Abstract A paper about Americanpoets during the period 1951-1960. It traces the style and mood reflected in the fifties and states the poetic preferences of the audience of the time. Basically it focuses on the poets of the era and their styles compared to others of the Beat generation.
Abstract This paper discusses two distinguished, but distinctive Americanpoets - Phillis Wheatley and Walt Whitman. The paper compares and contrasts both of these poets respective works. It describes the various biographical factors that influenced their works, especially in terms of form, style, tone and content. It shows how they both write from different sources of personal inspiration, life experience and personal and artistic viewpoint.
From the Paper " Whitman's poem "I Hear America Singing", on the other hand, is a straightforward celebration of America's diversity, or its "varied carols." Here, Whitman mentions American "singers" from all walks of life, each singing his or her varied songs, yet making harmony with the rest, "Singing with open mouths their strong melodious songs." The singers in Whitman's poem may be mechanics; carpenters; shoemakers; mothers; young girls; or others, but each sings "what belongs to him or her and to none else", separately yet in harmony. This poem is an ode to all common working Americans from all walks of life, and a celebration of the diverse individuals, skills, interests, and jobs that comprise America. As Whitman further suggests, there for songs for day, songs for night, and songs for all times in between, yet each American has a distinctive and important song to sing."
Abstract This paper studies the Americanpoet Walt Whitman (1819-1892), one of the first to embrace uniquely American themes, styles and literary concerns. This paper examines Whitman's unique poetic voice and personal philosophy of poetry in order to show how Whitman established the first uniquely American voice within poetry, one separate from the mostly pre-Victorian and Victorian-inspired poetic styles, forms and themes of earlier Americanpoets. The paper also explicates two sets of Whitman's free-verse poems: (1) Three of his earliest poems from "Leaves of Grass" (1855) and (2) four of his later Civil War poems, written from 1861-1865. Together these poems demonstrate how far Whitman had moved beyond British influence, to become the great innovator of modern American poetry.
From the Paper "Within America before the Civil War, American literature most often closely imitated writing styles, tones and even thematic concerns of both past and present British authors. Before the poetry of Whitman in particular, American poets like Bradstreet, Taylor, Bryant, Wheatley, and others adopted British verse forms and other poetic conventions, shaping them to their own artistic voices and concerns within the New World. In several of Puritan poet Anne Bradstreet's poems that were either to or about her husband or children for example, Bradstreet closely imitated the metaphysical style of John Donne. The expansive, flowing, and exuberant free-verse works of Walt Whitman, which did none of that, may therefore be considered the first truly American poetry, reflecting, as it does, influences, moods, concerns, ways of expression, and social and political movements within American itself, and nowhere else, with a new and unique style and forms."
Compares the poetry of two religious Americanpoets, Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor, and provides some background information on the poets and their poetry.
1,900 words (approx. 7.6 pages), 5 sources, 2002, $ 71.95
Abstract This paper compares two of the most famous and religious Americanpoets, Anne Bradstreet and Edward Taylor. It gives a brief detail of the poets, their work and some quotations written by both of the poets in their poems.
Abstract This paper discusses the poetry of Emily Dickinson, Elizabeth Bishop, Marianne Moore, Sylvia Plath, Wallace Stevens, and T.S. Eliot, and explores the unique perspective women bring to poetry. Two representative works of each of these poets are analyzed, then the paper concludes with comments regarding which poet has influenced the author the most, and which has had the least impact.
Abstract This paper begins with a look at the death by suicide of poet Sylvia Plath and her previous attempts at suicide throughout her life. The paper then looks at Plath's childhood, her relationship with her parents, her academic achievements, her marriage and her writings.
From the Paper "One of America's best known twentieth century poets, Sylvia Plath (1932-1963) lived an artistically productive but tragic life, and committed suicide in 1963 while separated from her husband, the British poet Ted Hughes. Before her death at age 30, Sylvia Plath had suffered a bout of severe depression for several months, the likely result of her separation from Ted Hughes and her strong suspicion of his adultery with the English poet Assia Wevill ("Sylvia Plath"; "Sylvia Plath, 1932-1963" 2). Sylvia Plath had also made several previous suicide attempts, beginning at age 20, or perhaps even earlier, always precipitated by the spells of depression and debilitating self-doubt that dogged the poet from early adolescence on (Neurotic Poets, Sylvia Plath 6-7)."
Abstract This paper discusses how each of the great current Americanpoets has developed a distinct style that is reflected in their technical and poetic form. The paper briefly looks at and discusses the poetic and technical concerns of the following poets: Billy Collins, Donald Hall, Mary Oliver, Sharon Olds and Gary Soto. Included in the paper are quote examples from each of the poets' works to illustrate the differences in their style.
From the Paper "Billy Collins, an American Poet Laureate, has a form that uses a distinctly sarcastic and humorous tone. This form is evident in his poem "The Art of Drowning", where he states about life flashing before one's eyes as they drown, "But if something does flash before your eyes as you go under, it will probably be a fish, a quick blur of curved silver darting away, having nothing to do with your life or your death" (Qtd. in Khoury). Mazin Khoury states, "Collins uses simplistic stanzas to try to create images that pull the reader away from real life and draw them into his poetic creation" (Khoury). This use of imagery and sarcasm distinguishes Collins' style."
This paper discusses William Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 29' and Christopher Marlowe's, 'The Passionate Shepherd to his Love' with reference to their similarities and dissimilarities plus other poets.
3,400 words (approx. 13.6 pages), 0 sources, 2001, $ 96.95
Abstract The paper compares and contrasts the themes, poetic techniques, choices of description and unique individual styles of the following poets and poems: William Shakespeare's 'Sonnet 29' and Christopher Marlowe's, 'The Passionate Shepherd to his Love', Michael Drayton's 61 and Sir Philip Sidney's 20,William Shakespeare's, Sonnet I and Walter Ralegh's, A Farewell to False Love,Sir Philip Sidney's 7 and William Shakespeare's, Sonnet 18,William Shakespeare's, Sonnet 55 and William Shakespeare's, Sonnet 71.
From the paper:
" These two poems share one common theme, the happiness that their love brings them. But these two poems achieve this in very different ways. Marlowe's poem reads as a love poem. He is addressing his love and telling her how good life will be if she will be his love. At the same time he is also telling himself how much he needs her love. Marlowe does this simply by focusing on what life would be like. He focuses on all the pleasures that will come. In the first section he says that they will gather all the pleasures that are offered. He is referring here to how his life is not complete without her love and how everything will be more beautiful and more appreciated if she is there. He describes everything as perfect and calm. Phrases such as "melodious birds", "fragrant posies", "pretty lambs" and "silver dishes" all add to the feeling of contentment".
Abstract Americanpoet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow is known for his poetic imagination and diversity. The subjects of his poems range from serious to light-hearted, all written with perfect rhyme and meter. This paper examines Longfellow's style and techniques in the poems, ?A Psalm of Life,? ?The Rainy Day,? and ?The Children's Hour.?
From the Paper ""The Children's Hour" also contains vivid imagery that helps us envision the castle in which the poem takes place. He paints a clear portrait of the girls in the lamplight that shines in the stairway by "three doors unguarded" (19). We see the poet's use of metaphor when he calls the children's rush in the room a "raid" (18) and the contrast of their youth to his age when he refers to himself as an "old mustache" (31). Additionally, Longfellow also uses the castle as a metaphor of his heart, which will secure the father's love for his children always."
This paper discusses Rita Dove, perhaps the most representative African-Americanpoet of our times and one of the most important poets of the 20th century in the United States.
Abstract This paper explains that Rita Dove talks about her discovery of verse early in her childhood in the home of culture-loving parents who had "two half-walls of bookshelves" and encouraged the children to read whatever they wanted, reading simply for the pleasure of it rather than for the critical interpretations. The author points out that her works act in several different directions: observation, life experience, tradition, heritage, dream, reflection, and metaphor. The paper relates that several critical considerations on the form of Rita Dove's poetry have shown that, while being "sensitive to the nuances of language, rhythm, and meter", she doesn"t shy away from experimenting with different poetic formats, such as sonnets, even if she doesn"t necessarily respect the strict Shakespearean format.
From the Paper "Her first collection of poetry, "The Yellow House on the Corner", was published in 1980, and many other literary works followed throughout the 80s and 90s, including a novel "Through the Ivory Gate" in 1992 and a verse drama "The Darker Face of Earth" in 1994. Her entire literary performance was rewarded with a Pulitzer Prize in 1987, thus becoming the second African-American woman to receive this award, as recognition of her prestigious writings."
Abstract The writer of this well-researched paper details the personal and historical events, of 19th century America, that impacted Walt Whitman's style of writing. This paper cites various quotes from Whitman's poems that related to personal experiences in his life. One experience that greatly impacted Whitman's writing was the time he spent as a nurse during the Civil War. Whitman typically wrote poetry to express his emotions as well as work through them by attempting to make sense of what was going on around him. This paper discusses how Whitman's poem "Song of Myself" revealed the devastation caused by the war, while also illustrating Whitman's ability to speak for every man.
This paper analyzes how Whitman's writing touches on the human experience in numerous ways. The writer discusses the various themes prevalent throughout Whitman's writings. One major theme that emerges is that of mankind connecting, either with himself, others or nature. Whitman was compelled to challenge the literature of his day. He wanted to write for the common man rather than the intellectual one. The writer contends and explains why connecting with his fellow man was essential to Whitman. One poem that illustrates this aspect of Whitman's personality is "Leaves of Grass." In this particular poem, Whitman reaches out to others as he speaks for them. Whitman's belief was that every man was worthy of freedom, regardless of race or sex.
From the Paper "What the review does not consider is how Whitman is able to connect with what is around him. This connection with his soul, nature, the universe, and others is indeed different but that alone does not warrant a bad review. The Saturday Review does acknowledge that that even if "Whitman was as "powerful and new and American and rousing" as some would like to believe, this "does not make him out to be a poet." In addition, the Saturday Review rejects the notion that a poet can be defined "merely because he holds forth in rhapsodical style about one man being as good as another" and claims that this type of definition confuses the "functions of the poet and the stump orator; and generally, when Walt Whitman has any meaning at all, it amounts to no more than this."
Tags: litearture, history, american, civil, war, poetry
Abstract This paper evaluates the effort being made by AmericanPoet Laureate Robert Hass to lift the European impact from American English ,thus making the latter a truly original and authentic language. It examines how, even though there are several great examples of prose in American English, there are very few truly American poetry collections present and thus Hass efforts are likely to go a long way in eradicating this serious dearth of genuine American poetry. The paper also cites examples from his collection, "Sun Under Wood" and shows how the poet accentuates simplicity to reveal the beauty of American version of English language.
From the Paper "In the Sun Under Wood for example, Hass used his views on English language to express the emotions of various men and women and explored their psyche using simple everyday American terms. This is an effort worth praising as Gail Wronsky (1997) writes, ??what is profoundly revolutionary than the giving up of space on the page to these female voices is the fact that Hass has given the anima psychic space as well - has explored, as a poet, subject matters and emotions traditionally the provinces of women writers; he risks sentiment, for crying out loud! In "Regalia for a Black Hat Dancer," for example, among so many other things, we find "children's crayon drawings on the wall."?
Tags: european, impact, japanese, haiku, traditional
This paper studies Ralph Waldo Emerson's essay "The Poet" which details the life and role of a poet in society and compares it to Walt Whitman's poem, "Song of Myself".
Abstract This paper studies the life and works and accomplishments of Ralph Waldo Emerson. It studies his essay "The Poet" and describes his idealistic vision of the life of a poet. It also describes the 19th-century artistic and philosophical movement called transcendentalism that he founded. Throughout this paper, the author compares Emerson's ideals to Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself". It also examines Ralph Waldo Emerson's strong influence and effect on American society.
From the Paper "Ralph Waldo Emerson's idealized and mesmerizing description of the role and life of the poet in his essay "The Poet" describes not only the particular calling and obligation of those who choose to follow the poetic muses but also ? because of Emerson's own influence on the writings of Americans who followed him ? proved to be a strongly proscriptive piece of advice for other poets and writers in the decades after Emerson helped to found the 19th-century artistic and philosophical movement called Transcendentalism. The Transcendentalists defined themselves by their belief in a highly idealistic and fundamentally coherent system of belief in the essential unity of all things on earth ? the connection of each thing to its neighbor ? as well as a belief in the absolute importance of personal experience and insight (as opposed to knowledge and beliefs gained through formal logic and formal education) and the essential goodness of humanity."
Abstract This paper discusses poems by Amiri Baraka, Robert Hayden, and Michael S. Harper, exploring how each poet uses imagery of the human (specifically African-American) body to convey meaning. Baraka sees the body as a potential instrument for social change, calling for Black poets to create work that will inspire real action. Hayden describes the horrific lynching of a Southern Black man, exposing the sinister motives of his white attackers. Finally, Harper crafts a tribute to Coltrane, detailing the legendary musician's struggle with pain, both physical and existential.
From the Paper "I have been reading the work of Amiri Baraka for several years now, but have only recently become more intensely interested in the complex style of this challenging poet. Baraka probably has the most unique, original style of any modern poet I?ve read, a style which, for me, is generally most effective when he reads it aloud than when simply read from the printed page. Much of Baraka's poetry is heavily influenced by jazz music, so if follows that his poems are fantastic on a purely auditory level. As entertaining and stirring a performer as Baraka is, I would argue that his poems must not be looked at as performance pieces, but also as the work of an accomplished craftsman. To that end, I searched for examples of literary criticism and scholarship that focused on the text of Baraka's work, rather than his impassioned delivery of it."
Abstract The life and times of Angelou are described in her book "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings." It describes her very difficult childhood and youth where she was abused physically and mentally, lived as a homeless person and was a teenage mother. It also describes how she finally found her niche and became a successful writer and poet for black civil rights causes.
From the Paper "In her autobiography, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, she chronicles her early life, a life full of events that would have broken many people. After her parents divorced, she was sent away from her home in California, at the age of three, with only her four-year-old brother for companionship. They had to travel by themselves to Stamps, Arkansas, to live with their grandmother. She was variously shipped off to her mother (in two separate locations), her father and other relatives. One of her mother's friends repeatedly molested and then raped her by the age of eight, in an attack severe enough to put her in the hospital. After he was tried and found guilty but given a very light sentence, he was found brutally beaten to death. This caused Maya to remain largely mute for some years after."
