Have you ever been in a past relationship and started a new one only to realize you have been comparing the two? You may realize that you desire the past spark that the present does not have. In Zora Neale Hurston's novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, she utilizes juxtaposition to discreetly invite the audience to compare two scenes; whether it be Janie’s reactions to events, Janie’s outlook on a goal or fantasy versus someone else's, or how Janie is treated by her spouse.
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
The words “poplars” or “trees” are frequently referred to throughout the entire novel. Remarque repeatedly uses them as the symbols of beauty and innocence of youth. As he conjures up the past and its memories, Paul describes, “but most beautiful are the woods with their line of birch trees…then the birches stand out like gay banners on white poles, with their red and gold patches of autumn-tinted leaves” (Remarque 180). The description of the trees and the imagery that is associated with them is vividly beautiful. The poetic language and structure contain underlying symbols of the beauty and innocence of the soldiers’ past. This is suggested by the colors of the “banner” that the trees are compared to: white, red, and gold. Conventionally, the color white symbolizes love and passion; red symbolizes love and passion; gold symbolizes abundance and
The third symbol are the trees and how they represent the life of bad people. In the forest there are threes with rotten cores in them.(293). In people the bad can 't always be seen on the outside. Like in the old saying you can 't judge a book by it 's cover, well you can by its interior. WIth the interior being the tree 's core the metaphor carries over. The trees may have looked good or stable on the outside, but like the men they represented the core was rotten and putrid. The rotten core can also show how a person started out strong and vibrant but eventually in a sense died inside and rotted away from all the badness and evil the person has done. When a tree is young and full grown they are hard and stable this can show the morals, but after a disease such as heart rot representing bad decisions the strong core starts to decay and rot, leaving a weak frail body. Another point is the trees had the names of men who had done others wrong for their personal gain.(293) When going through the forest, he sees trees that have names of men who have hurt the lives of other people. these names on the trees, tie back to the core being the body of the trees, the names act as a label . Also the three with crowninshield is cut down and the devil says it 's ready to be burned, later when tom returns back to town Mr crowninshield had died.With that when the tree went down so did the man whose name was on it. Deacon peabody 's name was on
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), directed by Guillermo del Toro, is a gorgeously realised tale of fantasy and horror, set against the backdrop of post-Civil War Spain. The story follows a young girl, Ofelia, who travels to the countryside with her ill mother to live with her new stepfather, Vidal, a captain in Franco’s Fascist army. The film explores how Ofelia uses her imagination as a copying mechanism to deal with the monstrosities of her reality as well as to interpret the horrific events unfolding around her. Del Toro employs a number of cinematic devices including cinematography, sound and editing to effectively draw parallels between Ofelia’s reality and imagination, ultimately creating a powerful film that condemns the nature of Fascism.
In Mary Oliver’s “The Black Walnut Tree,” Oliver employs personification, split section, and conflict between literal and figurative to establish the tree’s role in the family as a symbol of both the adversities and the rewards that arise from their endeavor to preserve their family history.
The Botany of Desire is a non-fiction book written by Michael Pollan. The publication date was in the year of 2007 and is a 245 paged book. The Botany of Desire is a book that talks about four different plants. In my opinion, this book was very worth reading. They manipulate human senses such as sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control. It talks about humans vast cultivating these plants for their own use. They have gained many benefits by being in this relationship. There are also some negatives though, the plants are losing biodiversity. Each species have to be ever changing to survive some of the harsh conditions that nature throws its way. Humans have been making exact replicas of them. So if something happens to them, they will go extinct.
The “wilderness idea” has influenced me to become more pro-environment and to embrace nature whenever the chance is given. These sacred places could easily be destroyed by bulldozers to create new storage and office buildings. Pure wilderness has become a rare site in America due to this. When the wilderness is simply there, it reminds us of where our culture came from and how we’ve altered it for better or worse. The freedom in America has allowed business and discovery to thrive. With these advantages, we are on the path to permit the elimination of the last virgin forests, wild species, clean air, and clean water. Our freedom has led to the limitation of being free from the noise of human establishments. Society needs to come to this realization that it is destroying the pureness of the wilderness and the impact that it has on the human psychology and spirituality. Recycling, becoming minimalistic, and ensuring the conservation of the remaining wildlife is vital to the survival of individualism, creativity, and
The items display what was happening in Scotland at that time. “…Scale of dragon, tooth of wolf, /Witches' mummy, maw and gulf /Of the ravin’d salt-sea shark, /Root of hemlock digg’d i' th' dark, /Liver of blaspheming Jew, …” (4, 1, 22-26) The potion is a symbol of the state of the kingdom. Literature often reflects the time period in which it was written. Toads are connected to witches. Witches had their own familiar and were unmoving in their predictions, like the rock, the toad sat under. A snake symbolizes a person who will attack or retaliate with vengeance; this is Macduff, who is attacking with vengeance towards his family’s death. A newt symbolizes a person with the ability to merge spiritual and daily life together. The newt represents
Many cultures have different beliefs on how earth came to be. Native Americans shaped people 's society. They give individuals multiple views of how cultures have changed lives. The tribes Huron, Nez Perce, and Medoc share stories of their cultural beliefs. In “The Sky Tree”, “Coyote finished his Work” and “Blackfeet Genesis” all portrayed natural beliefs, complex religious beliefs and social values.
In the story "Excerpt from the winter hibiscus" There is a girl named Saeng. Saeng just failed her drivers test and on her way home she enters a flower shop. When she enters the shop she is reminded of when she used to live in Laos which she moved from 4 years ago to move to the United States. Saeng starts to look at all the different flowers and she finds A plant that used to grow around where she lived. This made her think about her home and it also brought up some sad emotions.
For example, Lopez notes that “human imagination is shaped by the architectures it encounters as a child,” and that “indigenous people tend to occupy the same moral universe as they landscape they sense”; Lopez choice of words like a “child” and “indigenous people” re-enforces how much land impacts humans, particularly those who pay attention to the land the most. Unlike everyday humans, a “child” is less likely to care about what society thinks and more likely to do what they believe is right in their moral sense, which has been influenced by their environment.Having squirrels throw nuts at my window and watching the sun go down with me gave me a true definition of friendship. A child is more likely to carry on the moral and the life he/she learnt from his childhood environment(just like I carried the true definition of friendship in my mind, just as indigenous people are likely to believe in their traditions and practice in which at the end they pass down to their
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.
Literary devices are used to bridge the gaps and fill in the cracks for me where simple words do not suffice in some stories. I find myself constantly searching stories for and identifying different types of literary devices. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, three uses of literary devices were demonstrated and used consistently. These literary devices are: repetition, imagery and flashbacks. This literary narrative is centered on an epic journey that utilizes literary devices to enhance the complexity and understanding in the story.
The clouds that sail without you , the stars that navigate you and the “ever-moving sea’’ that will take you wherever the wind blows . ‘’And forest dwellers’’ , the forests that are always growing ,that continue to live whatever the circumstances are , and this ‘’your nature is’’ . There is a very clear message that comes within , is that you need to pick yourself up after you fall down , continue with living and ‘’dwell’’ like a plant , even if it means to submerge into nature because at the end of the day , this is her nature , as the sky suggest so .