The Full Text of “Coming”
The Full Text of “Coming”
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“Coming” Introduction
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“Coming” Summary
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“Coming” Themes
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Spring, Rebirth, and False Hope
Where this theme appears in the poem:- Lines 1-19
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Line-by-Line Explanation & Analysis of “Coming”
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Lines 1-4
On longer evenings, ...
... Foreheads of houses. -
Lines 5-7
A thrush sings, ...
... deep bare garden, -
Lines 8-9
Its fresh-peeled voice ...
... Astonishing the brickwork. -
Lines 10-13
It will be ...
... a forgotten boredom, -
Lines 14-19
Feel like a ...
... to be happy.
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“Coming” Symbols
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The Thrush and the Garden
Where this symbol appears in the poem:- Lines 5-9: “A thrush sings, / Laurel-surrounded / In the deep bare garden, / Its fresh-peeled voice / Astonishing the brickwork.”
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“Coming” Poetic Devices & Figurative Language
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Consonance
Where consonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “longer”
- Line 2: “Light, chill,” “yellow”
- Line 4: “Foreheads,” “houses”
- Line 5: “thrush sings”
- Line 6: “Laurel-surrounded”
- Line 7: “deep bare garden”
- Line 8: “fresh-peeled voice”
- Line 9: “Astonishing”
- Line 10: “spring soon”
- Line 11: “spring soon”
- Line 12: “childhood”
- Line 13: “forgotten boredom”
- Line 14: “Feel like,” “child”
- Line 15: “on,” “scene”
- Line 16: “adult reconciling”
- Line 17: “And can understand nothing”
- Line 18: “unusual”
- Line 19: “starts to”
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Imagery
Where imagery appears in the poem:- Lines 2-4: “Light, chill and yellow, / Bathes the serene / Foreheads of houses.”
- Line 5: “A thrush sings,”
- Lines 8-9: “Its fresh-peeled voice / Astonishing the brickwork.”
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Sibilance
Where sibilance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “evenings”
- Line 3: “Bathes,” “serene”
- Line 4: “Foreheads,” “houses”
- Line 5: “thrush sings”
- Line 6: “surrounded”
- Line 8: “Its fresh,” “voice”
- Line 9: “Astonishing”
- Line 10: “spring soon”
- Line 11: “spring soon”
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Personification
Where personification appears in the poem:- Lines 2-4: “Light, chill and yellow, / Bathes the serene / Foreheads of houses.”
- Line 9: “Astonishing the brickwork.”
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Repetition
Where repetition appears in the poem:- Lines 10-11: “It will be spring soon, / It will be spring soon –”
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Assonance
Where assonance appears in the poem:- Line 1: “On longer”
- Line 10: “It will,” “spring”
- Line 11: “It will,” “spring”
- Line 12: “I,” “childhood”
- Line 14: “like,” “child”
- Line 16: “reconciling”
- Line 17: “And can understand nothing”
- Line 19: “be happy”
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Simile
Where simile appears in the poem:- Lines 12-19: “And I, whose childhood / Is a forgotten boredom, / Feel like a child / Who comes on a scene / Of adult reconciling, / And can understand nothing / But the unusual laughter, / And starts to be happy.”
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“Coming” Vocabulary
Select any word below to get its definition in the context of the poem. The words are listed in the order in which they appear in the poem.
- Bathes
- Thrush
- Laurel
- Astonishing
- Brickwork
- Reconciling
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(Location in poem: Lines 3-4: “Bathes the serene / Foreheads of houses.”)
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Form, Meter, & Rhyme Scheme of “Coming”
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Form
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Meter
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Rhyme Scheme
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“Coming” Speaker
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“Coming” Setting
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Literary and Historical Context of “Coming”
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More “Coming” Resources
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External Resources
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Larkin's Life — Learn more about Philip Larkin through this overview of his life and work.
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The Philip Larkin Society — Check out all things Larkin on the Philip Larkin Society's website.
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The Paris Review Interview — Read Larkin's 1982 interview as part of the magazine's "The Art of Poetry" series.
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The Cynical Poet — If you can't get enough of Larkin's specific brand of sadness and cynicism, check out the poem "Home is so Sad," which, like "Coming," takes something seemingly happy and turns it into something sad.
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Larkin's Portrait — Take a look at Larkin's likeness, rendered in both paintings and photograph, in the National Portrait Gallery's six portraits of the poet himself.
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LitCharts on Other Poems by Philip Larkin
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