Poets use intimate stories to express broad concepts that relate to us and the world around us. The first of two poems I’m going to show convey this message is John Foulchers poem ‘HARRY WOOD’ he shows survival, sacrifice and regret survival through an anecdote of an old retired miner who started his life in poverty and struggled to give his family a better future. The second poem ‘Joanna’s bedroom’ by Steven Herrick shows concepts of unconditional love, ups and downs and emotions through a couple’s destructive battle.
Survival is human instinct. It flows through us, can force us to do terrible things and pushes some of us to do the impossible. In the first 4 stanzas of the poem ‘HARRY WOOD’ a young man is put through poverty and works hard in the mines so he can survive. In the first stanza John uses the metaphor of “digging his way out of poverty,” to convey to the audience his will to live was strong through showing his hard work from such a young age. In the third stanza, the mine is personified in the line “the mine nearly took him,” To show how Harry is tough and can survive even a mine collapse. In the fourth stanza, it tells of how Harry has bought a farm for himself and finally escaped poverty, but John shows that “he herds the steers in by himself” this gives the impression that he is alone. These first 4 stanzas show …show more content…
One way John reveals regret in ‘HARRY WOOD’ is in the symbol of “stares at the dark window”. This symbolises Harry trying to see his own work and success he worked so hard for but can only see the darkness of what he’s become. Lifeless, empty and alone. The lines “take the long unbroken slope” uses assonance to show despair and is also used to symbolise his regret of his decisions and his helplessness in changing the path his life was headed in. These two examples creates a sense of empathy for the old miner’s intimate story, because everyone shares the sickness of
Survival is human instinct. It flows through us, can force us to do terrible things and pushes some of us to do the impossible. In the first 4 stanzas of the poem ‘HARRY WOOD’ a young man is put through poverty and works hard in the mines so he can survive. In the first stanza John uses the metaphor of “digging his way out of poverty,” to convey to the audience his will to live was strong through showing his hard work from such a young age. In the third stanza, the mine is personified in the line “the mine nearly took him,” To show how Harry is tough and can survive even a mine collapse. In the fourth stanza, it tells of how Harry has bought a farm for himself and finally escaped poverty, but John shows that “he herds the steers in by himself” this gives the impression that he is alone. These first 4 stanzas show …show more content…
One way John reveals regret in ‘HARRY WOOD’ is in the symbol of “stares at the dark window”. This symbolises Harry trying to see his own work and success he worked so hard for but can only see the darkness of what he’s become. Lifeless, empty and alone. The lines “take the long unbroken slope” uses assonance to show despair and is also used to symbolise his regret of his decisions and his helplessness in changing the path his life was headed in. These two examples creates a sense of empathy for the old miner’s intimate story, because everyone shares the sickness of