Compare and contrast 'Cousin Kate' and 'The Seduction'.
In this essay I will be comparing and contrasting 'Cousin Kate', a first person narrative poem written by Christina Rossetti written during the 19th century (1830-1894) and 'The Seduction', a third person narrative poem written by Eileen McAuley during the late 20th century (1980). The narrator in 'Cousin Kate' is a cottage maiden who chronologically narrates readers through the changes that have happened to her life after meeting a 'great Lord', of who she fell in love with, but in return was manipulated by him. The main themes which the poem explores are Marriage; motherhood; abuse of power; wealth/poverty and the female role during the early 19th century. In 'The Seduction', the problems presented are those of a fifteen year old teenage girl who was 'seduced' by a young man, by her naivety, to have sex with him under the influence of alcohol; an issue which is relevant to contemporary society. McAuley also explores the influence of the media in shaping others' thoughts. But the central issue which both poems address and emphasise is the consequences which non-martial pregnancy can cause to women: psychologically and in society. The narrator of 'Cousin Kate' presents her feelings and emotions precisely and expressively as the poem is written from first person perspective. It starts with "I was a cottage maiden", conjuring up an idea of banishment or neglect by the use
Compare 'My Last Duchess' to the soliloquy in Othello (Act 5 scene 2)
Compare the characterisations in My Last Duchess and Othello’s Soliloquy in Act 5 Scene 2, lines 1-22. How are the contrasts presented and used here to create drama and meaning; how might different audiences respond to such ideas? In both the soliloquy in Othello and in ‘My Last Duchess’ we see a dominance in the male character and a certain power within this over the women mentioned. Throughout the soliloquy Othello is addressing a sleeping Desdemona and the fact that she is in this setting (the bed chamber) and in such a situation gives him another level of power over her as she is faced with a certain vulnerability and lack of control over the events to come, while it also suggests an innocence in Desdemona’s character contrasting greatly with Othello’s. Similarly in ‘My Last Duchess’ we get arguably a larger sense of male dominance in the poem, with Browning using language and form to show this. The metaphor ‘Notice Neptune though, Taming a sea-horse’ suggests that the Duke is very much like Neptune in controlling the Duchess and has the arrogance that Neptune has while she is being controlled. It could possibly also be a metaphor for his future wife, much like the Duchess she will need to be controlled and obedient, and ultimately treat him like a God, which again links with the Neptune metaphor further. A further way Browning presents the Duke as a
Compare and Contrast the poem "Father and Son" by Mary Nagy and the excerpt "Father and Son" from the Odessy by Homer
Ben Cooke 0-1-12 Period 7 For as long as fathers have had sons the bond has been a strong and awesome one. Its no wonder two authors from totally different periods of time have chosen this bond as their topic. After reading “Father and Son,” by both Homer and Mary Nagy the reader would be able to pick out a lot of differences and some similarities. The two stories tell about a father and son's relationship towards each other. The stories are very different from one another yet some what similar. Overall that both poems were about the bond between father and son. Mary Nagy is a writer from more modern time and therefore uses language that is easier to read and understand. This was definitely one of the biggest differences the reader noticed between the two poems. Another big difference was that she wrote the poem from the mother's perspective. Not only did we get to see the father and son's feelings but the mother as well, her description of the father and sons bond really comes from her heart, this made her poem a lot more emotional than Homer's. Mary Nagy's poem is more of a real poem because she has more of a rhyme scheme, every other line rhymes throughout the entire poem. Finally, Mary Nagy does not give any of her characters names. I am not sure why except when some one reads her poem perhaps they can think of themselves as the father, son, or even the
Compare and Contrast how Blake and Wordsworth depict London
The city of London has inspired many poets throughout the ages: from Chaucer’s Pilgrims to Larkin’s ‘The Whitsun Weddings’. Two of the most distinctive portrayals are William Blake’s London (1794) and William Wordsworth’s Composed upon Westminster Bridge, Sept. 3, 1803. Blake’s poem presents a bleak view of London in the late 18th century, a dismal picture of fallen humanity. By contrast, Wordsworth’s Composed upon Westminster Bridge shows the city of London as beautiful and benign, not in any way threatening or corrupting. This essay explores how these two impressions of London depend on what aspect of London is being examined. Blake wanders around London viewing its inhabitants and describing what he sees and hears; whereas Wordsworth remains static on Westminster Bridge admiring an early morning snapshot view of London while its inhabitants are asleep: an unusual opinion of the city for him. It is more usual for Wordsworth to reject cities in favour of the countryside and nature. In Lines Written a Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey composed in 1798, some five years earlier than Composed upon Westminster Bridge, Wordsworth writes: …I am still A lover of the meadows and the woods, And mountains; and of all that we behold From this green earth; of all the mighty world Of eye and ear, both what they half-create, And what perceive; well pleased to recognize
How does John Donne and Emily Dickinson portrays the theme of Death in 'Death be not proud' and 'Because I could not stop for Death'
Explore the ways in which John Donne and Emily Dickinson vividly portray death through language in ‘Death Be Not Proud’ and ‘Because I Could Not Stop for Death’ In because I could not stop for death, Emily Dickinson employed the use of extended metaphor of a journey through space and time. On various occasion, it is suggested that the author believed that Death ‘stopped for me’. The idea of having more time is repeated throughout the poem. However, this obvious illusion ended when, in the last lines of the poem, the speaker realizes that ‘the Horses’ Heads Were Towards Eternity’. This illusion could be used to portray the entity of Death as being deceitful and unreliable. However, this description of Death juxtaposed the speaker’s description earlier on in the poem. Instead of the deceiving evil that was suggested in through when the speaker ‘first surmised’ that the horses’ heads ‘were toward eternity’, it was shown to be ‘kindly’ and have ‘civility’. This could further contribute to the ‘deceitful’ persona of Death, showing that he is not what he seems to be, that he is always pretending to be something that he is not. It could be that the personification of death as a physical entity and the repetitive capitalization of ‘Death’ is used to portray the abstract concept of death into something tangible and recognizable. This can
Macbeth
MACBETH Out of Shakespeare many plays Macbeth which was written in 1906-1606 is one of the best recognised plays around Britain and the world. Shakespeare mainly wrote three types of plays: * Comedy * Tragedy * History Macbeth is a blood thirsty tale of ambition and the evils we will go through to get what we want. Macbeth is the main character, who we see plot and kill in order to become King of Scotland. As soon as we see Macbeth's wishes fulfilled we gradually witness the world fall around him. Macbeth is an historical account especially published for King James the first, it was also rumoured that King James was a descended of Banquo. Throughout Macbeth witchcraft and black magic lingers in every scene, this is cleverly used by Shakespeare because during the Elizabethan era, people were extremely superstitious and really believed in witchcraft and black magic. Witchcraft and black magic also changes Macbeth's character a lot over the three scenes: * Approached by witches * Seeing of the dagger * Ghost of Banquo Macbeth is also considered unlucky to most actors, so they give Macbeth other play names like "The comedy of Glamis", "the Scottish play" or even "The play". Legend has it that an actor died on stage as well as many others. Macbeth has had so many interpretation over the years, for instance Macbeth has been filmed and adapted for the stage in so many
english poetry
How do Tennyson and Owen use poetry to honour those killed in war? In this essay I will be comparing 2 poems that talk about those killed in war. I will be comparing them to see the poetic techniques used to in both poems and how they present different ideas about the war. Dulce Et Decorum Est... by Wilfred Owen. Wilfred Owen was a soldier himself and new what it felt like to be apart of the war. When at the front line Owen got trench foot and was sent away to hospital, here he met Siegfried Sassoon, a war poet. He was Owen's inspiration and later killed in action, this is where Wilfred wanted to carry on with what Sassoon started, writing wear poems. When Owen was fit enough he rejoined the army and returned to the front line. He was killed in action a week before the war was due to end. He was famous for being a poet and writing about the horrors of trench and gas warfare. Owen reacts to the war by turning conventional poetic technique into something that appears to be normal on the surface but in reality is tainted and/or corrupted. Owen apposes the idea of war as devastating and the idea of war as heroic to illustrate the poem's ultimate irony - 'Dulce Et Decorum Est, Pro Patria Mori' The rhyming structure is conventional, using full rhymes: sacks-backs, sludge-trudge, boots-hoots, etc. The rhyme scheme is of alternating rhymes: ABABCDCD EFEF etc. The poem is
Pre 1914 Poetry
To analyse how pre-1914 poets have explored the different aspects of the theme of relationships over a period of time. In my English class, I have studied four poems. The four poems that I decided to study were: 'The Laboratory' by Robert Browning, 'My Last Duchess', by Robert Browning, 'The Highwayman', Alfred Noyes and 'The Lady of Shallot' by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. In this essay, I will explore the different aspects of the theme of relationships over a period of time. All four of these poems have various attitudes towards men and women. The tone in each poem conveys how the poets feel. The poets use sophisticated comments and have different approaches to make the reader understand how a particular character feels. There is a lot of contrast in the poems and in this essay I will be comparing the poems; with their similarities and differences; through language, structure and their connotation. 'The Laboratory' by Robert Browning is a dramatic monologue. The poem was published in 1842 at the time of the Ancien Regime in France. The narrative of the poem is based on a mentally, desolate, isolated lonely woman. This woman, who is an aristocrat, is jealous of another woman who is her rival. This is because the woman whom she is jealous of is found with her 'man' at a ball. 'My Last Duchess' also written by Browning was published in the same year and in this poem the poet
Pre 1914 Poetry
Pre-1914 Poetry Coursework To study how pre-1914 poets have explored the different aspects of the theme of relationships over a period of time. When we read the five poems we gather that the poems all have different aspects of the theme of relationships. The poems I have chosen are 'The Laboratory by Ancien Régime, The Man He Killed by Thomas Hardy, Sonnet 130 by William Shakespeare, Remember by Christina Rossetti, The Little Boy Lost and The Little Boy Found by William Blake and lastly On My First Sonne by Ben Jonson'. These poems written before all have similarities within it comes down to the themes of relationships however they all have different aspects, views, feelings and the theme of relationships may vary. Overall in this essay we are looking at the themes of relationships and see what the different aspects the poets have explored over a period of time which overall have a striking resemblance and within this essay I would like to explore it... Various methods are used to explore the theme of relationships in 'The laboratory by Robert browning' and 'The man he killed by Thomas Hardy' are comparatively similar. The laboratory made in the 1842 era, has a distinct subject, a person who kills (or is about to kill) her rival in the presence of her lover - who appears to be connected to the speaker in some way - perhaps her husband or an ex-lover who has spurned
Pre-1914 poetry analysis
Sally Walsh GCSE English Pre 1914 pros In the collection of pre-twentieth short stories, comment on the ways in which the authors create an atmosphere of suspense and tension For the past few weeks we have been studying a selection of short stories, but we are focusing our essay on the 'The Signalman' The Monkeys Paw' and 'The Black Veil'. All of these stories have one thing in common; they involve something to do with the supernatural. All these stories fall into the horror/mystery genre, the particular conventions of this genre are, confusion, death or crime also building suspense and they all have a climax or tension with the story. In the Victorian times the people responded to the stories with a interest because they lived by strong moral codes; for instance no sex before marriage, so these stories were something new and fun. The elements of 'The Signalman', which follow the conventions of a typical ghost story, are, he sees a number of 'visions' which are ghostly, Dickens builds up suspense through 'the bells' also the location of the story (where the events take place) is where a number of train crashes happened in reality (Staplehurst). The narrator describes the setting of the 'The Signalman' story as, 'extremely deep, and usually precipitate', 'dismal place', 'great dungeon', 'gloomy red light', 'depressing' and ' and earthy, deadly smell.' This creates a very