In the poems ‘Lament’ by Gillian Clarke and ‘Report to Wordsworth’ by Boey Kim Cheng, both poets highlight the death and destruction of nature through human selfishness. ‘Lament’ is set in the Gulf War in 1991, when Iraq invaded Kuwait and shows the destruction the war has created. It is also based on media reports that were collected during the conflict. In addition, ‘Report to Wordsworth’ is addressed to William Wordsworth, an English Romantic poet who respected and loved nature. Cheng explains that nature is dying due to the pollution caused by human greediness. Alliteration, anaphora and oxymorons are used to illustrate the themes in both poems and makes readers feel guilty and motivated to do something to help stop the destruction by appealing to their emotions. In ‘Report to Wordsworth’, Cheng uses alliteration in the line “O see the wound widening in the sky”. This creates an image of how the ozone layer is being destroyed and shows that the Earth is metaphorically hurt. The poet has used alliteration in order to slow down the pace and to make the reader pause and think about the destruction. The most powerful word is ‘wound’, used to represent hurt and create a visual image of the sky. The desperation in this line is portrayed in the use of ‘O’ so the reader can really hear the persona’s voice. Cheng is conveying the damage that we are doing and imploring us to change it. In addition, the simile “Slowing like a dying clock” relates to death, and tells the reader
Without literary devices, the stories you read would be dull and uneventful. This is why Richard Connell effectively uses similes and imagery in “The Most Dangerous Game” to help give it life. In this story, Connell used similes to give the reader a feeling of how things looked or felt. On page 19 the author wrote “...but it was like trying to see through a blanket” (Connell).
Introduction Hello, or should I say G’day, since we are all Australian here and lovers of Australian poetry it only seems relevant to say so. Let me start by saying this, although war has been paramount in setting a foundation that has shaped Australia’s identity, the brutal process that took the lives of many inside and out of the battlefield, not only with guns and bombs, also laid an emotional distress creating an emotional spilt to the outlook of war. Yet through poetry, writers are often depicting these stories of history to enhance deeper understanding to these events such as Les Murrays ‘The Drugs of War’ and well renowned poem ‘Men in Green’ by David Campbell. Both of these Australian poets have had a long history in the lines of poetry, winning many awards
The balance between her reminiscing the past or holding on to so much aggression that she is forced to let go. These balances of struggle hold true throughout the entire poem to highlight the subliminal metaphors equipped with items typically used to destroy rather than build, along with symbolism that alludes to fighting
“Only the dead have seen the end of war.” This quote by renowned Spanish-American philosopher George Santayana immaculately encapsulates the core message that is conveyed in both the poems “Grass” and “At the Un-National Monument along the Canadian Border.” The two poems employ disparate writing styles and divergent methods to describe the atrocities of war and violence, however both poems do ultimately condemn these inexcusable acts. Furthermore, beyond denouncing war, both poems greatly emphasize a part of war that is often neglected; how we choose to remember wars and how we must not allow ourselves to forget these brutal lessons of the past. Carl Sandburg and William E. Stafford both lived through numerous periods of violence, epochs where
In the poem “The World Is Too Much with Us”, William Wordsworth seems to be expressing his discontentment with the path society is taking away from the beautiful necessities of nature as it veers into an industrial era. Through the use of specially crafted structure, precise diction, and various allusions, Wordsworth displays his moral disagreement with the new path based on the tragedy of ignoring the tranquil state of humanity present when one is in association with nature. The use of contradictory diction by Wordsworth helps display the extreme variation he sees between the enemy of industry and the ally of nature (Marrero). The phrases “late and soon” and “getting and spending” make it seem as though humanity has been living its life amiss for some time as the focus is on self- indulgence through goods (Wordsworth line 2).
Both Dulce et Decorum Est and Mametz Wood present the incompetent results of war. Dulce et Decorum Est indicates the horrible facts and deaths in war. Moreover, Mametz Wood highlights how precious life is and how easily it can be lost as a result of battle. In this poem “Dulce et decorum Est”, Owen portrays the deadly effects of conflict through the use of metaphor: “as under a green sea, I saw him drowning”. Here, he describes the pain of the gas attack.
John Muir states “It seems wonderful that so frail and lovely a plant has such power over human hearts” (Muir). These words create a spiritual mood and make me feel the power of nature. The words “rejoicing”, “glorious” and “cried for joy” add to the mood of the story because they really create the feeling of having joyous revelation when someone is in harmony with nature. Wordsworth, on the other hand, states that “A poet could not but be gay, /In such a jocund company” (Ln 15-16).
Alliteration- the occurrence of the same letter or sound at the beginning of adjacent or closely connected words. “...Miss Rachel’s cook’s son" ( To Kill a Mockingbird 100). I think that Lee put this in, to show that Scout did not want to go to school at all. Personification- Giving human characteristics to nonhuman objects.
I find Ho Chi Minh’s letter far more persuasive than Lyndon B. Johnson’s. Using ethos, pathos, and logos, he forms a solid argument that supports Vietnam’s stance on the war. He appeals to one’s emotions by expressing the injustices faced by his people, writing, “In South Viet-Nam a half-million American soldiers and soldiers from the satellite countries have resorted to the most barbarous methods of warfare, such as napalm, chemicals, and poison gases in order to massacre our fellow countrymen, destroy the crops, and wipe out villages.” Words such as “massacre” and “barbarous” highlight the severity of these crimes, and invoke feelings of guilt and remorse in the reader. Chi Minh uses ethos to support his logos, or logical, views on the
Comparative Essay How can different perceptions about one topic be expressed in poetry? The main theme that the two sets of poems convey is war, but it’s expressed in different point of views through the use of diction that builds tone. The tones of these poems play a big role in conveying the differences between the different eras that these poems are written in, and shows how societies have changed from the Victorian era till the time of World War I. The diction and tone in Borden and Owen’s poems is so much different than the diction and tone in Lovelace and Tennyson’s poems due to different perspectives and point of views. In all four poems the main idea is war, but each set conveys a perspective of war, a positive perspective
The agony the writer is feeling about his son 's death, as well as the hint of optimism through planting the tree is powerfully depicted through the devices of diction and imagery throughout the poem. In the first stanza the speaker describes the setting when planting the Sequoia; “Rain blacked the horizon, but cold winds kept it over the Pacific, / And the sky above us stayed the dull gray.” The speaker uses a lexicon of words such as “blackened”, “cold” and “dull gray” which all introduce a harsh and sorrowful tone to the poem. Pathetic fallacy is also used through the imagery of nature;
The poem, written by Sara Teasdale, was written as a response to World War I. The poem’s main theme is the idea that nature will always outlast humanity.
Poetic meters in combination with repeated ideas, words, and rhymes are all used in Marvell 's poem, The Mower Against Gardens. The poem explores humanities ungratefulness and abuse to nature with the use of sexual imagery. The poem resonates with the audience because it flows smoothly and is easy to read. The use of repetition is pronounced in the poem and the integrated tail rhymes enhance and join together associated couplets. The rhythmical nature of the poem alongside the "Da-Duh" poetic meters are key to Marvell 's writing.
Within the context of recent history, Wilfred Owen is often considered the greatest writer of modern British war poetry. Composing the vast majority of his poems in a one-year time span, Owen found inspiration from his personal experiences fighting in World War I and fellow poets joining in the fight around him. Born in 1893, Owen grew up the oldest of four children, enjoying a particularly close relationship with his mother while his father remained distant. Owen graduated from Shrewsbury Technical School at age eighteen. Afterwards, Owen took numerous odd jobs throughout Europe, seemingly at a loss for his purpose in life.
“Report to Wordsworth” by Boey Kim Cheng and “Lament” by Gillian Clarke are the two poems I am exploring in this essay, specifically on how the common theme of human destruction of nature is presented. In “Report to Wordsworth”, Cheng explores the damage of nature caused by humans and man’s reckless attitude towards this. In “Lament”, the idea of the damage of oceans from the Gulf War is explored. In “Report to Wordsworth”, Boey Kim Cheng explores the theme of human destruction of nature as a response to William Wordsworth, an romantic poet who celebrated nature’s beauty in his poetry.