- Sarah Choi
Seventeen years ago you said
Something that sounded like Good-bye;
And everybody thinks that you are dead,
But I.
So I, as I grow stiff and cold
To this and that say Good-bye too;
And everybody sees that I am old
But you.
And one fine morning in a sunny lane
Some boy and girl will meet and kiss and swear
That nobody can love their way again
While over there
You will have smiled, I shall have tossed your hair.
Born 15 November 1869, died 24 March 1928
 Lived in Bloomsbury, London
 Two of her siblings suffered from metal illness and
was sent to metal institution
 Three others died in early childhood leaving
Charlotte, her mother and her sister, Anne
 Charlotte and Anne made a pact never to marry
for fear of passing on insanity to their children
 After the death of her sister from cancer in 1927,
she descended into a deep depression, and was
admitted to a nursing home where she eventually
committed suicide by drinking Lysol.


In May 1912 Mew was introduced to May
Sinclair, a leading novelist who was
active in the women's suffrage
movement. Mew fell in love with her, but
although Sinclair encouraged her writing;
she did not respond to Mew's feelings
and the relationship eventually broke up.

A Quoi Bon Dire is a calm poem that
Mew had declared her endless love
between her and her lover. It suggest the
reality of aging and loss. There are no
bitter or regretfulness portrayed as Mew
is confident that they are going to
reunite as death cannot separate their
love.
First impression of this poem can suggest
ideas of love, loss and memories of their
young life.
 We instantly know that the poem is in first
person narrative through 'I' and 'We'.
 It has a (ababcdcdefeff) rhyme scheme
 There are no changes of rhythm through
out the poem




The mood/tone is not bitter or regretful as Mew
is looking forward to meeting her lover again
when she dies. This excitement is projected in
the very last sentence “smiled” and “tossed”.
The language used through out the poem is
very simple and easily understood. This is
significant as it helps to convey the audience
of the memory of when she was young more
vividly.
In the first stanza it begins with “seventeen
years ago”. This suggests that she still believes
that the relationship is continuing and had
never ended.
In the first stanza it begins with “seventeen
years ago”. This suggests that she still
believes that the relationship is continuing
and had never ended. Also “it sounded like
Good-bye” reinforces that she had never
thought it was the end of their relationship
even though when everybody else knew it
was. She had never given up.
 “so as I grow stiff and cold” shows that she is
aging and growing old. She is moving
toward death and is saying “Good-bye” to
people for the last time. Although Mew
does not look old in the eyes of her lover.

Love is something that continues even
after death. It cannot be broken by the
most fearful factor death.
 Aging and losing a loved one may be
sad but it’s an excitement, as everyday is
another step closer to meeting them.
 You cannot give up who you love as you
love them so much.
