Subconscious and Reality in Illusion by Ella Wheeler Wilcox
Ella Wheeler Wilcox's poem, "Illusion," extensively poses philosophical and metaphysical uncertainties pertaining to the perception and distinction between reality and actuality. Wilcox takes a very original and abstract approach in utilizing hypothetical dialogue with a superior spiritual figure. This unique element vastly broadens the reader's perspective and opinions of its literary value. Wilcox's style also greatly opens a door for a wide variety of personal interpretations and metaphorical intentions. This creative approach is appropriately complimented and enhanced by the visual and concrete description used in the opening line of the first stanza. The line, "God and I in space alone," does not necessarily paint a portrait of one specific location, rather allows the reader to envision and create a setting of their desire. This opening line succeeds immediately at closely drawing the reader's mind and attention into the poem, as if being a truism.
When reading Wilcox's poem, metaphorical reference and philosophical contemplation occur multiple times. For instance, in the opening stanza of the poem, there is an instant establishment of spiritual content and philosophical questioning. Wilcox writes:
God and I alone in space,
And nobody else in view.
And "Where are the people, O Lord," I said,
"The earth below and the sky o'erhead
And the dead whom once I knew?"
Wilcox is definitely discussing a metaphorical meaning in this stanza when she comments to God and illustrates their solitude. This could possibly be insinuating that her personal gained knowledge of life is all that she has ever known to be true. However, it appears t...
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...than one large continues dream of a God. That is, we are nothing but actors in a constant play or dream of one superior being. That said, a sense of nothingness is relayed in that everything is an act of illusion and not reality. The second interpretation being that the conversation is between the narrator and her subconscious thoughts. Possibly implying that each individual's thoughts and physical being are the God. If that were the case then the narrator comes to a realization that self worth and self based principles, free of societal tutelage, are the only aspects that we should take notice. Meaning that everyone and everything around us should not influence our thoughts and beliefs. Implying in a sense that we as individuals should only exist to be existent in ourselves, as well as the outside distractions of society remain invisible amongst the self.
Her poem switches from positive to negative. She starts the poem with the story of the mother spider and her babies which has a happy ending, but then she goes into talking about herself. In Marie Howe’s essay, she says “…a white frame house, and rising, / and I thought of a room it was shining in, right then, / a room I might live in and can’t imagine yet.” From this quote we notice that she is imagining a house that she could possibly live in one day. Maybe it’s the man’s house and she is thinking one day she could live there with him, but not yet. She says “And this morning, I thought of a place on the ocean where no one is, / no boat, no fish jumping, / just sunlight gleaming on the water, humps of water that hardly break.” This quote provides a sense of loneliness, to think of a place on the beach that is deserted, there are no other people, little noise, and there is nothing there to keep you company. Then she says, “We argued about one thing, but really it was another,” this shows that there was a lack of communication between the two, which could cause Howe to feel like she was alone. Part of one of her quotes, “unbroken by footprints”, created a huge sense of loneliness. She is all alone, awaiting the return of the man she loves, and he hasn’t yet shown up. The fact that the path leading to the front door hasn’t been walked on in two days, would make the reader wonder if anyone besides the man would normally visit her, or if Howe has even left her home in those two days. The last line in her poem is “Anything I’ve tried to keep by force I’ve lost”, and she uses this to provide a sense of emptiness. The movement of her poem from positive to negative is what helps create that feeling of being
The poem does this when it uses metaphor and personification. For instance, it states “when care is pressing you down it a bit. The silver tint of clouds of doubt.”
...oices that approach in life for his extended metaphor throughout his poem. The lives’ of the speakers are evident in each poem whether there are faults or decidable opportunities for that speaker. Along with the continued use of the metaphors to create the extended metaphors, there were also several uses of personification and imagery. The speakers and authors had different yet comparable themes. As extended metaphors they shared slightly similar themes of life from Anne Bradstreet’s idea of flaws in writing during one's life and Robert Frost’s theme of deciding which path to take in life.
Over the past weeks we have learned a lot of new things. I learned about different races, ethnicities, and cultures. The world would not be the same if everyone was the same race and it is a great thing to learn about everyone and where they are from, and where they have come from. Everyone is different in their own way and it is our duty to accept everyone as a whole. I am going to talk about the social construct of race today, some of our readings, and a lot of our discussions that are always fun.
“The Illusionist” is a short story by Steven Millhauser, which was adapted into a movie directed by Neil Burger in 2008 which both take place in Vienna. The short story’s plot revolves around Eisenheim and his relationship between himself and the state, which is still featured in the movie. Eisenheim’s illusions also cause him a bit of trouble; in the short story the cause of trouble is an illusion, which produces two spirits by the name of Rosa, Elis, and a boy who appears to be no older than eight. In the movie adaptation, the final straw that causes the Crown Prince to finally pursue persecution of Eisenheim is the illusion that again, produces a spirit, which turns out to be his dead fiancée. Because of Inspector Uhl’s growing obsession of Eisenheim, throughout the movie and the short story, it further ignites the blur between what is the reality and what is his illusion. Uhl’s obsession over Eisenheim and his illusions helps blur the reality around him.
“In what ways does the poet draw you into the world of poetry? Detailed reference to 2 poems”
The narrator begins developing the thesis by using a figurative language, imagery, found in the second stanza: “I love people who harness themselves, an ox to a heavy cart,
Along with the imagery we get from the title, there is a lot of imagery within this poem. Let us start with the first three lines:
On the surface the poem seems to be a meditation on past events and actions, a contemplative reflection about what has gone on before. Research into the poem informs us that the poem is written with a sense of irony
Ferguson, Margaret W., Salter, Mary J., and Stallworthy, Jon. The Norton Anthology of Poetry. fifth ed. N.p.: W.W. Norton, 2005. 2120-2121. 2 Print.
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.
There are many examples of figurative language associated with this poem, metaphors being one of them. For, example Hughes says "life is a barren field frozen with snow tone (Hughes 7).” In this stanza the speaker is comparing life itself to a frozen barren field. Another element of this poem is the theme. This poem teaches us we should hold onto our dreams forever.
... soul then replies that there is no "golden underground" or any heavenly things to dream of that are not right here on Earth. And just as "April's green endures" so will everything else in nature. The woman in the poem is no different than so many people. The fear that we will not always have the comforts from our Earthly pleasures is common. However, the woman's doubts seem to diminish when she says "But in contentment I still feel the need of some imperishable bliss" and her soul replies "Death is the mother of beauty."
“I sometimes speak from the last thing that happened to me. I got asked today if I think up poems. Do I think them up? How do I get the right one? Well, it is the hardest thing in the world to tell. But I don’t think up poems. I pick up a lot of things I thought of to make a poem; that is a lot of scattered thoughts through the days that are handy for the poem-that’s about all. That’s where the thinking comes in.”
"The point of view which I am struggling to attack is perhaps related to the metaphysical theory of the substantial unity of the soul: for my meaning is, that the poet has, not a personality' to express, but a particular medium, which is only a medium and not a personality, in which impressions and experiences combine in peculiar and unexpected ways."