The Theme Of Mrs Midas

The short story “Sweat,” by Zora Neale Hurston, seems to exemplify the epitome of a bad marriage. Hurston uses foreshadowing and irony to demonstrate the disintegrated relationship between the abusive husband and the diligent wife. Throughout the story, it becomes obvious that the husband does not oblige by the motto, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Hurston’s use of irony and foreshadowing helps reveal the fact that “the good will prevail” and Sykes will finally get what he deserves.

Imagery is used to positively describe the pains the wife took to make r husband happy. Even though described as “fadingly pretty” and “shy,” the woman wears a big hat to hide what she may lack in appearance.

However in the poem, Duffy makes the reader see a distressed lady, who becomes paranoid through jealousy as she feels like her husband is betraying her because of her looks, and further damages the relationship between them. Medusa is insecure, turning herself into a Gorgon. She turns everything into stones as the climax builds up, and this suggests that an insecure woman could be the most powerful person later as she gets distressed and betrayed by a

Greenberg is so clever with the use of verbal irony throughout the poem. The wife is really being sarcastic to her husband, in an attempt to reveal her desires that are evidently ignored. The main line that triggered my understanding was, "Not strong, not proud, not just, not provident, my lover would blame me for his heart's distress, which you would never think to do" (630). Once again, I initially thought she was complimenting her husband and showing him great respect. This strong, proud, just and provident man seemed perfect. However, the choice of words "...my lover would blame me for his heart's distress..." is what enlightened my thinking (630). The wife wanted to be so important to her husband that she would be the only thing that causes him distress. She actually resents this prideful man who seems to make everything else more important that her.

The relationship that the poem refers to is a domestic one husband, and wife, with the family and its occupants in the center. The speaker’s male tone comes from the way he talks about the house, his description of how it is falling apart, and how he feels inside. The age of the speaker is unknown, but he is undoubtedly old enough to recall a past event. Another indicator of the speaker’s male tone it is the trend for males to hide their feelings of pain -and what better way than to use the house as an implied metaphor. Rather than addressing anyone in particular, the speaker seems at first describing how the relationship starts to fall apart:

She seems to be saying that without the pain and the tribulations, a marriage wouldn’t be worth as much. It’s almost like she says that the sacrifices are what makes the marriage worth it. The pain of this marriage results in the ultimate achievement of the objective of marriage. The poem states that all the aches and pains of marriage are worth going through because the love of another is epic.  I found that the two of these poems together were a fascinating combination, because one speaks of the hypocrisy of not doing anything about the flaws in a person’s own characteristics, and the other seems to say to live with the pain that you have to live with the faults; through doing so one will find bliss; it is worth the sacrifice.

His selfishness is emphasised as because of his foolish actions, his wife won’t be able to accomplish these simple things - he’s already attained many successes it seems yet he’s asking for more. “My dream-milk burned in my breasts” milk that should be there is left unused so is causing her pain as she’s never going to feed this child, there’s also a sense of longing from her unfulfilled aspirations of motherhood. She’s never going to experience having a family (with Midas), which all married couples deserve to do.

In the short story Georgiana has a birthmark on the side of her cheek that looks like a hand, the birthmark is symbolizing the hands of god. The author expresses this by stating how god gave her this imperfection as a token to her humanity and that her imperfections are in the hands of god and not in the hands of science. This also explains why she died getting rid of her birthmark, it is because god would not let perfection exist and without that birthmark it gave away her humanity. Another example of symbolism is Aylmers servant, Aminadab. He is explained by Hawthorne,”A man of low stature, but a bulky frame, with shaggy hair hanging about his visage…” (361). Aminadab symbolizes all the other men of the town because all of the other men of the town believed that Georgiana’s birthmark was the imperfection that made her perfect. This is shown on page 361 when Aminadab mutters to himself, “If she were my wife I would never part with that birthmark.” this is the author showing the reader that her imperfection is what makes her the perfect human not her

In the short story “Cathedral” by Raymond Carver the unnamed narrator and his wife are constantly arguing. Cathedral takes place in New York at the narrator’s and his wife’s home during the early 1980’s. The narrator is not a good husband, drinks a lot, and smokes marijuana. The narrator is jealous of Robert because he can connect better with the narrator’s wife. He is not a good husband and is judgemental. The wife is lonely and wants to be understood by her husband. She writes poems to Robert because her husband does not appreciate her art like he does. Robert is the narrator’s wife’s friend who comes to visit, he is blind but can see the world through his heart. The narrator’s wife used to work for Robert. They were both really close and

The poem, “Mrs Midas” is written from the perspective of the wife of King Midas; a character from Ovid’s “Metamorphoses”. In the myth, King Midas was granted a wish where everything he touched turned to gold. “Mrs Midas” is part of a tradition of the feminist revisionist writing of mythology and fair-tales. Duffy trivialises the myth by transplanting it to a modern, middle class, suburban setting. In the poem, Duffy uses a wide range of literary devices and conveys a large array of emotions which help to bring out the central themes of the poem.

poem wherein she’s revealing her never-ending love, devotion, and appreciation for her spouse. The fact that she was born around the seventeenth century could mean it is puritan culture for women to remain reserved, regardless of how they may truly feel; however, she makes it her obligation to make her husband aware of feelings, whether positive or negative. She uses figurative language and declarative tone through imagery, repetition, and paradoxes to send her message. "To My Dear and Loving Husband" can be interpreted in many ways by many different people depending how it is initially read. This uncertainty allows the poem to be interpreted on a surface level and on a deeper level.

Unfortunately, his beloved wife couldn’t stand to hold in this secret any longer. She couldn’t tell another person so she set out to the marsh and approached the water. There she shares her secret with water and it’s discovered that woman can’t keep secrets. As the Wife of Bath finishes with the story of Midas we return to the Knight's quest for the thing most desired by the woman.

In contrast to her children, who simply “growl” at her when they are hungry, the ingredients in the kitchen actually assist her in making the “soup.” The “salt” is particularly important, as we only notice it when it is absent from food rather than when it is present. When it is not in the food, its omission is strongly reflected in the taste of the food. Hence, it is taken for granted. Similarly, this housewife is criminally underappreciated and if she was not around, her family would instantly feel her absence from the household. She also compares herself to “the celery and the parsnip”, who are regularly “forgotten” and seen as “bit players.” The housewife knows “exactly” this feeling, as she is similarly overlooked and seen as playing a more minor role in the household than the man, who is traditionally the breadwinner. Overall, although the poem is essentially a parody and uses plenty of humour, there is an overbearing feeling of underappreciation, loneliness and frustration towards her family on the part of the speaker. While at the beginning of the poem the speaker’s tone is mocking towards her family for having many expectations of her yet taking her for granted, at the end of the poem there is a sense of isolation, as the only “applause” she gets is the “blue” flame of the stove.

Wealth and property feature heavily in the wife’s portrayal of marriage and along with the issue of her independence is responsible for many of her marital conflicts. The first three husbands "riche and olde" were married each for "hir land and hir tresoor" then discarded as the Wife looks for other prospects. When one of these husbands tries to restrict the Wife’s spending she refuses to let him be both "maister of my body and of my good" so refuses sexual favours in return for her freedom as she will not become a mere possession. She generalizes that women "love no man that taketh or keepth charge" suggesting an element of independence and individualism in 14th century marriage. The wife resents being controlled; she

“My Husband Discovers Poetry”, by Diane Lockward is a very interesting piece of poetry that I have thoroughly enjoyed delving into. The idea behind the poem is that the writer felt angry and discouraged because her husband would never read her work, so essentially to get back at him she wrote a poem about cheating on him. She hid it away in the hopes that he would one day find and read it. This poem is Lockward telling the story of writing her poem, and what happens when her husband finally discovers it. The meaning of the poem is that we must support our loved ones.