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However the speaker in "The Pains of Sleep" seems to have a much firmer grip on reality in his waking hours, whereas that of "Kubla Khan" persists in deluding himself even when not strictly in the vision, with his imaginings of the dome in the air.
Clare's "A Vision," "I Am," and "An Invite to Eternity"
1) How is "A Vision" similar to "Kubla Kahn" in mood and tone? What specific word choices lead to this similarity? Words like "glow," "flame," "faded," and "eternal ray" all contribute to the same sort of ethereal tone as "Kubla Khan." He supernatural quality is signified in both poems by a sense of auras; of things emanating their presence beyond their physical boundaries. These words are some of the specific indicators of that phenomenon in this poem.
2) How do you interpret the last stanza of "A Vision"? How does it relate to the prior stanza? In context with the preceding stanza, where the speaker "loved but woman fell away," the last stanza's "immortal birth" and the spirit kept free may refer...
This also fits with the "spurned lust of earth" the speaker mentions in the first stanza, tying the poem together.
3) How does Clare take the idea of peaceful rest further than Coleridge? What does he add? Clare adds a complete sense of "nothingness" and solitude to his poem craving rest, as opposed to Coleridge who finds his comfort in love (of another person) and the replacement of bad feeling with good. Clare also brings in the concept of God, whom he wants as his only companion.
4) Read through the lyrics to the Toadies "Possum Kingdom" and then write just a few sentences about what they share, noting in particular the role of the speaker. This poem has many similarities to the song, especially with the speaker trying to entice a girl to go somewhere she obviously does not want to go, and making promises he cannot keep to convince her to go. This speaker also uses negatives about the world he is convincing her to leave, though, making it seem more logical but also more sinister.
They are of an indeterminate time and place -- like a dream. Coleridge's evident admiration for this fantastic place makes the viewer admire it as well, although it could also be interpreted as the palace of an autocrat. At times, his declarative language makes the viewer almost believe that the poem is true, given the specificity of his images. But the poet also admits that the "damsel with a dulcimer"
Kubla Khan" Coleridge writes, "In Xanadu did Kubla Khan / a stately pleasure dome did decree:" (1-2). The author and work is identified, and then the passage is recreated as close to the original as possible. There punctuation differs from the case of using three lines or less. In, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," T.S. Eliot writes: Let us go then, you and I, When the evening is spread out against
‘Kubla Khan’ by Samuel Taylor Coleridge is a world-famous poem that many believe has romantic influence. Written in the summer of 1797, Coleridge, then in ill health, decided to retire to a farm house in the middle of Linton and Porlock, by himself. He had a profound sleep for several hours, to which came to him the lines that would turn in Kubla Khan’. Although due to some questioning by
In other words, the simile is more concrete and memorable than the green hill it is supposed to describe. The lack of 'realism' of the poem becomes even more evident through the use of such strange language: the use of language is more important than describing something 'real' like a hill. If this were not extravagant enough, Coleridge piles yet another image on top of this one that asks the
His belief that literature is a magical blend of thought and emotion is at the very heart of his greatest works, in which the unreal is often made to seem real. Samuel Taylor Coleridge effectively freed British (and other) poetry from its 18th century Neo-classical constraints, allowing the poetic (and receptive) imagination to roam free. Works Cited Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. Kublai Khan. In The Portable Coleridge, I.A. Richards Ed.). New York: Penguin, 1987.
" However, refutes Ernest Coleridge, whatever may be said about Coleridge for or against, as an "inventor of harmonies," his self-criticism was the most stern of all. He continually wrote and rewrote his work in order "discover and reveal the hidden springs, the thoughts and passions of the artificer." One would be wrong to believe that it was only his family that thought his work excellent. Many later critics have been