To forgive or not to forgive that is the question? Many people within society battle, whether or not they show forgive their enemies or get rid of their enemy. Some people believe that enemy is always enemy while others believe that the enemy can become a friend. Unfortunately, forgiving someone is not always as easy as holding a grudge against them. This is one of society major flaws and that is to forgive our foes. In William Blake poem entitle “The Poison Tree” from Literature of Fiction, Poetry and Drama, argues that humanity biggest flaw is to forgive one another. Which leads to the manifestation of the Poison Tree, which at the end creates everlasting death for anyone who is consumed by it. The angry the narrator has for foe leads …show more content…
The speaker’s plan of revenge was all covered with a deceitful smile and tricky ways. It’s a harmful trap for the enemy to bite into meaning the apple, which as be contaminated with the narrator angry. Unaware of the danger, the enemy’s life is in the hand of the narrator. “My foe outstretched beneath the tree (line 16).” Which describes a horrific finish to such anger. Oftentimes, when people are confronted with such an emotion, decisions made are hasty. They react violently and their judgments are clouded as the narrator said it can be manifested into a plant such as a tree. The narrator is trying to defeat his foe, in the simplest way and that is done through sweet revenge. For example, if young child doesn’t like another child that child tends to place traps for their victim which are usually done in simple matter. Similarity, to the narrator who used the apple as a simple device to entrap his foe into his death. The question is are you going to forgive your foe or are going to become the narrator and kill your foe. There is no such thing as a sweet revenge. The Poison Tree poem is an example of what not to do, but instead we must learn to love one another and maybe one day that the word foe will be deleted from our dictionary. Instead it will be placed with the word forgiveness even to those who has trespass such as the
Mary Oliver’s The Black Walnut Tree displays a relationship between a family (the mother and daughter) and their tree. In the beginning of the poem towards the middle , both the mother and daughter are conflicted with the decision of tearing down the tree , and in return being able to pay off their mortgage. On the contrary , if the family decides to cut the tree they are afraid they may lose the strong family ties, and past generations that are connected to the tree. Ultimately the family of two has to make the decision to cut the tree or allow the tree to stay along with it’s symbolism. Mary Oliver utilizes figurative language devices such as imagery in reference to the appearance of the tree ; symbolism which corresponds to the symbolic
For the first ‘bare’ part of her life, Janie is a mule not to a man but to her own grandmother. In her youth, Janie yearns for relationships and objects that to her symbolize freedom. She is drawn to a blossoming pear tree because of how its “barren brown stems [turn] to glistening leaf-buds; from the leaf-buds from snowy virginity” (10), Here, Janie is awed by something changed from ‘barren’ to beautiful as she struggles with the suppression of her grandmother, who goes on to bash Janie for kissing a boy through a gatepost. It is clear Janie associates the pear tree with freedom, as she was avoiding her chores to sit under it. Thus, the beauty she finds in the turn from stem to blossom is directly correlated with the joy she finds in the escape from her grandmother and discovery of freedom.
In speaking of “special destruction,” his choice of diction contrasts special’s positive and destruction’s negative connotation (“Reservations” par. 12). Muir enhances irony through personification when he says “[the tree] was skinned alive … to show how fine and big that Calaveras tree was” (“Redwoods” par. 1). By using “skinned alive,” he appeals to ethos and pathos by making the action seem morally wrong, thus invoking feelings of pity. Muir continues his mourning of the tree like an epitaph: “This grand tree is of course dead, a ghastly disfigured ruin, but it still stands erect and holds forth its majestic arms” (“Redwoods” par. 1). Once again, this serves the ethos and pathos by drawing stronger, human-like qualities out of the tree, elevating the audiences emotions.
We are humans and a majority of us have dealt with heartache, pain, broken promises, along with the joyous things like dreams, aspirations, and successful futures. Humans mess up and make mistakes, but we have to remember that forgiveness is a very prestigious and powerful thing. Forgiveness affects people’s lives in positive ways through the hardships, difficulties, and struggles of life. There comes a time when forgiveness should not be available to some individuals. However, this depends on the past situations that have occurred in your life as well as other individuals.
At its core, “The Black Walnut Tree” is a conflict between the sentimental and what practically needs to be done. Throughout the poem, the author utilizes a very matter-of-fact and almost dismissive tone as the daughter and her mother debate whether or not to sell the tree and finish paying off a loan that they owe. As the poem progresses, this matter-of-fact tone transitions into figurative language as the black walnut tree takes on a more symbolic view. Mary Oliver shows in “The Black Walnut Tree” that the tree symbolizes the family’s heritage and all that their father has sought to accomplish, and, while the mortgage weighs down the family, cutting down and selling the tree would, in a sense, betray the family and what it stands for. Written in free verse, “The Black Walnut Tree” takes a straight forward and casual approach to the topic and is most apparent
Director of the postmodernist film 'Pleasantville ' (1998), Gary Ross, incorporates the idea of change through the use of intertextuality with a wide range of historical and biblical references along with literature and artwork. He uses allusions from the references to demonstrate the idea that utopias work well only in theory and that life cannot be scripted. The postmodernist film reflects the way society is constantly changing; beginning as a stereotypical perfect, passionless life in the 1950 's and ending as a society with flaws, imperfections and knowledge. Ross shows this by repeating the techniques of intertextuality, along with allusions, parody, pastiche and cinematography to convey the idea of change. Ross plays with the idea of religion in his attempts to show the changes occurring in 'Pleasantville ' throughout the film.
Literary Analysis Essay- The Pear Tree In the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, the pear tree is a major symbol for Janie and her growth throughout the book. Throughout the whole story, the pear tree keeps returning for Janie, in person and in her mind. The pear tree, not only holding Janie’s experience of a first kiss, holds many memories and symbols for Janie in the story.
Near the end of the novel she observes, “In the years she had been tying scraps to the branches, the tree had died and the fruit turned bitter. The other apple trees were hale and healthy, but this one, the tree of her remembrances, were as black and twisted as the bombed-out town behind it.” (Hannah 368) The apple tree represents the outcomes of war. It portrays the author’s perspective that lives wither and lose life due to such violence.
As the old saying goes, “forgive and forget”. Unfortunately, that is easier said than done. However, digging deep down and finding a way to let go of the ill feelings that are created by someone’s wrong doings, or what is perceived as such, can be liberating. Harboring such anger and animosity can be nearly crippling. Freeing those negative feelings allows one to experience peace and joy that cannot be achieved with such upset in not only the head, but also the
This emphasises the enormity of the task Ofelia is about to embark upon and also her vulnerability as the tree’s dominating presence fills the frame. The fig tree itself is symbolic in its representation. Firstly, the entrance of the tree resembles that of a female’s ovaries, with its curved branches replicating the fallopian tubes. Moreover, the tree’s sickened state mirrors Ofelia’s pregnant mother’s own fragile condition.
The writer uses juxtaposition to show how much of a tremendous age difference there is between the tree and the girl. It’s mentioned several times how she is only “small and silly” while the tree is “the last of its generation”. Due to the tremendous gap between them, they don’t understand each other at first, which leads to many obstacles that they must overcome. The struggles are often portrayed with imagery to give them a tangible threat; the old, grandfatherly pine has “sharp, dry twigs” and obstacles such as “green leaves that [are] heavy and wet with dew”. The journey is also described with similes to illustrating how the young girl imagines her situation to be; near the beginning, the tree’s branches “scratch her like angry talons”.
“Schoolteacher’s nephew represents a dismissal by whites of the dehumanizing qualities of slavery”. When Sethe is raped, schoolteacher observed how her body is exploited. The scars on Sethe’s back are so many that they resemble the trunk of a tree with its branches. Sethe bear scars on her back because she was whipped due to her try of escape. Amy Denver, a white girl that helped Sethe when she was running away from Sweet Home, calls the tree a chokecherry tree.
Revenge is a very strong and powerful theme found in stories across all ages and all cultures. During the course of this class two books have also held this theme, Shakespeare's Hamlet and Shelley's Frankenstein. Revenge seems to be such a large theme for both Hamlet and Frankenstein's monster because they both feel utterly betrayed by the people closest to them. In Hamlet, King Hamlet is murdered by his brother, his ghost reveals this to Prince Hamlet.
Revenge is a major part of life, even with minor things people like to get major revenge, and the same can be said for major things also. While revenge is a huge thing it can lead to bad results. Revenge is a major theme in William Shakespeare 's Hamlet, revenge is seen through Hamlet’s revenge for his father, Laertes’ revenge for his father, and Fortinbras’ revenge on Denmark for Norway. Hamlet’s revenge is the main part of the play, after his uncle killed his father and married Hamlet’s mom Hamlet wanted to get revenge. However due to Hamlet not being able to do it fast, his revenge tends to drag on leading to many other people getting affected by it, namely Polonius.
Dana Gioia’s poem, “Planting a Sequoia” is grievous yet beautiful, sombre story of a man planting a sequoia tree in the commemoration of his perished son. Sequoia trees have always been a symbol of wellness and safety due to their natural ability to withstand decay, the sturdy tree shows its significance to the speaker throughout the poem as a way to encapsulate and continue the short life of his infant. Gioia utilizes the elements of imagery and diction to portray an elegiac tone for the tragic death, yet also a sense of hope for the future of the tree. The poet also uses the theme of life through the unification of man and nature to show the speaker 's emotional state and eventual hopes for the newly planted tree. Lastly, the tree itself becomes a symbol for the deceased son as planting the Sequoia is a way to cope with the loss, showing the juxtaposition between life and death.