax of Memory and Tears seemed
important to me, and it also reflected the
emotional/physical struggles that the wife
endured with this marriage.
Second Paragraph
-This really began to wrap up my essay and
fully analyze what the reality of modern
1800s love was. Explaining the significance
of death truly hit home the message of how
final and permanent marriage was during this
time, no matter how unhappy a couple was.
-The direct evidence showed that I was basing
my points straight from the text, and gave my
piece a more supportive foundation.
Conclusion
and answered why this matters. I really
emphasized Merediths message in his poem
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and brought it back to modern day society,

which brings importance to the piece.

Explanation of Writers Workshop Groups Effect on the Final Draft

I found my writers workshop group to be very helpful with my essay. They gave me

constructive advice as to how I could improve my work, which guided me significantly during

my final draft. They smartly suggested that I should refer to literary devices by name-dropping

them specifically to be clear and understandable. This was very important in the end, as a major

part of the essay prompt is to identify what elements convey a view of modern love. Lance

pointed out that my first body paragraph could benefit from a bit more synthesis on my quotes.

Taking this in mind, I made sure to explain the significance of every line that I included,

connecting them back to my argument. I really found that this gave my essay a lot more support

in general. As for my other essays, the group gave me more solid feedback on how to improve,

while also complimenting me on what I did right. I chose to do this poem for my final draft with

my writing workshop teams guidance, as I felt the most direction on how to make this essay

stronger.