Wendy Cope’s “After the Lunch” is a poignant and universally relatable exploration of the unexpected onset of love. This poem masterfully captures the internal conflict that arises when the heart makes a declaration the mind is not yet ready to accept. Through its deceptively simple language and structure, the poem delves into the profound experience of vulnerability and the irresistible power of emotion.
On Waterloo Bridge, where we said our goodbyes,
the weather conditions bring tears to my eyes.
I wipe them away with a black woolly glove
and try not to notice I’ve fallen in love.On Waterloo Bridge I am trying to think:
This is nothing. You’re high on the charm and the drink.
But the jukebox inside me is playing a song
that says something different. And when was it wrong?On Waterloo Bridge with the wind in my hair
I am tempted to skip. You’re a fool. I don’t care.
The head does its best, but the heart is the boss,
I admit it before I am halfway across.
Understanding “After the Lunch”: A Concise Summary
“After the Lunch” by Wendy Cope is a celebrated contemporary poem that vividly portrays the speaker’s internal struggle with the sudden realization of falling in love. The poem unfolds on Waterloo Bridge, a symbolic setting where the speaker has just parted ways with a companion after a lunch date. Initially, the speaker attempts to rationalize her emotional state, attributing her feelings to external factors like the weather, the companion’s charm, or even alcohol. However, an undeniable inner voice, metaphorically represented by a “jukebox,” asserts the truth of her burgeoning affection. Despite her mind’s efforts to resist, the speaker’s heart ultimately triumphs, leading to an acceptance of her new, profound feelings even before she completes her journey across the bridge.
The central idea of “After the Lunch” revolves around the irresistible and often surprising nature of love, and the conflict between rational thought and emotional truth. It highlights how the heart can override the mind’s defenses, leading to an inevitable acceptance of vulnerability. This poem is noteworthy for its accessible language, relatable theme, and the honest portrayal of a common human experience, making it a highly popular and resonant piece of literature.
In-Depth Analysis of “After the Lunch”
Wendy Cope’s “After the Lunch” is a masterclass in conveying complex emotions with clarity and wit. A deeper look reveals the intricate layers of meaning woven into its seemingly simple verses.
The Emotional Journey on Waterloo Bridge
The poem’s setting, Waterloo Bridge, is more than just a location; it serves as a powerful symbolic backdrop for the speaker’s emotional transition. Bridges inherently represent connections, crossings, and journeys from one state to another. For the speaker, crossing Waterloo Bridge mirrors her internal passage from denial to acceptance of her feelings. Each stanza marks a progression in this emotional journey.
- In the first stanza, the speaker is at the point of departure, grappling with the initial, overwhelming sensation:
On Waterloo Bridge, where we said our goodbyes,
the weather conditions bring tears to my eyes.
I wipe them away with a black woolly glove
and try not to notice I’ve fallen in love.Here, the tears are attributed to “weather conditions,” a clear act of self-deception to avoid the profound truth. The active “try not to notice” underscores the immediate resistance.
- The second stanza finds the speaker actively attempting to rationalize her feelings, engaging in a mental debate:
On Waterloo Bridge I am trying to think:
This is nothing. You’re high on the charm and the drink.
But the jukebox inside me is playing a song
that says something different. And when was it wrong?The mind offers logical explanations, but the heart’s “song” is already asserting its undeniable truth.
- By the third stanza, the internal battle is nearing its resolution, with emotion gaining the upper hand:
On Waterloo Bridge with the wind in my hair
I am tempted to skip. You’re a fool. I don’t care.
The head does its best, but the heart is the boss,
I admit it before I am halfway across.The temptation to “skip” suggests a burgeoning joy and lightness, despite the mind’s protest, “You’re a fool.” The final lines mark a surrender to the heart’s authority, completing the emotional crossing.
Themes Explored in “After the Lunch”
The poem delves into several profound themes that resonate with a wide audience.
- Love’s Irresistible Force: The most prominent theme is the overwhelming and often unexpected power of love. Despite the speaker’s initial attempts to deny or rationalize her feelings, love asserts itself as an undeniable force. The “jukebox inside me is playing a song” metaphorically illustrates this internal, uncontrollable declaration of affection.
- The Conflict Between Head and Heart: A central tension in the poem is the struggle between logic and emotion. The speaker’s “head does its best” to dismiss the feelings, offering rationalizations such as “You’re high on the charm and the drink.” However, the poem ultimately concludes that “the heart is the boss,” emphasizing the supremacy of emotion over reason in matters of love.
- Vulnerability and Acceptance: The journey across Waterloo Bridge is also a journey towards vulnerability. The speaker initially tries to hide her feelings, but by the end, she openly “admit[s] it.” This acceptance of vulnerability is portrayed not as a weakness, but as a liberating and inevitable step in the experience of falling in love.
Literary and Poetic Devices in “After the Lunch”
Cope employs a range of literary and poetic devices to enhance the poem’s meaning, musicality, and emotional impact.
- Structure and Form: The Quatrain’s Rhythm
The poem is composed of three quatrains, or four-line stanzas. This consistent structure provides a sense of order and balance, which ironically contrasts with the speaker’s internal emotional turmoil. The regular rhythm created by these quatrains makes the poem highly readable and memorable. - Rhyme Scheme and End Rhyme: Musicality and Cohesion
“After the Lunch” employs a consistent ABAB end rhyme scheme in each stanza. For example, in the first stanza, “goodbyes” rhymes with “eyes,” and “glove” rhymes with “love.” This regular rhyming pattern contributes significantly to the poem’s musicality and lyrical quality, making it feel like a song, which aligns with the “jukebox” metaphor. The predictability of the rhyme scheme also creates a sense of familiarity and accessibility for the reader. - Repetition and Refrain: Anchoring the Emotion
The repeated phrase “On Waterloo Bridge” at the beginning of each stanza functions as a powerful refrain. This repetition not only anchors the poem to its specific setting but also emphasizes the continuous nature of the speaker’s emotional journey. It reinforces the idea that the bridge is a central stage for this internal drama, marking the progression of her thoughts and feelings as she physically moves across it. - Imagery: Painting the Scene and Feeling
Cope uses vivid imagery to ground the poem in a tangible reality and to evoke the speaker’s emotional state. Phrases like “the weather conditions bring tears to my eyes” initially provide a plausible, if deceptive, reason for her tears. “A black woolly glove” adds a tactile detail to her attempt to wipe them away. “The wind in my hair” creates a sensory experience that accompanies her growing sense of freedom and temptation to “skip,” making the emotional shift more palpable for the reader. - Personification: Giving Voice to Emotion
Personification is skillfully used to give abstract concepts human-like qualities, making the internal conflict more vivid. The most striking example is “But the jukebox inside me is playing a song.” This personifies the speaker’s subconscious emotions as an independent entity, a “jukebox” that plays its own tune, separate from her conscious will. Similarly, “The head does its best, but the heart is the boss” personifies the “head” and “heart” as distinct agents engaged in a power struggle, clearly illustrating the internal debate. - Symbolism: The Bridge as a Threshold
Waterloo Bridge itself is a potent symbol. As discussed, bridges universally represent transition, connection, and the crossing of thresholds. In “After the Lunch,” the bridge symbolizes the speaker’s journey from a state of emotional denial to one of acceptance. Her physical progress across the bridge mirrors her internal emotional shift, culminating in the admission of love before she is “halfway across.” - Sound Devices: Assonance and Consonance
Cope subtly employs sound devices to enhance the poem’s musicality and emphasize certain words.- Assonance, the repetition of vowel sounds, can be observed in lines such as “This is nothing. You’re high on the charm and the drink.” The repeated short ‘i’ sound in “This,” “high,” and “drink” creates a subtle internal rhythm and links these words, underscoring the speaker’s attempt to dismiss her feelings.
- Consonance, the repetition of consonant sounds, also adds to the poem’s texture. Notice the repetition of the ‘t’ sound in “The head does its best, but the heart is the boss.” This repetition draws attention to the contrast between the “best” efforts of the “head” and the ultimate authority of the “heart,” reinforcing the central conflict.
- Enjambment: Flowing Thoughts and Feelings
Enjambment, the continuation of a sentence or phrase from one line to the next without a pause, creates a sense of fluidity and urgency, mimicking the speaker’s continuous thought process and emotional flow. A clear example is in the first stanza:I wipe them away with a black woolly glove
and try not to notice I’ve fallen in love.The lack of punctuation at the end of the first line propels the reader directly into the next, emphasizing the speaker’s immediate and desperate attempt to suppress her burgeoning feelings. This unbroken flow reflects the unstoppable nature of her realization.
- Rhetorical Question: Challenging Self-Deception
The line “And when was it wrong?” functions as a rhetorical question. It is not posed to elicit an answer but rather to emphasize the speaker’s growing conviction that her heart’s message is true and reliable. This question marks a turning point, signaling the speaker’s internal challenge to her own rationalizations and her increasing acceptance of her emotions.
The Enduring Appeal of “After the Lunch”
“After the Lunch” remains a beloved poem due to its profound relatability and its elegant simplicity. Wendy Cope captures a universal human experience: the moment of realizing one has fallen in love, often against one’s initial inclination. The poem’s accessible language, consistent structure, and clever use of literary devices make it both enjoyable to read and rich for analysis. It serves as a gentle reminder that while the mind may try to control our emotions, the heart often has the final, undeniable say, leading us to embrace vulnerability and the beautiful, unpredictable journey of love.