Sons - Abse

Sons is a poem by Abse and is viewed through the eyes of the persona. The persona comments on his son in this poem. This poem links in well with Larkin's Dockery and Son becuase the son in both of these poems takes the persona back into their youth, this highlights the similarities between the two poems. This poem could also link to Reference Back by Larkin through the shared love of music that reimnds the mother of her youth, much like the persona does in this poem.

Within stanza one we get the alliteration and sibilant sound of 's' through the words 'sarcastic, sons and slam', this conveys a rather harsh tone to the beginning of this poem. We also get the representation that the persona is looking back on his youth within this stanza through the quote 'I think of Cardiff outskirts where, once, captured acres played at being small tamed gardens'. It seems as if a door slamming has triggered this memory of youth so this could have some significance in the poem. The persona seems to compare himself to his son at the end of this stanza through when he comments 'Now my son is like that, altering every day'. This conveys how much the father and son are alike in their youth reinforcing that they are both very similar in their personalities. His son is also 'altering' which could suggest a change in his personality, Abse is suggesting that the son is entering his teenage years.

Within the second stanza the persona also comments 'I was like that' again comparing himself to his son. We also get the quote in this stanza 'the frontier of Nowhere'. This could be referring to his youth, that he wants to find his true self again. The persona also comments that 'being adolesecent was both prim and brash'. This is a juxtaposition of two opposites 'prim and brash', this highlights the changing emotions that you experience as a teenager through your hormones which was also highlighted earlier on in stanza one.

Like many of the Larkin poems, this poem in stanza three then has a more philosophical meaning. This is represented in stanza three through the quote 'Strange a London door should slam and I think thus, of Cardiff evenings'. We get the impression that the persona doesn't know why this memory is triggered through the slaming of the door. Uncertainty is also conveyed during the end of this stanza through when the persona comments 'Awkward Anglo-Welsh half town, half countryside'. Since it is half an half this could reinforce his uncertain nature or mindset as a person.

It seems as if the persona is empathising towards his son at the beginning of the last stanza. He comments 'Son, you are like that and I love you for it'. The persona is empathising with his son as it reminds him of himself when he was young. 'The nameless becoming' could reinforce that the persona is looking back with perspective, his warning to his son that this could happen to him too. Looking back with perspective could link to the Larkin poems Reference Back and Love Songs in Age. 'Wrongly named' could be a suggestion that he may not know his son very well yet and could reinforce the persona's uncertain mindset further. We also get the rhyme scheme in this poem and this is 3,4 and 6 line of stanzas 2,3 and 4. First stanza lines 4 and 6 rhyme. The pattern begins irregular and again this gives us a representation of his sons adolescence and changing emotions.