Figurative Language In Ralph Waldo Emerson

Throughout the novel, Wiesel's figurative language displays how hope got him through some of the atrocities of the Holocaust. An example where their hope is brought up in the novel is when the anti-Jewish laws are put in place in Wiesel's hometown, he states that, "To the very last moment, a germ of hope stayed alive in our hearts" (Wiesel 25). Wiesel uses the metaphor "germ of hope" to figuratively describe how the amount of hope was not abundant, but it never completely vanished. He states that this hope lasted till the last moment, which also implies that this is what got the Jews through the Holocaust. An instance where Wiesel's language displays what hope got him through is when he describes the hangings that he witnessed, upon which he reflects that the soup tasted like corpses that evening (Wiesel 72).

Another very well used literary device in this story is personification. Personification is when an inanimate object is given human attributes. In the specific instance

Night contains a significant amount of figurative language. Select 3 examples from the text to analyze. In analyzing each example, be sure to explain how the specific example impacts the text. (How does it affect the reader? How does it affect the reading experience? Why did Wiesel make that specific choice?) Please use a different type of figurative language for each example.

The first example of Wiesel’s powerful figurative language was a Rhetorical Question. “When had we left our homes? And the ghetto? Only a week ago? One night?

In Education Ralph Waldo Emerson uses a variety of syntax to engage the reader. The beginning is very effective in the usage of short sentences. This paragraph is talking about how the secret to education lies in respecting the student. The syntax that I like is “Respect the child. Wait and see the new product of Nature.” It then goes on to several more short sentences, but as you can see in this example it is short for a reason. These are meant to point out specific things that teachers should do to create a better education environment for students. On the third page another device is used, which is the usage of several questions in a row. There are seven consecutive rhetorical questions. These help break up the long paragraph and also cause

In the beginning of creation of humans, nature has always been there as a friend. Nature is the phenomena of the physical world that includes plants, animals, the landscape, and other features that are on earth. Nature has all of the wild and domestic living things. Ralph Waldo Emerson was an American poet that led the transcendentalist movement and influenced other through his ideas and thinking. Ralph wrote “Nature,” and he describes his true feelings toward nature and God and how they have taken part of what has been created and also the relationship to humans. Ralph Waldo Emerson writes the passage “Nature” and he uses comparison between humans and nature and also uses figurative language to convey his appreciation and gratitude for nature.

The first example of figurative language was, “The days were like nights.”(Wiesel 67). The type of figurative language used in the example is a simile as the text is comparing two unlike things, “day” and “night” by using the words “like” or “as”. If the reader were to compare the two, “day” and “night”, they would come to the general understanding that the difference between day and night is that the day is bright and the night is dark. By comparing these two it becomes clear that what Eliezer means by “The days were like nights.”(Wiesel 67) is that the days he spent everyday at the camp was always filled with never ending darkness, just like at night. By figuring out the general definition of what night means in the book, the reader can also

1) a/b) One example of a metaphor in “Nature” is “I became a transparent eyeball.” Here, Emerson does not literally mean he’s changed his physical form, but that in the presence of nature, he is absorbent of all the beautiful intricacies around him. An example of a metaphor in “Self-Reliance” is “imitation is suicide.” Here, Emerson shows how resentful he is of imitation by calling it suicide; he believes that by imitating others, one is only killing his or her inner self.

Throughout many writings, authors use analogies to compare two indicated topics to one another in a more detailed evaluation. Analogies help the reader to grasp the indicated topics the author compares, giving the reader a further knowledgeable understanding of the comparison. Ralph Waldo Emerson uses numerous analogies throughout many of his writings to create a smooth assessment of the subject stipulated. The analogies used throughout Ralph Waldo Emerson’s writing entitled “Nature” gives the reader more knowledge of the topics, a comparable similarity of the given topics and how the given topics interact together to further explicate the comparison.

1. Personification: “The lake was silent for some time. Finally, it said: 'I weep for Narcissus, but I never noticed that Narcissus was beautiful.”' (Coelho, 2) In this quote, personification is shown because the lake is able to stay silent or weep. These are qualities of a human given to an object.

Furthermore, he evokes the notion of the embodiment of nature and how few are able to see it; claiming the ones capable of perceiving such enlightenment are the ones who retain a benevolent innocent spirit—such as child—and who has retained the concept in times of adulthood—the poet. The mind of a child responds emotionally rather than sensorial. As a final remark in Emerson’s first chapter of nature, he states: in order for man to see nature plainly and receive the benefits one must push aside the old ways of thinking and egotism to become, as Emerson states, a transparent eyeball. ‘I am nothing, I see all. The currents of the Universal Being circulate through me; I am a part or particle of God. The name of the nearest friend sounds then foreign and accidental” (______). This form of vision represents the primary benefit of Nature, a form of ultimate transcendency where there is a spiritual real of reason beyond material understanding. Humanistic delight in the landscapes, which is made up of many forms, provides an example of this integrated vision in which the universal entity transmits itself into one’s consciousness and makes one sense oneness with God. Nature, is thereby a metaphor of the mind in Emerson’s eyes.

During the 1800’s, the period of the life of Walt Whitman, there were several notable writers who felt strong ties to the natural world and allowed their work to reflect this. These included Henry David Thoreau, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Emily Dickinson and John Muir and they were all players in the Transcendentalism movement that was coming to life. That theory – that people found their own version of spirituality, often through a connection to nature – is one that all of these great minds espoused in one way or another. But, perhaps Ralph Waldo Emerson had the most influence over Walt Whitman. Their views of nature were closely matched and Emerson, already being an admired writer, was someone Whitman looked up to.

This poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson is an exceptional work of his. Entirely characteristic of his poetic approach, it captures the full meaning behind the appreciation of nature, and it does so in a simple yet effective style. The poem is also, in my opinion, an effective rebuttal to the Puritan critique of the Emersonian lifestyle.

Emerson and Hawthorne both focused on nature and how humans affected it, but Emerson wrote more about being optimistic than Hawthorne, whom was more of a dark romanticism writer. In the essay "Nature", Ralph Waldo says, " But if a man would be alone, let him look at the stars. The rays that come from those heavenly worlds, will separate between him and what he touches. One might think the atmosphere was made transparent with this design, to give a man, in the heavenly bodies, the perpetual presence of the sublime"(Emerson 11). This quote demonstrates how Emerson focuses on the feel of nature to oneself being one with nature. Previously he talks about how nature offers solitude and how we should take advantage of it instead of ignoring what the world has to offer.

According to Pradopo (2003: 75), the ancient poets until today’s poets have used personification. It is comparison between inanimate things and person. Personification makes the poet’s language is a live. It gives the clarity in the reader’s mind of a certain object