Metamorphoses

While verse was economically marginal in the early nineteenth century, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882) became the first American poet who could live off his royalties (Gioia 74). He was also the first poet of the New World to achieve an international fame; his reputation reached Europe and even Latin America (64). Devoted to the creation of a native literature, Longfellow committed himself to developing an American poetic diction. In “Our Native Writers” (1825), his graduation address,…

painting, “Niobe, the queen of Thebes, shelters her youngest daughter from the arrows of Apollo and Diana, who have already slaughtered her other children. Their corpses litter the foreground of the painting. This violent scene, drawn from Ovid 's Metamorphoses, illustrates what ensues when Niobe refuses to sacrifice to the goddess Latona, the mother of Apollo and Diana, and boasts about her own wealth, power, and fertility. As punishment, the goddess orders her children to kill Niobe 's seven…

Throughout history the discipline of metaphysics is not able to answer the rebuttal of nihilism, but through the lens of Heidegger, the field undertakes a metamorphose into a phoenix by going back to its core. Metaphysics is arguably a failure of a philosophy because it is never answers the question of how does it(existence) stand with being. However, that is not the only goal of metaphysics just pure speculation and observation of it will continue to advance the field. Consequently, metaphysics…

strengthening his muscles, making Todd human rather than a robotic youth. Such words as “Carpe, carpe diem, seize the day boys, make your lives extraordinary” filled Todd’s belly and kindled his taste buds. Soon enough, Todd begins progressing, a metamorphose from lifeless to lively. In the movie, Dead Poets Society, Todd Anderson distends from a reserved youth to an agile young man due to the astounding influence of Carpe diem. In the beginning, Todd was a caterpillar. Wiggling around,…

What seemed a simple theme, it proved really intriguing. How should I begin this essay? I start to write, I delete, nothing seems to make sense. I never described myself, maybe because I don’t want to be judged or perhaps I am afraid to start, realizing that without a proper introduction, my essay about self-description would be a vain attempt. I am…what exactly? Perhaps a pale face with deepened dark circles and two green eyes? Or to answer this existential question, I should just list my name,…

Literature without Shakespeare is like an fishe without water. Shakespeare is the greatest English writer and one of the greatest writers in the literary world. He is the "specialist of miracles."1 This is because of his knowledge "… to influence the outrageous of diminutiveness to create an impact like greatness – to influence the overabundance of delicacy to deliver an impact like power … to do this had a place just with Shakespeare."2 Definitely no other English author has held such a…

The journey of learning is a never ending one, I like to look at it as metamorphoses, much like the life of a caterpillar: a process of constant evolution from being an egg to becoming a butterfly. From the moment one is born, he/she is exposed to a strange collection of sounds. It is not long before the brain deciphers these collections as a code or pattern used to convey a message. Babies communicate through their actions like crying, frowning and reaching out for toys. Before too long they…

Apollo is often referred to as the prince of Greek Mythology. As the god of archery, prophecy, plague and the arts, he is an important figure and relates to many factors in Greek life. Apollo’s most important place of worship was Delphi. Delphi was said to be the mythological centre of the earth and the site of the omphalos, the ancient navel stone that Zeus used to trick Cronos (Hesiod Theogony 488-494). Apollo became the founder of the settlement when he slew the serpent Python that terrorized…

The Permian Period The Permian Period is the last one, after the Carboniferous Period, of the Paleozoic Era lasting for about 46 to 47 million years from 299-252 million years ago (mya) (Smith 2011). One major feature of this period is the formation of the supercontinent, Pangaea which affected the environment and the climate as well which gave rise to new species. Another distinct feature is the greatest mass extinction event which killed around 54% of all marine families and most of the…

A major intertextual link can be found to one of Shakespeare’s tragedies, Romeo and Juliet. The plays have many points of likeness, including themes, characters and context. In both plays gender roles affect characterisation. There are many similarities in terms of Hermia and Juliet. For one, they are young lovers of the same status in terms of the social hierarchy, who, due to circumstance, are not allowed to marry who they wish. Both plays were made in the Elizabethan era and the context of…