B.P. English 19 February 2014 An Analysis of “To The River___” by Edgar Allan Poe “Thou art an emblem of the glow/ Of beauty- the unhidden heart-/ The playful maziness of art” (3-5). “To The River___” by Edgar Allan Poe is a poem about a young boy who is enthralled with the daughter of Old Alberto. The origin of the poem may be explained by the fact that Poe wrote it at the mere age of eighteen; a time when emotions flow freely and the mind is yet to be fully developed. The poem describes the young girl as a perfect example of raw and pure beauty through classic literary elements such as imagery, tone, rhyme, and diction. “To the River” is a beautiful poem that compares the elegance of a young woman to a crystal clear flowing river. …show more content…
These three lines are perfect examples of the imagery within the poem because they contain an image of a river with its small peeks and waves trembling and glistening in the afternoon sun. All the while it equates the natural beauty of the river to the beauty that the young man sees in the youthful maiden. In early 1829 the Romantic era was in full swing. At this point in time Poe would be an eighteen year old enlisted in the army. After dropping out of college due to lack of funds he joined the armed forces and wrote several of his lesser known poems. They all included a romantic theme which could be a result of being isolated from the opposite sex. The general subject or goal of the Romantic era was to compare the beauty of nature to an everyday object or person and to create a snapshot of the scene being described. “[Romanticism] Shuns the artificiality of civilization and seeks unspoiled nature, prefers youthful innocence to educated sophistication, and contemplates nature’s beauty as a path to spiritual and moral development,” (Langley 2-5) The importance of the comparison between the river is huge in this poem because the way the river is described as a “bright, clear flow”. It shows that this river in particular is special. The majority of rivers are muddy and murky which suggests that the maiden has a sense of purity about her. The poems broader theme is that you can’t always have what you want in life because the tone of longing in
The imagery in the poem, specifically natural imagery, helps use the reader’s senses to develop a vivid depiction of the speaker’s connection to nature and dissatisfaction with the surrounding reality. The speaker’s continued use of the “moon” reflects her attribution of feminine identity and idolistic character to the moon. As opposed to referencing herself and her personal insomnia, she uses the imagery of the moon “beyond sleep” to convey her internal struggles with insomnia and her reality. Throughout the poem, the speaker also refers to shining, reflective surfaces, such as “a body of water or a mirror”, to describe the inverted reality in which the speaker experiences reciprocated love. Reflective surfaces often invert the image that is projected into them, seemingly distorting the true nature and reality of the projected image. The speaker’s reference to this reflective imagery highlights her desire to escape the burden of a patriarchal society and assume an independent and free feminine identity. Specifically, the use of natural imagery from the references to the “moon” and “a body of water” convey the speaker’s desire to take refuge within the Earth or in the feminine identity of the Earth, Mother Earth. Feminine identities are often related and associated with aspects of nature due to the natural cycle of the menstrual period and the natural process of procreation. The speaker takes advantage of these connotations to suggest Earth and natural imagery as an escape from the man-made terrors of male dominated society. In the second stanza, the speaker uses extensive imagery to develop metaphors conveying the speaker’s experience of jealousy of the moon
In 1830 Poe entered West Point. He was dishonorably discharged the next year, for intentional neglect of his duties. Apparently he did this out of his own strong desire to be released. In 1833 Poe lived in Baltimore with his father's sister Mrs. Maria Clemm. After winning a prize of $50 for the short story 'MS Found in a Bottle,' he started a career as a staff member of various magazines, some of which were; the Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond (1835-37), Burton's Gentleman's Magazine in Philadelphia (1839-40), and Graham's Magazine (1842-43). During these years he wrote some of his best-known stories. Southern Literary Messenger he had to leave partially due to his alcohol addiction. In 1836 Poe married his 13-year-old cousin Virginia Clemm. She bust a blood vessel in 1842, and remained virtually invalid until she died from tuberculosis five years later. After Virginia’s death, Poe began to lose his struggle with drinking and drugs. He had several romances, including an affair with the poet Sarah Helen Whitman, who said: "His proud reserve, his profound melancholy, his unworldliness - may we not say his unearthliness of nature - made his character one very difficult of comprehension to the casual observer." In 1849 Poe became engaged to Elmira Royster, who was at that time Mrs. Shelton. To Virginia he addressed the famous poem 'Annabel Lee' (1849) - its subject, Poe's favorite, is the death of a beautiful
Poe had attended West Point. He was kicked out of college before his first year was over. He was angry that Allan had gotten engaged again and remarried without inviting him. Since Allan help get him into West Point, Poe was so angry at him he told him he was going to get himself thrown out, which he did. He needed to find a place to stay where someone could take care of him. The only one that seemed to want him was
From the beginning to the end this poem contains many symbols, water being one of the first to appear. It is first described as unmisted, acting as a reflecting surface on the mirror. In the end, water takes on the position of being a lake, reflecting the girl’s image, no matter the occasion. Water acts as both clear and containing in the poem, showing the girl’s image and hiding the youth that she once had. Not only does water act as a symbol but light, as well. In the poem, it says darkness separates us over and over. Darkness symbolizes the thoughts and feelings the young woman feels, how they cloud her thoughts and opinions of herself. The final, and perhaps greatest symbolize is the reflections themselves. The reflections show the importance of appearance to the woman in the poem, and reveal the inner thoughts she has, how frustrated she feels when her reflection doesn’t meet her expectations. The reflections symbolize not only her outer appearance, but her inner as well. This poem embodies the feelings and thoughts many woman have had, looking in the mirror and not
When Edgar Allan Poe was born in 1809 (Minor 8), the Romantic movement, having begun around 1750, was well underway (“Romanticism”). Despite Poe’s birth taking place nearly halfway through this period, there was still more than enough time remaining for not only Poe to make a lasting impression, but also for him to become the poster child of the movement.
This poem included many similes that allowed the reader to have sequential images which eased the understanding of the poem. For example, " I like to imagine love can pull your essence like red thread through the cold needle of my life now without you." In this example, the simile that was used help in transcribing feelings into images by comparing essence to red thread. Additionally, the use of imagery such as "each an ego of forced air, heavy with the smells of onions, mushrooms, sage and rain.", helped in connecting the readers with poet's thoughts by using the sense of smell. Thus, the images of grief and memories installed upon us as readers allowed the theme sent from the poet to be explicitly understood.
Poe had a very hard life growing up. Both his mother and father were always gone acting in plays which left him with his grandparents all the time he never got to see his parents it was hard on him especially because of the age he was at. When he got a little older he was put in a local
Edgar Allan Poe once said, “With me, poetry has not been a purpose, but a passion.” When stressed, writing was his coping mechanism, and through observation, many grasp how much death encompassed Poe. Although not appreciated during his era, he revolutionized mystery with mesmerizing story plots that yield suspense, but also makes readers question his stability. Most importantly, unlike those famous during his lifetime who are now forgotten, Poe’s legacy will live on forever. Moreover, throughout life, Poe experienced catastrophe, and because of this, writing became his creative outlet.
Poe was born January 19, 1809, to two poor actors. His father abandoned him soon after his birth and his mother died the following year, starting off the long chain of Poe’s misfortune (“Introduction” 1). He was adopted by Francis and John Allan and with their financing, attended schools in Richmond and London. Poe quit college after acquiring a tremendous amount of debt due to gambling. When he was twenty-six, he married his thirteen year-old cousin Virginia.
Edgar Allan Poe was one of the best writers and most peculiar to ever walk the Earth. He used more of a darker element than most of the writers of his time and before his time. He incorporated Dark Romanticism into a lot of what he did. He was even known as a Dark Romantic writer. Edgar Allan Poe’s rough childhood was a major influence on his writing, which lead to him becoming a Dark Romantic writer and incorporating Dark Romanticism in his work “The Tell-Tale Heart”, and his writing has influenced pop culture today and many authors after he died.
the central theme of the poem is making choices, and how those choices affect the rest of our lives
Edgar A. Poe is a drawing on a three feet high by about two feet in width illustration board depicting Edgar Allan Poe. Katie Scoggins uses various odd colors in this work of art for a person which is what first drew my attention. The first image I noticed on the drawing was a seemingly perfect drawing of Edgar Allen Poe as if he is there in person but with a forest green face. His hair, eyebrows, and mustache are a plum purple. Purple gives me the impression of a gentle flower that has just blossomed. His eyes produce heavy bags under them. His scarf has a light orange color. His shirt under his bright orange jacket is a dandelion yellow. The shadows below his cheeks and chin indicate a light above him like when someone tells a scary story on a camping trip. His eyes are wandering towards the sky. His nose is a block from the top to the bottom, but at about three-quarters towards the bottom it begins to flair out to form the nostrils. The background is a dark purple sky with orange streaks and dark black ravens with yellow beaks and feet.
In 1827 Poe moved to Boston and joined the army. Poe wrote many poems while he was enlisted, but none of them became popular. He was admitted to the US Military Academy, but was forced to leave for lack of financial support, so he moved in with his Aunt and younger cousin. In 1836 Poe married his 14 year old
This poem “Romance” by Edgar Allan Poe deals with the contrast between the ideal world and the less than ideal world This poem was represented as the innocent youth and the harsh life. The specific message of the poem is that, no matter how hard life can be, one should always hope that better things are on the way. The speaker of this poem is speaking about his life as a child and ongoing. This poem also talks about how being a kid is all about. He talks about how any kid is always going to be full of dreams that may not ever be reached.
¡®Composed Upon Westminster Bridge¡¯ uses the poem to show London as a loving and enjoyable place to live. This romantic and poetic language makes his poem enjoyable to read, ¡®The river glideth at his own sweet will¡¯. This is contrasted to ¡®God¡¯s Grandeur¡¯ where the poets first desire is not