Little City, written by Robert Horan is a literary piece about a spider that spins its web, in order to trap ‘gold visitor(S)’ and ‘coppery captive(S)’ amongst other casualties, so to feed. The title of the poem is inconsistent. Habitually, the descriptive adjective ‘little’ is not paired up with the concrete noun ‘city’. Thus Horan’s choice of words is ambiguous. The unusual heading might confuse the reader or help the elocutionist build a more fertile imagination, so to assume what these lines are about. The poet lays out his creation in an open form, comprising six stanzas, each having a different number of verses. There are fourteen sentences in all; hence the metric level does not equate the syntactic level. These verses have no rhyme, thus one cannot help notice the two rhyming words in the last part of the fourth stanza, ‘wires’, ‘flutters’ and the other in the final part, ‘walking’ ,’rocking’. The difference between the two sets of rhyming words is that, in the fourth stanza, Horan writes, consecutively, the two verses, so create the illusion of a fast flow, whereas in the final division, he chooses to write another line in between the two similar sounding line-ending words. The poet might have included this forced rhyme so to make his piece sound a little melodic in the end, as well as to amplify the lack of heartbeat; since rhyming words give the poem a pace that sounds like that of a heart, when read out loud, of the victims the spider feeds on. The rhythm is mostly fast, with the exception of the fourth and fifth stanzas. Both parts include several pauses due to the full-stops added at the end of almost each verse. Thus these punctuation marks help the reader pause and take in what Horan is writing. This has the eff... ... middle of paper ... ...un-on lines in the second division, which shift to end-stopped verses in the fourth part. This style helps to increase momentum to convey the poet’s skilful way with word so as to bring to life such scene and magnify the pedantic tone. The metre is mainly trochaic, ‘Spider, from his flaming sleep’, having a stressed syllable followed by an unstressed one. Such verse is composed of three trochaic feet with the last foot stressed. However there are some exceptions, ‘Fat hero, burnished cannibal’, which is iambic, that is having an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed one. With the scope of the open form, the poem depends mainly on the intrinsic tone, lucid diction and developed and elaborate imagery so to achieve such a detailed literary piece. These are the fine techniques that make Robert Horan such a brilliant poet. Works Cited Little City - Robert Horan
First of alll, the poem is divided into nine stanzas, where each one has four lines. In addition to that, one can spot a few enjambements for instance (l.9-10). This stylistic device has the function to support the flow of the poem. Furthermore, it is crucial to take a look at the choice of words, when analysing the language.
Mark O’Connor begins the poem with one single line which emphasis the information that he is giving the reader. The continuation of this line from the rest of the poem to the next without a pause creates an urgency, which is used to emphasis the situation.
Roethke’s poem has a regular rhyme scheme that can be expressed as “abab”. The only exception to this scheme would be the first stanza as the words “dizzy” (2) and “easy” (4) are slant rhymes. Only the end syllables of the two words sound the same. As a result, the use of a consistent “abab” rhyme scheme allows the poem to reflect the
middle of paper ... ... This is significant as when reading this poem you notice this rhyming scheme and take more time to stop and ponder over the significance of the language it is based around and what connotations that word has: “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks” and “Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs”. This is one of the most effective rhyming schemes in the poem. Due to every second line rhyming this makes you remember what the poet was trying to put across in the previous lines as all the different lines have a way of tying in with one another.
In order for either the spider or the soul to capture its prey, first they both must create a way to trap what they need and trick it into being caught. “It launched forth filament, filament, filament, out of itself, ever unreeling them, ever tirelessly speeding them” (lines 4-5). These lines are describing the spider while it makes its web. The poet uses the word “tirelessly” to show that the spider must complete its task of finding sustenance in order to survive. The repetition of the word “filament” shows how deliberately t...
The use of diction throughout the poem aids the author in displaying the idea that
In the stage being the first stanza of the poem Child and Insect the reader meets a little boy who is excited and euphoric because he has managed to catch a grasshopper. The rhythm of the poem is very fast and lively. An evidence for that is the onomatopoeia “clockwork fizz” which describes the insect’s movements as sudden and quick, comparing its legs to the hands of a clock too. It also illustrates its desperate attempts to escape the small palm of the boy described by the opening line of the first stanza “He cannot hold his hand huge enough.” Furthermore, not only the grasshopper’s movements are swift but the boy’s motions as well, shown by the run on line “He races back, how quick he is, look”. This line further emphasizes the rhythm of the poem and the energetic mood it creates. The run on line could also be interpreted as a representation of the child’s speech which is cut and uneven because of his cheerfulness and need for a breath. Moreover, the word choices of the author particularly words such as “snatched”, “quick”, “look”, “sudden” help to reinf...
... is shown moreover through these pauses. We also see that he places question marks at the end of sentences, which is another way he is showing us the uncertainty in the voice of society. Through his punctuation and word placement, we clearly see the voice of society in his poem, but in a way that tells us not to conform to it.
This creates very subtle emphases on words, giving a very different feel to the poem from what would be there if it was removed. The most common technique is enjambment; a line without any terminating punctuation at the end of the line, "running on" to the next, and creating an emphasis on the words at the end of the first and start of the second lines. This is used on the very first line: "[...] the ridge emerges massed and DUN / in the WILD PURPLE [...]" (emphasis mine) to create effect on the word "dun", which is a strong juxtaposition against the "wild purple" of the next line; this effect conveys the sense of chaos and contrast. This already strong effect is enhanced significantly by the emphasis the enjambment creates. The punctuation, however, can also create strong effects on its own, as in "Men jostle and climb to, meet the bristling fire." The comma in the middle of this line affects the rhythm of this line, creating a short pause, which almost causes suspense in that short instant, and mirrors the actual rhythm of what 's being described; this combination of multiple effects is used all throughout by Sassoon 's use of punctuation, and to great effect; it creates a very strong, lasting
"Characteristics of Modern Poetry - Poetry - Questions & Answers." ENotes - Literature Study Guides, Lesson Plans, and More. Web. 09 Jan. 2012. .
2. The poem starts off with a white spider on a white heal-all which holds onto a white moth. Just the knowledge of knowing that it is a spider, not to mention a fat spider, it has a negative connotations because no one really likes them to be honest. Spiders symbolize death and mystery. As for the heal-all, it is a plant that is commonly used for medicinal purposes. The rhyme scheme and vowel sounds emphasized that they are ‘characters of death and blight.’
In the last line of the second stanza, the subject enters dramatically, accompanied by an abrupt change in the rhythm of the poem:
There is a very straight forward structure to this poem that contributes to the complexity and unity of the poem as a whole. The rhyme scheme follows a very straight forward ABAAB variation. This rhyme scheme flows throughout the poem with no variations and adds to the organic unity of the work. The meter of this work follows iambic tetrameter which, when read aloud, adds to the thoughtfulness of the speaker. However, the meter is interrupted during one line of the poem which reads, “I shall be telling this with a sigh” (line 16). This line brings attention to itself in order to alert the reader to the ambiguity of the statement, which will be discussed later. The poem itself is constructed with four stanzas with five lines in each stanza which adds to the unity by giving the poem a sense of a full circle and rounded out. Throughout the poem, the rhythm is slow and thoughtful, as if the speaker is reflecting on the choices that he has made in his lifetime. This slow rhythm adds a layer of complexity by demonstra...
... since it deals with the growth of the mind. Therefore, the poet uses syntax and form to emphasize on the important matters that occurred in each stanza.
In An Abandoned Bundle, Mtshali recounts his discovery of an abandoned child, on faeces and garbage, attacked by wild dogs. Mtshali begins the poem with very soothing image of “morning mist” over a “white city”, however this is quickly distorted by the harsh, graphic simile