The Whitsun Weddings is a poem based on a journey made by Larkin one Whitsun weekend. Whitsun (White Sunday) is the 7th Sunday after Easter, a bank holiday weekend in may which was a very popular time for weddings to take place.
In the first stanza of the poem, all movement seems slow and sluggish and delayed. Larkin leaves verbs to the end of lines in order to emphasize the delay in motions, for example he waits until the end of the fourth line to say "pull out".
It isn't until the third stanza that Larkin begins to describe the weddings, and it is clear almost immediately that he has a negative view on them. He describes almost everyone present negatively, for example "fathers with broad belts under their suits and seamy foreheads; mothers loud and fat; an uncle shouting smut" he makes it seem as though these people are not made for such a setting as a formal wedding. His description of them and their "jewelry substitutes" tells us he feels they are all pretending to be something they aren't for the sake of others.
From his observation and judgement, Larkin goes on to make assumptions and speculations on where they have been for the wedding and reception. He describes "banquet-halls up yards, and bunting-dressed coach-party annexes" all of which seem cheap and tacky in comparison to the hotels and manor houses that would be the venues of wealthier weddings.
Towards the end of the poem Larkin provides a more philosophical view on the weddings and the lives of each of the newly weds. for example he describes how "none thought of the others they would never meet or how their lives would all contain this hour" this imagery of lives passing only for a short time before swerving away from each other again just as swiftly as they joined is an extremely interesting perspective from Larkin that encourages us to think about our own lives and the people we have shared journeys and such like with but will never know.
The final lines of the poem provide an equally interesting image. He likens the couples after the train journey ends to "an arrow shower sent out of sight, somewhere becoming rain" this image is suggestive of many ideas. One being that the couples are all set to spread across different places not to meet again and another being the rain possibly suggesting that the relationships will end stormily in Larkin's view.
Overall this poem gives us a clear insight into Larkin's views on many things, weddings and relationships, people and places, all of which seem rather pessimistic but relatable.
From his observation and judgement, Larkin goes on to make assumptions and speculations on where they have been for the wedding and reception. He describes "banquet-halls up yards, and bunting-dressed coach-party annexes" all of which seem cheap and tacky in comparison to the hotels and manor houses that would be the venues of wealthier weddings.
Towards the end of the poem Larkin provides a more philosophical view on the weddings and the lives of each of the newly weds. for example he describes how "none thought of the others they would never meet or how their lives would all contain this hour" this imagery of lives passing only for a short time before swerving away from each other again just as swiftly as they joined is an extremely interesting perspective from Larkin that encourages us to think about our own lives and the people we have shared journeys and such like with but will never know.
The final lines of the poem provide an equally interesting image. He likens the couples after the train journey ends to "an arrow shower sent out of sight, somewhere becoming rain" this image is suggestive of many ideas. One being that the couples are all set to spread across different places not to meet again and another being the rain possibly suggesting that the relationships will end stormily in Larkin's view.
Overall this poem gives us a clear insight into Larkin's views on many things, weddings and relationships, people and places, all of which seem rather pessimistic but relatable.
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