MCMXIV (1914)

This is one of Larkin's serious poems, about the first world war. The first stanza opens with "long uneven lines" showing the men signing up at an recruiting office but could also show the trenches of war. Larkin describes it as a normal day and the "sun" and "archaic faces" show a calmness and old fashioned view. The poem offers a sense of patriotism "called after kings and queens" show people fight in the name of their monarch.
The last two stanza's show how the country copes during the war. the idea that the "countryside not caring" shows its a safer place to be and the "flowering grasses" show a summery, calm sense perhaps offering optimism. Along with the "tiny rooms in huge houses" offers a contrast as the excitement has gone and "dust behind limousines" show they are no longer used and how everyday life has changed.
"changed itself to past without a word" showing how quickly time and attitudes change but the idea of "without a word" could reflect the men leaving- no goodbyes as they expect to come home also the  fact they go "leaving the gardens tidy" shows they are ready to return to normal. Also the fact "thousands of marriages lasting a little while longer" could symbolise that they are widowed before they realise or are told but also the idea the husbands are further away showing that love perhaps lasts longer. The last line "never such innocence again" implies that war wont happen again in the same way the first war did, as people will never be as optimistic again because of all the horrors  they saw and how much ww1 changed peoples lives and that the nation changed- women went to work and generations grew up with change.