Invictus Vs. The Unknown Citizen

Improved Essays
To begin, an important aspect in my life is to do what makes me happy no matter what anyone else may think. In order to have a life full of enjoyment and satisfaction, I need to take risks and do what I want. Therefore, the poem “Invictus” fits with my views of a happy life because invictus means unconquerable. The opposite of an invictus person would be someone who just gets by in life and follows along with the crowd, which is described in “The Unknown Citizen”. A happy life is a life lived like the person being described in “Invictus”. “Invictus” relates to my attitude toward a happy life because I am unconquerable. “In the fell clutch of circumstance, I have not winced nor cried aloud,” are powerful lines from the poem. In other words, the quote means when life gets complicated, he/she does not complain or whine. As the poem says, not crying out when an event goes wrong will make life much more delightful. My views toward a happy life relate to the poem because when a bad event happens in my life, I don't let it bother me. I am a mentally strong person who lets no one or any situation get to me. Not only does staying strong in hard times make my life happier, but all the people’s lives surrounding me. When other people around me are happy, it tends to …show more content…
The person being described in the poem just goes about life following along with what is expected of him/her. In my life, I do what I please, and I don't let anyone alter my decisions. If I went through life always doing what I was told or expected to do, life would be boring and always the same. The character in the poem doesn't voice his/her opinion, but he/she just agrees with whatever society thinks. On the opposite end, I voice my opinion and am not afraid to be different than everyone else. My views toward a happy life are drastically different than “The Unknown

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    This poem “Invisible Soldier” by Sarge Lintecum is about a lady soldier that has come back from fighting for her country and doesn’t feel the appreciation according to the speaker. I think what this poem is trying to get across is that to never forget the people that served for our country. The speaker is this poem really supports the lady soldier as she thinks that the soldier should not be “invisible” any more. We know that she deserves to be remembered because in this poem the speaker states “She suffered hardship and never ceased to care”. In this sentence we can say that this soldier worked hard and cared about the well being of others before her.…

    • 408 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Each of the stories demonstrated tragedy and persistence. In the book Antigone, Antigone showed great bravado and persistence, because she went beyond the rules that were given to the town to bury Polynices. She knew that by doing this her life would be in danger, but she never backed down. Antigone was portrayed as a strong and persistent woman. Antigone had to be stronger because during this time women had no say or power, in the end she ended up dying for what she believed in while defying law.…

    • 795 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear”, words of Nelson Mandela. Mandela is the man who this film is about. Throughout this paper I will discuss the fact that the film, Invictus, was historically accurate by discussing the true historical people and events, summarizing the movie, and comparing and contrasting how the movie portrayed the true people and events. Through this paper you will see the evidence provided is very accurate and will give you a good understanding of the movie itself.…

    • 1040 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Theodore Roosevelt "Nothing in this world is worth having or worth doing unless it means effort, pain, difficulty… I have never in my life envied a human being who led an easy life. I have envied a great many people who led difficult lives and led them well”. Theodore Roosevelt was an American politician, writer, naturalist, and soldier. Born in 1858, he became governor of New York in 1899, fought in the Spanish-American war in 1898, and became president after William McKinley died in 1901.…

    • 1083 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    To An Athlete Dying Young Just as the title sounds this poem is about an athlete who dies young. But throughout the poem A.E houseman looks at the brighter side of dying young because of how he will be remembered. As I grow older and more mature I examine how important fame has become to my generation. Everyday People do things in regards of that it will catch them a lot of attention and that possibility of fame where people envy them and want to be just like them.…

    • 509 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The audience can empathize with that since it is a problem in society, and it shoe how society maybe is quick to judge each other. Throughout the poem the author shows awareness…

    • 1312 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The poem I chose, “Happiness” by Jane Kenyon, describes what happiness truly is. It tells a story of who it comes to, and how happiness comes to everyone no matter what the situation is. The poem says in the beginning 2 paragraphs how happiness is always there and that it “saved its most extreme form for you alone”. I believe what the Kenyon is trying to say at that moment is that you have the power to be happy, even when you are alone. The poem also has very specific examples of who happiness comes to.…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “To an Athlete Dying Young” by A.E. Housman, displays dying at a young age. This poem is showing that people may be afraid of dying young and not living out a full life. The theme of the poem is showing the value of young age. This also ties into the poems imagery, signifying. The choice of speaker gives depth to the story and gives us a better aspect look at the meaning of the story of premature death of the youth in the world.…

    • 795 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Theme Of Revenge In Iliad

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The Homer’s Iliad is one of the greatest pieces of Ancient literature. It has a lot of prominent motives that are influential and could be traced even in the modern literature. As a matter of fact, it has a lot of interesting concepts; however, one of the most dominant ones is the topic of justice and vengeance. The war itself is just a personal motivation of Agamemnon to deal with Troy and to punish them for their deeds in the past, the Greeks just want revenge, even though the Troy Priest of Apollo Chryses asks for a forgiveness. The gods play also one of the central roles in the poem.…

    • 1466 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In two separate sections of the poem he conveys that “I could wake up in the morning without a warning and my world can change: blink your eyes. All depends, all depends on the skin, all depends on the skin you’re living in.” He figured out that his life could unlawfully change. He repeats that line because he accepts that some people are just prejudice towards his kind. He figured out that his life is revolves around the color of his skin.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Which one should I choose? People always ask this question when they are making a decision. And there are infinite choices on the list in our life, such as should turn left or right when people drive, which college I should go to, choose a career field, or elect a President. Normally, people are likely to choose one that most common, which means the choice that the majority would like to choose. However, “The Road Not Taken” is a popular poem, which is written by Robert Frost who is an influential American writer during the twentieth century.…

    • 1313 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The poem "The Unknown Citizen" written by W.H Auden, he expresses the predicament of losing individuality that the United States of America citizens face. The poem consists of bureaucratic and irony tones that illustrate the clash between government control and individualism. " The Unknown Citizen" is told from a bureaucratic point of view and they speak of an ideal man, who in their eyes is the model of the perfect citizen. The author writes this poem to emphasize the importance of our individuality, and that we are not just a number. The title of the poem "The Unknown Citizen" illustrates how people lose their individuality in this society.…

    • 751 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    The speaker in the poem “My Father Is A Simple Man” learned from his father that there is not much need for greatness and the importance of hard work. The speaker expresses his high regard for his father when he compliments him by saying “I can always remember that there was a man who was a worker and provider”. I felt the speaker really implied that it was important to him/her to have a father who was willing to work hard. The speaker also made it clear that not only was it important to be a hard worker but a person should not be seeking outside glory when he said “there is no need for fanfare, or applause when he leaves (dies).” I understood this when he said “I shall have learned what little there is about greatness.”…

    • 464 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nathalie Vieux-Gresham 10/31/15 ROUGH DRAFT 1.9.16 Whitman: Whitman vs Narrator Whitman’s “Song of Myself” Walt Whitman was a prolific author who has written many works. One of his works, Song of Myself, describes the experience of a narrator whose life is very relaxed.…

    • 1444 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Fleming talks about even when going through a hard time in life, we still must still be true to ourselves and stay kind. There are times in our lives. where we feel like the world is against u. Knowing that it is not and continuing on with life is important. Within the stanzas, the second and fourth lines rhyme to pull the two ideas together. For instance, in the third stanza it states, "To always share my light/ To love with all my might."…

    • 718 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays