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April By Edna St. Vincent Millay Analysis

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In the poem �Spring� by Edna St. Vincent Millay, the speaker questions the return of the month April. They are dissatisfied with the renewal of life and question the reason for this renewal�s occurrence. As well, the speaker contemplates reason of life and states that it is not enough that life merely occurs. In addition to that, I believe that the poet also is trying to convey that it is not enough to let one�s life merely move one day to day, one must be motivated is make their life theirs by taking control and filling their life with what they want. As well, while reading this poem, I felt enlightened. It put me in a philosophical mood. However, the poet�s tone was quite critical and full of discontent, as if something was irking them. In …show more content…

The �redness� symbolized life because red is associated with life. The next usage of symbolism was in the seventh line. �The spikes of the crocus� referred to a flower called the crocus. The crocus was often the first of the spring flowers to bloom so it is a symbol of the return or rebirth of life in spring. �The spikes� (of the crocus) represent the pains of rebirth. This would be especially fitting since the line before said �The sun is hot on my neck as I observe�. With both lines combined, this could be interpreted as the poet observing the pains of life. Later in the poem, in line eleven, �under ground are the brains of men� symbolizes the downfall of human knowledge since the brain is associated with intelligence and underground can be taken literally as �lower that dirt�. Hence, this can be translated into the statement: �Not only is man�s intelligence lower than dirt�. The poet, in my opinion, is stating that today, men are no longer knowledgeable. And then the line after that, the twelfth line, �Eaten by maggots.� further emphasizes this. Finally, at the end of the poem in lines thirteen to

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