The Sunlight on the Garden Analysis(Scribd)

CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF LOUIS MACNEICE'S
"THE SUNLIGHT ON THE GARDEN"
The sunlight on the garden
Hardens and grows cold,
We cannot cage the minute
Within its nets of gold;
When all is told
We cannot beg for pardon.
Our freedom as free lances
Advances towards its end;
The earth compels, upon it
Sonnets and birds descend;
And soon, my friend,
We shall have no time for dances.
The sky was good for flying
Defying the church bells
And every evil iron
Siren and what it tells:
The earth compels,
We are dying, Egypt, dying
And not expecting pardon,
Hardened in heart anew,
But glad to have sat under
Thunder and rain with you,
And grateful too
For sunlight on the garden.
In this essay, I will try to analyze Louis Macneice's "The sunlight on the garden". This poem consists of four stanzas, and each stanza contains six poetic lines. Therefore, I will analyze each stanza and clarify sense imagery, figures of speech, rhyme and the musical tools used in it.
First, the title of the poem "The sunlight on the garden" shows that the poem will talk about the beauty of nature, but the repetition of the title at the beginning and at the end of the poem gives me an impression that the poet may have something else to convey to us behind this title. Anyway, as I continue analyzing the poem, the title will demonstrate its significance.
In the first stanza "The sunlight on the garden/ Hardens and grows cold,/ We

cannot cage the minute/ Within its nets of gold;/ When all is told/We cannot beg for pardon. "The second line casts the first doubt on the true meaning of the title; because the first line, as the title, shows a beautiful natural view; the sun spreads its rays and light on the garden. So this line is pleasant, but the second line "Hardens and grows cold" comes to decrease the beauty of this landscape, as the poet expresses that this sunlight is dim; it is not strong enough to spread warmth. So I think the poet wants to show that this sunlight is in its last stage before the night will