In both poems the writer is observing the situation and reflecting on it. They are both in a nostalgic manner in which they reminisce previous endeavours. The content of the subject matter does not vary drastically, however the way in which they portray their feelings uses different ‘persons’ (1st, 2nd 3rd...). ‘Claud McKay’ uses first person, making the poem more personal as it is his own experiences. Whereas, ‘Philip Larkin’ only observes, he cannot make the poem personal, as he has not been a mum, this is 3rd person.
The basic theme used in both poems is “regret”, but observed closer; more complex themes are to be found. An example of a complex theme in ‘Afternoons’ is “marriage” and in the poem ‘I shall return’. Phillip Larkin’s view on the poem is he believes when mothers have children they lose their identity. In ‘I shall return’ the poet shows deep passion for Jamaica and clearly shows his great affection for his country. You can see this is complex because ‘That bathe the brown blades of the bending grasses,’ and ‘Of village dances, dear delicious tunes.’
The use of language differs from ‘Afternoons’ and ‘I shall return’ greatly. ‘Afternoons’ is very colloquial, unlike ‘I shall return’ which is opposite and uses very detailed and accurate precision in the words he uses. Although ‘Afternoons’ is informal and uses everyday English, the way Phillip Larkin applies detail to his description is very individual. For example, ‘Finding more unripe acorns’ and ‘their beauty has thickened’.
As we can see from above, in ‘That bathe the brown blades of the bending grasses’ Claud McKay uses alliteration to increase the affection of his words and feelings. This proves his devotion for his country as well as showing the meaning of the poem. This along with ‘I shall return. I shall return again//to ease my mind of long, long years of pain’ can be interpreted as home sickness. This is a very contrasting meaning of the poem compared to ‘Afternoons’ as it isn’t...