Carl Sandburg was one of the leading poets and writers of his time. He won two Pulitzer prizes for both his Complete Poems and his autobiography on Lincoln. However, critics have been split on their viewpoints of Sandburg. Some feel he is a masterful poet weaving together political messages with his “folksy” writing, while others feel that he is a writer scribbling his ideas down with no poetic technique. Carl Sandburg’s poetry has been praised and criticized because of its roots in the Midwest, its distinct style, and its distinctive blend of poetry and politics.
A majority of Sandburg’s poetry either deals with the Midwest itself, or was made with the experiences that Carl Sandburg had in the Midwest himself. In the early 1900’s a new Midwest
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“Basic economic injustice, as well as related inequities of social privilege, legal rights, and political power, became the dominant theme of Chicago Poems.” (Wienen) A fantastic example of this is in his poem “Boes”. In it he says "Well, the cattle are respectable, I thought. / Every steer has its transportation paid for by the farmer sending it to market, / While the hoboes are law-breakers in riding a railroad train without a ticket." (6-10) In this poem he sympathizes with the hoboes, who are treated as if they were below cattle. The comparison heightens the socialist ideals of the removal of the class system. Sandburg’s most famous usage of socialism in his poetry was in his poem “Chicago”. The most direct form of protest against the capitalist system was his portrayal of the innocent women and children in “wanton hunger.” This poem was published at Sandburg’s peak in his usage of socialism in all of his literary pursuits: in his poetry, and even in his journalism as a newspaper editor. Sandburg was successfully bringing politics to literature, which at this time period was very uncommon. However, one of Sandburg’s later works, The People Yes was hailed by some as a sociological document that every man should read. However, Gary Wilson Allen believes “It is rather a psalm-or a series of psalms-written out of Sandburg’s religion of humanity.” He is saying that each of the ideas contained in The People, Yes are more similar to a small religious song, than to a great document. Sandburg was well known for his ability to combine politics and
With the coming of the new century America under goes a change led by many different events. The collection of poems written in Lee Masters book Spoon River Anthology portrays the typical small town at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Show the different social, economical, and political trend and influences throughout the United States.
This Book was pretty much an easy read for me. His poems are not very long and cut to the chase. While reading them I noticed there was always something exciting that caught my attention to keep me reading on. In the first couple pages of “For the Confederate Dead”, the poems names are very organic. This is one of the reasons I was drawn into this book. With names like Flame, Water, Ai...
Part I of A Sand County Almanac is devoted to the details of a single piece of land: Leopold’s 120-acre farmed-out farmstead in central Wisconsin, abandoned as a farm years before because of the poor soil from which the "sand counties" took their nickname. It was at this weekend retreat, Leopold says, "that we try to rebuild, with shovel and axe, what we are losing elsewhere". Month by month, Leopold leads the reader through the progression of the seasons with descriptions of such things as skunk tracks, mouse economics, the songs, habits, and attitudes of dozens of bird species, cycles of high water in the river, the timely appearance and blooming of several plants, and the joys of cutting one’s own firewood.
The eyes of potential soul arose into the world in Senegambia, and half way around the world in Easton arisen a soul to be etched into the world forever. A girl , no , a woman I should say given the strength possessed in the soul of her body and mind and certainly a man , a man who will grow to learn fathoms of knowledge breaking the impenetrable minds of those who heard silence. These two were of separate shades although fused from one deep pigment. Two of the most renowned black writers that were for the abolitionist movement in America were Frederick Douglass and Phillis Wheatley. During the times of slavery, finding a literate black slave who could read the very words of a paper who could then think for themselves and stand up to show who they were , to speak with wisdom to tell off the silenced cowards who looked away at the reality of the world was rare . These two authors with bold spirits managed to write literature that inspired the minds of people to change. Wheatley would move her readers with a delicate, yet powerful literature while Douglass would use strong authoritative use of words. ……During the years of 1773 and 1845, works of perfection and meaning arose. In 1773 a work by Phillis Wheatley was published. A poem called “On Being Brought from Africa to America” that had described a doomed destiny but enclosed in a veil of liberation and sovereignty. Wheatley was one of the more passive writers. She knew she was a slave reckoned with no moral standing in the eyes of the whites, and she was aware of her place in society as against the whites. She knew the only way to grasp the attention of her readers was to enflame them in anger. When analyzing slavery...
Frances E.W. Harper and James Whitfield are two of the most influential anti-slavery poets of all time. Both individuals use poetry as a form of resistance and as a way to express themselves during a time of great racial tension. Their poems reach out to many different audiences, shedding light on racial injustices that were present in America. Harper’s and Whitfield’s poetry, like many other works that were written during this time, help us to better comprehend the effects of slavery on African Americans.
In conclusion, two important literary nonfiction forms that Frederick Douglass identifies in “How I Learned to Read and Write” are a sense of place, and personal experience. Douglass’s essay executed examples of these two forms separately as well as together, numerous times throughout his piece. Douglass centralized his writing around his personal experiences, studying and accomplishing the ability to read and write despite the many difficulties he faced. The portrayal of a sense of place ingrained throughout his writing sheds a light on the locations and stages in his life he experienced these events. He was able to successful correlate these two forms together to create an unforgettable and inspirational story. A story of overcoming adversity, and achieving the impossible in a time whenever all odds were against him.
American poetry, unlike other nations’ poetry, is still in the nascent stage because of the absence of a history in comparison to other nations’ poetry humming with matured voices. Nevertheless, in the past century, American poetry has received the recognition it deserves from the creative poetic compositions of Walt Whitman, who has been called “the father of American poetry.” His dynamic style and uncommon content is well exhibited in his famous poem “Song of Myself,” giving a direction to the American writers of posterity. In addition, his distinct use of the line and breath has had a huge impression on the compositions of a number of poets, especially on the works of the present-day poet Allen Ginsberg, whose debatable poem “Howl” reverberates with the traits of Whitman’s poetry. Nevertheless, while the form and content of “Howl” may have been impressed by “Song of Myself,” Ginsberg’s poem expresses a change from Whitman’s use of the line, his first-person recital, and his vision of America. As Whitman’s seamless lines are open-ended, speaking the voice of a universal speaker presenting a positive outlook of America, Ginsberg’s poem, on the contrary, uses long lines that end inward to present the uneasiness and madness that feature the vision of America that Ginsberg exhibits through the voice of a prophetic speaker.
During week nine of class, we watched the 1940 film, Abe Lincoln in Illinois, written by Robert E. Sherwood. As we continued to look at the most precise version of Abraham Lincoln each week, the one theme that stood out over the rest in this film was Lincoln’s reluctance throughout his political career, specifically on the issue of slavery. Although previous readings had glossed over this characteristic of Lincoln, Sherwood’s film even goes as far as to coordinate Abe’s reluctant attitude with the overall darkness of the background and clothing of the characters the more this trait is expressed. Mr. Sherwood’s choice to exemplify this aspect of President Lincoln was due to the World War Two era in which it was produced. Unlike previous weeks,
Yale Professor David Blight's book examines four writers he believes to be important in the study of the Civil War. These authors are: Robert Penn Warren, Bruce Catton, Edmund Wilson, and James Baldwin. He believes these four were significant in the literary works about the Civil War and left a profound impact on our Civil War understanding. These men represent the turn of the twentieth century views of the Civil War. The divergent backgrounds of the four writers provide different points of view with which David Blight tackles the literary view of racism, the war, and the Lost Cause. The intent of the book is to create an uncomfortable feeling in the reader's comprehension of all that is related to the Civil War as they are challenged on what
Poet Henry Timrod, a Southerner, who is sometimes called "the poet of the Lost Cause," writes about a threat to Southern culture in his poem "Carolina."
James Wright’s poem “Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio” was published in 1963, and like many of his other works, points focus toward the nature of human life in the Rust Belt region of America. Within the Rust Belt, poverty was common due to the after effects of the Great Depression and the decline in mining. Sports and entertainment were one of the ways that individuals afflicted by poverty were able to escape the reality of their conditions.Wright’s open form poem follows a narrator's thoughts of his immediate and regional surroundings while watching a high school football game. One may look at this poem as the football game providing not just a mental escape for the parents and townspeople, but also hope for the sons to make it out of
... once ferried African-American slaves; the presidential figure is a time mark for the reader. Another analytical reference from Eliot’s essay would be “the poem must be very conscious of the main current, which does not at all flow invariably through the most distinguished reputations”; the speaker refers back to the Slave Tradition and makes a clear statement about the south, using Abe Lincoln as a time period.
Eloquent is exercising the power of fluent, forceful, and appropriate speech. (Eloquent) “This difficult poem, written in neoclassical style, is included in this collection partly because of the remarkable story of its author, partly to show how early the celebration of Washington began, and how widely he was admired.” (What So Proudly We Hail). The poem focuses on supporting Washington, his fight for freedom and what is right and just. “The land of freedoms heaven defended race! Fixed eyes of nations on the scales, For in their hopes Columbia’s arm prevails,” (Wheatley). “Thy ev’ry action let the Goddess guide. A crown, a mansion, and a throne that shine, With gold unfading, WASHINGTON! Be thine.” (Wheatley). This poem gives a precisely eloquent theme, she speaks affirmatively and gives him praise for all that he is standing up for and against.
Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known by the pseudonym Mark Twain, has been central to American literature for over a century. His seemingly effortless diction accurately exemplified America’s southern culture. From his early experiences in journalism to his most famous fictional works, Twain has remained relevant to American writing as well as pop culture. His iconic works are timeless and have given inspiration the youth of America for decades. He distanced himself from formal writing and became one of the most celebrated humorists. Mark Twain’s use of the common vernacular set him apart from authors of his era giving his readers a sense of familiarity and emotional connection to his characters and himself.
Sandburg paints a portrait of a city that is, in some ways, very human. It's flawed and it's beautiful, it's rough-and-tumble and intense. It's vibrant and multi-faceted. It turns out that the best way for Sandburg to comprehend the city is to compare it to a human being—that way, we have a tangible frame of reference for all the beautiful, strong, messiness.