Lycidas Analysis

Throughout the history of literary works, there have been many themes that can be found in all of them such as death. Over time, death has been found to be a prominent theme amongst writers of nearly every era in literary history. As an excellent example, During the Romantic era William Wordsworth’s “We are Seven” gives readers a strange feeling of death that still evades the comprehension of a little girl whose two siblings are deceased. The topic of death can be found later on in history in the work of Herman Melville’s Bartleby, the Scrivener. In both writings, there are dealings with death.

Death is unwelcome news for all human beings, but at the same time, it is an unavoidable incident that everyone should accept. About this statement, some people might argue that the death is a part of people’s life, while people cannot avoid it. In “The Death of the Moth”, Virginia Woolf, the writer of the essay, claims that people should be aware of mortality and accept the death with a deferential attitude through the observation of the little moth’s death throes. The key concepts of the essay release as the writer illustrates her attitudes that change chronologically as she comprehends the moth’s fierce fight with death. By introducing the essay with a brief but detailed description of ‘a pleasant morning, mid-September’ (125), she leads the readers to get the background idea of the moth’s upcoming fate. Initially, Woolf’s feeling towards the moth was pity and pathetic. The sentence, “… his zest in enjoying his meager opportunities to the full, pathetic.” (125), describes how the author perceives a moth as a trivial, minor creature. However, after she encounters and apprehends the moth’s furious fights against death, her feeling shifts toward admiration and respect. “… This gigantic effort on the part of an insignificant little moth, against a power of such magnitude, to retain what no on else valued or desired to keep, moved one strangely” (127). Eventually, the essay concludes with author’s claim on death’s strangeness: the true nature of life and death and the motivational attitude towards the death.

Robert Frost and William Shakespeare have been celebrated by many people because of their ability to express themselves through the written word. Here we are years after their deaths analyzing these fascinating poems about life and death. It’s clear they had similar thoughts about this subject at the time of these writings, even though their characters could not have been more opposite. For both poets, life is too

Death perception is what sets apart the wise from the foolish and the sensitive from the weak minded; this statement is both true within life and the epic poem Beowulf. Many statements within the spectrum of death in the current world relates and dates back to this one poem, even more so now through the translation of Seamus Heaney. Passed along as a folk tale from as early as the 5th century to the 9th century, and then composed in about the 10th century, Beowulf creates a solid base for many of today’s present and worldly ideals. Countless themes are taken from this poem, but one theme that many people may glaze over is the extremely morbid tone of death and its purpose. Used as an archetype for the audience, the purpose of this morbid theme of death is to help understand and cope with mortality, especially during that time period. Accepting/ understanding is wiser than foolishly attempting to escape or cheat death as the poem blatantly proves after closely analyzing its purpose of discussing fate and death before the battles; choosing to always stand by good morals and actions; and the major significance of the main character’s death along with a couple counterarguments. By examining each aspect, the reader will gain the realization as to why Seamus Heaney decided to create this theme that he did with the direction from “The Beowulf poet [that] was captivated by the imagery of death” (Tanke 356).

When one witnesses a death, he or she may ponder the weight of life and how one’s life turns to death. Some spend time lamenting the death, while others may use it as a catalyst to appreciate their own lives more. In his poem “The Death of a Toad”, Richard Wilbur paints a serious and somber description of the toad’s death, then crafts an elegiac yet still hopeful response to that death , in which he ponders the weight of the toad’s missing presence.

William Shakespeare, a name renowned in all circles of English literature, when mentioned inspires recollections of writing and wit, of plays and poetry, and of love and loss. While his sonnets and plays have garnered most of his fame, Shakespeare’s talents extended to other forms of poetry; however, form does not curb his enthusiasm for addressing death. In his poem “Fear No More,” William Shakespeare wields repetition to not only uphold the ineluctable nature of death but also to establish the persistence and will of human nature.

One characteristic embedded in the minds of almost all humans is that of succumbing in pursuit of one’s aspirations, especially with the approach of death. The fear and enigmatic mystery of death at the brink of this shortcoming may cause one who is near death to re-evaluate life as a wasted opportunity or a broken path of dreams because of the inability to find any type of success. The sonnets “Mezzo Cammin” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and “When I have Fears” by John Keats examine the thought processes of two people who submit to the struggles of life in a depressed way. While communicating a very similar foundational message and mood in a different way through diction and structure, the speakers in “Mezzo Cammin” and “When I Have Fears” identify their despair through likewise differing literary elements which complement and bring out the message intended by these troubled individuals.

When the subject of death is addressed by poets Larkin and Abse they imply that death is a certain and predetermined demise to our lives. However through analysing there style of poetic writing, readers can appreciate their different attitudes towards death. Larkin appears accepting of death, acknowledging fate in a realistic way. Abse however is emotionally impacted and overall unaccepting of the part it plays in our lives.

The three authors, Edgar Allan Poe, Anne Bradstreet, and Emily Dickinson, had poems in which they explored the common theme of death. Their unique views on death, as reflected in their poems, tells us of the different ways people looked at death during their respective times. In this essay, I will explore and explain three poems of Edgar Allan Poe, and one from Anne Bradstreet and Emily Dickinson respectively, and then compare the differences between the three authors.

In Second April Millay, uses nature’s beauty through her description of the seasons, the changing of the colors of leaves, city trees versus country trees, even animals going about their daily duties; accentuating the existence of death and human natures divergent to it. Through her use of free verse and passionate sonnets, Millay asserts the value of poetic inspirations in a harsh world. Her use of metaphors is a clear indication of the underlying reality concerning death and it’s inevitable consequence. Ultimately, Millay achieves a level of melancholy and disillusionment throughout Second April’s collection of poetry.

This is expressed by the multiple examples of old men whom regret certain aspects of their lives and defy death even when they know their time is up. The speaker is urging his father to fight against old age and death. The meaning and subject of the poem influence the tone and mood. The tone is one of frustration and insistence. Thomas is slightly angry and demanding. His words are not a request, they are an order. The mood of the poem is is serious and solemn due to the poem focusing mainly on the issue of death. This mood and tone is created by words such as “burn”(2), “Grieved”(11) and “rage”(3) along with phrases such as “crying how bright”(7), “forked no lightning”(5), “near death”(13) and “fierce tears”(17). The insistent feeling is also created by the repetition of the lines “Do not go gentle into that good night”(1), and “Rage, rage against the dying of the light”(3). The figurative language used also affect how the meaning, tone and mood are interpreted.

For many people, the thought of death is a terrifying concept to fathom. Whether a beloved family member, pet, or even emotions have died, death in any form continues to be a challenging subject to communicate about to others. From dances to songs and from paintings to writings, people express their views on death in a variety of forms and fashions. In William Cullen Bryant’s “Thanatopsis” and Dylan Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night,” death exists as the main topic of both poems; however, Bryant’s and Thomas’s opinions on death contrast greatly in both works as a result of each poet’s religious beliefs, experiences, family and decisions that influenced the poems. Bryant and Thomas held different religious beliefs that influenced

The fact that the poet chooses to write about London, England in the form of an Italian sonnet is an indication that the speaker is making fun of England. The speakers word choice reveals that speaker is actually making fun of England instead of showing sympathy for it when the speaker states that England has “forfeited [its] ancient English dower/ of inward happiness” (5-6). This shows that the speaker feels as if England had an opportunity to have happiness, but they gave it up or “forfeited’ it. The speaker the uses a disrespectful tone when they say,” We are selfish men… (6)/ Give us manners, virtue, freedom, power” (8). In these lines the speaker continues to make fun of England by calling it citizens’ selfish people who lack manners, virtue, freedom, and power. This explains why the speaker is calling for Milton, who is known for his defense on political freedom, at the beginning of the poem to aid England in its time of need. In the sestet at the end of the sonnet, the speaker uses imagery along with simile to transition from the present, to the past. This translation allows the speaker to describe how England used to be. The speaker states that, “thy soul was like a star, and dwelt apart” (9). The speaker also uses personification when he states that “[England’s voice was] pure as the naked heavens, majestic, free” (11). These compliments about how

Unlike many believe, a poem is not defined or restrained by rules of structure for poetry is more than a simple structure or rhyme patter of those are just used to give huge meaning and not necessary to portray what the authors are seeing in their mind. Richard Wilbur’s poem, “Year’s End,” is rich in imagery and symbolism that gives us a vivid image of different ways to look at death. Wilbur depicts how the volcanic eruption as if it were a gentle snow fall and the fate of the people Pompeii as a tender sleep and nothing more. With these images, Wilbur gives us imagery that give depth, segments of time that are frozen the moment between life and death. Wilbur also introduces the symbolic meaning of “cold” and its connection to the end of life

This essay will address the theme of death in Shakespeare’s Sonnet 12 (1609) and George Herbert’s poem Virtue (1633). Both Shakespeare and Herbert explore notions of death in their poems, in terms of the tension between the psychical and the spiritual in a religious context. However, where they differ is that Shakespeare places emphasis on the importance of the corporeal, and of what is left behind on earth after death. In contrast, Herbert focuses on the impermanence of the physical, instead advocating a focus on the eternal life of the soul in heaven.