To compare and contrast three short stories from the anthology
To compare and contrast three short stories from the anthology I am going to write about three short stories from the anthology which deals with the theme of relationship and loss; I will compare and contrast these three stories showing how the writer uses language and structure to convey these ideas. Firstly, out of the first three stories I chose, 'Flight' by Doris Lessing, it is about a grandfather who is reluctant to let go of his granddaughter. Secondly I chose 'Superman and Paula Brown's New Snow' Suit by Sylvia Plath, this story is an autobiographical account of Plath's childhood and how she is blamed for something she did not do. Lastly I chose 'Your Shoes' by Michèle Roberts; this story is about a mother who is upset because her daughter has run away All three stories have the theme of relationship and loss. In 'Flight' there is a relationship between the grandfather and his granddaughter and the loss of his granddaughter as she is getting married. In 'Superman and Paula Brown's New Snowsuit', Plath talks about her relationship with her uncle and mother and the loss of her child hood because of what happens with Paula Brown and what is happening around the world during the time of her childhood. In 'Your Shoes' the relationship is between the mother and her daughter, husband and her mother. The theme of loss in the story come from the daughter running away and the
In the Arrival of the Bee Box and the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, compare the ways in which the choice of language, detail and the form, tell us about the feelings of the writer.
In the Arrival of the Bee Box and the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, compare the ways in which the choice of language, detail and the form, tell us about the feelings of the writer. In both poems, a range of literacy devices are used in order to express the feelings of the writers. Plath's poem is written similarly to the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, and yet they are different in many ways. Plath wrote her poem in 1962 and Coleridge wrote his poem in the 1700's or early 1800's, and the style of writing differ, as Plath's writing seems to be more emotive, whereas Coleridge's work seems to have a more a gothic theme to it. One of the main literacy devices used in both poems is the extended metaphor. Plath uses the metaphor to show the box as a symbol of her life and how she wants to escape from it, but can't because of the consequences. "The box is locked, it is dangerous." I think she feels trapped within her life and the depression of everything is getting to her. She wants to get out and experience other things, but feels that she has created her life and therefore must live with it, "I ordered this, this clean wood box/ I have to live with it overnight" Possibly, this could be related to part of her past, where she tried to commit suicide, in order to end her life, so that she can be free of the box. In the Rime of the Ancient Mariner, there are many metaphors within it.
Comparing Blackberry-Picking by Heaney.
... not asked for such a blood sister hood'. It is as if the juice from the blackberries is their blood, almost as if they are sacrificing it. It then goes on to describe her as she imagines them inviting her into their sorority. She has pricked her fingers on the thorns of blackberries- when her blood mixes with the juices of the blackberries it is as if she has been blood bonded into their sorority, yet she has not asked for this- unlike in 'Roe Deer' where the figure in the poems desperately wants to be a part of the deer's world, even though he knows he cannot be. In 'Mirror' Plath writes ' in me she has drowned a young girl'; it is as if the young woman has already slowly entered the depths of the world of the mirror and is swallowed up by it, leaving the old woman behind- yet in the case of the woman this was something she didn't have any choice over; she has become a slave to the mirror, as she becomes increasingly distraught at the way in which it reflects her gradual aging. In the first two lines of the second stanza of 'Blackberrying'- 'Overhead go the choughs in black, cacophonous flocks- bits of burnt paper wheeling in a blown sky', Plath uses a metaphor to describe the crows. She compares the crows to bits of black burnt paper, as if they are being blown about by the gusty wind surrounding her like bits of paper; she describes the paper as being burnt because
"Morning Song" and "Sonnet 19"
"Morning Song" and "Sonnet 19" The poem "Morning Song" was written by the poet Sylvia Plath. Based around the struggles of this young mother the poem shows not only the events that took place within her first few weeks of motherhood but the feelings and emotions she goes through. Through her life this poet suffered times of depression in which finally lead her to commit suicide in February 11th 1963 by the means of suffocation with cooking gas. Although this poem was written a few years before then she was still going through a stage of post-novel depression. Due to this, the poem has a sad and depressing atmosphere, which is shown best in paragraph three. The first few paragraphs are based around the arrival of her baby while as the last few on an event that happened a few weeks later. We can say that the event in the last paragraphs happened a few weeks later because at first it is written in the past tense and then in the present. Also in the second line Sylvia Plath describes the cries of her baby as 'bald' meaning an unpractised one-note cry. However in the second to last lines she describes it as a 'handful of notes' meaning the baby has developed and practised so time must have past. The title morning song gives us our first clue into what this poem is based on. The word 'Morning' could describe the beginning of the baby's life and her new life as a mother. 'Song'
The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath.
"I saw the years of my life spaced along a road in the form of telephone poles, threaded together by wires. I counted one, two, three ... nineteen poles, and then the wires dangled into space, and try as I would, I couldn't see a single pole beyond the nineteenth."(Plath 123) This quote sums up the entire novel, The Bell Jar, by Sylvia Plath. Esther, the main character, is afraid of the future and what independence might bring. She is a girl of nineteen just starting out in the world. Esther encounters trouble with herself because she has no idea where she wants to go or who she wants to be. During her short stay in New York, her boss asks her what she wants to be. Esther, once confident, replies now that she is unknowing. The major conflict through out the entire novel is Esther trying to find herself. This theme is not fictional however; the author's inspiration for this story was her own life. During her six-year marriage to the English poet Ted Hughes, she was forced to move to England and leave the familiarity of America. This caused Sylvia to "plunge into a horrific psychic abyss" (www.allsands.com). Much like Esther, Sylvia was a Fullbright scholar at the college of Cambridge. Sylvia met her husband there and shortly after they moved to London. During the period of time where she met her husband and her death, Sylvia struggled with the same issues the main
By referring closely to the text demonstrate how Norris has made the poem “The Ballad of Billy Rose” particularly vivid
By referring closely to the text demonstrate how Norris has made the poem "The Ballad of Billy Rose" particularly vivid The Ballad of Billy Rose "The Ballad of Billy Rose" by Leslie Norris is a thought-provoking poem where the poet reminisces about a particular incident in his childhood. Throughout the poem the poet employs a variety of poetic techniques to enhance the imagery such as rhyme, enjambement, figurative language and alliteration. The poem "The Ballad of Billy Rose" begins with the author, Leslie Norris, walking to a football match. On his way there the poet catches sight of a man begging for money and instantly identifies the man as a boxer he once witnesses being blinded during a 'bout'. Thereafter the poet describes the night in which the man was blinded and expresses his deep feeling of guilt about the man's blindness One particularly vivid technique employed by the poet is the use of imagery. This technique is utilised to full advantage when he describes the blood of Billy Rose that is lying on the floor: "The flowers of punched blood on the ring floor," In the above Norris uses an oxymoron containing both the image of a beautiful flower and the horrific sight of a person's blood. Consequently the poet skillfully exploits the vision of deviant colloquation between Rose's blood and his name when he describes the blood as forming flowers.
Compare Plath's view on motherhood with 'You're and 'Morning Song'
Compare Plath's view on motherhood with 'You're and 'Morning Song' In Plath's poetry she is very depressed about her life but when you look at the poems, 'You're' and 'Morning Song' you get a new view on her life. These poems are about her opinion and feelings on motherhood and are her only positive poems that we have studied so far. Morning song is when Plath writes about her new baby daughter and how she feels towards her and 'you're', is a celebratory poem about approaching motherhood. Sylvia Plath wrote 'Morning song' after the birth of her first daughter. The poem is different from the cheerful poem 'you're' although she still talks about the good parts of pregnancy. In 'morning song' Plath starts off very positive about motherhood. Plath describes her baby as precious and if it is worth a lot to her, 'love set you going like a fat gold watch.' I think she does this because it is her first baby and she wants to protect her. Also the use of 'fat' and 'gold' emphasises how much the baby is worth and how precious it is to her. Even though the poem is positive to start with it quickly moves into a state of jealousy, 'I'm no longer your mother.' Here Plath accepts that the baby has all the attention now the baby is born, whereas when she was pregnant Plath was getting used to the idea of her getting all the attention and people caring for her. Plath is very happy about
Moments of change in the modern short story and how they are expressed.
Moments of change in the modern short story and how they are expressed The ways in which modern short stories are written are quite peculiar in the sense that they concise and get the point across quickly. This is something which authors find very difficult whilst writing novels and books. Also the use of symbolism and various moods and themes is common in the modern short story, as the author wants to create an impression on the reader. The first short story is called 'Superman and Paula Brown's new snowsuit', which was written by the well-known author Sylvia Plath. Sylvia Plath was brought up in the USA, and her writing sometimes shows a preference for American forms. Although she writes in English some of the words or phrases she uses reflect on the American culture. If you look closely at this story, you may find some examples of American English, but there are not that many. They include "recess", "movies", "tag", "overshoes" and "airplane". The story is actually written in Sylvia Plath's personal view of her childhood. This is the reason for why we find some words and phrases related to an American culture. At the beginning of this story Sylvia uses many similes and metaphors to create very 'colourful images' in the reader's mind when she says: 'I used to kneel by the west window of my room and look over to the lights of Boston that blazed and blinked far off the
Examining Tone, Choice of words and Imagery in the Poem "Tulips" by Sylvia Plath.
Examining Tone, Choice of words and Imagery in the Poem "Tulips" by Sylvia Plath Tulips, to most people are beautiful, fragrant flowers that brighten a room or can make your gardens come to life with exceptional radience. When reading the poem, "Tulips" by Sylvia Plath the reader immediately will see the hatred this woman has for these simple flowers. Plath uses strong images to illustrate the positive attitude the speaker has towards the hospital until she receives the tulips, which become the speakers obsession and object of extreme hatred. The tulips represent life, energy, and passion which are the three aspects of life the speaker is trying to escape from. Tulips is not a cheerful poem, but it does move from coldness to warmth, from numbness to love, from empty whiteness to vivid redness, in a process manipulated by one's imagination. "Tulips", by Sylvia Plath, is a poem about a patient's stay in a hospital. The speaker has just underwent surgery and is recovering in a white room. A dozen tulips are brought into the room as a get well gift and cause the speaker to awaken from the peacefulness she's become accustomed to. The speaker then reminiscences about her entire hospital experience and realizes that she will, in the end, have to go back to her obligations and former life. In the poem "Tulips", I would like to examine how Plath's
Beauty and Horror - Sylvia Plath writing uses a plethora of images of horror combined with images built around beauty to incite contradictory emotions within the reader .
Beauty and Horror Sylvia Plath writing uses a plethora of images of horror combined with images built around beauty to incite contradictory emotions within the reader .She uses strong, thought-provoking images to etch her messages deeply on the reader's mind. Most of her poems are essentially about her father and her thoughts and emotions enveloping her his memories. Sylvia Plath's father died when she as 8. It is believed that, at that stage Sylvia Plath was developing an Electra Complex. So when her father died, she felt betrayed by him because she felt that he did not care enough for her to try to live (Otto Plath had disease and he refused to be diagnosed. The disease proved to be fatal). To Plath, her father's death seemed like a act of suicide, and this generated a great deal of anger, hatred and sadness in her and these emotions, together with her obvious love for her father form the fundamental elements for her poems. Her poetry is therefore a string of antagonistic images of beauty and horror. In order to get the readers to empathize with her, Plath saturates her poetry with images which will induce the emotion she tries to convey to her readers. She does this with great skill and with apparent ease. One of her most effective skills is her ability to create a suitable environment for her poems. In poems like "Daddy", she creates a childish milieu mainly by using