Paul Zimmer states, “Even now when I hide behind my elaborate mask it is always known that I am Zimmer” (Lines 21-23). In this last paragraph from “Zimmer in Grade School” Zimmer brings the poem to present tense and makes a self reflection of himself now. Robert Hayden also has an element of self reflection in his last paragraph from “Those Winter Sundays”, “What did I know, what did I know of love’s austere and lonely offices?” (Lines 13-14) He is now speaking from an adult’s perspective by reflecting on past emotions and looking back and asking himself what did he know about the consequences love has sometimes. Both authors write in a mature manner throughout their poems, but have a really good way of putting the reader right back in the scene they were in. Zimmer makes a statement in which it seems like he is speaking from a younger age.
Edgar Lee Masters Edgar Lee Masters was an American poet, known principally for his poems about life in the Midwest. It has been 49 years since he has died and today he is virtually forgotten. His book of poems entitled Spoon River Anthology may spark a small amount of recognition. This book is a work of free verse poems about the secret lives of the inhabitants of Spoon River, a small Midwest town based on Lewistown and Petersburg, Illinois. This book remains a landmark in the literature world of realism and revolt against conventional social standards that flourished in the early 20th century.
Marranda Byrd Professor Smith English 07/12/2011 Poem Explication “Hay for the Horses” Gary Snyder In the poem of Hay for my Horses, Snyder is telling the story of a man who has bucked hay most of his life. The man bringing the hay ,is a rough hard man and as he sits, he reflects on his life, maybe not so much disappointed with his life now, just that he said a long time ago that he wasn’t going to do something and then the realization at that particular moment that, that is exactly what he has done. Snyder explains the situation right of in the first few lines about how this man from Mariposa is coming to bring hay and how he has to travel dangerous mountain roads. How the man bringing the hay has driven half the night. All of these things give you a sense of the type of man that is delivering the hay.
Wilfred Owen's poem “Futility” is one that he himself placed under the category “Grief.” Owen is considered to be one of the greatest poets of World War I, speaking out openly against its horrors which he experienced himself in the trenches. “Futility” is a brief poem of fourteen lines divided into two stanzas; it is full of emotion . The poem concerns the body of a soldier who is not named, but it appears to be someone that Owen knew personally. In the opening line of the poem Owen mentions the sun, which is a recurring feature throughout the fourteen lines. There is a suggestion to move “him” – the soldier who has just died – into the sun in the hope that it might bring him back to life.
Updike passed away in 2009 from lung cancer. John Updike’s short story “A & P” was first published in The New Yorker in 1961 and has become something of a classic of college literature anthologies (Dessner). Walter Wells states that John Updike’s penchant for appropriating great works of literature and giving them contemporary restatement in his own fiction is abundantly documented (Wells). What is wonderful about this story is Updike’s descriptive quality and the characterization of the protagonist Sammy. The story’s curtness and its absurdly innocent yet ethically aspiring teen helps depict his social and moral dilemma.
H/W 25/2/13 How does John Betjeman create a sense of identity in “On a portrait of a deaf man” and one other poem John Betjeman creates a sense of identity in various ways. The poem is a tribute to his deceased father and the stark realization he believes in as he is very direct about death. Betjeman often writes about loneliness and death as he was passionate about the English way of life, which he believed to be dying out. The poem creates a fond memory of Betjeman’s father as it recalls many of his inconsequential actions and behavior. Betjeman does not use any euphemisms when talking about death to show that he has accepted it.
Write a close analysis of Follower explaining how the poet uses natural imagery and structure of the poem to convey the themes of the loss of childhood innocence and the formation of adult identities? Heaney constructed six carefully measured quatrains and approximately eight syllables per line, in iambic tetrameter. Caesura is used in the poem to force the reader to dwell on Heaney's view of his father, him first admiring him and them finding him as a nuisance. Throughout the poem there seems to be an ABCB/ABAC rhyme scheme with the exception of the second stanza which is quite simple and could convey his childish nature. From the beginning of the poem, growing up and loss have played a big role.
John Grisham was inspired by his own life, as well as his grandfather’s, to write A Painted House (jgrisham.com). Luke Chandler, the main character and the narrator of the novel, is based on Grisham and his grandfather (Zaleski 108). John Grisham’s vivid use of characterization throughout A Painted House is used to develop his theme, the foundation of family. The novel A Painted House shows many examples of characterization. Grisham puts Eli Chandler (Pappy) in the category of farmers whom he describes as “hardworking men who embrace pessimism only when discussing the weather and crops” (Grisham 1).
The plot in which Ellison chose to compose his short story, mainly taking the form of flashbacks, was to show the reader how the narrator was slowly beginning to understand that his speech about humility led him to be somewhat “free” in the end, but with the consequences of having to go through negative experiences just to be “free.” Moreover, the protagonist grandfather whom was giving advice to the young man’s father proved to be true because the young man faced a lot of mistreatment and humiliation in the hands of the white men, and understanding what the grandfather mentioned about practicing false humility finally made sense to him, but it took him twenty years after his experience to understand that. Also, the setting in which “Battle Royal” took place shows why Ellison’s narrator believed that humility had to be the key to freedom, merely because during that time segregation and racial discrimination was going on and black Americans were protesting for their independence, equality and rights, as well as erecting movements that would lead into the Civil
Peter Skzynecki explores the concept of belonging in his poem, “Feiks Skzynecki,” in which he writes about his father’s attachment to his garden and the concept of not belonging in the poem “St. Patrick’s College,” where Peter writes about his struggles and hardships of his schooling life. When people experience a strong connection to a place, the notion of belonging is associated with positive feelings, however when this connection is not there, a feeling of isolation and alienation occurs. The idea of belonging is mostly perceived as a connection with others, however people can develop a sense of belonging with their memories and particular places. In the poem “Feliks Skrynecki” this concept of belonging is explored.