‘Marks of weakness, marks of woe’ Blake uses marks as an abstract noun to describe the sadness of the people that he meets and also as a concrete noun to describe the physical cuts and scars. This is also commented on in Jon Crook’s critical reading of London where he states that the word shifts from a verb to a noun and that by making marks Blake discovers worlds, in London he has discovered a world of misery marked in the faces that he passes. The second stanza has a semantic field of sadness and pain, the repetition of ‘in every’ is an effective way to show that this sadness is affecting everyone in the city of London at the time. It shows the emotion in ‘cry of every man’ and ‘infants cry of fear’ that they are all going through the same pain. It also symbolises the lack of freedom when he says ‘in every ban.’ The last line in the second stanza is ambiguous ‘The mind-forg’d manacles I hear’ is a metaphorical phrase that reinforces the feeling of being trapped in London, the word manacles has connotations of slavery and that the people of London are enslaving themselves.
A poet can experience various emotions that can be both negative and positive through an encounter with a place. This is evident in poems “Harbour Dusk” by Robert Gray and “William Street” by Kenneth Slessor. Gray creates a negative atmosphere to his poem “Harbour Dusk” however the poem does not completely revolve around negative connotations as such. At times in the poem ‘Harbour Dusk’, the poet portrays a isolated and tranquil surrounding though the atmosphere delivers a sense of melancholy. On the other hand, Slessor’s poem “William Street” challenges the readers by attributing beauty to the urban setting of the city streets.
“London, 1802” vs. “Douglass” Revision “London, 1802” 2. The speaker states that Milton could provide England with “manners, virtue, freedom, power” (8). His soul was like a star, his voice was as pure as the sea giving the world “cheerful godliness” (13). 3. In line 3, the altar (religion), sword (warfare), pen (diplomacy) and Fireside (home) represent metaphors for the problems of England.
Eliot portrays life as tarnished through urban decay, which is typical of the modernist era. This can be seen in ‘Love Song’ when Prufrock observes the “half-deserted streets ... one-night cheap hotels and sawdust restaurants”. These recurring images of urban isolation emphasise the corruption present in society. Similarly, in ‘Preludes’, the persona describes a woman he sees as clasping “the yellow soles of feet in the palms of both soiled hands”. The colour yellow, which symbolises decay and disease, is used to show the woman’s state of mind, which has been corrupted by the society she is part of.
Compare and contrast the presentation of suffering in “Out, Out-” and “Refugee Blues”. The poems “Out, Out-” and “Refugee Blues” have a theme of suffering in common, although they are set on very different scales; “Out, Out-” is based around a single incident, whereas “Refugee Blues”, although telling the story of one specific couple, represents the huge scale of the suppression of Jews throughout Europe. Isolation is a key feature of suffering in both poems. The titles of both poems imply themes of suffering and isolation. “Out, Out-” is the beginning of a quotation from Macbeth: “Out, out, brief candle!
Both “The Prelude” by William Wordsworth and “London” By William Blake” convey strong ideas and feelings about a place. Blake’s poem is most subjective about the city, contrary to the title. The reader would think that the title “London” is objective and unbiased; however Blake’s condemnation of the city is apparent from the start of the poem. On a simple level, the poem is a description of the misery Blake sees as he “wanders” around London. On a deeper level however, he is criticizing not only the condition of the city itself, but the monarchy and government who oppress it.
Lines that predict Romeo's death is when Juliet says, "O God, I have an ill-divining soul. /Methinks I see thee now, thou art so low/As one dead in the bottom of a tomb." (Shakespear, 3, v, 54) 4. The metaphors Capulet uses to describe Juliet's sobbing are: "Thou counterfeit’st a bark, a sea, a wind, /For still thy eyes, which I may call the sea, /Do ebb and flow with tears. The bark thy body is, /Sailing in this salt flood.
The poem “London” describes Blake’s dislike of London and how he views it as the downfall of modern society; he continually repeats the word “Chartered” and sees the city as fake, regulated and unnatural. Wordsworth, on the other hand, expresses his feelings towards London in the form of a sonnet. This – along with his admiring language such as “Majesty” and “Splendour”- make it clear to see that he adores the city. The moods created in the two poems vary greatly, from dismal and hopeless in Blake’s, to proud and ecstatic in Wordsworth’s rendition. In the following essay I will explore in greater detail the emotions and romantic aspects of the poems, and the opinions of the writers and audiences.
In this society people get very disturbed when the law is broken. When Mrs. Phelps starts sobbing after Montag reads the poem Mrs. Bowles starts yelling at Montag. Mrs. Bowles says, “I knew it would happen! I’ve always said poetry and tears, poetry and suicide and crying and awful feelings, poetry and sickness, all mush!”(101). Mrs. Bowles is furious at Montag for reading a poem and making Mrs. Phelps cry.
My childhood eyes see in the darkness the “painted devils.” (Act 1 Scene 2) My ears hear the “owl scream” and the “crying crickets” and the “croaking raven” (Act 2 Scene 5) - all rob my sleep. My nose smells the innocent blood of those victims to our ambition, our king so much like my sleeping father, the “Great Bond” himself, Banquo, and the mistress and hildren of our Thane of Fife. Oh my dear one, you thought that you had “murdered sleep” (Act 2 Scene 2) but I have murdered more than that – I have murdered our very