Death Unit- Poem 1 and 2

Crossing the Bar and The Time of Year

By: Alfred, Lord Tennyson and William Shakespeare

In both poems, "Crossing the Bar" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson and "The Time of Year" by William Shakespeare, structure becomes a crucial element in presenting the themes of the poems. Both follow a quatrain structure of four lines joined to form a unit. Within each unit, themes of death are presented. 

Alfred, Lord Tennyson's use of the quatrain structure follows an ABAB rhyme scheme pattern. The four sets of four are used to illustrate four individual deaths. The first quatrain presents death in departure while the second depicts death's boundlessness. The third quatrain illustrates death's darkness and finally, the fourth quatrain depicts the separation of life and death in the crossing of a sandbar.  

William Shakespeare also uses a rhyme scheme within the quatrains as the first three quatrains follow a pattern of ABAB. Additionally, like Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem, the poem presents a different image of death within each quatrain. In the first quatrain, death is illustrated by the dormant approach of winter. In the second quatrain, death is presented sunset and the darkness of evening. Finally, in the last quatrain, death is illustrated by the ashes of fire.