Comparing 'My Box And Jugged Hare'

The poem “My Box” by Gillian Clarke and “Jugged Hare” by Jean Earle both share the common theme of the maintenance that is put into a long term relationship. While they share an overarching theme, it is presented differently due to the differences in each of their relationships. Maintenance in a relationship is the effort put in a relationship to ensure that both partners are happy and satisfied with each other and their own personal lives. “My Box” is an example of a maintained relationship in which both partners are comfortable with each other, but “Jugged Hare” explores how both partners’ marriage is slowly falling apart due to the lack of communication and maintenance the husband is putting in. This is reflected in both poems' writing style,

“Jugged Hare” features a bleak outlook into a relationship and describes it as a macabre experience. The poem is defined by the Jugged Hare and sets the tone for the poem as a dark and grisly mood. The Hare represents how the woman feels and could be a symbol of her own life and relationship, how she sacrifices this all for her husband. Differently in tone, “My Box” shows the experiences and moments a couple has experienced, unlike “Jugged Hare” while it only really describes the Woman as the main focus. “My Box” is almost like a recount describing how their relationship has only got stronger and evolved into the one it is today. As it is from the outlook of the woman, it shows her exact feelings towards the relationship without it having to be from the perspective of someone else. The use of the word My creates an intimate setting due to the personal pronoun

To the characters in “Jugged Hare”, the love they experience is just the product of their own comfortability, it is obviously not mutual but the husband does not know this. The wife may fear becoming divorced due to the complications it puts on their own personal lives, financially, socially and even the effects it has on both their own mental health. The wife in the poem has found a steady secure position in her marriage, although sacrificing her own happiness and own self identity. In a completely different way, the love shown in “My Box” can be described as “True Love”. Both partners are equally satisfied with each other and there is a strong mutual bond between them. This is evident due the quote “my lover’s gift to me.”. The speaker refers to her husband as her “Lover” which shows her sheer admiration for him. The poems share the same theme, but present in a wildly contrasting