Poetry may be one of the most common vehicles for emotional expression, especially the expression of romantic love. From Milton to Shakespeare, poets have woven words that capture their audiences as well as the object of their affection. Often the verses that talented poets pen linger for years, even centuries, as love is a universal experience. Love poems also appeal to all readers, especially if their language is straightforward and accessible. Without resorting to complicated diction or convoluted metaphors, George Gordon, Lord Byron, communicates his affection and admiration for his female lover in "She Walks in Beauty." Moreover, "She Walks in Beauty" affects me personally because it reminds me of romantic ideals; like love itself, the poem is at once simple and evocative.
Lord Byron does not use unnecessary symbolism to describe his love. Instead, he extends metaphors to color the nature of his emotions. The first line of the poem…...
pleasant and romantic world depicted in "She alks in Beauty," Byron illustrates a dark, cold, and hopeless world in "Darkness." "Darkness" is an elaborately detailed poem that remains a testament to Byron's flexibility as a poet. hen I consider the personal and external forces at work in Byron's life at this time, it becomes easier to understand how he could so masterfully create a world that was full of despair and so far removed from the world he illustrated in "She alks Like Beauty."
By the time "Darkness" was published, Byron was already established as a poet whose talent covered a wide range. (Bartleby) "She alks in Beauty" was written in 1814, and is presumably written for Mrs. Robert John ilmot, Byron's cousin. (u 668). Although only two years separate the two poems, there were forces other than love that were influencing Byron's life during those years. History provides a…...
Byron, George Gordon, Lord. The Complete Poetical Works. Ed. Jerome J. McGann and Barry Weller. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1980-92.
Cox, Jeffery and Snodgrass, Charles. Romantic Circles. ww?filter=%5E%2Fexport%2Fsoftware%2Frc%2Fwww&query=byron&lines=1&errors=0 & maxfiles=100&maxlines=1000&maxchars=10000> Site visited 23 February 2003.http://www.rc.umd.edu/webglimpse/webglimpse/export/software/rc/w
Leung, Matthew. Poetry of Byron. New York: Macmillan. 1964.
Price Beauty?
'For though beauty is seen and confessed by all, yet, from the many fruitless attempts to account for the cause of its being so, enquiries on this head have almost been given up"
illiam Hogarth, The Analysis of Beauty, (1753)
Not very encouraging words, but if the great artist illiam Hogarth felt himself up to the task, we can attempt at least to follow his lead. That beauty is enigmatic goes almost without saying. Different ages, different cultures, and even different individuals, will have their own definitions of "beauty." The problem is more than skin deep. Any term that can be so widely and irregularly employed is bound to trap the casual researcher ... Or reader ... Or viewer ... Or for that matter, any other human being who attempts to define what is and what is not "beauty." People, places, things -- even ideas dreams -- can all be…...
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Works Cited
Al-Braizat, Fares. "Muslims and Democracy: An Empirical Critique of Fukuyama's Culturalist Approach." International Journal of Comparative Sociology (2002): 269+.
Browne, Stephen H. "EDMUND BURKE (1729-1797)." Eighteenth-Century British and American Rhetorics and Rhetoricians: Critical Studies and Sources. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994. 42-50.
Callaghan, Karen A., ed. Ideals of Feminine Beauty: Philosophical, Social, and Cultural Dimensions. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1994.
"The Eighteenth-Century Beauty Contest." Eighteenth-Century Literary History: An MLQ Reader. Ed. Brown, Marshall. Durham, NC: Duke University Press, 1999. 204-234.
Most individuals fail to appreciate life to the fullest because they concentrate on being remembered as some of the greatest humans who ever lives. This makes it difficult for them to enjoy the simple pleasures in life, considering that they waste most of their time trying to put across ideas that are appealing to the masses. While many did not manage to produce ideas that survived more than them, others succeeded and actually produced thinking that remained in society for a long period of time consequent to their death.
Creativity is generally regarded as one of the most important concepts in society, considering that it generally induces intense feelings in individuals. It is responsible for progress and for the fact that humanity managed to produce a series of ideas that dominated society's thinking through time. In order for someone to create a concept that will live longer than him or her,…...
Being of nature, a supposedly passive entity does not necessarily stime the female poet, it can also, in Bishop's construcion, empower her as a speaker.
Yet, there is one caveat -- for Bishop's poem remains tantalizingly silent about her own gender as a female. Thus, even as late as Bishop, the idea of an openly female speaker within a poem associating herself with nature, and seeing herself reflected in nature remains tenuous. Thus, although not Byronic in its imposition of meaning upon the natural world, nor Barrett Browning like in its denial of it, Bishop does not comlpetely deny the cultural assumptions of associating women with nature that still haunt female poets today. Unlike men, women must grapple with this association as authors, of passivitity and feminine voicelessness as mere subjects of the poetic experience -- while men can chose to view nature as neutrals, rather than as conciously gendered…...
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Works Cited
Bishop, Elizabeth. "The Fish." From Charters, Ann & Samuel. Literature and its Writers. Third edition. New York: Bedford, 2002.
Browning, Elizabeth Barrett." "How do I love thee? From Charters, Ann & Samuel. Literature and its Writers. Third edition. New York: Bedford, 2002.
Gordon George -- Lord Byron. "She Walks in Beauty Like the Night. From Charters, Ann & Samuel. Literature and its Writers. Third edition. New York: Bedford, 2002.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem, "To a Beautiful Spring in a Village" represents the Romantic Movement in that the poet expresses appreciation for the "sweet stream." Coleridge is also expounding on his experience of the stream, which is an example of how the Romantic riters wrote. The poem celebrates the stream with its "friendly banks" and "pebbled falls," focusing on every detail and finding joy in all of them. (Perkins 397)
illiam ordsworth's poem, "Lines ritten in Early Spring" is an excellent example of Romantic verse as it, too, places a great deal of respect and awe upon nature. In this poem, ordsworth laments what "man has made of man" while rejoicing in the beauty of nature. The poet is emphasizing the workings of nature when he thinks that "every flower enjoys the air it breathes" and the birds around him "hopped and played" with their every movement seeming to be a…...
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Works Cited
Hall, Donald, ed. Contemporary American Poetry. New York: Penguin Books. 1971.
Perkins, David, ed. English Romantic Writers. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Christy Turlington explains to Elle magazine... "Advertising is so manipulative," she says. "There's not one picture in magazines today that's not airbrushed."… "It's funny," Turlington continues. "hen women see pictures of models in fashion magazines and say, 'I can never look like that,' what they don't realize is that no one can look that good without the help of a computer." (Hilary 13)
That's right, the beautiful Turlington, a woman that can be said as fitting the standard ideal of American beauty, admits that it is unachievable even for her. hy? Because even she admits that she has been touched up. In a similar exercise, we can only imagine the remarkable steadfastness this act must have taken, but it shows that there is a realization that this American image is unattainable (Domar 23).
The Trouble with Persisting Ideas
Even if the mechanism behind the spread and adoption of ideas is understood, there…...
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Works Cited
Anderson, Benedict. Imagined Communities: Reflections on the Origin and Spread of Nationalism. New York: Verso Publishing, 1991. Print.
This suspicion becomes even more ironically clear as we read further. As we progress with the analysis of the protagonist's description of his love we find even more apparently negative comparisons. For example, he states that that in comparison to perfumes his "mistress reeks" and that music has a much more "pleasing sound" than her voice. He also states that she is no goddess in the lines,
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground
However in the final couplet of the sonnet there is a dramatic change of tone and a radical change in our perception of the loved one. The final two lines read as follows.
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.
These two lines should be carefully considered as they ironically overturn the meaning and intention of the metaphorical comparisons that have been…...
As he himself admits, "I have a very grim perspective. I do feel that it's a grim, painful, nightmarish meaningless existence, and the only way to be happy is if you tell yourself some lies. One must have some delusions to live" ("Cannes 2010: oody Allen on Death -- 'I'm Strongly Against It'"). hat Midnight in Paris is for him (and us), therefore, is a kind of distraction from the reality that at some point the final credits will roll.
Malick's Tree of Life, then, is a kind of answer to Allen's melancholy. It is, of course, a religious answer told through an impressionistic and indirect medium. Nonetheless, unlike Allen, Malick is willing to embrace the spiritual side of man and explore its meanings and possibilities. For Malick, life is a spiritual journey that can lead one either upwards to the good or downwards to the bad. Allen's film may…...
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Works Cited
Allen, Woody, dir. Midnight in Paris. Los Angeles: Sony Pictures Classics, 2011.
Film.
Augustine. City of God. Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1888. Print.
Augustine. The City of God against the Pagans. Cambridge University Press, 2002.
Advertising
Applying Goffman to Modern Advertisements
Goffman and Gender Commercials
Goffman contends that the selection of commercial pictures in advertisements is intentional and serves a specific agenda that is not in service to consumers' well-being or natural interests. He argues this facet of culture is ripe for analysis with respect to topics such as sexuality, gender, power, the means of production, and social reality, among others. His strongest assertions concerns how analysis of the selection of commercial pictures reveals keen insights when comparing them to behavioral practices as experience in everyday interactions. Goffman grounds his hypotheses in concrete methodological practices, with primary aims to locate and define discovery, proof, and presentation. Grounding is his research in established methodology keeps opposition from arguing that his findings and conclusions are wild-eyed, paranoid theories that undermine American culture or the American way of life. He claims that the kind of analysis he proposes can be performed…...
The Birkin may still have some durability if it changes and morphs -- if smaller sizes, new colors, new models, or new fabrics suddenly become trendy. However, it cannot remain as it is in the peripatetic world of fashion and still draw attention.
What are the implications of broad diffusion and adoption of this innovation?
Very broad diffusion would result in the 'death' of the bag, even the death of Hermes; given the lack of diffusion of the brand in society is the point of owning the bag. Knock-offs and fakes are extremely common, to the point that many fashion magazines run articles on how to spot a fake Birkin.
Because of its waiting list, from a typical expensive Hermes bag, "Birkin has become a cultural emblem of elitism, privilege and celebrity" (Givhan 2004). One store put up a sign: "The Wait Is Over. Get Yours Now" (The wait list is over, 2011,…...
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References
Carter, Kelly. (2008). Can a Birkin bag get you special treatment? USA Today.
in "Piaf," Pam Gems provides a view into the life of the great French singer and arguably the greatest singer of her generation -- Edith Piaf. (Fildier and Primack, 1981), the slices that the playwright provides, more than adequately trace her life. Edith was born a waif on the streets of Paris (literally under a lamp-post). Abandoned by her parents -- a drunken street singer for a mother and a circus acrobat father -- Edith learns to fend for herself from the very beginning. As a natural consequence of her surroundings, she makes the acquaintance of several ne'er do wells. She rises above the lifestyles of the girls she grows up with who prostitute themselves for a living in the hope that they will eventually meet a benefactor with whom they can settle. Edith has a talent for singing and she indulges this interest by singing loudly in the streets.…...
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Bibliography
Beauvoir, Simone de, and Parshley, H.M. The Second Sex. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1993.pp. lv, 786
Eisenstein, Zillah R. The Radical Future of Liberal Feminism. The Northeastern Series in Feminist Theory. Northeastern University Press ed. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 1986.pp. xi, 260
Engels, Fredrick. "The Development of Utopian Socialism." Trans. Lafargue, Paul. Marx/Engels Selected Works. Revue Socialiste. Ed. Basgen, Brian. Vol. 3. New York: Progress Publishers, 1880. 95-151.
This poem is a favorite of mine because it reminds me to slow down and appreciate everything. It does not take long nor does it take much to renew and revive and that is exactly what the poet wishes to communicate.
In Joy Harjo's "Remember," the poet uses imagery and personification to convey points of importance. Because the poet is encouraging someone to remember, she pulls images from experience that will be familiar. She begins by telling the reader to "Remember the sky" (Harjo 1) and to "know each of the star stories" (2). In addition, it is important to know the moon. The poet wants to use images the reader already knows and identifies with in order to stress the importance of connecting with the earth. The importance of remembering one's parents is also important because we are all connected. She tells the reader to remember the "earth whose skin…...
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Works Cited
Bishop, Elizabeth. "The Fish." Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 9th Edition.
edited by Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River, NJ:
Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2007. Print.
Frost, Robert. "Stopping by Woods." Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 9th Edition.
Because males were typically depicted as participating in some sort of action, men viewing advertisements most likely saw the action as superior to the men's looks, suggesting pressure to excel at professions, sports, or family life, instead of pressure to perfect their bodies.
In advertisements featuring men today, however, it is clear that men are being used solely for their looks. There is no clearer testimony to this than the following billboard advertisement for clothing brand Abercrombie and Fitch ("Billboards Archives"):
On this billboard, the male model displays his chest and has his hands positioned in an almost sexual posture suggesting that his body is otherwise perfected. The fact that his head is cut out of the picture leaves no room for argument as to whether or not this is an advertisement that uses the make model to suggest beauty or physical aesthetics alone. Clearly, the model is featured in order…...
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Works Cited
"Abercrombie Ad." Interesting Ads. 7 May 2007. Xanga. 20 April 2009.
"Billboards Archives." Racked: New York. 27 Dec. 2007. 20 April 2009.
Though the reader understands that this is impossible as the beauty of youth cannot last forever, Shakespeare makes a point to remedy this. The speaker in the poem notes that his love's timelessness will be ensured through his actions of writing about her. No matter what happens to either of them through the course of their own lives, the beauty of the woman being written about and love that existed at the moment of the poem's writing will be carried unaltered through the ages to come -- which has proven true for centuries.
Ezra Tompkins' poem, "What is it that Compels," focuses on the themes of love, death, and the fleetingness of human existence. The poem centers upon the speaker after the death of his father and his observance of the way his mother is handling the death of her husband. Tompkins' poem deals with the hardships that come when…...
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References
Blake, William. "To See the World in a Grain of Sand [from Auguries of Innocence]."
The Complete Poetry and Prose of William Blake. Harpswell, Maine: Anchor. 1997. 80-84. Print.
Shakespeare, William. "Shall I Compare Thee to a Summer's Day?" Love Poems and Sonnets of William Shakespeare. New York, NY: Doubleday Press. 1957. 13. Print.
Stallworthy, Jon. "Sindhi Woman." Rounding the Horn: Collected Poems. Manchester,
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