Racial Discrimination In Invictus By William Earnest Henley

Whether it be a struggle through racial discrimination, bullying, or simply being under a foul circumstance, most people have felt persecuted, or singled out at some point in their lifetime by nature. Some may choose to roll over and let their torturers win, allow them to break their spirit and prevent them from achieving what they truly want, but in Invictus by William Earnest Henley, the story of the former is told. The story of a man ravaged by tuberculosis, someone who had already lost one leg and may soon lose the other. William Earnest Henley was this man, and knew that even in his best case scenario, his life would never be the same, and he would likely need constant caretakers which he could not afford. . But instead of doing like most …show more content…
The author 's change of tone within stanzas shows itself best through his diction. The use of words like “clutch” tend to give the reader an overall darker tone than words like “grasp” and clutch makes the author feel helpless, as if they can do nothing in the “clutch” of the world; Furthermore the author chose words like “wince” over similar words like “cower” because the author knew that cowering would immediately paint him in a coward like way. Wincing is seen as more insignificant than cowering, and despite the author 's refusal of both, even planting such a word into the mind of the reader will only lead to the growth of doubt. Finally the last two lines of the poem formally sum up the whole idea behind the author 's poem. The author states “I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul” The author chooses to use words that are for all intents and purposes, identical in order to reiterate the same point twice without direct repetition; Furthermore the authors use of both captain and master show a higher level of control than something like boss may portray. A captain is the sole decider on the high seas, he decides right from wrong as the chosen representative of the state. A master answers to no one except for himself, and a master of a certain trade does not consult anyone else before beginning on a project within his craft because he is the sole decider. A boss always has higher ups, as would anyone who holds any political office. A master and captain have complete control, just as the author has over his own