The Wind by James Stephens VS The Wind Tapped like a Tired Man by Emily Dickenson

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“The Wind” is a remarkable poem written by James Stephens (1882 – 1950), an Irish novelist and poet. Subjects in the poem are: leaves, trees, wind, murder and murderer. This poem is a great example of personification. Stephens personifies the wind as a wild human being. He implies that the wind is unpredictable, astonishing and unexplained as is the human life. The wind in the poem is a man who looks for consideration. He uses “his fingers” to wither leaves and thump branches. The word “fingers” is used to make the wind more like a person. The words “withered” and “thumped” enhance our imagination and help us envision the scene revealed in the poem. Through the sensory details we are able to see and hear the wind. The poem has great imagery. Furthermore, Stephens develops image using rhymes. For example, the word “shout” rhymes with “about” and the word “kill” rhymes with “will”. Stephens made a great choice of words. The strength of the wind is emphasized with the verbs “kicked” and “kill”. Stephens writes about a wind that is angry and wants to “kill”, a wind that kicks leaves and throws branches, a wind that seeks revenge. This is not just a mild breeze but a hurricane, sweeping up everything on his way. It wants to do harm and to cause death. The tone of the poem is very sad because of the implied death. “The Wind” by James Stephens can be compared and contrasted with Emily Dickinson’s “The Wind Tapped like a Tired Man”. Emily Dickinson (1882 – 1950) is an American poet. She also uses personification. The wind, which is the main subject of the poem, is personified as a tired man. Dickinson gives it fingers in order to make it like a living being. However, this wind does not use its fingers to cause harm but to “let go a music”. In contrast with Stephens’ wind, the wind described by Emily Dickinson is not angry. It is calm, “tired”, and “timid”, like an old

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