'The Horse and his Rider' by Joanna Baillie
'The Horse and his Rider' by Joanna Baillie (Romantic Writings: An Anthology, p.55) Write an essay of not more than 1500 words in which you analyse the poem and comment on the poetic form and language used and the way they contribute to the meaning and effects of the poem. 'The Horse and his Rider' is a formal descriptive lyrical ode written by Joanna Baillie (1762-1851). It provides a glorious picture of a horse and soldier about to go to war. The speaker is the female poet, and the impression given to the reader is that she is a witness to the scene described. She is expressing her opinion of a personal experience. Her words are an admiration of the beauty and bravery of a horse and his rider. The poem is written in twenty-two continuous lines of verse divided into an octave, a sestet and an octave. The first octave and sestet are dedicated to the horse with the final octave being about the rider. This structure of the poem is balanced but gives two different and unbalanced observations. Baillie employs a simple balanced rhyming structure of aabbccddeeffgg hhiijjkk throughout the poem, divided into eleven pairs of heroic couplets - the general eighteenth-century practice of writing rhyming couplets in iambic pentameter. Although there is an extra beat in the first line, the poem has a conventional structure and formality and a regular, smooth and balanced pace.
Dylan Marlais Thomas.
Dylan Marlais Thomas was born is Swansea, Wales on October 27, 1914, he was the product of Florence Williams, a nurturing housewife, and David John Thomas, a religious English teacher. Thomas's father exposed him to poetry at an early age, Shakespeare and the bible were his bedtime stories, and by the age of four he was reciting verses from both. By the age of eight he was writing his own poetry, even before he entered the Swansea Grammar School in September 1925, where he was a quiet student often lost in his own thoughts. When he attended school his only real interest was editing the Swansea Grammar School Magazine, where along with editing he published poems imitating popular works of the time. Thomas often used his mothers caring nature to avoid tasks that he thought to be unpleasant, school being one of them. His mother thought of him as a sickly child, so he got out of school often, not to go play with his friends but to stay home and indulge himself with his fathers immense selection of literature from the family library. This is where Thomas's real education took place, he read a diverse selection of authors such as; Edgar Allan Poe, the Brothers Grimm, Sir Thomas Browne, and Fyodor Dostoevsky. Here in his father's library, with his love for words and his vast selection of books, he nurtured his understanding of literature and talent for writing. Thomas left the
Poets often write about ideas through exploring emotions. In light of this comment, examine ways in which poets develop their ideas through feelings and emotions. You should write about a least two poems including the darkling thrush or gods grandeur, or
Poets often write about ideas through exploring emotions. In light of this comment, examine ways in which poets develop their ideas through feelings and emotions. You should write about a least two poems including the darkling thrush or gods grandeur, or both. To explore this comment, I am going to analyse two poems, 'The Darkling Thrush', by Thomas Hardy, and 'God's Grandeur', by Gerard Manley Hopkins. In 'The Darkling Thrush', Hardy gives a very negative image. He uses phrases such as 'when frost was spectre-grey', and ' The Century's corpse outleant', which give the reader the image of death. In this poem Hardy is talking about the death of the 19th century as it moves into the 20th Century. The poem itself was written on the 31st December 1899, the turn of the Century. Hardy shows the narrator as having sad, grievous emotions throughout the poem. This is contrasted with the emotions of the thrush, which is portrayed to be celebrating, and happy. The narrator appears to have given up on life, which is shown through the comment 'And every spirit on earth seemed fervourless as I'. On the other hand, the thrush which is shown as being towards the end of its life in the verse 'an aged thrush, frail, gaunt and small', seems to be holding on to all it can. The narrators comment shows his opinion on the time in the verse 'so little cause for carolings'. The thrush
Herman Melville was moved so much by the Civil War that he wrote a volume of sensitive poetry.
ROMANTIC PERIOD (War, Division, and Reconciliation) "A Requiem" Skimming lightly, wheeling still, The Swallows fly low Over the fields in clouded days, The forest-field of Shiloh - Herman Melville Herman Melville was moved so much by the Civil War that he wrote a volume of sensitive poetry that treated happenings of the war in a quiet, mournful tone. "A Requiem" was the name of his poem about the Battle of Shiloh, since it was written to honor all of the soldiers that died there. Fought in western Tennessee in April 1862, the battle was one of the bloodiest events of the American Civil War. With at least 10,000 deaths of soldiers from each side, Shiloh was a very decisive event. It proved that war would be a long and bitter struggle despite all of the cheering, flag waving, and brave rhetoric of the previous spring. Just as the revolution before it, the Civil War absorbed the creative energies of the nation. Notable songs, speeches, journals, letters, and memoirs appeared. Many writers became involved with the Civil War, and the leaders of both sides produced some of the most important wartime literature. Walt Whitman, a poet, was a towering literary figure that emerged during the wartime era. There was no public opposition of slavery until the Civil War. Thomas Jefferson's first draft of the Declaration of Independence described the trading of slaves as a
How does Bennett deal with the theme of imprisonment in two or more of his 'talking heads'.
Emmanuel Ntombura 01/10/2003 'TALKING HEADS' Coursework Assignment HOW DOES BENNETT DEAL WITH THE THEME OF IMPRISONMENT IN TWO OR MORE OF HIS 'TALKING HEADS' INTRODUCTION This essay will be focussing on the theme of loneliness in monologues. I will be looking at the connections between 'A Lady of Letters,' and 'Playing Sandwiches,' in relation to the theme I'm focussing on. A monologue is a dramatic composition for one character or long speech performed by one character. There are lots of ways in which you can tell what a monologue is. A dramatic monologue always has a speaker and an implied auditor. The auditor often perceives a gap between what the speaker says and what the speaker reveals. The reader also adopts the POV of the auditor/speaker. The speaker also nearly always uses a case-making or argumentative tone of voice. The auditor then completes the dramatic scene from within, using means of interference and imagination. The dramatic monologue presents a 2-step sequence: we enter what looks like a normal situation, but become aware of discrepancies that gradually encourage us to suspect the speaker's reliability, motives and actions. As the self-justifying ("case-making") bombards us with a rationalisation/explanation of his/her actions, the auditor begins to construct a fully detailed alternative vision of the speaker and the events he describes, in effect
How is Twentieth Century Drama Defined, and what makes it Successful?
20th Century Drama-"Playing Sandwiches" By Alan Bennett. HANNAH NICHOLLS Playing Sandwiches is a monologue by Alan Bennett from a collection called "Talking Heads". It is a good and successful illustration of Twentieth Century drama. How is Twentieth Century Drama Defined, and what makes it Successful? To define Twentieth Century drama a number of things have to be considered. The most obvious way of recognising Twentieth Century drama is that it is often shown in the medium of television. This indicates the advance in technology, and if it is originally televised gives a clue to when it was written. Twentieth Century Drama in a theatre is possibly more difficult to identify. It can be recognized through the language used, the set and more importantly the issues and themes expressed in the piece. The language would obviously be more modern and possibly less formal. The set may show an advance in technology, for example televisions and telephones, which would not be incorporated into the set of an earlier play. In this example, it is in the form of a monologue. This means that one character tells a story from his or her own perspective. There is therefore a narrow focus and a biased opinion on events. The story is concentrated usually on only one main plot, which is slowly revealed as the actor exposes more about himself. The issues presented to the viewer signify the
Compare The Ruined Maid by Thomas Hardy and Cousin Kate by Christina Rosetti.
The Ruined Maid by Thomas Hardy Cousin Kate by Christina Rosetti At the beginning of the Victorian period women's lives were very limited: they could not own money; they were their husband's property, and if they had no male relatives to support them they were destitute. Among the few respectable jobs available were teaching and taking in embroidery, but these were poorly paid. Until 1863 girls were barred from sitting public examinations because the professional journal of doctors proclaimed that 'Higher Education will produce flat-chested women unable to have babies'. One in four Victorian women never married, which led to huge numbers of women living on the streets, begging and prostituting themselves. So, male Victorian writers and poets had two conflicting images of women: the pure, and the ruined. Imagery is a technique that is used frequently in 'Cousin Kate' and 'The Ruined Maid'. In 'Cousin Kate' the maid says "even so I sit and howl in dust, you sit in gold and sing". This creates an image of how bad Kate is feeling. The use of the word 'howl' gives us an understanding of how upset the maid is, and how bad she feels. It also makes us compare her crying to the sound of a wolf. There is also a lot of imagery in 'The Ruined Maid'. Most of the imagery in 'The Ruined Maid' is about 'Melia's appearance and how she is so different since she has been ruined.
In the poem "Facing It" by Yusef Komunyakaa, the author uses first person narration, metaphor, simile
Komuyakaa's Expression of Self in Facing It In the poem "Facing It" by Yusef Komunyakaa, the author uses first person narration, metaphor, simile, images of light and darkness, personification, allusion and word connotation in order to convey to his detached audience the intimate experience of making his pilgrimage to the Vietnam War Veteran's Memorial in Washington DC. For Komunyakaa, an African American Writer and Vietnam Veteran, the emotions associated with the memorial are complex, sad, disheartening, and cherished. Through the use of these various literary devices, Komunyakaa is not only able to share his experience with his audience, but to draw the audience into the narrative of the poem, and place the realities of war inside the lives and hearts of his audience. On the surface, Yusef Komuyakaa's "Facing It" is the first-person account of Komunyakaa's own pilgrimage to the Vietnam Memorial. Komunyakaa uses a first person narrator, because this is certainly his story, and as such he does not wish to detach himself from the narrative. Also, the first person narration makes the story more vivid and real for the audience by pulling us closer to the story through intimacy with the narrator. Through the use of the "I" the audience is able to identify with, and relate to the emotions that the narrator of the poem-that is, Komunyakka-experiences. My black face fades,
An exploration of the importance of setting in 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' by Thomas Hardy
An exploration of the importance of setting in 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' by Thomas Hardy and 'The Shipping News' by Annie Proulx Setting is used powerfully in both 'Tess of the D'Urbervilles' and 'The Shipping News', and is, in my opinion, pivotal in rendering these two novels so resonant and beautiful. It is employed to expand and reinforce the moods of each phase of the narrative, as well as marking these different phases. The setting generates the atmosphere in which the characters exist, but more profoundly, it is used to symbolise and intensify the feelings and experiences of the protagonists. Although written at different times by authors with very different literary styles, and set in places of extreme contrast- tranquil, lush Wessex set against grimy, degenerate New York, then bleak Newfoundland - the novels share a remarkable degree of similarity. Both novels feature people with uneasy minds, people who are somehow unlike their peers, people who are searching ultimately for a sense of belonging. These characters, Tess and Quoyle, are strongly influenced by the ancestral myths which haunt their surroundings. They are trying to understand themselves in the context of these myths, and to understand the forces that have shaped their lives. Tess Durbeyfield discovers that she is a 'belated seedling' of a decayed aristocratic family, the D'Urbervilles. She is fooled
The Effects of Thomas Paine's Common Sense
The Effects of Thomas Paine's Common Sense Common Sense 1 Runnung head: Common Sense The Effects of Thomas Paine's Common Sense Seth Murphy Wayland Baptist University History 1301 Professor L. Ben Moseley May 1, 2005 Word Count: 1680 Common Sense 2 Abstract This paper will explore the effects of Thomas Paine's "Common Sense." A writing method was used. This is the conclusion drawn: Common Sense 3 The Effects of Thomas Paine's Common Sense How important was it for America to gain its independence from England? Thomas Paine, an English radicalist, thought that it was extremely important. Important enough to write a pamphlet on why American Colonist should have independence. At the time, 1776, many Americans felt the same way about Paine's view on independence, but never took any action on it. Common Sense was published in 1776 as a way to engage people in certain political issues at hand. It was written by Thomas Paine to show that a break with England was only inevitable but justified. In Common Sense, Paine tries to convince people that the time for debate was over and that it was now time for American Colonists to raise arms against England. Paine tries to use a style of presenting this information that will not only convince but inspire or motivate American Colonists and raise up