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Tense Atmosphere In The Poem, The Race

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In the poem, "The Race", written by Sharon Olds eminantes a breathless and desperate situation of a daughter who might not be able to be with her father in his last moments, if she does not make the other plane in seven minutes. Olds begins the poem with tense atmosphere as the daughter begins her journey with news that she may not reach her father in time due to an unexpected cancelled flight. Olds wrote, "...the flight was cancelled...young man...told me...another airline had...nonstop leaving in seven minutes..." The tense atmosphere functions to create a feeling of hope, yet it also creates a tush, unkept moment of anxiety. This structure supports the author's purpose to create a panicked moment of desperation with a glimpse of hope with the descriptive details that accumulates to a tense atmosphere throughout the journey. In addition, Ms.Olds greatly uses tension throughout the poem to escalate the feeling of anxiety from the beginning to end. Olds implies, "...flight was cancelled...a non-stop leaving in seven minutes....I ran...no sense of direction...jumped off...bus...ran...I ran up...then run..." The various obstacles function to create a contrast between her heart and her reason. This structure supports the author's purpose to demonstrate how emotions can overpower reasoning …show more content…

Olds says, "...rushed up to the desk...a young man with...dark blond moustache...elevator over there...make a right...see a yellow bus...people's hair was shining...interior...filled with....mist of gold endorphin light..." The details of specific items and settings function to create a rush, unkept moment of anxiety that transitions to a moment of duty and home as she is now able to be with her father. This structure creates realistic and vivid scenes that the readers can envision throughout the hectic scenes while imagining what the daughter may briefly glimpse at for a brief

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