Meeting at Night
purpose. the two probably know each other.
By Robert Browning
I
The grey sea and the long black land;
And the yellow half-moon large and low;
And the startled little waves that leap
In fiery ringlets from their sleep,
As I gain the cove with pushing prow,
And quench its speed i' the slushy sand.
II
Then a mile of warm sea-scented beach;
Three fields to cross till a farm appears;
A tap at the pane, the quick sharp scratch
And blue spurt of a lighted match,
And a voice less loud, thro' its joys and fears,
Than the two hearts beating each to each!
Commented [1]: seems like the meeting was made on
Commented [2]: much imagery, very cool
Commented [3]: L alliteration
Commented [4]: a small sheltered bay.
Commented [5]: litteration
Commented [6]: the portion of a ship's bow above
water.
Commented [7]: he goes into the cove
Commented [8]: he lands ashore and the prow slows
down because of that
Commented [9]: more lliteration
Commented [10]: describing the scenery he passes
by
Commented [11]: he knocks on the window
Commented [12]: the farmer lights a match
Commented [13]: probably with his lover
Commented [14]: through
Commented [15]: the voice is quieter than their
heartbeats
Commented [16]: they're excited to see eachother
 Method of Analysis: TPCASTT

Beside each element of the TPCASTT method, you will find an explanation. For each poem assigned, and each
poem you find on your own, you will be required to analyze each part of the TPCASTT method as it applies to the
poem.

Title & Author of the Poem:

Meeting at Night - Robert Browning

T Title 1. Based on the title, what do you
think the poem is about?
2. Based on clues given in the title,
what do you think the author
will focus on?
1. I think the poem is about multiple
people meeting at night.
2. I think the author will focus on
describing the meeting and the people
in the poem.

P Paraphrase 1. What is the literal meaning of I

the poem? Paraphrase the poem
The grey sea and the long black land;
in your own words based on the
literal meanings of what’s on the And the yellow half-moon large and low;
page. Keep the same sequence
and ideas that the author has. And the excited little waves that leap
You should have the same
In bright ringlets,
number of lines as the actual
poem, since you are keeping As I go into the cove with my prow pushing
with the true ideas and form of through the water,
the poet.
It slows its speed in the slushy sand.

II

Then a mile of warm sea-scented beach;


C Connotation 1. Identify and explain any poetic
devices you found in the poem.
Do this by offering meaningful
annotations in the margins.
Insert comments on the
document to annotate.
2. Connotation is a word that
describes how a word is used in
context and generally refers to
emotion. Based on this, what
connotation does each poetic
device have in the poem?
3. What conclusions can you draw
about the meaning of the poem
by analyzing the words’
connotations?
A Attitude 1. You’ve taken a look at the poem
in literal terms. Now it’s time to
explore the figurative meaning
of the poem. What personality
do you see used in the poem?
2. What is the tone of the poem?
3. What was going on in the
author’s life / the world when
this poem was written and how
Three fields to cross till a farm appears;
A tap at the pane, the quick sharp scratch
And blue spurt of a lighted match,
And a voice speaks, less loud, through its
joys and fears,
Than the two hearts beating each to each!
1. In stanza 1, lines 1-3, “The grey sea and
the long black land; / And the yellow
half-moon large and low; / And the
startled little waves that leap,” long,
land, large, and low have alliteration.
These lines also contain imagery.
In stanza 1, line 5, “As I gain the cove
with pushing prow,” pushing prow has
alliteration.
In stanza 1, line 6, “And quench its
speed i’ the slushy sand,” slushy sand
has alliteration.
2. In the first example, the imagery has a
whimsical, pretty connotation.
3. I can conclude that the poem is set in a
sort of romantic, fairy-tale-ish situation.
1. I see an excited, loving personality.
2. The tone is whimsical.
3. I couldn’t find anything in the author’s
life that affected this poem.
 might that have influenced this
poem?
S Shifts 1. What shifts in mood / tone do
you see throughout the poem?
Which words signal to you a
shift?
2. What effect(s) does this shift
have on the poem’s meaning?
3. Does the poem begin and end
with the same emotions,
thoughts, and opinions?
T Title 1. Revisit the title. Were you
correct in your initial ideas, or
has the poem taken on a new
meaning? Explain.
T Theme 1. What is the poem trying to
explain to us about the human
experience?
2. What are the main themes and
subjects of the poem? What have
you learned to be true, from the
author’s point of view, about
these subjects?
3. What do you think the author
wants you to learn from this
poem?
4. What else do you want to know
about this poem?
1. In stanza 2, lines 5-6, the tone changes
with “And a voice less loud, thro’ its
joys and fears, / Than the two hearts
beating each to each!”
2. This shift changes the poem from
simply being about a calm, whimsical
journey, to a meeting full of excitement
and love.
3. The poem begins with the same
thoughts and opinions, but the
emotions end up being more exciting.
1. I was kind of right in my initial ideas.
The poem was about a meeting at night,
but I didn’t think the poem would
describe the journey as much.
1. I guess the poem is trying to explain that
love can be exciting.
2. The main themes are love and journey.
It’s true that some people are willing to
embark on far journeys in order to meet
with who they love.
3. I think the author wants me to learn
that you should enjoy the journey as
well as the goal.
4. I don’t have anything else I want to
know.