James Stephens

Paper Summary:

This paper compares several of James Stephens' poems in which animals or mythological creatures are used as the subjects or main characters. The paper discusses the reasons Stephens used animals and their imagery in his poems, suggesting that Stephens used animals in order to comment upon the state of contemporary human life in an indirect fashion.

From the Paper:

"James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. His poems such as "The Ancient Elf," "The Cage," and "Little Things" make use of common everyday creatures, such as rabbits and mice, and also small, familiar mythical figures of Irish legends to comment upon the state of contemporary human life in an indirect fashion. Like elves and rabbits, when viewed with the perspective of a God's eye (or simply the poet's distanced eye) human beings appear similarly contradictory, trapped, or frustrated in their frantic searches for meaning as these physically smaller or fictional beings. Stephens writes with a tone of wit, even whimsy, but beneath the surface of lightness exists a darker view of the dog-eat-dog nature of the mortal world."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Dunleavy, Janet Egleson. "Stephens, James." World Book Online Reference Center. 2006. 4 Apr 2006. <http://www.aolsvc.worldbook.aol.com/wb/Article?id=ar532240>.
• Stephens, James. "The Ancient Elf." Poem Hunter. 4 Apr 2006 http://www.poemhunter.com/p/m/poem.asp?poet=36917&poem=448801
• Stephens, James. "The Cage." International Vegetarian Union. Anthology of poetry--19th/early 20th century. 4 Apr 2006. http://www.ivu.org/people/quotes/poems19.html
• Stephens, James. "Little Creatures." International Vegetarian Union. Anthology of poetry--19th/early 20th century. 4 Apr 2006. http://www.ivu.org/people/quotes/poems19.html

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• Book Review # 102609 : "James Joyce's "Ulysses"

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