After the Lunch by Wendy Cope (AQA A-Level English Literature A): Revision Notes
After the Lunch by Wendy Cope
Overview
After the Lunch is a contemporary love poem by Wendy Cope that explores the experience of realising you have fallen in love. Written as an internal monologue, the poem takes place on Waterloo Bridge in London immediately following a first date. The speaker walks across the bridge whilst having a mental conversation with herself, moving through different emotional stages as she processes her newfound feelings.
The entire poem takes place during a single walk across Waterloo Bridge, making the physical journey across the bridge a powerful metaphor for the emotional journey from denial to acceptance.
The poem captures the psychological journey from initial denial through logical reasoning to eventual acceptance of love. What makes this piece particularly striking is how rapidly this transformation occurs – the speaker reaches her conclusion before she has even crossed halfway over the bridge.
Context: Wendy Cope
Wendy Cope (born 1945) is an English poet known for her accessible and witty approach to writing about love and relationships. She often employs a tongue-in-cheek style that gently mocks the conventions of romantic poetry whilst simultaneously celebrating genuine emotion. Her first poetry collection, Making Cocoa for Kingsley Amis, was published in 1986, and she has since become one of Britain's most popular contemporary poets. In 2010, she was appointed OBE in recognition of her contribution to literature.
Cope's style is particularly distinctive for combining humour with genuine emotional depth. She can make readers smile whilst simultaneously touching their hearts – a rare skill that makes her work both entertaining and meaningful.
Form and structure
Stanza structure
The poem consists of three quatrains (four-line stanzas), creating a neat, contained structure that reflects the short timeframe of the speaker's thought process. This division into three stanzas allows Cope to present a clear progression:
- Stanza 1: Denial and attempted repression of emotions
- Stanza 2: Reasoning and internal debate
- Stanza 3: Acceptance and admission of love
The fact that this entire emotional journey happens within twelve lines emphasises how quickly and unexpectedly love can strike. The speaker admits to falling in love before she has even reached the halfway point of the bridge.
Structural Progression Example:
The three-stanza structure creates a clear emotional arc:
- Beginning (Stanza 1): "try not to notice I've fallen in love" – Active denial
- Middle (Stanza 2): "This is nothing. You're high on the charm" – Rational argument
- End (Stanza 3): "I admit it before I am halfway across" – Full acceptance
This movement from resistance to acceptance happens in just 12 lines, mirroring the brief walk across the bridge.
Rhyme scheme
After the Lunch follows an AABB rhyme scheme throughout, using rhyming couplets. This regular pattern creates several important effects:
- It gives the poem a songlike, musical quality that reflects the giddy, almost childlike emotions associated with falling in love
- The paired structure of couplets mirrors the idea of two people becoming a couple
- The consistent rhythm propels the poem forward at pace, matching the rapid progression of the speaker's thoughts
- This traditional form connects the poem to centuries of love poetry, whilst Cope's contemporary language and honest tone give it a modern twist
The rhyme scheme helps create what is described as a childlike cadence – a rhythmic flow that captures the excitement and innocence of new romantic feelings.
Key stylistic techniques
Repetition of "Waterloo Bridge"
The phrase "Waterloo Bridge" is repeated at the start of each stanza, creating a structural anchor for the poem. This technique serves multiple purposes:
- It centres the poem on a specific, recognisable London landmark, making the experience concrete and visualisable
- It reinforces the physical journey across the bridge as a metaphor for the emotional journey from denial to acceptance
- The iconic location adds a sense of bustling city life, with the speaker's intense internal experience happening amidst the chaos and noise of London
- The physical distance of crossing the bridge parallels how quickly one can fall in love – it happens in the time it takes to walk from one side to the other
The repetition of "Waterloo Bridge" at the beginning of each stanza creates a powerful structural device called anaphora. This not only grounds the poem in a specific place but also emphasises the continuous nature of the speaker's walk and thought process – each stanza represents another step forward, both physically and emotionally.
Short sentences and rhythm
Cope employs notably short sentences with few syllables, creating a clipped, rapid reading experience. This stylistic choice reflects the quick-fire nature of the speaker's internal debate. The thoughts tumble out in quick succession, mirroring how the mind works when trying to process overwhelming emotions. The brevity also suggests the speaker is almost breathless with the realisation.
Use of pronouns
The poem alternates cleverly between first-person ("I") and second-person ("you") pronouns, except in the opening line which uses "we" and "our". This shifting perspective creates a sense of the speaker having a conversation with herself:
- "I" represents the emotional, heartfelt side – the part that has fallen in love
- "You" represents the rational, questioning side – the part trying to talk herself out of it
- The use of second person allows the speaker to question and challenge her own emotions, as if she were advising a friend
In the final line, "I admit it before I am halfway across", the double use of "I" and complete absence of "you" symbolises the victory of heart over head. The rational voice has been silenced, and the emotional self has won the argument.
Analysis: Stanza by stanza
Stanza one
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.
The opening stanza immediately establishes the setting and situation. The speaker has just parted from her date on Waterloo Bridge, and atmospheric details like the "weather conditions" are introduced. Notice how the first line uses the pronouns "we" and "our", establishing the couple as a unit before the individual perspective takes over. This subtle hint suggests the relationship is already forming before it is explicitly acknowledged.
The stanza builds to its emotional revelation through the use of enjambment between lines 3 and 4. The rhythm carries the reader forward to a sudden end stop after the word "love", giving it extra weight and impact. This mirrors how the realisation hits the speaker herself – suddenly and with force.
The speaker immediately tries to diminish these feelings, attempting to "try not to notice" that she has fallen in love. The verb "try" is significant here, suggesting that cracks are already appearing in her resistance. She is failing to repress her emotions even as she makes the attempt.
Stanza two
On Waterloo Bridge I am trying to think: This is nothing. You're high on the charm and the drink. (...) That says something different. And when was it wrong?
The second stanza presents the rational argument the speaker makes to herself. She tries to dismiss her feelings as nothing more than being "high on the charm and the drink" – a temporary effect of an enjoyable date, not genuine emotion.
However, even within this supposedly logical stanza, the other side of the argument emerges. The reference to "song" draws upon archetypes of romantic poetry, strengthening rather than weakening the case for love. The mention of a "juke-box" could represent the speaker's heart, with the sing-song joy of music serving as a symbol for the glee she feels. Alternatively, using "juke-box" instead of the more direct "heart" (which appears in the final stanza) might reflect her continuing reluctance to fully embrace these feelings.
The Turning Point:
The stanza concludes with a rhetorical question: "And when was it wrong?"
This marks a crucial turning point in the poem. The speaker cannot provide herself with a convincing reason to resist falling in love. By asking when her feelings have been wrong before, she's essentially admitting that they're trustworthy. The question signals a tonal shift, with her heart beginning to win the argument and pull her towards acceptance.
Stanza three
On Waterloo Bridge with the wind in my hair (...) I admit it before I am halfway across.
The final stanza centres on acceptance. It opens with an image pairing humanity and nature – "the wind in my hair" – described in almost playful terms. This description of the wind reflects the joyful glee the speaker is now allowing herself to feel.
There is one last flicker of resistance: "You're a fool". But this is immediately overpowered by "I don't care", which represents the moment the speaker fully relinquishes her resistance and accepts that it is acceptable, even wonderful, to be a fool when falling in love.
The closing line, "I admit it before I am halfway across", brings the emotional journey to its conclusion. The rapid timeframe is emphasised – this entire internal debate and transformation has taken only moments, occurring before she has even reached the middle of the bridge. This underscores one of the poem's central messages: falling in love can happen in an instant.
Key themes and ideas
Head versus heart
The central conflict in After the Lunch is between rational thought (the "head") and emotional feeling (the "heart"). The speaker tries to use logic to dismiss her feelings, but ultimately her heart proves stronger. The poem suggests that falling in love is not a rational process – it happens regardless of whether we think it makes sense. By the end, the speaker accepts that some experiences transcend reason.
The unexpected nature of love
The poem captures how suddenly and unexpectedly love can arrive. One moment the speaker is saying goodbye after a date, and within a few steps across a bridge, she has recognised and accepted that she has fallen in love. The rapid timeframe emphasises that love is not always gradual or planned – it can strike with surprising speed.
The physical journey across Waterloo Bridge serves as a perfect metaphor for this theme. Just as the bridge has a definite start and end point, so too does the speaker's emotional journey – but the transition happens much faster than we might expect.
Authenticity of emotion
Despite the speaker's attempts to dismiss her feelings as effects of "charm and the drink", the poem ultimately validates her emotions as genuine. The rhetorical question "when was it wrong?" suggests that trusting one's feelings is not foolish but natural and right.
Exam tips
Essential Exam Strategies:
- Consider how Cope uses structure to mirror emotional progression – three distinct stages across three stanzas
- Analyse the rhyme scheme and its effects – how does the AABB pattern create musicality and reflect the subject matter?
- Explore the dual voice created through pronoun use – how does the speaker argue with herself?
- Link to wider themes in love poetry – Cope both follows and subverts traditional romantic conventions
- Use specific quotations to support your points, particularly the key line "I admit it before I am halfway across"
- Consider the contemporary setting – how does placing this love poem on a London bridge make it feel modern and accessible?
Remember!
Key Points to Remember:
- After the Lunch is an internal monologue capturing the moment someone realises they have fallen in love, set on Waterloo Bridge after a first date
- The poem's structure traces a journey from denial through reasoning to acceptance, accomplished within three quatrains
- The AABB rhyme scheme creates a songlike quality using rhyming couplets that mirror the pairing of lovers
- Pronoun shifts between "I" and "you" represent the conflict between heart and head, with "I" ultimately winning
- The entire emotional transformation happens before the speaker reaches halfway across the bridge, emphasising how quickly and unexpectedly love can strike