A theme ever-present in a large majority of poetry is conflict. Conflict can manifest in many different forms in the world and poetry, being a great form of social commentary, discusses the impact these forms of conflict have on the world. A diverse selection of authors discuss the themes of ethical conflict, romantic conflict, conflict in war, and existential conflict in their work.
The theme of ethical conflict is highly predominant in the poetry of Langston Hughes, George Watsky, and Seamus Heaney. In Hughes’, The Weary Blues, he highlights the extreme division between white and black culture in America through their cultural music. Hughes states, “With his ebony hands on each ivory key,” exemplifying the motif of the division between white …show more content…
Sylvia Plath’s satire on marriage, The Applicant, explores the pitfalls and double-standards often associated with marriage. Stanza seven begins with the allusion to anniversary milestones, “in 25 years she’ll be silver, in 50, gold”, with a constant reference to wealth, tarnishing, and a worthless indication of achievement. Plath also describes the woman as ‘a living doll’, an encumbrance, a statement that strips women of any agency they maintained, reducing femininity to a pretty toy. The woman is described as being able to “sew… cook… [and] talk talk talk” - a continued allusion to the 1950s image of the perfect housewife that can perform ‘wifely duties’ and talks constantly with no substance. Similarly, Andrew Marvell in To His Coy Mistress alludes to the dominance of the man in relationships and his attempts at courtship. Marvell addresses often taboo subjects such as “long-preserved virginity”; virginity has ancient connotations of value, property, and ownership which is continued onto the next line, talking about “quaint Honour”. His lust and her honour both ‘turn to dust’, and this imagery dehumanises her as it suggests that she is expendable. To conclude Marvell compares the “private place” that is the grave and the “embrace” of love on the final lines of this stanza, where intimacy is conflated with death in …show more content…
Hughes, T.S Eliot, and George Watsky all discuss existential conflict in their poetry. In The Weary Blues, Hughes uses the metanarrative of the song within the poem, which adds depth to the narrative and places a great importance on self-worth and finding your ‘place’ in the world. The entirety of the song describes, in a metaphorical and symbolic sense, the plight of the African-American people living in the U.S in the 1920s. Additionally, Eliot’s religious allegory The Journey of the Magi, is brimming with biblical references. Judas’ betrayal and the thirty pieces of “silver”, “the feet kicking” is a reference to Judas’ suicide by hanging, coupled with the additional reference of the wine-skins’ dulling of people’s senses. Then utilising bathos, Elliot concludes the stanza as merely “satisfactory”. The final two lines of the poem are riddled with connotations of false idols “clutching to their gods” in particular. The Magi states “I should be glad of another death”. At this moment he is addressing his god directly asking to die, as he has no power anymore and feels alone without a place in the new world. Watsky’s assessment of the individual experience, Tiny Glowing Screens, Part 2 begins by stating that there are ‘7 billion 46 million’ people on this earth and then later states that there are ‘7 billion 47 million’; this population growth within the
The theme of ethical conflict is highly predominant in the poetry of Langston Hughes, George Watsky, and Seamus Heaney. In Hughes’, The Weary Blues, he highlights the extreme division between white and black culture in America through their cultural music. Hughes states, “With his ebony hands on each ivory key,” exemplifying the motif of the division between white …show more content…
Sylvia Plath’s satire on marriage, The Applicant, explores the pitfalls and double-standards often associated with marriage. Stanza seven begins with the allusion to anniversary milestones, “in 25 years she’ll be silver, in 50, gold”, with a constant reference to wealth, tarnishing, and a worthless indication of achievement. Plath also describes the woman as ‘a living doll’, an encumbrance, a statement that strips women of any agency they maintained, reducing femininity to a pretty toy. The woman is described as being able to “sew… cook… [and] talk talk talk” - a continued allusion to the 1950s image of the perfect housewife that can perform ‘wifely duties’ and talks constantly with no substance. Similarly, Andrew Marvell in To His Coy Mistress alludes to the dominance of the man in relationships and his attempts at courtship. Marvell addresses often taboo subjects such as “long-preserved virginity”; virginity has ancient connotations of value, property, and ownership which is continued onto the next line, talking about “quaint Honour”. His lust and her honour both ‘turn to dust’, and this imagery dehumanises her as it suggests that she is expendable. To conclude Marvell compares the “private place” that is the grave and the “embrace” of love on the final lines of this stanza, where intimacy is conflated with death in …show more content…
Hughes, T.S Eliot, and George Watsky all discuss existential conflict in their poetry. In The Weary Blues, Hughes uses the metanarrative of the song within the poem, which adds depth to the narrative and places a great importance on self-worth and finding your ‘place’ in the world. The entirety of the song describes, in a metaphorical and symbolic sense, the plight of the African-American people living in the U.S in the 1920s. Additionally, Eliot’s religious allegory The Journey of the Magi, is brimming with biblical references. Judas’ betrayal and the thirty pieces of “silver”, “the feet kicking” is a reference to Judas’ suicide by hanging, coupled with the additional reference of the wine-skins’ dulling of people’s senses. Then utilising bathos, Elliot concludes the stanza as merely “satisfactory”. The final two lines of the poem are riddled with connotations of false idols “clutching to their gods” in particular. The Magi states “I should be glad of another death”. At this moment he is addressing his god directly asking to die, as he has no power anymore and feels alone without a place in the new world. Watsky’s assessment of the individual experience, Tiny Glowing Screens, Part 2 begins by stating that there are ‘7 billion 46 million’ people on this earth and then later states that there are ‘7 billion 47 million’; this population growth within the