The Decade Changing Realism Of A Common Man From The 50’s When all literature is written, the author or poet is influenced by the happenings of the time or era in which they live. What this does is give the reader a sense of how the author or poet perceives the time. In particular the poem entitled, “Life Cycle of Common Man” by Howard Stanley Nemerov shows a direct connection between the poem itself, and the time in which it was written. Nemerov uses his thoughts and experiences from the 50’s and 60’s to write a poem, which shows a brief overview of the life of a common man of the 50’s. The interesting thing about this particular piece is that it was written in 1960, which means that it was written when the changes of the two very different decades started to occur; furthermore, when the two very different types of thinking started to occur. The poem’s structure fits perfectly with this as well. Nemerov’s view of the 50’s is seen in the perspective view of his 60’s way of thinking, possibly even being somewhat responsible for the change in mindset from change in decade. Howard Nemerov was a very different type of poet than the rest of the poets during the time when this piece was written. Nemerov had himself been in the war, and come back home to a new country of consumerism and routine. When the 50’s ways of anti-communism and conservative thoughts were on the outs and the more liberal/revolutionary ways of thinking and acting came around, Nemerov did not follow the path of most of writers then. Most writers of the time thought of themselves as artist making a social stand, Nemerov was not very keen on protests or big on writing about social class values. He more or less stood back and wrote from a more sarcastic, paradoxical way. Being known as a “satirist filled with compassion,” Nemerov wrote on his observations and gave his opinion of them in the tone in which he wrote each piece (Labrie 145). This is quite evident in his poetry from around this time frame especially in the piece “Life Cycle of Common Man.” “Life Cycle of Common Man” is broken up into three major parts. The first is a recap of the typical 50’s man.
Poetry’s role is evaluated according to what extent it mirrors, shapes and is reshaped by historical events. In the mid-19th century, some critics viewed poetry as “an expression of the poet’s personality, a manifestation of the poet’s intuition and of the social and historical context which shaped him” ( Preminger, Warnke, Hardison 511). Analysis of the historical, social, political and cultural events at a certain time helps the reader fully grasp a given work. The historical approach is necessary in order for given allusions to be situated in their social, political and cultural background. In order to escape intentional fallacy, a poet should relate his work to universal
David, Kyvig E. Daily Life in the United States, 1920-1939: Decades of Promise and Pain. Westport: Greenwood P, 2002.
The subsequent section is concise as it provides the depressive historical context of the poem. The usage of factual period of time 1949 and the war / Now four years dead- conveys the suffering of the exiles and their endurance of the lengthy wait to migrate as they weren’t economically or physically capable to leave earlier.
During the post WWII period in America, the face of the nation changed greatly under the presidency of Truman and Eisenhower. America underwent another era of good feelings as they thought themselves undefeatable and superior over the rest of the world. Communism was the American enemy and American sought to rid the world of it. Because of the extreme paranoia caused by Communism, conformity became an ideal way to distinguish American Culture from the rest. Conformity became a part of every American Life to a large extent. It became evident through the medium of culture, society and politics throughout the era of the 50s.
A family has always been expected to be a loving and caring environment with support and communication, but this sometimes does not come naturally to soon to be parents. Some get caught up specifically in bad things, perhaps their upbringings are to blame or maybe the individual could take all of the responsibility. When a society chooses what is to be socially acceptable, that limits relatives to only one kind of family and the object becomes destroying all other kinds. The 1950s was a time when technology wasn’t a big distraction from loved ones. Joyin Shih feels her true self being targeted by others, even her own family, in attempt to destroy her true self in her article, “Chyna and Me”. Alex Williams may also be missing the 1950s an article by Stephanie Coontz called “What We Really Miss About The 1950s” because he finds that families may not be as caring as they used to be in fact he argues that families are becoming more isolated than ever in his article “Quality Time, Redefined”. Good gives people a lot of frustration, more the division than the “good” because not all families coming from different cultures, different religions, and different ideas can fit into one mold that is called “acceptable”. The more connected individuals are to the Internet the fewer individuals are connected to each other. Technology should not be the biggest tool of communication in a family.
Society in the 1950 was dramatizing, this is the time were world war two was going, manufacturing conformity and the great depression, so there were some transitions that had been made in order to keep a substantial life. In the film The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, there are different subjects that take place, talking about the dramatic change in an individual that took place during the world war two and how it affected him and his family. In the book Packerd the Status Seeker gives you a variety on the different class behavior in America and the hidden barriers that affect you, and the people that surround you that also focus on changes in work, family, and consumer culture. Although it may seem that having a nuclear family, a decent paying job, and the experience of being a part of the army, you are still place in the lower class of society. Little did we know that postwar in the 1950’s would give you so many mix emotions some days were happy, anxious and some days were fearful and content.
The Cult of Domesticity is an offensive gesture; however in the 1950s’ there was validity this gesture. The rise of feminism has created a society in which there are more single mothers than ever before, long side more children born out of wedlock. The United States Census Bureau states, “During the 1960-2016 period, the percentage of children living with only their mother nearly tripled from 8 to 23 percent and the percentage of children…” (1). The article the Cult of Domesticity indeed points out the valid flaws of Ideal duties/expectations of domesticity in the 1950s’; however, I would like to state that anything man-made idea or material mechanism is not without faults. The agreeable points of the list were that there should be a genuine respect and act of service shown to our husbands each day. However, the list made a hard-left turn in suggesting that women are not to question the motives of their husband, and/or the location of their husbands if they chose to be late after work. Lastly, if husbands choose to
The 1960’s and early 1970’s were a time that eternally changed the culture and humanity of America. It was a time widely known for peace and love when in reality; many minorities were struggling to gain a modicum of equality and freedom. It was a time, in which a younger generation rebelled against the conventional norms, questioning power and government, and insisting on more freedoms for minorities. In addition, an enormous movement began rising in opposition to the Vietnam War. It was a time of brutal altercations, with the civil rights movement and the youth culture demanding equality and the war in Vietnam put public loyalty to the test. Countless African-Americans, Native-Americans, Hispanic-Americans, women, and college students became frustrated, angry, and disillusioned by the turmoil around them.
People today live in an absurd world, where they are constantly working and on the go, they forget what matters most to them like their dreams and aspirations and become work zombies. That is why the stories of the Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka and The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Tolstoy speak to me, they comment on the absurdity of mundane daily life and tasks that we have become accustomed to and make you think about the life that you are living. The main characters of the two stories, Gregor Samsa and Ivan Ilych, become overwhelmed by the amount of pressures that they put on themselves and by their families. The two characters epitomize what the workers of today have become and the worst part is they never realize how unhappy they have become until it is too late. I know many of us feel the burden of working to much and not living the way we want to. These stories are very bleak and don't offer hope for the main characters, they failed to adapt and perished because of it. The stories make you feel that as if there is no escaping the absurdity of life, as is the
Watson, Jerilyn. "American History: Life in the 1950s." VOA: Learning English. VOA, 28 June 2012. Web. 17 Apr. 2014. .
There is many decades that people would call the Decade of change but the 1960’s is the decade that changed the most. The 60’s was a very crazy and wild time because of the historical events that happened. Everyone was starting to experiment with LSD and Other kinds of drugs. There was also a huge surge of musical history that had happened in the 60’s that changed the History of music forever. The 60’s is what I like to call the best decade in history. The 60’s is the decade of change because of the political, technological, and Musical advances that happened in America. The music industry went from poor to the number one hit in America. The technology went from nothing to systems that would change the world, and last but not least America went from a place where blacks were not accepted to everyone getting along. It is crazy to see how the 60’s changed the history of America.
Progress is in the eye of the beholder. Throughout the years society has forced nature out of its life and has instead adopted a new mechanical and industrialized lifestyle. Technology may be deemed as progress by some, where it is thought of as a positive advancement for mankind. Yet technology can also be a hindrance for society, by imposing itself on society and emptying the meaning out of life. In “Autobiography at an Air-Station,” Philip Larkin conveys his distaste of how society has denounced nature. By employing an ironic tone in the sonnet, Larkin comments on the significance of the sonnet in relation to industrial life. Life has become ironic because it is no longer a natural life that society leads, but a fabricated life. Through his use of rhyme and meter, the extended metaphor comparing the air-station to life, imagery, and diction, Larkin reflects on what life has come to be: a deviation from the intrinsic.
¬Obsolete ideas are outdated and archaic ideas of life that are no longer relevant in their respective societies but nonetheless are still followed by a few. Though they have lost absolute value in society, people still cling on to them with a strong vehemence. Ibsen and Chekov expose the flaws of the societies they come from, intending to raise awareness in the societies. The purpose of these plays could be to let us know the old and traditional views of the commoners and the laymen of Europe. Both authors use a single family as an attempt to reflect the microscopic changes occurring in society to a macroscopic level. Hence, the households of Mrs. Ranevsky and Mrs. Alving can be perceived as a microcosm of Russia and Norway at that time.
Plath poem also use symbolism and imagery to addresses women in an effective way that the aging process is inescapable and it should be accepted since that is the only way to avoid being in discomfort over something they cannot control. On the other hand, Frost short work evokes a point in life when the golden illusions of youth have faded, but unlike Plath’s poem, is not an explicitly autobiographical. What the reader sees in Frost poem is not a private disillusion but the hard tendency of beauty of life transiting to grief of
The poem’s main character is a 30-year-old woman. Her age is mentioned in the 7th stanza. The woman tries to commit suicide every ten years. This is her third attempt and she will need to kill herself 6 more times, because the character has 9 lives, like a cat. The poem shows she is doing it in public now. Short stanzas make readers feel the narrator spits words onto them. Plath showed a negative attitude with the Nazi theme. Plath used appeals like “Herr Doctor” and a description of events in concentration camps to create an appropriate mood. She achieved her goal with short stanzas, like “a cake of soap, a wedding ring, a gold filling” (Lady Lazarus). These short sentences create a detailed picture of the poem’s