Winter Swan Analysis

Content: Tough times of a love relationship

 “Winter Swans”: a sense of cold or ice
 Winter: pathetic fallacy associations of cold and its impact on nature
 Natural Imagery: swans are graceful creatures who were sacred to Venus – Goddess of Love in Roman
Mythology
 The struggles of keeping alive a relationship, especially when we are able to resolve our difference and
move on together
Analysis:
 “The clouds had given their all”
pathetic fallacy: the two characters have had battle with each other relentlessly
 they have given their all
 Each line ends where we would expect the speaker to breathe or pause – highlights how weary they are
– slow pace
 Mostly monosyllabic stanza, i.e., dulled rhythm
 Caesura (dash/full stop at the middle or end of a line) suggests a sense of finale or ending
 “in which we walked”: the use of inclusive pronoun, anecdotal feeling makes it sound personal too
 Enjambment at the end of the first stanza
(no cause for its argument is shared – it is no longer important after line and a half – and then a break?)
(Sucked in the mud but still goes on with their life? Is it a metaphor to reflect the relationship?)
(Has the speaker been drowning in sorrow? Waterlogged earth/gulping for breath implies this couple are
stuck but still seeking to keep love alive)
 “skirted” suggests that you are tentatively going around the edge of something, as if they are avoiding a
difficult subject
 Color scheme confirm dismal landscape – washed out palette of grey and brown. This mirrors the
emotions of this couple
 Stanza three: solidarity of the image of swan: “a show of tipping in unison”
 (Swans are united in contrast to the couple)
(Swans offer sign the couple can remain together in their relationship – solidarity of ‘tipping in unison’)
(Actions of swan are done in synchrony – they endure challenges and survive them)
 “They have halved themselves in the dark water”: wintry and cold imagery (metaphor) but also implies
hidden meaning and depths
 Image of “iceberg and white feathers”/ “dark water” suggests purity, how the swans get through the dark
water, teachers of their relationships? They need to emerge from challenges fresh. Is the struggle due to
external pressure?
 “Like boats righting in rough water” simile of strength in struggle – “like boats righting in rough
water” (simile – calm after a storm, introducing the potential for a reconciliation)
 Stanza 5: The speaker quotes from the intended reader of the poem “They mate for life,” you said – have
the couple promised to stay together in marriage like the swans?
 Metaphor of the porcelain emphasizes the elegance of swans in turbulent waters (calm after the storm)
 Is the hope found in the afternoon light?
 Stanza 6: Couple are “slow-stepping” onto more solid foundations
 Sibilance: the soft, soothing, gentle repetition of the ‘s’ sounds
 Final Stanza: Simile in the final line emphasizes the comfort found in an embrace
 Reminds the readers of the natural imagery of the swans
 Couplet is significant – reflects Shakespearean tradition (also hints the idea of “couple”)