I chose to dissect “Apples and Water”, because as we discovered in last week’s discussion, it can have many different meanings. Consequently, after reading it at a slightly more surface level, I arrived at a more war-driven and less interpersonal interpretation. No matter the meaning a person arrives at, one of the key elements of this work is the hardships of the war. This poem also speaks of the juxtaposition of a youth’s innocence and hopefulness surrounding war and that of more experienced adult, who understand not only can you not save everyone from the horrors of life, but war cannot be fought with fruit and water. “Apples and Water” is considered a ballad (narrative) poem, separated into quatrains, with an ABAB rhyme scheme. In the
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The mother has been down this road before, so to speak. She knows what’s in store for the soldiers and that no amount of fruit or water is going to save these men from meeting with death soon. Giving them food at this point would only prolong their agony, and perhaps encourage her daughter to develop a relationship with one of them, which is a fate she does not see fit. As the apple is the “forbidden fruit” in the telling of Adam and Eve, the daughter in our poem, is the forbidden fruit to the soldiers. The less they have to do with her, the more they can focus on their task at hand and the safer the young girl is from heartbreak. In the end the mother’s wishes prevail, as she says, So may I die before you cool/Your father 's drouth, my daughter. '. The mother is well aware the life of a military wife one of raising a family alone much of the time and not knowing from one day to the next if your husband is alive, dead, or one of the parched hungry souls, like those passing by their cottage.
The mother’s only choice is to separate herself from the men trudging by, for her own sake. She has seen so much war in her life and knows that if they begin feeding soldiers they will run out of food for themselves. There is nothing that can be done about the death of soldiers. Although the she may want to reach out and help in any way that she can, she’s lived long enough to realize there is nothing in their cottage or garden that can mend the plight of these men. The sooner her daughter realizes this, the better. Otherwise, she’ll spend her life endlessly handing out food and drink to the passing
The mother has been down this road before, so to speak. She knows what’s in store for the soldiers and that no amount of fruit or water is going to save these men from meeting with death soon. Giving them food at this point would only prolong their agony, and perhaps encourage her daughter to develop a relationship with one of them, which is a fate she does not see fit. As the apple is the “forbidden fruit” in the telling of Adam and Eve, the daughter in our poem, is the forbidden fruit to the soldiers. The less they have to do with her, the more they can focus on their task at hand and the safer the young girl is from heartbreak. In the end the mother’s wishes prevail, as she says, So may I die before you cool/Your father 's drouth, my daughter. '. The mother is well aware the life of a military wife one of raising a family alone much of the time and not knowing from one day to the next if your husband is alive, dead, or one of the parched hungry souls, like those passing by their cottage.
The mother’s only choice is to separate herself from the men trudging by, for her own sake. She has seen so much war in her life and knows that if they begin feeding soldiers they will run out of food for themselves. There is nothing that can be done about the death of soldiers. Although the she may want to reach out and help in any way that she can, she’s lived long enough to realize there is nothing in their cottage or garden that can mend the plight of these men. The sooner her daughter realizes this, the better. Otherwise, she’ll spend her life endlessly handing out food and drink to the passing