With Reference to Three Poems Studied So Far Discuss How Larkin Presen

With reference to three poems studied so far discuss how Larkin presents the theme of illusion and reality.

The poems Sunny Prestatyn, Essential Beauty and love Songs in Age, are all presented with the theme of illusion and reality. Illusion is a false impression or delusion, so when an illusion is used within a poem there is a deeper meaning or reality behind the words. Because of this reality, the reader can see what Larkin is really trying to convey in the poems is shown and we understand what was meant by the illusion

In the poem Sunny Prestatyn, Larkin uses harsh reality to show the depth of the illusion. In the poem we are presented with a sunny, picturesque and idealistic scene on a billboard, with a pretty girl asking you to ‘Come to Sunny Prestatyn’. This idealistic scene gives us the illusion that in Prestatyn the weather will always be sunny, when in fact, as Prestatyn is in Wales it will most likely be raining.

The girl shown in the advertisement is shown to be laughing and is also wearing white satin, ‘In taunted white satin’. This gives the idea of the girl being unspoilt, virginal and pure. This deludes the reader of the poster into thinking that this is what Prestatyn is actually like: unspoilt and pure. The poem goes on to describing the palm trees at Prestatyn and the coast. This is described as, ‘…a hunk of coast, a hotel with palms’. This ‘hunk of coast’ suggests manliness and the palm trees also suggest an erotic type of Eden. This gives the reader the illusion that Prestatyn will be the holiday of their dreams. We are then given the image of the girl offering her palms to the reader, ‘…and spread breast-lifting arms’; this line gives the reader delight or excitement at the end of the first stanza, deluding the reader even more. In this first stanza the illusion and image of the perfect place is built up.

In the second stanza of the poem Larkin begins to use harsh reality to break down the illusion and destroy the image that was built up. ‘She was slapped up one day in March.’ This harsh sentence shows the reality of the world and that vandalism was expected. ‘A couple of weeks and her face was snaggle-toothed’, this flippant remark also suggests casualness about the violence. The violence of the girl in the picture being disfigured also represents the illusion being destroyed. The readers know that the picture originally presented was the standard ideal and the vandalism shows what Prestatyn would be realistically. Larkin goes on to present the theme of reality more by using harsh, blunt and hard words to show realism, ‘snaggled-toothed, boss-eyed, tits’. Larkin emphasises the reality and harshness by using crude language, he writes ‘…a fissured crotch’. He also notes that this was ‘…well scored in’. This illustrates the maliciousness of the vandalism. This also represents the strong feelings of Larkin and the importance of reality. Larkin uses more harsh language, ‘…tuberous cock and balls’. This vulgar language spoils the illusion completely.

In the third stanza Larkin brings life and more reality to the poem by showing who the vandalism was done by, ‘Autographed Titch Thomas’. The poem writes that ‘someone had used a knife or something to stab right through the moustached lips of her smile’. This smile was a big part of the deception of the advertisement and this shows that the image had been killed. Larkin uses the idea that the girl ‘was too good for this life’; this is a clichй as she is too perfect for this life. This life isn’t as perfect as what was made out by the poster. The realism of the ‘Fight cancer’ poster is very life like and Larkin uses this pessimism to show the realism of life and how the advertisement of ‘Sunny Prestatyn’ had tried to deceive us.

In this poem the illusion presented by advertising is attacked in the same ways that advertising attacks us. The expectations that were produced by the illusions weren’t met and the reader is left with the harsh reality of the world. The tone of the poem is very harsh and produces savage reality.

The poem Essential Beauty also uses advertising to cover realism. In the first stanza Larkin describes the advertisements that disrupt our realistic life. ‘In frames as large as rooms that face all ways’, Larkin is describing the billboards that screen out reality.

The alliteration of ‘s’ gives clean, sharp sounds that persuade us to buy these goods, ‘screen graves, custard, salmon, shine, sharply’. Larkin shows the illusion of advertisement by writing ‘Of how life should be’. This is quite ironic as its not