Rhetorical Devices in Fear No More by William Shakespeare William Shakespeare utilizes simplistic language to emphasize the themes in "Fear no more" however, he exercises complex metaphors to depict the struggles one undergoes during a lifetime and as a result urges the reader to overcome all melancholic sentiments that lead one to oppose a peaceful death. The diction applied in "Fear no more" efficiently creates emphasis on specific sections of the poem. In addition, the euphonic flow used by Shakespeare illustrates the author's serenity and resignation towards the subject at hand. In essence, Shakespeare's "Fear no more" employs rhetorical devices such as repetition, appeal to the audience, and imagery to reveal the desired theme. The fundamental theme of this poem is regarding the significance of succumbing to death, for after having a full life everyone must fearlessly face the end. In addition, the poem emphasizes that one should not fight against the arrival of death in any of its forms. In fact, this argument is first introduced in the title and further displayed throughout Shakespeare's poem. In the first line of all three stanzas, the author begins with the phrase, "Fear no more," openly showing his belief that one should willingly submit to mortality. Furthermore, the poem's theme is displayed through the phrase "all must … come to dust." By acknowledging that death is inevitable for all of humanity, the author attempts to emphasize his belief that one should not "fear" fate. The theme of the poem is also reinforced through repetition. For example, to emphasize his stance, the author repeats the phrase, "Fear no more" in the first line of the first, second, and third stanza of the poem. Once again this occurs with the phrase, "must… come to dust" in the fifth and sixth line of the first, second, and third stanza. This is of importance because it reiterates that the author's main purpose is to instill the notion that one should not struggle against mortal defeat because it will eventually come upon everyone, including those that have attained fulfillment from life. In Shakespeare's first stanza, the theme is applied to a wide audience that may have different fears. In this stanza Shakespeare explains that one should, "Fear not the heat o' the sun, /Nor the furious winter's rages; " for we have completed our "worldly task…/ Home art gone, and [have] ta'en [our] wages.
As a prelude to an inquiry into thematic elements of the poem, it is first necessary to draw out the importance of Fearing’s use of experimental form. Fearing “adheres” to the conventional use of strophic poetic construction, making use of epigrammatic style, where the seven stanzas separate the lament into isolated combinations and experiments on language and the content suggests each might stand alone as organic entities. Putting these highly-varied units into a single poem reflects on the incoherence of broader theme of death and the response to death, the dirge, as well as the notion that such a broad topic as death contains many sma...
William Powers is a New York Times bestselling author of the novel Hamlets Blackberry; a book that thoroughly expounds on the need for society to detach from technology. The inspiration for his novel blossomed during Powers’s research at Harvard University and his passion for the subject only grew from there. He developed into an esteemed author and won the Arthur Rowse Award for media and criticism twice. Powers’s passion for digital balance is very apparent in his life and in his writing. In Hamlets Blackberry he successfully uses many persuasion techniques to help establish and support his argument. In chapter thirteen, Powers utilizes many rhetorical modes such as narrative, Ethos, and Pathos to help support his
Overall, dwell on this process of changing throughout the poem, it can be understood that the poet is demonstrating a particular attitude towards life. Everyone declines and dies eventually, but it would be better to embrace an optimistic, opened mind than a pessimistic, giving-up attitude; face the approach of death unflinchingly, calmly.
situation is not to surrender to fear and the author shows this idea throughout the poem that we
There are two distinct tones throughout the poem: a tone of weariness and resignation in the first half of the poem, and then a tone of wistfulness and desperation in the second. First, the tone of weariness can be found in lines such as ‘Here, death, and here, something like it.’ (lines 3-4) and ‘...what do you have for me tonight?’ (line 6). Also, ‘Maybe he’s sorry.’ (line 10) demonstrates the resignation of the speaker because the speaker obviously knows that he or she is unable to influence Mr. Fear in any way, and uncaringly wonders if the personified fear feels anything about the suffering he causes the speaker. Such quotes from the poem imply the speaker has experienced fear before, and he or she knows that the experience is going to relapse despite anything they do. Also, even in the title, ‘My Fear,’ there is no real emotion other than resigned acceptance of the fear that is lamented upon by the speaker. In the second half of the poem, however, the speaker has progressed from resignation to desperation, fear, and nostalgic wistfulness. The quotes, ‘Make it small, please,’ (line 14) and ‘let it fall through the hole in my pocket,’ (line 15) show the increasing hysteria and desperation the speaker feels as he or she realizes that the inevitable is swiftly
Fear motivates us to do many things, whether they are right or wrong. In the play Macbeth, fear was the main motivation that influenced the outcome of the play. This can be proved by the subsequent murders after Duncan's. Why were these committed? Macbeth was scared of being caught and having to pay for the wrongs he had done. Also, look at Lady Macbeth. The constant washing of her hands, sleepwalking, and other behavior like this is done out of fear. It resembles her husband fear of being caught. The final piece of proof is Macbeth's actions. They were all due to fear, not only of being caught but of the witches' prophecies. He was scared of them coming true and tried to stop them from happening. This whole play was inspired by fear and what it can do to a person.
The prince’s speech in Romeo and Juliet was given after a fight broke out in the market between the rich families by the name of Montague’s and Capulet’s. The Prince said during his speech “Your lives shall forfeit the peace in my city” Is a bit of foreshadowing and how someone might have to pay their life for taking away the peace of his city. Later on in the story Capulet gets killed by Romeo, therefore he will have to pay his life because he once again disturbed the streets of Verona. Romeo was lucky enough to have kept his life, but he is banned from Verona for the rest of his life. “Three civil brawls bred of an airy word,” Meant that this isn’t the first time that the two families have fought. “Bred of an airy word” the two sides had a great battle just because of a few words. Shakespeare’s also like to use Iambic pentameter to show that speakers are of a higher class. It means that there does not have to be a rhyme scheme. Shakespeare does play with the word he uses so every line has the same amount of syllables. There are also different stresses on each word to kind of give ...
A person should live life without fearing death and think of death as a pleasant rest. In the poem Bryant says, "When thoughts/Of the last bitter hour come like a blight/Over thy spirit,"(8-15). This quote implies when a person fears death he should listen to nature. He also states, "So live, that when the thy summons come to join/The innumerable caravans, …Thou go not, like a quarry-slave at night, /Scourged to his dungeon."(73-78). He explains here that a person should live life without fearing death. In the following lines the poet states, "approach thy grave, /Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch/About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams."(79-81). By this quote the author is saying a person should think of death as a plea...
One must look at this poem and imagine what is like to live thru this experience of becoming so tired of expecting to die everyday on the battlefield, that one starts to welcome it in order to escape the anticipation. The effects of living day in and day out in such a manner creates a person who either has lost the fear of death or has become so frighten of how they once lived the compensate for it later by living a guarded life. The one who loses the fear for death ends up with this way of living in which they only feel alive when faced with death. The person in this poem is one who has lost their fear of death, and now thrives off coming close to it he expresses it when he states “Here is the adrenaline rush you crave, that inexorable flight, that insane puncture” (LL.6-7). What happens to this persona when he leaves the battlefield? He pushes the limit trying to come close to death to feel alive; until they push
In Hamlet, Hamlet wants to avenge his father’s death, but wonders whether the struggle of living and carrying through with his plans is worth the hardships, or if death is a better option. Shakespeare writes a soliloquy where Hamlet discusses with himself whether he should live or die. Shakespeare discusses the idea of suicide through metaphors, rhetorical questions, and repetition until Hamlet decides that he is too afraid of death to commit suicide.
This famous soliloquy offers a dark and deep contemplation of the nature of life and death. Hamlet’s contemplative, philosophical, and angry tones demonstrate the emotions all people feel throughout their lifetimes.
The encounter with the gravedigger is clearly a turning point for Hamlet in which he realizes the two truths that are the theme of the play: death is inevitable; death is universal. By thus dramatizing the theme and placing a statement of it on the protagonist's lips, Shakespeare conveys this message to the audience. The statement of Hamlet's theme by its main character is borne out in his subsequent speech and actions, bringing about the restoration of order that is the conclusion of a Shakespearean tragedy.
“Julius Caesar” by William Shakespeare is the story of the assassination of Julius Caesar. Two speeches were made after his death, one being by Mark Antony. He uses many rhetorical devices in this speech to counter the previous speech and persuade the crowd that the conspirators who killed Caesar were wrong. Rhetoric is the art of persuasion and these many devices strengthen this by making points and highlighting flaws. Antony uses many rhetorical devices, all of which are used to persuade the crowd that the conspirators are wrong and Caesar did not need to be killed.
In this soliloquy, Shakespeare strikes a chord with a fundamental human concern: the validity and worthiness of life. Would it not be easier for us to simply enter a never-ending sleep when we find ourselves facing the daunting problems of life than to "suffer / the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune"? However, it is perhaps because we do not know what this endless sleep entails that humans usually opt against suicide. "For in that sleep of death what dreams may come / When we have shuffled off this mortal coil / Must give us pause." Shakespeare seems to understand this dilemma through his character Hamlet, and thus the phrase "To be, or not to be" has been immortalized; indeed, it has pervaded our culture to such a remarkable extent that it has been referenced countless times in movies, television, and the media. Popular movies such as Billy Madison quote the famous phrase, and www.tobeornottobe.com serves as an online archive of Shakespeare's works. Today, a Shakespeare stereotype is held up by the bulk of society, where they see him as the god of drama, infallible and fundamentally superior to modern playwrights. However, this attitude is not new. Even centuries ago, the "holiness" of Shakespeare's work inspired and awed audiences. In ...
Over and over we see a substantial fault in human nature that, driven by fear, pushes people to extreme measures in order to protect their power and more importantly their own life. Forced to the very edge of their sanity, by fear, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth must constantly watch over their shoulders and worry that their forcefully taken seats of power will be snatched out from beneath them. Along with this fear, Macbeth and Lady Macbeth’s greed, motivation, and insecurity subsequently results in their need to kill anyone and everyone that poses any hint of a threat to their power.