A Musical Instrument Poem Analysis

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We often take life for granted. In the process of fulfilling our desires, we gradually destroy the essence of nature and our morals. In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “A Musical Instrument”, the parallel between nature and humanity reflects the blindness and greed of humanity through the natural process of destruction and creation. Conveyed significantly with literary elements such as imagery, tone, alliteration and repetition, Browning brings to attention the reality of humanity’s actions and drives mankind to grasp the idea that we are inherently born sinful. The natural yet chaotic process of destruction is vividly depicted with contrasting images of destruction and purity throughout the poem, beginning with Pan entering the river in a disorderly …show more content…

The last phrase of every stanza includes a phrase with “river” and “Great God Pan” is repeated in every stanza, Browning indicates the two major forces- Nature, the river, supplied all things, yet humanity- Great God Pan, expressed no regret on taking and destroying a part of nature, which has lost a part of itself permanently and is left to heal. This expresses how humans are flawed, featuring the giving force Nature, and the taking force, Humanity, which are set as antagonists because of our greed and selfishness. Furthermore, the “sweet” repeated 3 times in “Sweet, sweet, sweet, O Pan!” (31) contains a sarcastic and mournful undertone, in its over repetitiveness of the compliment. The destruction that occurred by man may have yielded a beautiful result, but that does not mean it was worth destroying or worth the temporary joy. The undertones exemplify regret in the sugar-coated cry because though the beauty of the song is stunning, the loss of a part of nature is unforgotten and there is bitterness and pain suffered in that. Humanity is set to realize our destructive capabilities, but most importantly, the fact that we

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