Chapter - 12

"Uphill"
- Christina Rossetti

Question- Write a note on the use of poetic devices and figures of speech as used in the poem.

Answer -

Rossetti sprinkles a number of poetic devices throughout 'Up Hill' in order to widen the scope of interpretations. The simplicity and the underlying figures of speech enhance the meaning of the lines and take the poem to a spiritual level. Some of the important poetic devices are illustrated below:

Metaphor: This is one of the essential poetic devices used throughout the poem. Rossetti uses the idea of an 'up-hill' journey as an extended metaphor to mean life in general. The lethargy and restlessness one feels during a long trip can also be applied to the journey of life, which is filled with challenges. Therefore, the 'day's journey' is a metaphor for the struggles humans face from birth, referred to as 'morn', to death or 'night'.

The line of labour you shall find the sum', contains another metaphor. Here the 'sum' of one's labour' is a metaphorical reference to the spiritual reward.

Rhetorical Question: This poetic device is used throughout the poem. The anxious questions are born out of genuine doubt and scepticism about her abilities to trudge along the difficult uphill journey of life. However, some of them also seem rhetorical. Since the speaker's own subconscious mind or the companion seems to know the objective answers to her doubts, the questions appear as a way for the speaker to reassure herself about her abilities constantly.

The speaker's questions about the journey itself in the first stanza are also rhetorical. She has embarked upon the journey only after knowing the nature and difficulty of it. But she still asks herself if the travel will be up-hill (demanding) the whole day and whether it will take the whole day. So, these can also be seen as rhetorical questions. Perhaps she hopes to get a different answer every time she asks the question, but the journey and the answer remain constant.

Alliteration: Though alliteration is not the most used literary device in 'Up-Hill', its variation consonance occur more frequently. However, the recurrence of similar sounds at the beginning of neighbouring words can be found in the last stanza.

'shall find the sum' (line 14)
'be beds' (line 15)

Consonance: The recurrence of consonant sounds in closely placed words can be found in a number of instances. In the first stanza, Rossetti uses the hard 'd' sound frequently.

There is also a repetition of the 'I' sound in 'whole long' (line 3) and the 'm' sound in 'From morn to night, my friend'.

Similarly, the readers can find consonance of the 's' sound throughout the second stanza :

The 'k' sound recurs in the last two lines of the third stanza.

It the last stanza, there is a repetition of the 'r' sound in the first two lines and the 'b' sound in the final lines : -

Repetition: The use of repetition can be found in a number of instances. The recurrence of the word 'day' emphasises as the tedious nature of the journey to be embarked upon. 'Will the day's journey take the whole long day?' similarly, the speaker's lack of confidence and certainty is depicted through the repetition of 'dark' in the following lines: 'A roof for when the slow dark hours begin / may not the darkness hide it from my face ?"

Juxtaposition: The opposite ideas of day and night are placed together for emphatic effect in the following lines: -

Will the day's journey take the whole long day?
From morn to night, my friend.

This also highlights the long and weary journey that the speaker has to undertake. The usage of juxtaposition is also seen through the following lines of the last stanza -

In these lines, Rossetti contrasts the speaker's uncertainty concerning getting comfort at the journey's end with the other speaker's conviction. In this way, she draws attention to the speaker's pessimism which is in stark contract with the optimism of the second speaker.

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