9.1.1

Summary, Structure & Form

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Summary of Eden Rock

Charles Causley reflects on an imagined moment from his childhood when both of his parents were present.

Background

Background

  • Causley's father died when he was 7 years old, which is important to consider in the context of this poem.
  • Causley presents an idyllic setting in which both of his parents are present, but the poem feels more like an imagined moment or an amalgamation (combination) of childhood memories.
Summary

Summary

  • The poem begins with the image of the present Causley looking back into the past, to when both his parents were still alive.
  • Initially, it seems as if he is merely recollecting a moment in his childhood.
  • He gives each parent a stanza of description – they are perfectly captured as they were in his memories.
  • But the reader eventually realises that Causley is on the other side of the river, while his parents have a picnic by the imaginary Eden Rock.
  • His parents are calling for him to cross – there are implications here that Causley’s parents are beckoning him into the idyllic afterlife.
Context

Context

  • Causley doesn’t seem to be directly examining his relationships with his parents. Instead, the poem seems to explore what his memories of his parents represent.
  • This is a narrator nearing the end of his life, looking back on his childhood - not as a way of evaluating his parents, but imagining what paradise would be like.
  • The fairly simple memory of a picnic with his parents represents a moment in which he was blissfully happy – this moment of love and comfort is what he imagines the afterlife is like.

Structure and Form in Eden Rock

Here's an analysis of the structure and form of Charles Causley's Eden Rock:

Regularity

Regularity

  • The poem has a gentle, steady feel.
  • The poet creates this by the use of five stanza that are four lines long.
  • There is no regular rhyme scheme, but rather half rhymes throughout.
Ending

Ending

  • The regularity of the poem is broken in the final line – ‘I had not thought that it would be like this’.
  • This line stands out and creates a sense of unease within the poem.
  • The reader becomes aware that the narrator is older, looking back on a scene, potentially considering his death and the afterlife.
  • The reader is left with an uneasy inconclusive sense that the narrator will inevitably cross towards this idyllic afterlife.
Jump to other topics
1

When We Two Parted - Lord Byron (1788-1824)

1.1

When We Two Parted Analysis

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2

Love’s Philosophy - Percy Bysshe Shelley

2.1

Love's Philosophy Analysis

2.1.1Summary & Structure2.1.2Themes2.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons2.1.4End of Topic Test - Love's Philosophy2.1.5Exam-Style Questions - Love's Philosophy
3

Porphyria’s Lover - Robert Browning (1812-1889)

3.1

Porphyria’s Lover Analysis

3.1.1Summary & Structure3.1.2Themes: Porphyria & Violence3.1.3Themes: Sin & Pathetic Fallacy3.1.4Key Quotes & Comparisons3.1.5End of Topic Test - Porphyria's Lover
4

Sonnet 29 - Elizabeth Barrett Browning (1806-1861)

4.1

Sonnet 29 – ‘I think of thee!’ Analysis

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5

Neutral Tones - Thomas Hardy (1840-1928)

5.1

Neutral Tones Analysis

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6

Letters from Yorkshire - Maura Dooley (Born 1957)

6.1

Letters from Yorkshire Analysis

6.1.1Summary & Structure6.1.2Themes6.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons
7

The Farmer’s Bride - Charlotte Mew (1869-1928)

7.1

The Farmer's Bride Analaysis

7.1.1Summary, Structure & Form7.1.2Themes7.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons7.1.4End of Topic Test - Dooley & Mew7.1.5Exam-Style Questions - The Farmer's Bride
8

Walking Away - Cecil Day Lewis (1904-1972)

8.1

Walking Away Analysis

8.1.1Summary, Structure & Form8.1.2Themes8.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons
9

Eden Rock - Charles Causley (1917-2003)

9.1

Eden Rock Analysis

9.1.1Summary, Structure & Form9.1.2Themes9.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons9.1.4End of Topic Test - Walking Away & Eden Rock
10

Follower - Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)

10.1

Follower Analysis

10.1.1Summary, Structure & Form10.1.2Themes10.1.3Quotes and Comparisons
11

‘Mother, Any Distance’ - Simon Armitage (Born 1963

11.1

'Mother, Any Distance' Analysis

11.1.1Summary, Structure & Form11.1.2Themes11.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons11.1.4End of Topic Test - Follower& Mother, Any Distance
12

Before You Were Mine - Carol Ann Duffy (Born 1955)

12.1

Before You Were Mine Analysis

12.1.1Summary, Structure & Form12.1.2Themes12.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons
13

Winter Swans - Owen Sheers (Born 1974)

13.1

Winter Swans Analysis

13.1.1Summary, Structure & Form13.1.2Themes13.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons13.1.4End of Topic Test - Duffy & Sheers
14

Singh Song! - Daljit Nagra (Born 1966)

14.1

Singh Song! Analysis

14.1.1Summary, Structure & Form14.1.2Themes14.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons
15

Climbing My Grandfather - Andrew Waterhouse

15.1

Climbing My Grandfather Analysis

15.1.1Summary, Structure & Form15.1.2Themes15.1.3Key Quotes & Comparisons15.1.4End of Topic Test - Nagra & Waterhouse
16

Grade 9 - Comparisons

16.1

Grade 9 - Comparisons

16.1.1Grade 9 - Comparisons
17

Recap: Main Quotes

17.1

Recap: Main Quotes

17.1.1When We Two Parted - Lord Byron (1788-1824)17.1.2Love’s Philosophy - Percy Bysshe Shelley17.1.3Porphyria’s Lover - Robert Browning (1812-1889)17.1.4Sonnet 29 - Elizabeth Barrett Browning (17.1.5Neutral Tones - Thomas Hardy (1840-1928)17.1.6Letters from Yorkshire - Maura Dooley (Born 1957)17.1.7The Farmer’s Bride - Charlotte Mew (1869-1928)17.1.8Walking Away - Cecil Day Lewis (1904-1972)17.1.9Eden Rock - Charles Causley (1917-2003)17.1.10Follower - Seamus Heaney (1939-2013)17.1.11‘Mother, Any Distance’ - Simon Armitage (Born1963)17.1.12Before You Were Mine - Carol Ann Duffy (Born 1955)17.1.13Winter Swans - Owen Sheers (Born 1974)17.1.14Singh Song! - Daljit Nagra (Born 1966)17.1.15Climbing My Grandfather - Andrew Waterhouse

Practice questions on Summary, Structure & Form

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  1. 1
    What childhood memory does _Eden Rock_ begin with?Multiple choice
  2. 2
    How old was Causley when his father died?Multiple choice
  3. 3
    Who wrote _Eden Rock_?Multiple choice
  4. 4
    Structure and form of _Eden Rock_:True / false
  5. 5
    Complete the final line of the poem _Eden Rock_:Fill in the list
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Key Quotes & Comparisons

Themes