The Poems of Ted Hughes Ted Hughes

In Hughes’s poetry, “racial memory, animal instinct and poetic imagination all flow into one another with an exact sensuousness” - Seamus Heaney

“The Horses” and “The Thought-Fox” are two of Hughes’s most powerfully symbolic poems, introducing the...

Throughout the poem “Wind”, by Ted Hughes, there are two significant symbols. In the poem, the house (and its surroundings) is one of the main subjects and symbolizes a relationship between the writer and another person. The second symbol in the...

Hughes is well-known for his nature poetry and use of animal symbolism. In both “The Jaguar” and “Hawk Roosting”, the animals symbolize different human characteristics while remaining, on the surface, an in-depth, fantastic poem about the animal...

Within the poetry of Hughes and Plath, the theme of human relationships is written of in varying and diverse manners. Plath’s work details relationships, such as the parent-child relationship, using powerful and intricate imagery, while Hughes...

"As a species, we are most animated when our days and nights on Earth are touched by the natural world" - Richard Louv

Plath and Hughes seem to have different relationships with nature; in The Long Tunnel Ceiling Hughes, Hughes seems to gain a...

The theme of violence is commonly identified within both Plath's and Hughes’ poetry; however, the way in which it is incorporated by the two very different poets contrasts one another, from the use of techniques, the different tones throughout –...

By embracing the concept of a journey, we frequently reach our destination with a greater understanding of ourselves and current surroundings. After scrutinizing the concept of journeys it has become self evident that our lives can be quite...

In ‘The Thought-Fox’, Ted Hughes explores the transformative power of the imagination through the extended image of an imagined ‘fox’’ roaming through foliage post-midnight. Indeed, the poem might be read as an ode to beasts through putting a...

Ted Hughes is a significant modern poet. His poems about animals are among his best. He once revealed: “…my interest in animals began when I began.”1 The landscape of Yorkshire moor where Hughes spent most receptive years of his youth, and where...

Surrounded by the wilderness of Mytholmroyd, Hughes’ childhood was greatly influenced by the natural world, and this was significantly reflected in his poetry. Much of Hughes’ literary works depict the sheer power and, indeed, the cruelty of the...

Arguably, both poets present a sense of prestige and admiration towards those who participated in WW1, using hindsight as post-war poets to reflect upon the horrors endured by soldiers and to remind more modern readers of the utmost respect these...