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Neutron Star Duality
A neutron star, at first glance, may seem like the smallest stellar remnant of them all, but with deeper inspection you will be baffled to know that is it the most massive of all the stellar remnants. This neutron star and it’s many wonders, including contrasts, and levels of understanding is a great image for the cover to represent the paradox and counter intuitive nature of Sharon Olds poems in The Gold Cell; the poem “Summer Solstice” is a great representation of similarity with neutrons stars.
In Summer Solstice what may seem like a horrid story of death at first glance, may in fact, be a story of life. With some critical thinking one can see what the words themselves don’t seem to suggest. The words used to tell the story seem to suggest that it is simply a story of a suicidal man attempting to bring his own death, but take some time to think about the story, to study it just as your would study astronomical objects; with precision, detail, and creativity, and you can see a story of beginnings of a man being brought to life instead of death. Just as the size of the neutron star may not seem to suggest that it is so massive (in terms of actual matter and density). With a
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diameter of about only 7 miles a neutron star has the mass of 300,000 of our suns. This deep contrast between what seems and what is, seems to be parallel with the words and language of “The Summer Solstice”. One who does not take them to look deeply, and put critical thought into their analysis of the two separate entities will never know the amazement of understanding. When words mimic the paradoxes of the universe, in poetry, it is a feat of amazement. Towards the end of the poem “The tall cop [lights] a cigarette in his own mouth, and gave it to [the suicidal jumper]” (Olds 4). It would seem that after saving the man he would like him to feel alive and snap him back to a livable reality, which is contradictory because the same cigarettes that incites his senses is killing him as well. In the same way the small size of a neutron star is counter intuitive to it’s sheer mass. The perceptual contrast between light and dark within the same mass can also be seen in both “The Gold Cell” poems and a neutron star. The cigarette may represent death, but the fire at the end of the very same cigarette represents the same fire that allowed humanity to thrive and let us live on long enough to have the knowledge and technology to manufacture these cigarettes. Similar to the life and death duality the neutron star, a very dark omniscience object, was at one point of its same life an immensely large, super bright, burning star. The light and dark duality pierces through her poem in the form of life and death. Perceptual change can be a due to the level of understanding you have of something, and the more you understand the more your perception can change.
While the man was dangling to his death “the crowd gathered in the street, silent” (Olds 3), and while this silence may represent calmness, it actually represents calamity because the reason they are silent is because of the potential of a death. This understanding can alter the viewpoint of those who are engaged in this poetic suicide, the same way understanding this gargantuan gravity of a neutron star despite its small size can change the viewpoint of the astronomers observing and engaging this mass, when you understand how the details of the star work the way you view the physical properties around it changes
too. The understanding of anything complex requires analysis, whether it is a poetic journey or a galactic one. It does not reveal itself at first glance. Understanding is not an easy women, she will challenge your thoughts, and she will make you work for her. But when you unlock the levels of depths in the poems and stellar remnants alike the reward of understanding this duality of them and the complexity is amazing, which is why the neutron star would be a great new cover image.
In “The Warmth of Other Suns” by Isabel Wilkerson, the three main characters that the story follows face a great deal of inequality and racial prejudice in both the Jim Crow south that they left and the north that they fled to. Through their stories, as well as the excerpts from Wilkerson that serve to dispel some of the common myths and to explain some of the inequalities that others faced, one is able to make many connections between the problems that Ida Mae, George Starling, and Richard Foster, among many others, faced in their time and the obstacles to equality that our society still to this day struggles to overcome. A large reason as to why these obstacles still exist is that many have preconceived ideas about African Americans and African American Communities. However, numerous obstacles still survive to this day as a result of certain racist ideas.
When Lee first introduced his readers, he started off with a beautiful metaphor to summarize how every human’s life goes as he wrote, “We are circuit boards swallowing the electricity of life upon birth,” (Lines 2 to 3, Lee). To clarify, Lee is explaining the beauty of life when we are alive and how we essentially use this electricity to create unforgettable memories along with emphasizing the importance of existing. However, not long into the poem, a sudden change in the emotion occurs as Lee depicted Stephen’s death with, “…as though his chest were an auditorium his life an audience leaving single file,” (Lines 24 to 25, Lee). In consideration with how the main lesson Lee was applying on his poem, it is easily visible that this sudden change in mood was done purposefully. With this dark simile, readers will be captured and feel that sudden shock in mixed emotion when someone’s death occurs. In effect, not only will readers who have seen death understand, but Lee also taught readers who have not seen a similar event what will happen, allowing any reader to understand the topic even without any past experiences. Quickly after though, Lee re-introduces a cheerful environment with similes to describe the people he has found as he visualized, “…his lungs flapping like sails,” and, “…teeth shinning like
The very symbol of life – the elemental force of the Sun – is rendered
gave your life, for some reason, collapses. In a religious meaning, I believe it is best described by St. John of the Cross as “the soul’s journey to the divine union of the love of God” (Perrine). The darkness represents the hardships and difficulties the soul meets in detachment from the world and reaching t...
In the first instance, death is portrayed as a “bear” (2) that reaches out seasonally. This is then followed by a man whom “ comes and takes all the bright coins from his purse / / to buy me…” This ever-changing persona that encapsulates death brings forth a curiosity about death and its presence in the living world. In the second stanza, “measles-pox” (6) is an illness used to portray death’s existence in a distinctive embodiment. This uncertainty creates the illusion of warmth and welcomenesss and is further demonstrated through the reproduction of death as an eminent figure. Further inspection allows the reader to understand death as a swift encounter. The quick imagery brought forth by words such as “snaps” and “shut” provoke a sense of startle in which the audience may dispel any idea of expectedness in death’s coming. This essential idea of apparent arrival transitions to a slower, foreseeable fate where one can imagine the enduring pain experienced “an iceberg between shoulder blades” (line 8). This shift characterizes the constant adaptation in appearance that death acquires. Moreover, the idea of warmth radiating from death’s presence reemerges with the introduction to a “cottage of darkness” (line 10), which to some may bring about a feeling of pleasantry and comfort. It is important to note that line 10 was the sole occurrence of a rhetorical question that the speaker
In the contract of life, there are numerous requirements. Every living being must be able to reproduce, practice homeostasis, consume energy, and adapt. However, there is one component of life that facilitators don’t include in their lesson plans: death. While all living organisms must have the ability to perform certain tasks in order to be considered living, all life must come to an end. Death is not a matter of if, but when. Many humans share a common fear of losing a loved one, yet authors utilize death to convey a profound meaning within their novel. In the first paragraph Bill Barich’s novel, Laughing in the Hills, he uses the inevitability of death to supply the reader with insight on the theme of his writing.
Schwarz, Fred. “Not our Stars but Ourselves.” Naitonal Review Vol. 61, Nov 3 Feb 23 2009: 22-4.
Death has a way of changing people, whether it is the passing of someone close to you or coming to terms with your own mortality, no one remains the same after dealing with death. Some people mourn in the face or death, while others are re-born and enlightened. In the novel The Fault In Our Stars by John Green, we are introduced to two adolescents that have faced death and gained different perspectives on life after doing so. When facing death, whether you’re own or someone you love, there are two types of reactions, two types of people, the “Augustus’s” and the “Hazel Grace’s”. After losing his leg, Augustus Waters decided that he wanted to make his mark on the world before he died, he was terrified of dying and feared oblivion more than anything but it was that very fear that compelled him to live the most fulfilling life possible, “I decided long ago not to deny myself the simpler pleasures of existence”(Green 11). Instead of wallowing in misery over having cancer, Gus wanted to enjoy life; he found beauty in everything, especially Hazel Grace. He lived his life through metaphors; he revolved many of his beliefs and actions around metaphors, one of his favorites was, “you put the killing thing in your mouth, but you don’t give it the power to kill you”(Green 13). I think he liked this metaphor and having a cigarette dangle between his lips so much, because unlike his cancer, which he had no control over, he could control whether or not he lit the cigarette. It made him feel like his destiny was in his own hands and under his control. Gus’s experience with death made him a more positive person, a “better” and inspirational person; he wanted to “drink stars” and live his life questioning everything. “While...
Each year, we all pass and celebrate the special day in which we were born and were given life. However, we also pass the day each year that we are going to die and with the essential difference being that we do not know the exact date to commemorate. Poets write about death because since there is no answer to what truly happens after death, they can write about practically anything and not be wrong. From reading and exposing ourselves to the topic of death in writing, we are able to gain knowledge of how other people perceive death, and compare it to our own opinions. While reading about death, you should come into it with an open mind because the possibilities about what you’re going to read is endless, and always will be.
Death is depicted as an individual’s affair, in which, neither one’s closest friends or closest blood relatives can give a hand in. Upon receiving the tragic news Everyman first approaches his friend Fellowship. At first he is hesitant to reveal his sorrow to Fellowship for he considers it too tragic a plight. After cajoling and assurances by Fellowship to stand by him in whatever situation, Everyman finally pours out his sorrow to Fellowship. Upon realizing that Everyman has been summoned by death, fellowship turns his back on Everyman ...
“How can the complex working of the universe and the world around me end in such a simple catastrophe?” I wondered.
The day his mother’s funeral is being held, turns out to be a scorching day. Meursault barely pays attention to the funeral, the heat holding his attention. The nature of the sun is to bring heat whether it’s pleasant or not. Meursault says that “The glare from the sky was unbearable.” (16). This shows his inability to deal with the heat at early stages. He is focused on the sun forgetting that around him people were mourning his mother’s death. He ignores the fact that his mother is dead and instead tries to rid the glare of the sun. The glare of the sun represents the glare of society at Meursault’s indifference towards death. This first encounter with the sun gives the readers a glimpse into Meursault’s beliefs. It begins to shape and influence Meursault’s belief on humanity and life. For instance, as the procession comes to an end he talks with the village nurse who states, “She said, ‘If you go slowly, you risk getting a sunstroke. But if you go too fast, you work up a sweat and then catch a chill inside the church.’ She was right. There was no way out.” (17). This shows how the heat doesn’t stop for one’s life. There’s a cycle of events that you can’t escape and the heat helps to make the cycle continue. In the cycle we call life, death awaits at the end and then it is the end of one life. Death is the relief to the cycle of human life and to Meursault these are times
Death is a metaphysical concept that is abstract and theoretical in composition, but doesn’t embody a material form. From person to person, there are a vast array of interpretations of what death is and what it means to each individual. There is no single universal understanding of what death is, since it doesn’t embody any physical characteristics. I am the kind of person whose opinions are very easily influenced. Whenever I read a book, listen to a song, watch a movie, or look at artwork containing a strong message, my opinions (mainly metaphysical ones) are greatly impacted.
Whitman and Stevens similarly structured "On the Beach at Night" and "Sunday Morning," in that their narrators answer to their characters' concerns by explaining, or at least hinting at, the beauty of the perpetual cycle of mortality. "Something there is more immortal even than the stars,/(Many the burials, many the days and nights, passing away,)" (lines 28-29) whispers Whitman's narrator. "Death is the mother of beauty; hence from her,/Alone, shall come fulfillment to our dreams/And our desires," (lines 63-65) echoes Stevens. Through their suggestions of this death-rebirth cycle, Whitman's and Stevens' narrators assuage their characters misgivings. Further, both poets utilize Jove/Jupiter as a metaphor for seeming immortality, and perhaps more famili...
These poems both use literary devices to convey this point in an understandable manner. Both authors show someone who feels very strongly about a subject and is barely controlling themselves from either letting death's grasp take over or exploding on an enemy. The authors also want the reader to understand that even if it takes the fiber of one's being that people must hold onto that sanity and reality of controlling themselves in desperate