In This Strange Labyrinth, by Mary Wroth

One of the things that is so fascinating about poetry is that it allows readers to discover and sometimes challenge and channel their emotions as well as their understanding. A poem’s words as well as its structure can reveal many things to its intended audience. In “Myth” by Natasha Trethewey, the poems form is just as important as the words she writes, becoming a map for the journey Trethewey takes, using transitions to take us from one place to another. The nature of the poem therefor becomes multifaceted, as it encourages the reader to think about the speaker’s words and use of form and structure she uses to craft this epic story. Using form as a tool, Trethewey is able to use structure as a way to guide us as readers and the speaker across the conscious and unconscious thoughts and dreams the speaker faces in this story.

The Greek mythology presents Medusa as a monster, with the power to turn anyone who looks into her eyes to stone and with snakes that replicate her hair. But, in the poem by Mary Sarton “The Muse As Medusa” we see an incomparable image of Medusa to the Greek mythology. In this poem Medusa helps the speaker through a difficult time. The speaker depicts herself through her poem as someone who is lost, sad and defeated by the world around her. The speaker sees herself in Medusa, where they are both misinterpreted by the world around them. Medusa being powerful is able to cope with the world's misconception of her and shows the speaker how that's possible. The speaker takes into account how the world is the one that misinterpreted them and

The settings are important in a story because they tell where and when the story takes place. A reader should always focus on the setting, so he will not get lost in the story. In Doris Lessing’s “Through the Tunnel,” the story focuses on a boy named Jerry trying to accomplish something very difficult while his mother wants him to stay safe. He sees some boys swimming through a challenging tunnel and he tries to go through the tunnel to impress them in order to become friends with them. The setting in “Through the Tunnel” has an impact on the characters, the plot, and the symbols.

¨There was a law against luke. Not him personally everyone like him, kids who were born after their parents already had two babies (pg 6)¨. Would you like a law against you? Among the hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix clearly shows that dictatorship is horrible. In this novel Luke is not allowed to leave the house or be seen. Luke leaves the house in cover and meets a girl the same as him she can't go anywhere so she tries to convince luke to rebel to be like regular people with her but he is to nervous. Luke shows the character traits of brave, jealousy and adventurous as he hides in the shadows.

Even as he suffers, the parallel of his grief to that of the woman’s dissipates for we are privy to the knowledge that Odysseus is likely to have once been a man who cut down the father of another home. Though the language of grief is universal, spreading itself to Odysseus in likeness, the application of it remains ironic because the self-pursuant and capable hero persists in the blindness that his own hands brought about the same pain in many

It is often—in books, poems, paintings, and sculptures—that one hears of and sees the goddess of love. But when is it that one hears of the god? In Greek mythology, Eros is the god of love, and a god who is many times overlooked. In Robert Bridges’ “EPÙÓ” and Anne Stevenson’s “Eros”, the idea that Eros is overlooked is portrayed, but in two separate ways. Techniques such as diction, imagery, and tone are used to help convey the idea.

Some people believe that lies will always be bitter in the end, no matter how sweet you make them in the beginning. In William Gass’ The Tunnel, he expounds the validity of this belief by taking the reader on an emotionally evolving journey, as he recounts the self-realization of a young boy, who’s frightening lie unravels in front of not only his own eyes, but also the readers. Gass successfully enriches this story with striking imagery, symbolism, and comparisons; exposing how no matter how sweet you make a lie in the beginning, it will always turn bitter in the end.

We live in the age of constant technological innovation and endless information; in which we are so connected and dependent on the technology we use that we sometimes don’t even realize how much we’re relying on it. In The Glass Cage by Nicholas Carr, Carr defines automation as, “the use of computers and software to do things we used to do ourselves,” and argues that there are daunting consequences to our reliance on technology (Carr 1). In his book, Nicholas Carr sets up three arguments related to automation, tacit knowledge, and the idea of work. His main arguments throughout the novel are that humans are overestimating the benefits of automation, losing tacit knowledge through our reliance on technology, and

Love is such an abstract and intangible thing, yet it is something that everyone longs for. In Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the difficulty of love is explored through the obstacles that characters have to face while pursuing their loved ones. Those characters that are in love in the play were conflicted with troubles; however, the obstacles of love do not seem to stop them from being infatuated with each other. The concept of true love is examined throughout this play. By creating obstacles using authority and a higher power, Shakespeare examines the power of love. Through Hermia and Lysander’s loving words, it is reasonable to conclude that love conquers all if you believe in it.

Edna St. Vincent Millay’s “Sonnet IV” follows many of the conventions of the traditional Petrarchan sonnet. It follows the traditional rhyming scheme and octet, sestet structure. However it challenges the conventions of the typical subject of the Italian sonnet, unrequited love. In the octet at the beginning of the poem Millay uses images that give a sense of transience and in the ending sestet of the sonnet she contrasts the sense of impermanence given earlier with the idea that the speaker cannot forget the smiles and words of their ex-lover. This contrast between permanence and transience illustrates Millay’s interest in a fugacious relationship with everlasting memories. After further analysis of Millay’s highly structured rhyming scheme which puts emphasis on the last words of each line. She uses these words to further express her interest in exploring impermanent relationships by using words that are associated with an end or death.

Individuals in society are compelled and feel restricted to follow certain social rules, but for some, their emotions towards the restrictions are negative. Many find different ways to release their constrained emotions, such as art, writing, music and physical activity. In like manner, Christina Rossetti releases her feelings and opinions about restrictions and situations occurring around her, which is evident in her sonnet “A Triad.” Christina Rossetti’s Petrarchan sonnet, “A Triad,” was published in the 1800s; during this period, the image and presentation of women was strict and had to be upheld. In “A Triad,” Rossetti is expressing the lack of variety, labels and freedom of women through the three women illustrated in the poem. The three women are categorized under married and lack of love, ideal woman, and promiscuous. Rossetti’s expressions about the society’s restrictions on women are evident in her use of symbolism of colours and words that are chosen to rhyme.

Returning to the fifth stanza, the enjambment used in “her noose a ring/ to store / the memories of love” (20-22) forces the reader to associate love with death. The ring of the noose can be seen as a marriage ring and so it can be inferred that love killed her. The image of the tarring and feathering and the inferred notion that love killed her, combined, provide the historical link into the present.

Love makes people become selfish, but it is also makes the world greater. In this poem, the world that the speaker lives and loves is not limited in “my North, my South, my East and West / my working week and my Sunday rest” (9-10), it spreads to “My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song (11). The poem’s imagery dominates most of the third stanza giving readers an image of a peaceful world in which everything is in order. However, the last sentence of the stanza is the decisive element. This element not only destroys the inner world of the speaker, but it also sends out the message that love or life is mortal.

Far in the distance, the faint chewing sound of people taking their first bites into their carne asada tacos, the loud, sharp clinks of tequila glasses, and the hoarse bangs of a piñata being beaten all come hand in hand, representing a Mexican celebration in La-La Land or also known as the city of Los Angeles. The city has been nicknamed “La-La Land” due to its recognition of being a place full of fun and out of touch with reality. For the past several decades, the city of Los Angeles has increasingly become a Latino city as they hosted countless festivals to celebrate the Mexican cultural holidays such as Cinco de Mayo, El Dia de Los Muertos and etc. In the book, The Labyrinth of Solitude, Octavio Paz discusses the generalization of Mexicans and emphasizes the idea of them preferring to be placed in solitude due to their fear of intimacy. The book even discusses the roles of a Mexican fiesta and cultural aspects of the Latino culture. By having Mexican holidays celebrated in Los Angeles, the city has become more invested into the Latino culture with the adoption of its cultural belief of death and celebrations techniques, which include excessively drinking, usage of guitars, letting off fireworks and celebratory gunshots.

Tennyson portrays the isolation of women through the reoccurring theme of Romanticism, this is shown through the poet’s constant associations with nature being the centre of the poem. The poet focuses more on the surroundings of the main character as she lives “By the island in the river…And the silent isle embowers The Lady of Shalott.” Tennyson presents the speaker to hide the details of the actual lady, her imprisonment and the curse which leads us to believe she is a mystery as the nature around her seems overpowering and consuming her. Tennyson portrays the lady in the poem to be an embodiment of a typical woman of the contemporary culture as he describes ‘A charmed web’ which the woman is ‘weaving, either night or day’. The ‘web’ can be a symbol of slavery but also a symbol of creativity and possibility. When the woman tries to turn away from the web she refuses to be a slave and ultimately