In analyzing Countee Cullen’s poem “Yet Do I Marvel,” it is evident that the focus of the poem is to try to comprehend the acts of God. Cullen’s diction is convoluted, as he uses terms that seem to oppose each other, causing confusion among his readers. This confusion, which is expressed through his tone, allows Cullen to portray his message in an effective manner. This sonnet from the Harlem Renaissance contains an array of paradoxical lines, which serve as the keys to the poem’s success. Being a black poet struggling to succeed in an era dominated by white writers, Cullen questions the innate goodness of God, which is emphasized through his use of conflicting terminology, and body imagery.
for those of us who cannot indulge the passing dreams of choice who love in doorways coming and going in the hours between dawns looking inward and outward at once before and after seeking a now that can breed futures like bread in our children’s mouths so their dreams will not reflect the death of ours ……………… …………………… we were never meant to survive. (The Complete Poems 255-56) Ayim’s poem depicts an image of a dreamed deferred/stolen, which is reminiscent of Langston Hughes’ “Harlem”, leaving the world as a waste
“Not us” by Mark Holiday, depicts a man’s denial and confusion on death after hearing about an elderly couple who are hospitalized. He tries convincing his beloved that death will not come, but finally he accepts that death will sadly approach everyone. By using repetition, he emphasis his confusion and denial. He does this by repeating the phrase, “They are not us” in different ways creating a distinctive affect each time it is used. Different forms of repetition and symbolism, creates tension within the speaker which helps him realize that death is like a spiraling “Get Well” card ready to slide under someone’s door, helping deflate the tension he has within him.
I Am America I am America, shades of red and blue. A dark and misty lake of purple caste. Some sleeping on rocks with dew, invisible to most without a past.
Throughout time, many poets have written and publish great works of art; however, an even greater number of mediocre and poor quality poetry has been written. One of these average poets is C. S. Lewis. Although his poetry does not stand out in an amazing way, readers will notice the heartfelt and powerful emotion written into his poetry. One of his works of poetry, “An Apologist’s Evening Prayer”, tells the story of his struggles with the debates and the tension put on him. C. S. Lewis likely was one of the greatest debaters of his era and possibly one of the greats of history; however, the constant questions thrown at him may have caused him to doubt his faith.
WHERE ARE THEY NOW? Soul music may not may be the most popular type in rural Australia but to Dave Lovelace and Gail McCrea it’s an important factor to how they met and became one of the most successful entertainment groups to perform for the American troops in the Vietnam war. This group was called the Sapphires who consisted of sisters Cynthia, Julie and Gail as well as their cousin Kay. Managed by soul music fanatic Dave the group went on to play gigs across the war-torn country, from Saigon to Nha Trang they gave the American troops something to smile about amidst all the destruction around them.
Is the American Dream really available for everyone? In the poem “Let America be American Again”, Langston Hughes tries to get the point across that the American Dream isn’t open for everyone. He describes the hopeful immigrants who seek America for a new start but arrive to find only that America “The Land of the Free” is full of mighty people who dominate the weak. Hughes depicts the downtrodden Negroes who bear who bear many scars, physically and mentally, of the seeming to have no end slavery. Even in present day America, black people still do not have all the equality rights they deserve and long for.
Licata "After Us" Essay In "After Us" Connie Wanek uses imagery of rain to show that the human race will either continue to grow or it will destroy itself. "After Us" is talking about the human race, either at the beginning or end of its existence. It talks about a perfect world, one that has grown and flourished, but it starts to rain. They do not know if it is the rain will stop and they will continue to live, or if the rain will go on forever therefor eventually destroying humanity.
In any given speech, or piece of literature for that matter, there is a certain amount of pathos, logos, and ethos used by the author, a technique that people like to call the “Rhetorical Triangle”. In the thought provoking speech: “Tide of Voices: Why Poetry Matters Now”, the speaker spectacularly uses these tactics to prove the validity, importance, and beauty of poetry. Mark Doty, the author, is a recognized American poet, who was the winner of the National Book Award for Poetry in 2008. This accomplishment on its own establishes ethos, a form of trust and credibility. Obviously, a poet defending poetry is as expected as a mathematician defending mathematics, but still, the reliability and status is there.
In “The Trouble with Poetry” the speaker touches on the same idea of how poetry is so forced, and how it has lost its meaning as an expression and has become more of an addiction among
These differences serve as evidence of an advancement of self-expression and individuality concerning religion over the course of time. This is especially evident in Bradstreet’s poems “Before the Birth of One of Her Children” and “Verses Upon the Burning of Our House” as well as Dickinson’s poems “Heaven is so far of the Mind” and “Remorse – is Memory – awake.” “Before the Birth of One of Her Children” by Anne Bradstreet is a quiet, reflective poem in
The poem starts off, with Claude and his cronies being attacked. The sensation that rings throughout the poem is the battle among whites and blacks. The poem begins with the speaker starting that he and his people are under attack. A scuffle division can simply be evoked, imagining two assemblies facing each other. Claude and his cronies are being startled by “hungry dogs,” mocking them.
The poem A Step Away From Them by Frank O’Hara has five stanzas written in a free verse format with no distinguishable rhyme scheme or meter. The poem uses the following asymmetrical line structure “14-10-9-13-3” while using poetic devices such as enjambment, imagery, and allusion to create each stanza. A Step Away From Them occurs in one place, New York City. We know this because of the lines, “On/ to Times Square, / where the sign/blows smoke over my head” (13-14) and “the Manhattan Storage Warehouse.”
Through the poem’s tone, metaphors used, and symbols expressed the poem portrays that fear can make life seem charred or obsolete, but in reality life propels through all seasons and obstacles it faces. The poem begins with a tone of conversation, but as it progresses the tone changes to a form of fear and secretiveness. The beginning and ending line “we tell
In this poem Henry Longfellow describes a seaside scene in which dawn overcomes darkness, thus relating to the rising of society after the hardships of battle. The reader can also see feelings, emotions, and imagination take priority over logic and facts. Bridging the Romantic Era and the Realism Era is the Transcendental Era. This era is unusual due to it’s overlapping of both the Romantic and Realism Era. Due to its coexistence in two eras, this division serves as a platform for authors to attempt to establish a new literary culture aside from the rest of the world.
