This essay question covers the AQA love and relationships poem anthology and a post 1900 text. For my example, I'm going to focus on 'The Awakening' by Kate Chopin and three poems, such 'A quoi bon dire' by Charlotte Mew , 'Love and a question' by Robert Frost and 'Our Flesh' by Elizabeth Jennings.
Main argument: Love is presented as unobtainable due to societal constraints in the Awakening, and whilst Frost's poem resonates with this, other poems approach the concept of ideal love, albeit from differing perspectives.
Point 1: Mew believes love transcends death, could be viewed as obtaining ideal loveSupporting Evidence: . "that sounded like goodbye", not willing to let her love fully go . Syntactically separated, pronouns never on same line until final stanza, united in death
Point 2: Chopin echoes Mew's sentiment to an extent, but doesn't conclude in ideal loveSupporting Evidence: . "musky odour of pinks", rosy, hopeful imagery, connotates blooming of hope . "serpents around her ankles", poisonous simile, love currently has a negative influence upon her
Point 3: Jennings contrasts with both, suggesting there is an ideal love, but it can only be reached in the real world/in a pragmatic senseSupporting Evidence: . "chastity faces...a destination", contexts of 1960s attitudes to sex and marriage, only just developing, a rigid framework. The couple appear cold and distant . "time itself is a feather" connotates softness of mortality, not harsh and segregating, but a comfort they can allow to slowly come between them. Unseen by child narrator
Point 4: If we take Jennings view, Chopin explores what happens when you break free from a pragmatic love to pursue a transcendent love and how this can fall down Supporting Evidence: . "felt the old ennui overtaking her", bored after each impulsive decision, can't get past the un-satisfaction
Point 5: Frost demonstrates it can be difficult to define an 'ideal love' and you can be pulled between these types Supporting Evidence: . "the heart's desire", opposed to "her", demonstrates it's a societal expectation to consummate the marriage . "eyes more than the lips", appeals to the man's heart, connotates a genuine need for help that the groom is torn between
Point 6: Edna equally struggles to choose between love commitments, and as resolution can't be reached with both, love is unobtainableSupported Evidence: . "sometimes gather them passionately...sometimes forgets them", fluctuating relationship with children, often uses domestic love as a fall back, her behaviour is often irregular . Impossible to be a perfect wife and mother whilst commiting to true love in the Gilded American eraConclusion: Chopin hints to wards ideal love but it's unobtainable within life, culminating in his death. Frost and Chopin come to the closest form of unertsanding in exploring love's complications.