Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Poetry analysis of the works of Sylvia Plath and Robert Hayden about paternal love and affection reflects how fathers have become the symbols of brutal and cruel love for their children, stereotyping and marginalizing them in a society where mothers and women are favored as suitable guardians for their children. In Plath's "Daddy" and Hayden's "Those winter days," readers witness two opposing views of this theme -- where the former illustrates through an analogy of the hatred between Germans and Jews, and the latter, by expressing the unreciprocated love that fathers have for their children.
The father in Plath's poem is not dissimilar to Hayden's. In fact, both fathers are portrayed as silent, dominant, hardworking, yet tenacious in their character and attitude. However, what differentiates Plath's father from Hayden's is the expression of feelings that the former expresses, which is a mixture of hatred and awe for her father. Her hatred stems from the deep hatred that results from the antagonist relationship between Jews and Germans. This is evident in the line where Plath constantly identifies herself as a Jew instead of a 'German,' whom she embodies through her father's persona: "I think I may well be a Jew ... I may be a bit of a Jew ... " Furthermore, Plath differs from Hayden in that she attempts to destroy her memory of her father, by psychologically 'killing' him in the same way that history has shown how Germans have killed and destroyed the Jews. Hayden's explication of the theme lacks the violence and feistiness that Plath adopts in her poem. In Hayden's "Those winter days," readers are made to reflect on the almost indifferent attitude that we give to our fathers -- those people who felt unloved simply because they do not expressly manifest their feelings of love and affection. The poet makes us realize that through hard work and their 'silent' manner, fathers have implicitly shown their love for their children/family: "What did I know, what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?"
Works cited
Hayden, R. E-text of "Those winter days." Available at: http://www.thehellwithlove.com/poems/winterdays.htm.
Plath, S. E-text of "Daddy." Available at: http://www.americanpoems.com/poets/sylviaplath/1388.
Ultimately, Lady Lazarus uses her status as a failed suicide as a source of power, not disempowerment. The haunting words of the end of the tale that she is a woman who eats men like air are meant to underline the fact that despite the fact that the doctors feel that they are the source of her coming to life again and again, there is a strength of spirit within
Human Suffering in the Works of W. Faulkner, S. Plath, T. Roethke, and W. Shakespeare Literature is considered as one of humanity's powerful medium of expression. Different forms of expression are used in literature, such as poetry, plays, novels, and short stories. As a medium of expression, literature becomes the primary vehicle in expressing the human experience. Take as an example the theme of human suffering in literature. Numerous poems
Lady Lazarus 'A sort of walking miracle, my skin / Bright as a Nazi lampshade, / My right foot / A paperweight, / My face a featureless, fine / Jew linen," (lines 4-6). Sylvia Plath's poem "Lady Lazarus" is pervaded by chilling imagery evoking Nazi concentration camps and the decay of human flesh. Yet the tone of "Lady Lazarus" is more sarcastic than sad, more angry than fearful. Plath's poem describes
Sylvia Plath: The Use of Dramatic Monologue as Confessional Poetry Sylvia Plath presents an unusual paradox as a writer. On one hand, she is lauded by literary critics, particularly feminist critics, for her use of confessional poetry. Specifically, in poems such as "Daddy" and "Lady Lazarus" Plath is assumed to be 'confessing' certain aspects of her personal life. Like the speaker of "Daddy," she was the daughter of a German father;
Eventually, Esther sneaks into the cellar with a bottle of sleeping pills -- prescribed to her for the insomnia she was experiencing, without any other real attempts to understand or solve the underlying problems of her mental upset -- having left a note for her mother saying she was taking a long walk. Esther then swallows as many of the pills as she is able, and it appears to
Poe and the Imp of the Perverse The Imp of the Perverse Edgar Allan Poe is known for exploring the psychological constructs of horror and terror through his short stories. In Poe's "Imp of the Perverse," "The Tell-Tale Heart," and "The Black Cat," the respective narrators of these stories attempt to give a logical explanation for the manner in which they conducted themselves. Through these stories, Poe explores the impact a mental