October Dawn and November by Ted Hughes

Both October Dawn and November written by Ted Hughes discuss the impact and the power that the
seasons hold over nature. Whilst October Dawn attempts to cling onto the positivity and hope of the
summer, November has a dark and dramatic tone that is immediately present from the first line. The first
stanza of November begins with a harsh image emphasised by the alliteration of "drowned dog," this
demonstrates November's qualities in which the poem refers to throughout but also immediately
introduces the reader to the theme of suffering that permeates throughout the entire poem. This
intense introduction to the theme of suffering is reinforced by the pithy and vivid imagery of the first
stanza but also the slow and repetitive thumping of the first stanza reinforced by the predominately
monosyllabic words such as "long", "sunk" and "seep". This contrasts to the first stanza of October
dawn which opens with a light and optimistic tone in it's first stanza. Which describes a sad scene in a
beautiful and picteresque way. It begins with "October is Marigold" this being the transition from early
september to autumn, it describes the transition that as October arrives so does the autumn and the
leaves of a marigold plant are yellow or orange, like the dead leaves on the trees expected during that
season. This description and it's almost naieveity towards it's beauty is reinforced by Hughes in his next
line describing the glass "half full" of wine left out which shows the hopeful tone of the first stanza.

In November, The speaker of the poem seems aware of the change of weather as in the line "sodden as
the bed of an ancient lake" suggests the unchanging archaic landscape and weather patterns that have
lasted for centuries and creates the impression..