The Use Of Denotation And Connotation In Rich's Poems

In this poem, Pastan’s word choice plays a key role in understanding what makes their family a home. The poem’s title, “To a Daughter Leaving Home,” explicitly tells the reader that the daughter is currently preparing to leave their home. However, we, as the reader, know nothing of the home her daughter is preparing to leave. The reader does not know if the mother and daughter live in a mansion or a trailer, but that is not what is important to this story. The mother uses the words, “surprises” (8), “waiting” (11), and “…screaming / with laughter,” (19-20) to describe her daughter’s bicycle ride. Looking

The memoir from the story “Always Running” by Luis J. Rodriguez is a tale that talks about how Luis’s lived in segregation, and how he and his brother, who are people of color, were attacked by a group of five white teenagers. He used many examples of syntax, connotation, and imagery. The first example is Connotation. I circled “...his rep as someone who could take a belt whipping, who could take a beating in the neighborhood and still go back risking more- it was this pathetic plea from the pavement I remember” (Rodriguez 10).

The cypress boat is frequently a symbol of fluctuating intention. In "Dead Roe Deer," we find an allusion to how pure young girls can be led astray and spoiled by despicable men. The speaker in the poem "Cypress boat" is a helpless lady pressured to remarry by her family and friends after her husband death. The central stylistic device of the Classic of Poetry is repetition with variation.

Language and imagery plays a dramatic role in portraying relationships and feelings/thoughts of the persona. Whilst in ‘Burning Sappho,’ the mother’s attitude towards tasks is portrayed as emotionless (“the child is fed, the dishes are washed, the clothes are ironed and aired,”), language is utilised within ‘Suburban Sonnet’ to construct the mother’s mental state and situation as dire. “Zest and Love drain out with soapy water.” The use of two personal, passionate adjectives and the depiction of them being physically overcome by soapy water directly link the mother’s loss of feelings and fiery emotion to the household chores and duties. For example, she “scours crusted milk,” as a part of her role as mother and housewife as the reader is positioned to reject this requirement as a result of the huge impact to her quality of life (“Veins ache”). The literal image of a dead mouse symbolises the mother’s situation as the ‘soft corpse’ directly represents the mother, that is, emotionally dead as a result of the entrapment by society. The reader is positioned to fully

In a literary criticism written by Bobby Fong, which addresses the opposing possibilities of abuse and horse play of this poem, is quickly snuffed out when Fong states that most students regard the poem as a happy tale of a tipsy father playing with his child. Fong then writes how the same students said some of the finest moments with their fathers were when their fathers’ were drinking, and how “This “papa” was not the man they knew, so there was some anxiety felt regarding the “stranger,” but he was what these students as children wanted more often from their fathers.” (Fong) There is a reference to this uneasiness or anxiety in Roethke’s poem in line three which says “But I hung on like death:” (Roethke). However, despite the rough housing what the boy enjoyed the most was his father’s unhinged wild side, and that he was included in it.

The use of symbolism and imagery is beautifully orchestrated in a magnificent dance of emotion that is resonated throughout the poem. The two main ideas that are keen to resurface are that of personal growth and freedom. Furthermore, at first glimpse this can be seen as a simple poem about a women’s struggle with her counterpart. However, this meaning can be interpreted more profoundly than just the causality of a bad relationship.

Figurative language is very important within a piece of writing, but specifically in this passage imagery creates so much more detail within the character’s emotions. The first big piece of imagery would be when Granny thinks about all the time and work she has put in with the upbringing of her children and how they resemble her in many ways. Later on in the passage, the author talks about when Granny worked digging post holes and the hardships women had to face. This brings out the overwhelming emotion given off by Granny of all the hardwork she has given within her life and the fact she feels confident and wanting to show off all the work if she had a chance. We see how Granny really feels about John and how she wants to “brag” about her life and all the good things that she accomplished. Even at the end of the passage when she says “It made her feel like rolling up her sleeves and putting the whole

Roethke's usage of poetic devices place emphasis on the conditions in which the speaker experiences as a young child. Although the whiskey on the father of the speaker's breath is very strong, the speaker continuously " . . .hung on like death" (3) and candidly states that "Such waltzing was not easy" (4). The usage of simile by comparing the speaker's clinging of his father's shirt to death places emphasis on the feelings and emotions that are present in the household. Knowing that his " . . . mother's countenance could not unfrown itself" is an example of imagery that further adds to the turmoil and negative events that exist in the speaker's home by allowing readers to visualize the facial expressions that are present (7-8). Not only do the poetic devices contribute to the meaning of the poem, but it also contributes to the tone as well.

Diction is arguably the most important literary device carried throughout the duration of this poem. Many readers were disoriented by the use of Roethke’s word choice, yet it is arguably the most indisputable piece of evidence used to portray the background of abuse in the author’s poem. Roethke uses words that carry negative connotations such as: beat, battered, death, and more.

Abuse is a difficult and sensitive subject that can have long lasting effects. These traumatic emotional effects are often intensified if the abuse happens at a young age because children do not understand why the abuse is happening or how to deal with it. There are many abuse programs set up to counter the severe effects which abuse can have. Even more, poets and writers all over the world contribute works that express the saddening events and force the public to realize it is much more real than the informative articles we read about. One such poem is Theodore Roethke’s My Papa’s Waltz which looks carefully through the eyes of a young boy into the household of an abusive father. Robert Hayden’s Those Winter Sundays is a similar poem from

“My Papa’s Waltz” By theodore Roethke uses a cacophonous diction that creates a distinct comparison between connotation and denotation. In the first stanza; he states, “But i hung on like death.” This was towards the beginning of the poem that may give off an idea to the reader that the son’s life was in danger and as if he was being abused. The denotation of the line is that he’s just hanging on tightly to his father due to the fact that his father is woozy due to all the whiskey. Also, Roethke says, “You beat time on my head,” that builds off the idea of abuse. It makes it seem as if he’s consistently being abused by his father. He’s Just dancing with his son to the beat of the music. The diction he uses like “death” and “beat” associate

Poets use imagery and words with different connotations and denotations. In a paragraph, define and provide an example of imagery, connotation, and denotation. Then, explain how poets use these elements to contribute to tone in a poem. Support your answer with evidence from “President Lincoln’s Declaration of Emancipation, January 1, 1863.” (4 points)

In the poem “Paper Matches,” Paulette Jiles discusses the role that women are expected to conform to in society. The author uses a motif of fire and specific pronoun usage to demonstrate the theme that women are confined to the expectations of working in the house while men are allowed freedom. Paulette Jiles uses a recurring theme of fire to convey the anger that the Jiles feels towards the idea of gender norms. Throughout the poem, the author uses words such as, “rages of a small animal,” “book of paper matches,” and “heads on fire” to display the negative feelings she associates with the theme. The use of “rages of a small animal” describes that the feelings that the author has won’t change the inequality she feels, no matter how hard she tries.

An example of a denotation is " I drive a Lexus", which is defining a type of and brand of a car. From the President Lincoln poem, an example of imagery is line 9," It shall flood with golden splendor", which creates an image of brilliant shiny, sunlight. An example of connotation from the

Many times experiencing violence within one’s home can lead to the acceptance of abuse in one’s personal life. The speaker is in a room watching his father burn his belonging, he describes the scene: “Thin streams of kerosene when night throws itself against the wall, when Nina Simone sings in the next room without her body and I’m against the wall, bruised but out of mine: dream- headed with my corset still on, stays slightly less tight, bones against bones, broken glass on the floor, dance steps for a waltz with no partner. Father in my room looking for more sissy clothes to burn (“BOY IN A WHALEBONE CORSET” lines 4-16).