An Analysis of William Carlos Williams' Poem, The Young Housewife
In this poem, Williams uses a series of images to capture a fleeting moment in time, an emotion of admiration and desire. The poem consists of three stanzas of varying length, and each share in a similar method in portraying the woman and the narrator's relationship with her. Each stanza starts out with somewhat broad statements about the scene, and as they each progress, they become more specific until the image is pinned down to a specific moment in time. After reading the poem the reader is left with three separate images, which describe the emotion/admiration felt by the narrator for the woman.
Williams in the first stanza gives the reader a glimpse of the woman in "her husband's house". His description is somewhat voyeuristic, as the woman is in her negligee behind walls, and yet the reader is still able to see her.
The poet also tells us the exact time, ten A.M.. This suggests that the woman while still in her negligee, is in no rush to prepare herself for the day. This is import...
At the beginning of the poem, the speaker starts by telling the reader the place, time and activity he is doing, stating that he saw something that he will always remember. His description of his view is explained through simile for example “Ripe apples were caught like red fish in the nets of their branches” (Updike), captivating the reader’s attention
The readers are apt to feel confused in the contrasting ways the woman in this poem has been depicted. The lady described in the poem leads to contrasting lives during the day and night. She is a normal girl in her Cadillac in the day while in her pink Mustang she is a prostitute driving on highways in the night. In the poem the imagery of body recurs frequently as “moving in the dust” and “every time she is touched”. The reference to woman’s body could possibly be the metaphor for the derogatory ways women’s labor, especially the physical labor is represented. The contrast between day and night possibly highlights the two contrasting ways the women are represented in society.
The verbose use of imagery in this poem is really what makes everything flow in this poem. As this poem is written in open form, the imagery of this writing is what makes this poem poetic and stand out to you. Marisa de los Santos begins her poem with “Its here in a student’s journal, a blue confession in smudged, erasable ink: ‘I can’t stop hoping/ I’ll wake up, suddenly beautiful’” (1-3). Even from the first lines of this story you can already picture this young girl sitting at her desk, doodling on her college ruled paper. It automatically hooks you into the poem, delving deeper and deeper as she goes along. She entices you into reading more as she writes, daring you to imagine the most perfect woman in the world, “cobalt-eyed, hair puddling/ like cognac,” (5-6). This may not be the ideal image of every person, but from the inten...
The speaker begins the poem an ethereal tone masking the violent nature of her subject matter. The poem is set in the Elysian Fields, a paradise where the souls of the heroic and virtuous were sent (cite). Through her use of the words “dreamed”, “sweet women”, “blossoms” and
The submission of women is demonstrated in the text through the symbolic colors of the couple’s bedroom. Indeed, as the young woman’s husband is asleep, the wife remains wide-awake, trying her best to provide the man with comfort, while enjoying her newlywed life. As she opens her eyes to contemplate “the blue of the brand-new curtains, instead of the apricot-pink through which the first light of day [filters] into the room where she [has]
“Whiteness continues to permeate Williams’ canvas, suggesting perhaps that the kind of purity which dominates his pastoral scene is also essential in the sort of love such a scene brings to mind” (190).
The management of knowledge within the context of organizational processes is a determining factor of its effectiveness and level of performance. Hislop (2013) stated, "One of the key distinctions in the knowledge management literature relates to epistemology" (p. 8). In an attempt to acquire an in-depth understanding of key aspects of knowledge management I will analyze a key organizational job position that possesses valuable experience and traits of fulfilling responsibilities. My analysis will include a description of the organization and position, a review of the perspectives and types of knowledge, as described by Hislop (2013), as they relate to the job position, and the challenges encountered in transferring
The debate among creationists and evolutionists as to the origin of modern life on Earth has pushed increasingly into the limelight over the last several years. Unfortunately, such mainstream coverage has caused many of the related issues to become skewed and misinterpreted. In the article “Five Major Misconceptions about Evolution,” Mark Isaak attempts to make clear the true nature of evolutionary theory so that, if it must be challenged, such arguments can be made on a purely factual basis rather than, as Isaak says, “against a set of misunderstandings that people are right to consider ludicrous” (“Misconceptions” Para. 1). He presents these misconceptions and his explanation of the faulty logic behind each one in five main categories: “Evolution has never been observed,” “Evolution violates the 2nd law of thermodynamics,” “There are no transitional fossils,” “The theory of evolution says that life originated, and evolution proceeds, by random chance,” and “Evolution is only a theory; it hasn't been proved” (“Misconceptions” Para. 2). In addressing each of these proposed falsehoods individually, Isaak forms an argument with few faults that is clear, precise, and effective.
This poem helps us to recognize and appreciate beauty through its dream sequence and symbolism. The poem opens with the Dreamer describing this
Moby Dick is set in Massachusetts where “nearly a third part of the population are Quakers” (Chase 9). The heavy religious influence of the time period likely made characters more morally right than people today. Whaler's were often out on the sea for extended periods of time, and had to be resourceful. It was not unheard of for a whaling ship to scavenge parts and whole lifeboats from a beached ship (Chase 12). Ships often faced dangers from the environment in addition to the dangerous nature of their trade. While traveling a ship would occasionally have to “abandon the idea of keeping any correct longitude” (Chase 39).
He uses powerful imagery and onomatopoeia to achieve the desired effects that make the poem more realistic. All this combined together produces effective thought provoking ideas and with each read, I gradually get an improved understanding and appreciation of the poem.
However, I do not dismiss that actual knowledge management truly exists or is being utilized due to the differing understandings of the terminology. In fact, I have seen knowledge management at its best in a first-hand experience. My organization has a strict rule that certain positions must take a mandatory consecutive 5-days off of work each calendar year. While an employee is out of the office for 5 days, work must continue. Processes, procedures and training have been implemented to assist in passing on information relevant to taking over another position during this time. Cross-training helps in this endeavor, but actually performing the duties of another job for 5 days requires knowledge management implementation to achieve success. Due to this, the organization must “impart knowledge and skills that enable employees to be more effective in their positions” (Avtgis, Rancer, & Liberman, 2012, p.
The construction of the poem is in regular four-line stanzas, of which the first two stanzas provide the exposition, setting the scene; the next three stanzas encompass the major action; and the final two stanzas present the poet's reflection on the meaning of her experience.
My first and immediate explanation for the poem was an address from one lover to a loved one, where distance became a factor in their relationship. The lover has it far worse than the desired partner and the solitude builds nothing but longing for this person at a time when his love is the greatest. He says " What have I to say to you when we shall meet?... I am alone" with my head knocked against the sky”. He further asks, “How can I tell if I shall ever love you again as I do now?” There is uncertainty because he is wondering over the next encounter with his loved one. He says, “I lie here thinking of you” and is compelling when he wants the loved one to see him in the 5th stanza and what love is doing to his state of mind. He is hopeless and expresses it by asking questions he is unsure of, conveying his troubled state. Williams enforces imagery along with sound effects to demonstrate the despair of the man in a realm that is almost dreamlike with purple skies,spoiled colors, and birds. Stating he is alone and that his head collides with the sky may underline the man’s confusion. He also uses imagery in the “stain of love as it eats into the leaves”, and saffron horned branches, vivid and easy-to-imagine images that captivate the reader. The line stating “a smooth purple sky” and this stain which is “spoiling the colours of the whole world” easily formulate a very distinct picture. Through consonance words like “eats” and “smears with saffron” become fiercer in the eyes of this lover as they cancel out a “smooth sky”.
This, in fact, is an example of “dynamic decomposition” of which the speaker claims she understands nothing. The ironic contradiction of form and content underlines the contradiction between the women’s presentation of her outer self and that of her inner self. The poem concludes with the line “’Let us go home she is tired and wants to go to bed.’” which is a statement made by the man. Hence, it “appears to give the last word to the men” but, in reality, it mirrors the poem’s opening lines and emphasises the role the woman assumes on the outside as well as her inner awareness and criticism. This echoes Loy’s proclamation in her “Feminist Manifesto” in which she states that women should “[l]eave off looking to men to find out what [they] are not [but] seek within [themselves] to find out what [they] are”. Therefore, the poem presents a “new woman” confined in the traditional social order but resisting it as she is aware and critical of