His dad died when he was 8, and this heavily affected him
Allegedly wrote this poem on a walk
The poem suggests he knew he was dying, he died at 26
Stanza one links to the end of his summer and
morning, which is represented through touch
e.g 'ripeness' (he was at his best age) and
'plump' (he was full of knowledge- older and
wiser)
He mentions all the seasons bar winter which suggests he is avoiding thinking about death, or is afraid of it
Stanza 2 represents mid-autumn and the senses link to sight
such as 'twined flowers and 'patient look'
'him how' the alliteration creates a hhh sound,
linking to the fact that he is out of breath and that
his body is slowing down as he heads towards death
'where are they?' he is asking where his spring went, as if it has been stolen from him as he was overwhelmed with the emotions of his father's death
Stanza 3 is about
late autumn and
early winter and
the senses link to
sound such as
'wailful choir' and
'songs of Spring'
The poem starts off with alliteration ('mists and mellows') and finishes with alliteration ('swallows twitter in the skies'). They both create soft sounds which gives
the illusion that he is drifting through the periods of his life without realising as they are quite and soft