Marie Howe’s book, “What the living Do” is a book about death, loss, grief, and life. Howe expresses these deep emotional issues using plain language, simple line breaks, and imagery that reminds the reader of an ordinary home. The poem, “Faulkner”, is an exemplary example of how effective Howe’s methods are for conveying a moody and mournful tone.
The most striking aspect of “Faulkner” is how unremarkable the language is. Marie Howe utilizes simplistic and conventional language to tell a small story within the poem. The first two lines are exemplary of this. “During the last two weeks of John’s life, Joe was reading As I Lay Dying” for his English class.” This poem is devoid of imaginative imagery, interesting diction, or any figurative language.
“Pass On” written by Michael Lee is a free verse poem informing readers on grief, which is one of the most difficult obstacles to overcome not only when losing a loved one, but also in life itself. “Pass On” successfully developed this topic through the setting of an unknown character who explains his or her experience of grief. Despite Lee never introducing this character, readers are given enough information to know how they are overcoming this difficult obstacle. In fact, this unknown character is most likely the writer himself, indirectly explaining his moments of grief. One important piece of information Lee provides is the fact that he has experienced loss twice, one with his grandfather and the other a friend who was murdered by the
After a first reading of Marie Howe’s What the Living Do, many complicated feelings come out of my mind. In her poem, Marie Howe captures the human behavior that makes people obsessed with trivial issues until they overlook the important things that they could do to make their lives more enjoyable. Those situations actually have happened on most of us today. In most cases, people will procrastinate over simple chores and tasks instead of taking action and accomplishing these tasks. While many people will sulk over how unfortunate they are, they don't realize that they are in a better off than many other people. As technology affects every aspect of our lives in the modern world, it becomes extremely difficult to get off from the technological
William Faulkner in his book, As I Lay Dying, portrays a Mississippi family which goes through many hardships and struggles. Faulkner uses imagery to illustrate an array of central themes such as the conscious being or existence and poverty among many others. From the first monologue, you will find an indulgence of sensual appeal, a strong aspect of the novel. Each character grows stronger and stronger each passage. One of the themes in As I Lay Dying is a human's relations to nature. Faulkner uses imagery to produce a sense of relation between animals and humans.
"William Faulkner: The Faded Rose of Emily." Mr. Renaissance. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Mar. 2011 .
“As I Lay Dying, read as the dramatic confrontation of words and actions, presents Faulkner’s allegory of the limits of talent” (Jacobi). William Faulkner uses many different themes that make this novel a great book. Faulkner shows his talent by uses different scenarios, which makes the book not only comedic but informational on the human mind. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is a great book that illustrates great themes and examples. Faulkner illustrates different character and theme dynamics throughout the entire novel, which makes the book a humorous yet emotional roller coaster. Faulkner illustrates the sense of identity, alienation, and the results of physical and mental death to show what he thinks of the human mind.
Faulkner, William. As I lay Dying. First Vintage International Edition. Toronto, Canada: Random House of Canada Limited, 1990. Print.
Faulkner, William. “A Rose for Emily.” The Norton Field Guide to Writing with Readings. 2nd
In Amy Hempel’s Short Story “Going,” we take part in a journey with the narrator through loss, coping, memory, experience, and the duality of life. Throughout the story we see the narrator’s struggle through coping with the loss of his mother, and how he moves from a mixture of depression, denial, and anger, to a form of acceptance and revelation. The narrator has lost his mother to a fire three states away, and goes on a reckless journey through the desert, when he crashes his car and ends up hospitalized. Only his thoughts and the occasional nurse to keep him company. He then reaches a point of discovery and realizations that lead to a higher understanding of mortality, and all of the experiences that come with being alive.
Three key elements link William Faulkner's two short stories "A Rose for Emily" and "Dry September": sex, death, and women (King 203). Staging his two stories against a backdrop of stereotypical characters and a southern code of honor, Faulkner deliberately withholds important details, fragments chronological times, and fuses the past with the present to imply the character's act and motivation.
William Faulkner takes us back in time with his Gothic short story known as, “A Rose for Emily.” Almost every sentence gives a new piece of evidence to lead the reader to the overall theme of death, isolation, and trying to maintain traditions. The reader can conclude the theme through William Faulkner’s use of literary devices such as his choice of characters, the setting, the diction, the tone, and the plot line.
During the process of growing up, we are taught to believe that life is relatively colorful and rich; however, if this view is right, how can we explain why literature illustrates the negative and painful feeling of life? Thus, sorrow is inescapable; as it increase one cannot hide it. From the moment we are born into the world, people suffer from different kinds of sorrow. Even though we believe there are so many happy things around us, these things are heartbreaking. The poems “Tips from My Father” by Carol Ann Davis, “Not Waving but Drowning” by Stevie Smith, and “The Fish” by Elizabeth Bishop convey the sorrow about growing up, about sorrowful pretending, and even about life itself.
Erin George’s A Woman Doing Life: Notes from a Prison for Women sheds light on her life at the Fluvanna Correctional Center for Women (FCCW) where she was sentenced for the rest of her life for first-degree murder. It is one of the few books that take the reader on a journey of a lifer, from the day of sentencing to the day of hoping to being bunked adjacent to her best friend in the geriatric ward.
William Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying is considered the classic American tragedy. Taking place in the poor South in the 1920s, this novel follows the Bundren family in their journey from Yoknapatawpha County, Mississippi to Jefferson, Mississippi to bury their mother. Within this context, Faulkner explores themes such as the impermanence of existence, the tension between words and thoughts, and the role of the family. To illustrate these themes and to add a layer of depth to the novel, Faulkner effectively makes use of symbolism. Ranging from people to places to objects, each symbol used in As I Lay Dying, is purposeful and holds meaning.
Death in a family seizes control over the emotional and physical health of the surviving family. Facing death is difficult, but it cannot be ignored. The trauma may be an opportunity to grow from the experience, if it is talked about and discussed and worked through with the support of others; or it may throw a family off course, misdirecting their actions or leaving them altogether emotionally stagnant. Two families confront death differently in William Faulkner’s “A Rose For Emily,” in which a well-respected woman degenerates into a reclusive spinster after the death of her father, and in Brady Udall’s “The Wig,” a flash-fiction story about a son who wears a discarded wig that resembles the hair of his dead mother. These two stories offer very different portraits of families who try to recover after the death of a parent -- in Udall’s story, the mom; and in Faulkner’s, the father -- yet each story, through imagery, metaphor, symbolism, and their climaxes, comment similarly on the importance of communication after a devastating loss such as death.
Funeral Blues by W. H. Auden is a short poem that illustrates the emotions that he is dealing with after the love of his life passes away. The tone of this piece evokes feelings that will differ depending on the reader; therefore, the meaning of this poem is not in any way one-dimensional, resulting in inevitable ambiguity . In order to evoke emotion from his audience, Auden uses a series of different poetic devices to express the sadness and despair of losing a loved one. This poem isn’t necessarily about finding meaning or coming to some overwhelming realization, but rather about feeling emotions and understanding the pain that the speaker is experiencing. Through the use of poetic devices such as an elegy, hyperboles, imagery, metaphors, and alliterations as well as end-rhyme, Auden has created a powerful poem that accurately depicts the emotions a person will often feel when the love of their live has passed away.