Philip Larkin and Dannie Abse have very different and contrasting attitudes to relationships. On the whole, Larkin presents the concepts of love and marriage as very superficial and meaningless, whereas Abse appears to be less such nihilistic and more open and positive about such topics. Throughout Wild Oats, Philip Larkin uses various literary techniques, such as imagery, structure and symbolism to convey certain aspects of love and the passing of time. Larkin's poetry often relates to the social and cultural views upon love and marriage in his time. In Wild Oats It explains that a person, over the course of time, comes to realise that his greatest desires of love, are unattainable, and second best things will have to suffice.
Some of the poems in the final third of Edmund SpenserAmoretti sonnet sequence display this feature. Some poems by the same author are paired, allowing one character to make a statement in one poem and then allowing another character to reply in an accompanying work. For example, in the poem "Wrapt in my careless cloak," by Henry Howard, Earl of Surrey, a dsigruntled man complains about the behavior of women, while in an accompanying poem titled "Girt in my guiltless gown," a woman replies to the man's charges. Of course, another way in which lyric poems can be performative is that they almost demand to be read aloud if one hopes to appreciate all their subtleties of sound and sense. This is less true of novels, and reading an entire novel out loud is therefore not something that most people do (at least not any
The essay identifies the name of the poem and the author at the beginning. The essay presents a thesis in the introductory paragraph and ends with a concluding paragraph that restates the thesis of the essay. The body of the essay contains paragraphs that support the essay's thesis. The essay usually follows one or an appropriate combination of the four major organizational plans (chronological order, spatial order, logical order, order of importance), but there may be a few details or ideas that are out of place. Transitions are generally used effectively.
Compare the methods that poets use to create an interesting character in “Singh Song!” and another poem from character and voice (“Checking out Me History”). Both poems are dramatic monologues and have a conversational tone. The poems are written in free verse and this has connotations to the way that the characters have confusion over their identity. The irregular stanza lengths show the various cultural differences between the poems. In the poem “Singh Song!”, the poet uses repetition to show the persona of Singh as being very personal and intimate when he spends the little time that he has with his “newly bride”.
Compare the ways the poets show how relationships can affect people in ‘Les Grand Seigneurs’ and one other poem from character and voice (Medusa) In both poems the narrators have been changed for the worst by men, specifically their partner. This is clear from the poet’s use of metaphors in Les Grand Seigneurs making the speakers life seem admirable and happy before she got married, first she describes men as ‘rocking horses’ and ‘hurdy gurdy monkey men’ making her relationships with them seem light hearted and playful. Whereas after getting marred things change ‘overnight’ and she becomes ‘a bit of fluff’ and isn’t as desired or honoured as she once was. Similarly in Medusa as the narrator’s relationship becomes more serious she can feel herself changing and becomes paranoid and doubting of her partner and his loyalty to her. The poet uses sibilance between her ‘filthy snakes’ as hair and the hissing and spitting of her thoughts to exaggerate the link between the Greek goddess (associated with snakes) and the speaker.
ARCHETYPAL AND MYTH CRITICISM IN EMILY DICKINSON’S ”I died for beauty, but was scarce” AND ” The brain is wider than the sky” Since ancient times, readers have debated and critiqued literature from a variety of perspectives. They were considering how values are represented in a text, evaluating a poem in terms of its form, or even looking at literature to see what it might be saying about our lives in society, our political or power relations, gender roles, or sexuality. In this essay, I will be talking about the archetypal and myth criticism and focusing on two of Emily Dickinson’s poems : ”I died for beauty, but was scarce” and ” The brain is wider than the sky”. ”Archetypal literary criticism is a type of critical theory that interprets a text by focusing on recurring myths and archetypes in the narrative, symbols, images, and character types in a literary work. [1]” An archetype is an original model or pattern from which other later copies are made, especially a character, an action, or situation that seems to represent common patterns of human life.
Some turn to drugs, some take drastic measures; however Sylvia Plath and Brian Patten, like many others, turn to poetry to convert emotions that they have experienced, into poems people all over the world can relate to. Loss and Isolation proves to be a recurring theme and is used throughout each poem to such an extent that it may bring forward emotions in the reader similar to the poet. Poetry like music is often used to express feelings by using another voice and effectively hide behind the words to share things that would be too difficult to talk about. All three poems do this extremely effectively and reflect the poet’s state of mind within the structure, stanza length and rhyme scheme. Following Plath’s depression and death of her father it is not surprising that the majority of her poetry reflects her unhappiness and shows certain desperation as if trying to escape the real world for a small while.
What is the purpose of the Poetry Essay? The College Board wants to determine your facility in reading and interpreting a sustained piece of literature. You are required to understand the text and to analyze those techniques and devices the poet uses to achieve his or her purpose. There are various types of prompts and questions asked in this section of the exam. For example, -How does the language of the poem reflect the speaker’s perceptions, and how does that language determine the reader’s perception?
Task: Write a multi-paragraph essay in which you 1. analyze the poem in regards to theme, tone, and style (sound techniques, figurative language, diction, syntax, figurative language, etc.) and 2. respond to the literary criticism provided. Some things to consider: Use direct quotes from the poem and criticism to illustrate and support your claims (with proper in-text citations). If you claim he uses figurative language, offer an example of figurative language. Don’t just address the WHAT; address the WHY.
3. Personal response Read the poem again and decide what you think the poet was trying to do. Is there a message? Is it an emotional response to an event? Is it trying to create an emotive response from you?