In the poems “Blackberry-Picking” by Seamus Heaney and “Blackberries for Amelia” by Richard Wilbur both authors center around the idea of Blackberries and what the blackberries symbolize in their lives. In “Blackberry-Picking”, Heaney focuses around the inevitability of time, and how though we may try to hold on to sweet moments of ripe berries, they pass. Wilbur takes a more optimistic viewpoint of life and shows how even though death is near for some, for others life and berry picking is just beginning. In both poems the authors center on the themes of time passing, the appearance of the blackberries and the future.…
As unemployment has been a common issue in Australian society for decades, it is not surprising that people’s opinions are diverse. Renowned late 20th century Australian poets Geoff Goodfellow and Bruce Dawe both discuss unemployment in their respective poems ‘Don’t Call me Lad Dad’ and ‘Doctor to Patient’. Although, both poets are peers of similar background, each presents unemployment in a different light. In order to create and enhance their differing messages, Goodfellow and Dawe both use poetic devices such as setting, form, and language techniques. Yet, the way in which each poet applies these techniques significantly varies to provide their audiences with different insights into the theme.…
This paper is a review of Jeansonne Glen’s biography “Messiah of the Masses: Huey P. Long and the Great Depression”. Glen doesn’t believe Long to be a saint nor a sinner; however, he does believe Long’s biggest priority wasn’t the people but himself. The author wrote this biography of Long as a young man getting his first start in politics, his campaign for governor, also his impeachment. In the book Messiah of the Masses: Huey P. Long and the Great Depression, the life of Huey Pierce Long is fully narrated and studied.…
Poets Seamus Heaney, Robert Frost and Gwen Harwood explore various contrasting poetic techniques in depicting ideas towards the reader. Heaney and Frost portray the idea of becoming overloaded with the concerns of life through contrasting imagery of childhood and nature. Harwood and Heaney look into the idea of the atrocities of war, by Harwood using different techniques of the contrasting understandings of frogs and Heaney’s depiction of people in battle. While continued contrast is seen in Frost and Harwood’s exploration of the idea of givers and takers of life by utilisation of contrasting symbolism in nature.…
1. At times in this essay, Michelle Cliff uses rich description with poetic language. Provide 3 different quotes, where, in your opinion, she demonstrates this. Examine their overall effect on the reader.…
Lighthead: Race and Time Collide Poetry is often used as a source for people to express themselves, whether it is through abstract thoughts or actual experiences. By doing so, one is able to create vivid visuals of the themes that may partake in his/her mind. Lighthead is no exception in the fact that Terrance Hayes articulates his past and life understandings through descriptive language in order to bring out empathy from the reader. In Hayes’ Lighthead, there are many common themes throughout this book of poems. By using themes such as time and race, Hayes is able to present an anthology of poems that relate by the usage of form and tone.…
Do you ever wonder why people have the need to tell their suffering to others? Why do we need to testify our suffering or our problems, and have a witness there to listen to them and actually care? Is there a problem when people don’t want to hear the need for the stories of the lives of others In the short story “Sonny’s Blues” the main character of the story Sonny endures the theme of suffering and in the process turns to drugs. there is seen a clear pattern of need for story telling, suffering, In the short story “Sonny’s Blues” by James Baldwin I will argue how that Sonny’s Blues implemented all three issues of suffering, function of storytelling, and the need for witness and testify, and how different types of suffering can connect together. When discussing the role for witness and testifying there is a big gap between Sonny and the Narrator views.…
Passion and ambition are the most human of emotions. Dreams separate those who can see where they must go from those who wander aimlessly through life in a simple and intrinsically animal pursuit of living. Without desire, or want humans would never have transcended their anatomy to build amazing skyscrapers, 3 million kilogram rockets and amazing ways of enjoying life. However, the urge to live necessarily prevents people from throwing themselves into their passion, no matter how much love they hold for it.…
Rosmarie Waldrop is a contemporary poet who seeks to understand the source of art as well as to reform it. She appreciates the paradoxical desires of the writer to break free of long-practiced and redundant structure, yet she understands the human need for order and arrangement. She acknowledges the fact that there is no such thing as an uninfluenced line of poetry; whether the influence is a grammatically and culturally correct form, or an emotional or ideological belief that is shared by poets and authors. According to Waldrop, “Whether we are conscious of it or not, we always write on top of a palimpsest.” (Baker, 75).…
There is a disconnect between real life and what we see in the movies and television about Hawaii. Whether it’s the people, places or things that attracts us to its concept, many inevitably end up not satisfying their curiosity. Alison Luterman’s poem “ On Not lying to Hawaii” uses various poetic devices and strategies to critique modern life that is focused on the ideal. There is a constant stream of examples that describe lives that seek fulfillment.…
In ‘Bitter-Berry Daybreak’ the remembrance of lost love and betrayal is the central theme which runs its course throughout all five stanzas. Metaphorical language is used to foreground feelings of not being listened to or being heard. For instance, the personalised “Echo” is all that is left of the betrayed lover’s voice, and yet it is also the betraying “other” who has chosen to take his emotions on an alternative route. He does not answer the spurned lover’s pleas, but chooses to reply to other voices, ‘Echo gives no answer; He answers…
Focusing on word choice, the speaker states, “She took it and/took it,” using the word “it” to describe the abuse (1-2). Although abuse is seen as a very serious topic in this poem, the effects of the speaker’s abuse is lessened by calling it a vague name and by doing so, shines all the spotlight onto how the speaker’s feelings toward the father as well as his own victimization is the main focus of the poem. Lending insight into the tone, the speaker says, “Then you were fired, and we/grinned inside” (4-5). By using imagery, Olds shows the tone of the poem by means of the way the speaker and their family finds malicious glee in the father’s slow deterioration. The speaker continues on to state, “Would they take your/suits back too, those dark/carcasses hung in your closet” (11-13).…
The diction throughout the piece is strong, each word carefully chosen to create the largest impact on the reader. “I couldn’t use my locker for weeks,” remarks Smith, “because the bolt on the lock reminded me of the one I had put on my lips when the homeless man on the corner looked at me with eyes merely searching for an affirmation that he was worth seeing” (Smith). This word choice allows the reader to visualize having a bolt tightened between his or her lips and recognize the guilty and morose tone that Smith attempts to convey throughout the piece. In addition to the thoughtful word choice, Smith uses metaphors near the end of the talk to augment his understanding of language.…
Analysis 4.1 Analysis The initial interpretation of the poem comes about significantly as a result of looking at the words used by the poet, particularly about their interconnection and the deviant grammatical and graphological elements. Analysis of lexical features is therefore, a better point to start with a detailed linguistic analysis. This in turn, contributes to the effects of overall meaning that the poem carries. 4.1.1 Lexical level…
At the beginning of the poem “Those Winter Sundays” by Robert Hayden, the speaker introduces cold and uncomfortable images to relay the tone of the poem: Regret for not respecting his father. Hayden uses “blueback cold” in the second line, presenting a tone of sadness and loneliness throughout the house that the speaker and his family like in. The word “blueblack” is such an uncommon word that it carries an extremely negative feeling, exemplifying the cold feeling of distance throughout the family.…