This essay is mainly focused on Elizabeth Bishops poem One Art, and the recurrent theme of losing, depicted as an art, or as the poet might say: the art of losing. This paper will also focus on the poems form and the way in which the usa

Mastering the art of losing. Introduction This essay is mainly focused on Elizabeth Bishop's poem One Art, and the recurrent theme of "losing", depicted as an art, or as the poet might say: "the art of losing". This paper will also focus on the poem's form and the way in which the usage of certain conventions, such as tone, language, syntax (adjectives, adverbs and verbs) and form help to convey the poet's message, which suggests that loss can lead to the mastery of "the art of losing". The poem's title conveys the suggestion that its contents deal with the theme of art, which may be considered an irony; in the sense that as the reader goes through the lines he realizes that the poem is not about art, but about the "art of losing". This "art", as suggested in the poem, resembles an acquired and accomplished skill that results from the experience of losing insignificant things, which will lead, throughout the experience gained, to an art of losing rather important things in life. The art of losing and the poem's form Elizabeth Bishop's poem is structured in a way in which one may notice the poet's struggle in expressing herself. It seems as she is trying to state something different to what is being expressed. Chief among these conceptions there is a powerful sense of loss. She is able to achieve all this throughout the manipulation of language and form. Even the tone of

  • Word count: 1767
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Compare and contrast different ways of presenting dominance and oppression in post-colonial societies by reference to Walcott's poetry and at least one other work you have studied.

Compare and contrast different ways of presenting dominance and oppression in post-colonial societies by reference to Walcott's poetry and at least one other work you have studied. Dominance and oppression are strong features of post-colonial writing due to the writers' concerns with the post-colonial society. Most post-colonial literature explores the discussion of cultural identity and how they had been affected during the course of colonialism. They further extend these issues by showing the struggle of being independent due to the sudden power vacuum, representing the inability of the governments. Due to long periods of colonialists' use of dominance and oppression, colonies adapted these behaviour themselves to keep in control during post-colonialism. Both Walcott and Rhys come from the Caribbean and they are concerned with the attitude in the post-colonial societies and how they have been influenced through previous colonisation. Walcott's use of elaborate language in his poems conveys some of the main issues to do with slavery and period during colonialism. Rhys tries to demonstrate her concerns towards the White dominance in the Caribbean. These key concerns root from the colonialists' use of dominance and oppression to make colonies to adapt to their way of life and culture thus creating the loss of cultural identity of their own. Both Walcott and Rhys present

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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An interviewer once remarked to Larkin that" Your favourite subjects are failure and weakness" How far do you agree that failure and weakness are favourite subjects in the 'Whitsun weddings'.

An interviewer once remarked to Larkin that" Your favourite subjects are failure and weakness" How far do you agree that failure and weakness are favourite subjects in the 'Whitsun weddings'. In the answer you should either refer to two poems in detail or range more widely. The poems 'Mr Bleaney', 'Dockery and son' and 'Wild oats' are all presented with the subjects of failure and weakness. Failure is to be disappointed with something you have wanted to achieve or attain and so the subject of failure in the poems will be seen as someone being unsuccessful. Weakness means the flaw or fault thus giving the person limitations in their plans. In the poem Mr Bleaney, Larkin uses the first five stanzas to describe the room and Mr Bleaney's life. We get the impression of an uncomfortable, plain, functional room. Larkin gives us this impression by calling it a 'hired box'. This describes Mr bleaney's room but can also refer to Mr Bleaney's coffin. Larkin goes on to describe the room, 'Flowered curtains, thin and frayed'. The curtains seem to become Mr Bleaney himself. The overall sense of chilliness and dreariness which comes from the room extends to Mr Bleaney himself, whom we imagine to be thin, shivering and isolated, with little protection from the outside world and the "frigid wind" which better fitting curtains might have provided. This lack of protection shows the failure

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Super size me by morgan

Key Performers: Morgan Spurlock, Daryl M. Isaacs M.D., Bridget Bennett, RD., Healthy Chef Alex (Morgan's Wife) Did you like this movie? Why/why not? Although "Super Size Me" was a very disturbing movie, I enjoyed it. Morgan Spurlock did a great job of showing that fast food might taste good, but we need to be careful about how and when we eat it. I also enjoyed it because the music to the movie was catchy and it sticks in your head. In what way did it succeed? I think, to state the obvious, this movie succeeded in the fact that McDonald's no longer has the Super Size option. Other than that aspect, "Super Size Me" succeeded in it's ratings, and in the minds of the viewers. The people who have watched this movie have had to think harder about what they are eating. Morgan Spurlock told us a lot of secrets about what's really in our food, and it isn't pretty. I personally have decided that I will never eat a chicken nugget from a fast food restaurant ever again, as well as never buy anything from McDonalds. Every one person affected counts as a major success. In what way did it not succeed? "Super Size Me" was a success, so picking out something negative in it is tough. The only part of this movie that could be called unsuccessful, is that not enough people have seen it, or been touched by it enough to make them stop what they are doing. Did it touch you or affect you?

  • Word count: 662
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Ithaca: A Journey-Not a Destination

Ithaca: A Journey-Not a Destination The poem "Ithaca," by Constantine P. Cavafy expresses his outlook on life. Cavafy was born with Greek citizenship on April 17, 1863, in Alexandria, Egypt. After the death of Cavafy's father in 1870, his family moved to Liverpool, England. Cavafy developed a love for writing in England and indulged in the works of William Shakespeare, Robert Browning, and Oscar Wilde. After problems with the family business, the Cavafy family moved to Constantinople. It was there that Cavafy began his love affair with poetry. The first version of "Ithaca" was written in Greek in 1894. The first English translation was published in 1924, and there have been a number of different translations since then. Along the road in Cavafy's poetic life, he expressed many important themes dealing with his roots from Egypt and Greece. When Greece was under Turkish rule in the eighteenth century, Greek literature virtually disappeared. It was awakened following the Greek War of Independence in 1821-1827. As Greek national pride grew, there was a strong movement amongst writers to use the demotic or the ordinary form of the Greek language. Thus, the influence of this movement is seen in Cavafy's poem "Ithaca." The city of Alexandria is where Cavafy wrote "Ithaca" and is probably one of the unnamed Egyptian cities in the poem. Cavafy's "Ithaca," offers its

  • Word count: 1132
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Larkin - a look at the mood poems were written in by Larkin

Larkin is an established poet and was cherished by people all around the world. He won the respect of many readers, critics and non-critics. He was gifted in his writing and through this gift he bought us the poems we have today. Larkin therefore can be said to be a memorable poet and this will now be investigated. How is he memorable? And what makes him memorable? To start the investigation off I am going to look at the mood poems were written in by Larkin. Each poem is set in its own mood and the mood can help the reader to understand the poem. "Dockery and Son" is the first poem. It is about Larkin going to a funeral and remembering one of his university colleagues called Dockery. Larkin has found out that his son now attends the university and this leads on to the general image of the poem. "...In '43, when I was twenty-one. If he was younger, did he get this son At nineteen, twenty? Was he that withdrawn..." (Larkin page 152 Dockery and Son) This quote shows the awe that Larkin shows at this point in time. The poem was written in a sad mood as it is a remembrance poem. He then continues the poem in much the same way showing his point of view and talking about a popular concept for him, life. "Life is first boredom, then fear. Whether or not we use it, it goes....." (Larkin page 153 Dockery and Son) Life is a matter that Larkin talks about a lot of the time.

  • Word count: 1001
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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With reference to "The Telephone Call" and "Telephone Conversation" discuss and compare the effectiveness of the poet's choice of form, style and use of poetic techniques in order to convey their messages.

With reference to "The Telephone Call" and "Telephone Conversation" discuss and compare the effectiveness of the poet's choice of form, style and use of poetic techniques in order to convey their messages. The overall message carried in Wole Soyinka's poem "Telephone Conversation" is the fact that blacks are treated with unbelievable ignorance. I believe that Soyinka conveys this message very effectively through the use of form, style and poetic techniques. The form of "Telephone Conversation" seems to almost represent a dramatic monologue. This is quite ironic because there are actually two people speaking. Perhaps by giving the poem this form, Soyinka is trying to suggest that the African man feels like he's talking to himself, since the landlady is almost ignoring what he says. I believe the continuous form of the poem can reflect the continuing ignorance of white people towards black people. Soyinka's style exposes racism in a fairly critical, yet humorous way. This is clearly shown with the comical line of "You mean - like plain or milk chocolate?" When reading this for the first time, we are amused by this comparison; however, working on a different level, we can appreciate the critical sarcasm that Soyinka conveys towards the ignorance of the white landlady. Soyinka's humorous sarcasm is also seen when the man says "West African sepia" and "Down in my passport."

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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By referring to at least two poems, discuss by what means Larkin illustrates the disparity between reality and illusion in his poems.

By referring to at least two poems, discuss by what means Larkin illustrates the disparity between reality and illusion in his poems. Larkin lived in a time when ideals and touchstones were falling apart and capitalism had put an emphasis on individual effort. Larkin, therefore, reflected the essence of his times in sarcastic tones; his main concern was life and its discontents and his ability to write about the impossibility of understanding psychological reality (illusion) in a general social reality, is what made Larkin him. Illusion and reality are two very important themes that run throughout Larkin's poems and are going to be discussed in the following; 'Essential Beauty,' 'Sunny Prestatyn,' 'Wild Oats' - and in the first two poems, Larkin deals with the way in which we torment ourselves with images that we cannot translate into reality, although in the latter, gives us an attempt by Larkin at a mature relationship. Sunny Prestatyn is a poem, much like Essential Beauty, is a poem where advertising hoardings are employed to test the distance between idealised vision of perfection and the uncombed world we actually live in. The opening stanzas of both present us with these unattainable images of 'how life should be.' The attractions of 'Sunny' Prestatyn; the girl on the poster, "Glad in tautened white satin," dominates as the coastline and hotel behind her, "...expand

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Ted Hughes's Examination at the Womb Door

EXAMINATION AT THE WOMB DOOR Ted Hughes . Explain the use of the term "womb-door". The word "womb door" at first seems to have very sexual connotations. The voice of God's nightmare gestates and begins to acquire a physical state. But before it is born, there is yet a trial that the embryo has to go through. This is the embryo's examination at the womb door, a final assessment that the crow must undergo before being born and before entering the world. Womb door signifies the point of crossing into the physical world- a gate where all souls shall gather before they step into life. In my opinion, examination at womb door reminds me of the promise that all souls make to God before coming into the world that He- God is their creator and they shall return to Him. In our poem, however, the crow is a clever embryo and the examination that follows is a unique one. 2. What effect is created by the repetition of the word "Death"? There is a lot of emphasis on the word Death. This emphasis is brought out by putting the word in italics, placing it a few spaces away from the normal sentence and by making it the only answer that the Crow gives throughout the poem. It is repeated sixteen times by the Crow emphasizing that Death is indeed the ultimate reality of life. The time and place of our death is decided even before we are born and that, in a way, makes death a stronger aspect than

  • Word count: 1124
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Critical evaluation of High Windows by Philip Larkin

KATHLEEN BAKER. ACCESS COURSE GROUP C Write a critical evaluation of a poem. HIGH WINDOWS When I see a couple of kids And guess he's fucking her and she's Taking pills or wearing a diaphragm, I know this is paradise Everyone old has dreamed of all their lives Bonds and gestures pushed to one side Like an outdated combine harvester, And everyone young going down the long slide To happiness, endlessly. I wonder if Anyone looked at me, forty years back, And thought, That'll be the life; No God any more, or sweating in the dark About hell and that, or having to hide What you think of the priest. He And his lot will all go down the long slide Like free bloody birds. And immediately Rather than words comes the thought of high windows: The sun-comprehending glass, And beyond it, the deep blue air, that shows Nothing, and is nowhere, and is endless PHILIP LARKIN

  • Word count: 797
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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