The Theme Of Death In Mid-Term Break And The Early Purges The Irish poet Seamus Heaney is renowned for evoking his very personal experiences and feelings throughout his poetry. He frequently calls upon those experiences from his childhood to support his adult feelings over given topics and circumstances. The two poems Mid-Term Break and Early Purges both present two very personal experiences of Heaney's surrounding his juvenile experiences of death. Both poems combine a variation of techniques in miscellaneous manners to present such views. Mid-Term Break concerns itself with Heaney's remorse and suffering over his brother, an unjustified death over which he had no control. Early Purges, alternatively, concerns itself with an inability of Heaney to use such command to prevent an unnecessary death. The titles of both poems are very symbolical to what the poem is all about. 'Mid-Term Break' The word 'break' implies Heaney's break from school, and also the break in his brother's life. 'The Early Purges' The word 'Purge' means to empty, cleanse, purify, and getting rid of unpleasant things (in this poem, the unpleasant things are the kittens). Heaney's use of assonance in the opening lines of Mid-Term Break echoes the ominous noises around him. "Counting bells knelling to a close" The use of the word "knelling" advocates an immediate sense that something is wrong, since a knell is the bell rung at funerals. The repetition of the "ell" sound is almost as if the bells are chiming out. In Early Purges, however, Heaney focuses especially on using alliteration to indicate the atmosphere around him.... ... middle of paper ... ...poem. Heaney finds it difficult to cope with such a loss so young, and thus detaches himself to make things easier. By contrast, in Early Purges, Heaney's attitude changes through the poem, losing his innocence verse by verse. In the final stanza's this is shown. "It makes sense:" Why does it? It is as if Heaney has been conditioned to accept death of 'pests'. The end of the poem is also very effective. Heaney shows contrast between urban and rural views of death. 'Purging' is justified as the animals are referred to as 'pests'. In both poems, Heaney loses something very intimate to him. In Mid-Term Break, Heaney loses his younger brother, in the same way as in Early Purges, he loses his innocence. Mid-Term break is a very emotional and depressing poem whereas Early Purges is very cruel and harsh.
Journalist Charles Lane learned about the Colfax Massacre case while he was on The Washington Post case. In his book “The Day Freedom Died: The Colfax Massacre, The Supreme Court, and The Betrayal of Reconstruction”, Lane spotlights the Colfax Massacre of 1873 and the result of that event. Lane gives an insightful and detailed analysis of the conditions in Louisiana during this time of reconstruction, both politically and socially. He describes the death of over 60 blacks as a result of the horrific attack that took place at the Colfax court house. Lane recounts the Federal and the Supreme Court trials and the aftermath of the criminals’ not guilty verdict.
“September Elegies” is a poem written by an American poet Randall Mann in memory of Seth Walsh, Justin Aaberg, Billy Lucas, and Tyler Clementi. It articulates a gloomy story about four young boys who took their own lives by jumping off the George Washington Bridge. The memorialization is a reminder of how cruel our world can be and how bigotry and indifference destroy people’s lives. The poet reveres their memory by making use of various literary devices in order to transmit the pain the boys experienced.
Is there any idea worth more than a human life? In The Crucible by Arthur Miller, John Proctor decides that he has nothing left to live for, and therefore becomes a martyr. The question for him or one in his position would be whether or not there exist causes worth dying for and if his position is one such case. There is no principle worth more than a person’s life and therefore principles worth dying for, only principles worth living for.
...ttachment or emotion. Again, Heaney repeats the use of a discourse marker, to highlight how vividly he remembers the terrible time “Next morning, I went up into the room”. In contrast to the rest of the poem, Heaney finally writes more personally, beginning with the personal pronoun “I”. He describes his memory with an atmosphere that is soft and peaceful “Snowdrops and Candles soothed the bedside” as opposed to the harsh and angry adjectives previously used such as “stanched” and “crying”. With this, Heaney is becoming more and more intimate with his time alone with his brother’s body, and can finally get peace of mind about the death, but still finding the inevitable sadness one feels with the loss of a loved one “A four foot box, a foot for every year”, indirectly telling the reader how young his brother was, and describing that how unfortunate the death was.
In Arthur Miller 's famous play The Crucible, innocent people are falsely accused of witchcraft and are killed as a result. Even the thought of witchcraft in Salem, Massachusetts in the late 1600s would put the whole village into mass hysteria. Mass hysteria refers to collective delusions of threats to society that spread rapidly through rumors and fear. This is the main cause of why so many people were arrested and killed for witchcraft. One way people could save themselves was by falsely confessing to have performed witchcraft. Many people did not do this though. This is because the townspeople were held to very strict moral values and must uphold their good name in society. They did not want a bad reputation. In The Crucible, by Arthur
Time is endlessly flowing by and its unwanted yet pending arrival of death is noted in the two poems “When I Have Fears,” by John Keats and “Mezzo Cammin,” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. Keats speaks with no energy; only an elegiac tone of euphoric sounds wondering if his life ends early with his never attained fame. He mentions never finding a “fair creature” (9) of his own, only experiencing unrequited love and feeling a deep loss of youth’s passion. Though melancholy, “Mezzo Cammin,” takes a more conversational tone as Longfellow faces what is commonly known as a midlife crisis. The two poems progressions contrast as Keats blames his sorrow for his lack of expression while Longfellow looks at life’s failures as passions never pursued. In spite of this contrast, both finish with similar references to death. The comparable rhyme and rhythm of both poems shows how both men safely followed a practiced path, never straying for any spontaneous chances. The ending tones evoking death ultimately reveal their indications towards it quickly advancing before accomplish...
In today 's society, movies are viewed as a way of relaxation. Movie lovers enjoy seeing scenes in movies based on real life events. Some of these scenes may include high rates of violence that can cause destruction and serious chaos if implemented in real life. What comes to people 's mind when they hear the word "purge"? The purge is fiction movie directed by James deMonaco which retracts events that would totally cause some controversy within a society. As the theme of the movie suggests, that is the time of the year that all the insane and illegal actions come to be legal for twelve-four hour period. Several atrocities were committed. There was a group of tourists that came to the US in order to commit
The actor Keanu Reeves once commented, “Grief changes shape, but it never ends.” Perhaps, nowhere else is this idea of never-ending grief more prevalent than in dark romanticist Edgar Allan Poe’s poem “The Raven.” The popular eighteenth century poem follows the despondent narrator’s encounter with the Raven, the ominous bird later forces him to realize his never-ending isolation and sorrow due to the loss of his love, Lenore. In his poem, through the use of allusions and the literary devices of repetition and comparison in stanza 17, Poe explores the perpetual effects of loss.
Death can both be a painful and serious topic, but in the hands of the right poet it can be so natural and eloquently put together. This is the case in The Sleeper by Edgar Allan Poe, as tackles the topic of death in an uncanny way. This poem is important, because it may be about the poet’s feelings towards his mother’s death, as well as a person who is coming to terms with a loved ones passing. In the poem, Poe presents a speaker who uses various literary devices such as couplet, end-stopped line, alliteration, image, consonance, and apostrophe to dramatize coming to terms with the death of a loved one.
The Crucible, the play by Arthur Miller, illustrates the perception about fear that can impact a person’s judgements, decisions and actions. During the play, there was a numerous amount of people who was accused for being witches. In the acts, fear seem like has taken controls over Salem, the girls decided to condemn innocent villagers in order to save their own lives. Not only did things go wrong in the play, but similar things like that also happened nowaday, based on “Extended Forecast: Bloodshed” by Nicholas Kristof,happens around the world which lead to the dead of million people. The Crucible and “Extended Forecast: Bloodshed” shows how fear turns small problems into underestimated consequences to each individual and society. Conception of fear, crisis in community reflect on the crisis of individuals and affect people’s judgements.
Human nature is a fascinating concept that is exhibited through many kinds of situations. One situation might concern someone being absolutely certain that they are correct and genuinely wanting to spread their ideas with others. Another situation might involve someone’s natural tendency to demand and crave more of whatever they desire. Additionally, a situation might call for the need to pursue a specific objective in order to maintain self preservation. These situations may lead into an assortment of other paths, but one distinct path from all three is the ascension of mass hysteria. In Arthur Miller’s play The Crucible, the confidence, greediness, and persistence of certain characters such as Reverend John Hale, Thomas Putnam, and Abigail
This essay examines "The Fall of the House of Usher" from the viewpoint that none of the events really happened -- or if they did, were exaggerated by the fear felt by the characters. The essay proposes that the action took place in the mind of the narrator and discusses the dream imagery present in the story and how this supports this theory.
“Ring, Ring!” the school bell dismissed the students as a herd of kids sprint down the stairs like a stampede of wild animals. As Summer and her best friend Riley make their way through the staircase they begin discussing what to do for Summer’s poster as a runner for class President.
Wes Anderson’s second film, Rushmore, was released in 1998. Co-written by Anderson and Owen Wilson, the film stars Jason Schwartzman as Max Fischer, an eccentric and bright 15 year old whose main passion in life is attending Rushmore Academy. He befriends Herman Blume, two of Max’s classmate’s father and the owner of a successful steel company (played by Bill Murray). Though the wide age gap, Blume and Fischer fall in love with the same woman, a recently widowed first grade teacher named Rosemary Cross (played by Oliva Williams). This unlikely love triangle tears Fischer and Blume apart and sends them each on personal journeys of growth and self-discovery. The small cast, only three main characters, of Rushmore are well developed and when the film ends, there is a sense that you know each personally. On the surface, Rushmore looks like a movie about a private school, the complexities of friendships, and an unlikely love triangle.
...he seaside’, the senses are used ‘smell’ to help us relate to the poem. We also see another use of alliteration in line 12/13, ‘Someone stumbles…scuffle’ creating a more playful messy tone. The language that is used is also colloquial, making the poem feel a bit more relaxed, and to help emphasis the fact that the author is talking to his younger self. Simple sentences are repetitively used in the poem, ‘You’ve never heard them so hushed before.’ ‘The darkening garden watches’ to help create a feeling of suspense, thus injecting drama and tension in the poem. Personification is used in line 19, ‘cold bites’ emphasizing how cold and miserable the boy is. Another example of personification is near the end when a series of them are used: ‘The darkening garden watches.’ ‘The bushes hold their breath’, to help us picture a quiet and calm atmosphere of where the boy lays.