The Theme is Developed in Poems, Forgetfulness, by Hart Crane and Billy Collins

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Forgetfulness can be seen in many different lights; it can be seen a bad thing, or a good thing. In the poem “Forgetfulness” by Hart Crane, the speaker utilizes similes and metaphors to convey ideas about forgetfulness in order to develop the theme; in the poem by Billy Collins with the same name, the speaker utilizes personification and irony to convey ideas about forgetfulness to develop the theme.
In the poem “Forgetfulness” by Hart Crane, the speaker uses similes and metaphors to convey ideas about forgetfulness to develop the theme. The speaker uses these literary devices to convey his ideas about the theme: Forgetfulness is being lost, and having no idea where to go. The author uses many similes to get this idea across, such as, “Forgetfulness is like a bird whose wings are reconciled,/Outspread and motionless” (Crane 3-4). In this simile, Crane is comparing forgetfulness to a bird with open wings, yet it doesn’t fly; this comparison is used to show how forgetfulness makes a person feel lost, with nowhere to go. Crane uses other similes in his poem, such as, “Forgetfulness is like a song/That, freed from beat and measure, wanders”(Crane 1-2). This simile is comparing forgetfulness to a song that is not following a specific beat, but wandering. This simile helps convey the speaker’s idea of being lost because the song is lost, and wandering off the path it is meant to be on. The speaker also uses metaphors to help convey his idea of forgetfulness being like a dazed motionless state. In the poem, Crane uses metaphors such as “Forgetfulness is white”(Crane 8). This metaphor is comparing forgetfulness to the color white; this metaphor is used to further develop the speaker’s idea of forgetfulness because of the characteristics...

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...here all those who drank from it experienced complete forgetfulness” (Lethe). This stanza by Collins is ironic because he forgets the name of the river that causes forgetfulness itself. The use of irony adds onto the theme because it shows that even the speaker forgets. The speaker in “Forgetfulness” by Billy Collins uses irony and personification to present the reader with the theme that forgetfulness is a part of life.
In the poem “Forgetfulness” by Hart Crane, the speaker conveys ideas about forgetfulness to develop the theme of the poem with the use similes and metaphors; in the poem by Billy Collins with the same name, the speaker utilizes personification and irony to convey ideas about forgetfulness to develop the theme.

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"Lethe 2 by Rocamiadesign on DeviantART." Lethe 2 by Rocamiadesign on DeviantART. RedBubble, 27 Apr. 2010. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.

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