Literary Analysis Of Richard Cory, By Edwin Arlington Robinson

“Don’t judge a book by its cover,” is a saying that most people have heard since they were young, but this saying can also be applied to people just as well. One cannot judge another just by looks, and if one does, the assumptions made are most likely wrong. In Robinson’s “Richard Cory,” Richard Cory is envied by the poor because he is rich and has everything he could possibly want, or at least that what they think. To the common people he seems to be happy and kind, and everything in his life must be perfect. But the common people only envy Richard Cory because of their assumptions. By the end of the poem the people learn that his life must have not have been all that it seemed to be because he ended up committing suicide. Even when someone has everything in life, like power and wealth, and they seem happy, they might not be happy with their life because if they already have everything, there’s nothing to live for or to work for. It shows that people can’t be judged by what they look like or what they show you just to be polite. This poem shows that a person’s personality and character cannot be judged just by what they look like, and most assumptions made of a person shouldn’t be based on first impressions because they don’t do people justice to who

“Richard Cory” written by Edwin Arlington Robinson is about a man who appears to be admirable on the exterior but no one is familiar with his interior, which is suffering badly. The narrator talks Richard Cory up by stating, he was "richer than a king,"(line 9) "admirably schooled,"(line 10) "we thought that he was everything to make us wish that we were in his place."(lines 11-12) Until an abrupt ending to the poem, "one calm summer night, went home and put a bullet through his head."(lines 15-16) This poem makes one think about true happiness and what it entails. From the outside one may appear to have everything but happiness does not come from wealth, it comes from within ones self and the narrator didn't take the time to really get to

While reading the poems “Richard Cory” and “Ezra Farmer”, it is almost immediately evident which poem is an original and which is a parody. Both poems are clearly about men that are popular among those he meets, but once the reader looks beneath the surface, they notice how the diction plays an important role in relaying the theme to the audience it is presented to. In the poem “Richard Cory” written by Edwin Arlington Robinson, the theme being portrayed is that people are not always as how they seem.

It is ironic how the people of down-town portrayed Richard Cory. They presumed, “he was everything/ To make us wish that we were in his place.” (Line 11-12). This great example of alliteration helps explain the fact he was viewed as the luckiest guy around. His life ended suddenly from a gun trigger pulled by himself. The way Cory’s death is described is situationally ironic. “One calm summer night” (15) is the day Cory chose to end his life. There is nothing calm about a suicide, and summer nights are generally known to be the best times of the year. The people of down town “worked, and waited for the light,” (13) waiting for their lives to get better. This great use of metaphor and alliteration helps convey the idea the people supposed they were enduring difficult times when in fact, Cory was dying from the inside out. They believed, “he glittered when he walked.” (8) and viewed him as if he were a sunshine hovering below the sun, when in reality, inside he felt like a cloudy storm. Happiness does not have a price tag and the people of down-town now understand that.

Richard Cory poems are a traditional type of poetry found all throughout different time periods. The poems range from the original to song variations, all contributing their own perspectives on what Richard Cory symbolized, and each takes their own distinct form. Richard Cory poetry usual contains the distinct ending of Richard Cory taking his own life, but each poem adds its own variations to this repetitive theme. Throughout the poems, there are also many similar themes, which portray a consistent theme of the American Dream and how it transforms. Many symbolic issues that deal with this dream are related to wealth, which is the most prominent reoccurring theme in the two poems. Whereas Robinson's "Richard Cory" focuses on symbolic

The poem “Richard Cory” is a description and story of a man named Richard Cory, of course. The speaker of the poem is an impoverished, blue-collar

Robinson starts the first stanza with a description of Richard Cory’s appearance and a clear distinction between the two sides, Richard Cory and “we people”. The speaker mentions Richard Cory in the first line without any introduction, which means that everyone should know who Richard Cory was, so the introduction is not needed. Furthermore, whenever Richard would come to downtown, “we people of the pavement” admired him. The people of the pavement or people from the streets of the downtown,

In the poem "Richard Cory," by Edwin Arlington Robinson, it says "And Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head." There was a man named Richard cory, everyone wanted to be him, everyone thought he was perfect, people envied him."In fine, we thought that he was everything,

The reader never gets to learn anything about Richard Cory from himself. I feel that the contrast between how the poem sounds and what ultimately happens in the end really gives this poem its meaning. Ultimately, “Richard Cory” is a poem about how one man can have it all and yet still feel alone. Despite his effort to normalize himself by visiting “the town,” he was still seen as the outsider. Over time, Richard Cory’s status and wealth began his fall into a friendless depression that lead to his

The fact that Cory commits suicide, just so happens to be the most captivating part of this poem; why did Richard Cory shot himself when he had everything anyone could ever ask for? Through their own mental prejudices and amplifications of reality, the people, by putting Cory on a high pedestal also create a barrier that later pushed Richard to commit suicide. Even though Richard Cory was perceived to be

Most would agree that he would soon become lonely and began to wonder what life would be with his social status. If the townspeople wished they were in his place because of his wealth, he in turn wished he were one of them because they were rich in one another’s company (Scheick1). While everybody wished they were in his shoes, they never actually took the time to get to know Richard Cory as just a human which is all he was a simple human. [As] Nowhere in the poem is it suggested that the people try to come to Richard Cory, no where is it either intimated that they approach him, much less respond to him (Sweet Jr 2). This gives the reader an indication of how because of his wealth he was somewhat shunned from the towns society unintentionally as they believed that he was much more than a regular

The last two lines of the first stanza show Richard Cory’s high social/economic status: “He was a gentleman from sole to crown, clean favored, and imperially slim.” During this time period, “gentlemen” were considered high class men, not just kind and respectful. The phrases “from soul to crown” and “imperially slim” portray Richard Cory as royal, expressing the poor’s perception of Richard Cory as a celebrity. In the second stanza, the narrator describes Richard Cory as being “quietly arrayed” (line 5), meaning he was dressed in conservative apparel, not trying to draw attention to himself. This shows Richard Cory was humble despite his high economic/social status. Although Richard Cory is portrayed as down to earth and “human when he talked” (line 6), the poor were charmed with “fluttered pulses” (line 7) by his greetings along the street. The last line of the second stanza shows the poor people’s admiration for Richard Cory: “he glittered (shined) when he walked.” Such admiration and awe for an upper-class man makes Richard Cory a celebrity figure in the poor’s perception. Not only was Richard Cory of high status and good nature, he was living the American

In the poem by Edwin Arlington Robinson, he had portrayed his main character, Richard Cory, as a very fine gentleman who was perfect in every way possible. The speaker of the poem is only known to be of lower social and economic status when the speaker had mentioned Cory going "down" town, the speaker mentioned that "We people on the pavement looked at him," indicating that the speaker is a part of a subordinate community and when the speaker says "So on we worked, and waited for the light, And went without the meat, and cursed the bread," the speaker reveals that the community that s/he lives in is struggling and is desperate for help. Although, the only reason the speaker and his/her community is important

He is defined as “a gentleman from sole to crown” (Edwin Arlington Robinson 3) and who “had everything a man could want: power, grace, and style” (Paul Simon 4). Cory has the presence of a stereotypical English man. He is subjected to be very proper and well mannered. The speaker in Robinson’s poem uses three stanzas to emit notions to the reader that Richard Cory was not just any man… “He was everything” (11).

Starting off the poem, Robinson demonstrates to us that he as well, regards this man, as “put together” and “having everything going for them.” With the use of his literary devices, he accomplished to get the readers set on the fact that there could not possibly be anything wrong with Cory. However, it all changes when Robinson changes his tone. With the shift of his tone, followed the shift of his perspective. This situation impacts the reader gradually because it staggers us. We have gotten so accustomed to judging people and assuming something, without even knowing anything about them. “In fine, we thought that he was everything, to make us wish that we were in his place, So on we worked, and waited for the light, and went without the meat, and cursed the bread; and Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head(lines 11-16).” The importance in these lines, is that the perspective that the author gives, goes from viewing him as a king, to someone very lonely.