Opie Taylor

“Rime of the Ancient Mariner” a poem that describes a mariner and his crew struggling to sail through ice and other weather conditions, when they encounter an albatross which they take as a sign from god which they let lead them through the horrible conditions. But their fortune ends when the greedy mariner takes advantage of the albatross and shoots it down for him to have to himself. The crew has mixed thoughts of the killing of the albatross but the crew dies over time and they place a curse…

Religious Criticism on Romantic Period Poetry Religion in the Romantic period was significantly affected by the French Revolution, as were most parts of social and political life. Catholicism was on the rise and becoming the mainstream religion. However, many opposing perspectives and rebellious attacks were being made on the establishment of organized religion (Betros). Religious diversity is reflected throughout the written works of this period among numerous poets, and this increased…

During the late 18th century a movement started up known as Romanticism. This movement “emphasized the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the imaginative, the personal, the spontaneous, the emotional”(Britannia). Romanticism was a major contrast from the Neoclassical era before it. Romanticism also led the way to future counterculture movements we see throughout history as the rejection of the normal first started by the Romantics. We see Romanticism at work in poetry such as William…

Common Core: Standardizing Inadequacy In John Taylor Gatto’s essay “Dumbing Us Down: Weapons Of Mass Instruction,” John argues that the current liberal state of the education system is in need of public reform and recognition. John explains that our current education system is structured to discourage self-discovery by cramming mind-numbing busy work down student’s throats, stifling creativity. John expounds the current education system is creating a quiet lower and middle class that keeps busy…

Tragic love stories have fascinated humans since ancient times. They conquered the hearts of many and opened the ways for more love stories. Geoffrey Chaucer (c. 1343 – to October 1400) is one of the most famous English authors of the middle ages. Chaucer is considered the father of English literature and thrilled the mass with his literary works. His most famous works include the Canterbury Tales and Troilus and Criseyde. Yet, again a tragic love story that is still widely popular in the 21st…

Richard Cory is written by Edwin Arlington Robinson in 1897. Richard Cory is a narrative poem, meaning it tells a story. It was published as part of The Children of the Night, one of Robinson’s most popular anthologized poems. Edwin Arlington Robinson was supposedly destined for a career in business or in a science since his dad was a wealthy New England merchant, but was he guided towards his poetic pursuits by a neighbor. He consistently dedicated himself to his work throughout his entire life…

The power of nature; nature’s role in the Romantic’s works Throughout William Wordsworth’s poem “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” and Lord Byron’s work “Darkness” both human nature and the natural are explored separately and in their cohesion. “I Wandered Lonely as a Cloud” mainly focuses on the blissful side of nature and the impact it had on the narrator in the moment and during the present when in reflection. However, Lord Byron’s “Darkness” illustrates the cold and brutal side of nature, how…

Lord Alfred Tennyson’s poem “The Lady of Shalott” is an exemplar of the poetic ability of famous writers to reflect the physical and emotional elements of a story within the music and aesthetics of poetry. In this essay I will examine the technical and aesthetic elements that create this famous ballad. While paraphrasing this poem, I will analyze how those elements create the extreme success of the poem. Through close analysis of Tennyson’s poem, I will reveal these elements that have made “The…

"O Me! O Life" by Walt Whitman, and "A Red, Red Rose" by Robert Burns, are both very well known and well-written poems. Both of these poems have similarities and differences, including structure, tone, and figurative language. Very often, poetry's themes revolve around humanity and love. Such include Whitman's and Burn's poems. To begin with, the structure of "O Me! O Life" is dramatically different from that of "A Red, Red Rose". Walt Whitman wrote in free verse and used a significant gap…

How does Ee Tiang Hong convey his feeling about the Bougainvillea in ‘To a shrub’ The sight poem “To a shrub” by Ee Tiang Hong is about a Bougainvillea. Ee draws attention to the grace of the flower describing the Bougainvillea; how all the features of the Bougainvillea are all graceful and tirelessly beautiful. Ee uses, poetic techniques; Alliterations and repetition are used for emphasis. Also personifications, metaphor were used to give the Bougainvillea characteristics bringing the poem to…