Comparing "Advice to a Son" and "It a Dream" by Hemingway and Clifton

¶ … Advice in "Advice to a Son" and "It Was a Dream"

Both Ernest Hemingway's "Advice to a Son" and Lucille Clifton's "It Was a Dream" aim to inspire, yet key differences in style influence the impact of the authors' message and intent. Both poems seek to provide advice and approach the matter in different ways.

Hemingway's "Advice to a Son" provides a list of dos and don'ts that have helped him achieve his goals in life. "Advice to a Son" draws from Hemingway's experiences in multiple wars and conflicts, his multiple marriages, and his writing career. He also refers to historical events and the impact that they had on the world. Hemingway tells his son to not "enlist in armies/Nor marry many wives" and to "Never trust a publisher" because they will rob one of their money due and "you'll sleep on straw." Hemingway also provides a sense of reassurance at the end of the poem after stating that "All your friends will leave you/All your friends will die," but there is no need to worry because if you "lead a clean and wholesome life…you will join them in the sky."

Clifton, on the other hand, does not provide a detailed list that will help ensure the unidentified audience a happy life. Clifton's poem is based upon a dream in which she asks her "greater self" for advice on what she could have and should have done with her life. The poem offers no concrete advice, but rather says that she should have done "This. This. This."

Though both poems have the intent to provide advice to someone so that they may lead a more accomplished and fulfilled life and are self-reflective, differences between the poems allow for a more critical analysis of the messages conveyed. The poets' perspective in the poems is a key distinction in the style utilized by Hemingway and Clifton. Hemingway provides a first person perspective and dictates his message to a specified person, in this case, his son. Clifton projects her subconscious self, describing herself as having twisted and wild hair, "sparked & #8230;wild eyes," and that she "screamed" at herself. Whereas Hemingway's poem appears to look to the future and provides advice to his son, Clifton's poem looks to the past and to how she could have done things differently. In this manner, it appears that Hemingway is unapologetic and has no regrets about the life he has led, but Clifton appears to doubt her choices in life and wishes she could have led a different life. Hemingway's poem offers advice and provides guidance based on experience, whereas Clifton's message is ambiguous and provides no clear guidance to the reader. Hemingway's poem draws heavily on his life experiences and the lessons that he has learned over the years. He also draws from memorable events in his life that helped to shape who he is. Clifton's poem draws upon what she perceives her life to have been on a subconscious level. It appears as though Clifton is haunted by her past, whereas Hemingway embraces it regardless of whether the event was positive or negative. The extent to which the authors have experienced life is also explored in their poems. While Hemingway appears to have lived a colorful and fulfilling life, Clifton appears to regret living an unfulfilled life.