##ry And Metaphors In Roethke's 'Elegy For Jane'

Indeed, he finds her beautiful— not in the typical romantic way, but rather in the way he finds nature beautiful. The speaker makes multiple comparisons between Jane and nature, whether it be her plant-like locks of hair, or a bird, which is made three times; Jane is a wren, a sparrow, and a “skittery pigeon”. Furthermore, the speaker has clearly paid close attention to Jane as shown by his detailed observations. In the first stanza, he reminisces and waxes poetic about her hair, her smile, and her quirky personality. Hence, the speaker adores Jane for not only her little details but also in how she symbolizes the larger beauty of

In Poetry authors use a range of literary techniques. These techniques can include the use of rhyme, alliteration, personification, similes, metaphors and imagery. The poems that will be compared in this essay include: My Country by Dorothea Mackellar, The Eagle by Alfred Lord Tennyson and Old Man Platypus by Banjo Patterson.

Some other literary devices used in the poem are: repetition, imagery, and alliteration. For repetition the line: “It might have been otherwise” is used throughout the poem repeatedly to exaggerate the fact that anything could have happened. That line gives the poem a solemn, but still pleasant mood. Imagery is used in these lines: “I ate/ cereal, sweet/milk, ripe, flawless/peach” (4-7). Jane uses those lines to describe everyday foods as if they were something special. Alliteration is used in this line: “…my mate. It/ might...” (14). The “m”

Cynthia Lee Kotana says it perfectly when she states in her excerpt, "In the first descriptive octave, personification, the giving of human attributes to inanimate objects, is used to drive home the persuasive mood of the poem." (Kotana, Paragraph 6, Sentence1). She is stating that it is at this point in the poem where Roethke begins to paint a picture of the idea he wants to get across to the reader. It seems possible that he was trying to switch the roles of the humans and the inanimate objects. After all, if it was possible for a pencil to feel sadness, or for a manila folder to feel misery, then is it not possible for a human to feel absolutely nothing? The same nothing that we know all of the inanimate objects around us feel? This was a very great technique used by Roethke in trying to bring the reader to look a little deeper into his poem than just to see "misery" and "sadness" and to think what a dark poem it is. It is truly a great skill and takent to be able to make the reader see that he is bringing the "Dead" to life and the "living" to absolute

The author persuades people to use their head before just using the words heart or love to give the word its true meaning. Carruth also displays what happens to words when they tend to be misused which is that they usually lose their value over time if they are not of great importance. Through his writing style in the poem, Carruth shows how people freely use the word “heart” and how it affects the meaning of the word. He opens and closes the poem with a question, refers to the heart as 'it' in the first stanza, and shows uncertainty of the importance of the heart in the first stanza as well.

describing the characters and objects throughout the poem and in creating the atmosphere of the

Dunbar and Randall both use interesting imagery in their poems to display how the character truly feels. In the “Ballad of Birmingham,” stanzas

In poems it is essential to be a creative writer. The author uses many techniques from from exposing deep thoughts to giving humorous jokes throughout the sentence. As a human being, we may have difficult times in understanding what is trying to be said. We may agree or disagree depending our viewpoints on life. One of my Favorite poems is “The Ballad of Sue Ellen Westerfield” by Robert Hayden. My favorite poem is the type of poem that has some history and confusion. When getting the audience confused, it makes them want to know more and reread the whole passage again. Hayden’s poem is a fresh new opening that brought an old dimension, his creativity to open the minds of others and look back to the past.

Unlike other forms of literature, poetry can be so complex that everyone who reads it may see something different. Two poets who are world renowned for their ability to transform reader’s perceptions with the mere use of words, are TS Eliot and Walt Whitman. “The love song of J Alfred Prufrock” by TS Eliot, tells the story of a man who is in love and contemplating confessing his emotions, but his debilitating fear of rejection stops him from going through with it. This poem skews the reader’s expectations of a love song and takes a critical perspective of love while showing all the damaging emotions that come with it. “Song of myself”, by Walt Whitman provokes a different emotion, one of joy and self-discovery. This poem focuses more on the soul and how it relates to the body. “Song of myself” and “The love song of J Alfred Prufrock” both explore the common theme of how the different perceptions of the soul and body can affect the way the speaker views themselves, others, and the world around them.

While one researches Roethke’s past for the poem they might learn some interesting information in regards to his father and how the time period might change the context for lines that may have been taken too

As I mentioned earlier as a child Theodore Roethke spent a lot of his time in the greenhouse his father and uncle owned. He observed nature and its true beauty in unique ways. The years he spent in that greenhouse truly helped him become successful in his writing career. A good number of his most famous works, as well as his less notable works reference nature in some way. I will discuss some of these poems showing the references to nature and repeated themes. Roethke tends to relate life and death to nature using imagery and detailed descriptions to captivate the readers.

Roethke has 2 types of audiences--- those who think his poem tells a lovely memory of his father and him dancing and those who believe Roethke illuminates his experiences with his abusive father. Those who take in the poem as a positive meaning find the words like “death” and “romped” to have an overall positive meaning. On the other hand, those who find the words “death” and “romped” to portray negative images believe the meaning of the poem is

Through the poem's imagery, it seems as if the speaker is purposefully painting an ambiguous picture of himself, but is also successful in slowly perfecting it by the end of the poem. Likewise, he also applies this idea towards the rhyme scheme, catching the reader off guard once again. The first two lines, “My lizard, my lively writher / may your limbs never wither,” is a slant rhyme, as well as the next two lines that follow. Recognizing the rhyme scheme of these four lines forces the reader to question the obvious: Why would a poet deliberately play with the rhyme scheme if he is only trying to express his true, sincere feelings for someone? One could argue that Roethke does this to compliment his playful imagery at the beginning of the poem, both of which keep his reader attentive and focused. Moreover, building this sense of obscurity also gives the poem a deeper meaning and adds a new twist to what otherwise would have been an ordinary love poem.

“Roethke was a great poet, the successor to Frost and Stevens in modern American poetry, and it is the measure of his greatness that his work repays detailed examination” (Parini 1). Theodore Roethke was a romantic who wrote in a variety of styles throughout his long successful career. However, it was not the form of his verse that was important, but the message being delivered and the overall theme of the work. Roethke was a deep thinker and often pondered about and reflected on his life. This introspection was the topic of much of his poetry. His analysis of his self and his emotional experiences are often expressed in his verse. According to Ralph J. Mills Jr., “this self interest was the primary matter of

Furthermore, Jane says “I care for myself. The more solitary, the more friendless, the more unsustained I am, the more I will respect myself” (Chapter 27, Bronte.) This statement greatly represents the growth that Jane has undergone. She no longer dreads the solitude that once haunted her because she respects herself enough to realize that she did not deserve to experience such great dismay. Through independence and self-recognition, Jane has discovered the importance of loving oneself. Without the reliance on the thoughts of others, the once extremely troubled girl found bliss through a lack of outside control. In regards to her relationship with Mr. Rochester, Jane understands that she must leave him behind to maintain her own well-being. She does not allow the wealth or proclaimed love from Rochester to skew her decisions and she does not linger to dominate the life of her lover. Instead, she moves forward to continue her endless pursuit of happiness and independence.