Eng 125 Poetic Effect

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Poetic Effect and Personal Reflection English 125- Introduction to Literature The goals of writers and poets are to stir our imaginations and place ourselves within their stories and characters. Subjects such as love, life, family, and loss are common themes of poetry. Poetry such as this is intended to capture our emotions and make us think deeper about our lives, our fortunes, and our losses. Many give us insight into events that have occurred in our own life. There are many ways and forms that poets have used to engage these emotions and relationships. A relationship between the theme of the poem and the reader is truly unique to each reader. In analyzing any poem there are several areas to critique how these goals and methods were achieved. Robert Finch wrote a poem “Peacock and Nightingale”. A personal reflection and criticism of “Peacock and Nightingale” will show how speech, poetic form and other literary techniques help a poems theme and message evolve. Robert Finch born 1900 in Freeport New York is a poet best known for his lyrical and satirical poetic design (Clugston, 2010). Finch is an award winning poet who spent most of his life in Canada, and taught French at the University of Toronto. Finch wrote “Peacock and Nightingale” in 1948. “Peacock and Nightingale” is a poem of irony that is applicable to many society and social situations today. Irony is a result of an unexpected result, wherein the “Peacock and Nightingale” sets the reader up for ironic outcome (Clugston, 2010). The end result of the peacock showing its wears, bragging of its abilities and feathers offers that it is the superior animal over a nightingale. Who would not fall in ecstasy Before the gemmed enamelry Of ruby-topaz-sapphire me? (Robert Finch, 1948) Finch also uses rhyming and flowing poetic form
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