Kubla Khan’s description of his stately pleasure-dome contains many picturesque elements which appear to be incorporating all the perfect components of nature as a whole. The contrasting images of the described landscape portray and further accentuate the awe-striking male figure against the mysterious and sensual oriental women. The characteristic mystery of these oriental women remains uncovered as Coleridge objectifies them with his stereotype, and identifies them as part of the mystical and enchanting Utopia he imagines. Contrarily, Coleridge bestows the male figure with such a dominating and awe-inducing character that, he places the coercive male figure superior to the women he describes. As he plunges deeper into his definition of paradise, Coleridge creates parallelism between nature and the human characters he depicts. In “A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment”, Coleridge uses the powerful imagery of nature to encapsulate both the underlying politics of Kubla Khan’s time and the objectification of oriental women to create a compelling piece of work.
Politics at this time and place did not portray oriental women as individuals differentiated by their ethnicities, but rather, they were thought to be collectively mysterious and exotic figures. The vague geography in the poem signifies the irrelevance of differences among the orients. Coleridge portrays an Abyssinian maid, a damsel with a dulcimer, and a woman wailing for her demon-lover—women with different ethnicities—all within his pleasure-dome. Furthermore, when he mentions these women, they are incorporated into the background scenery of the poem; the women aren’t given any character. For example, in the lines “As e’er beneath a waning moon was haunted/By a woman wailing f...
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... each other’s stories (Smith, Lecture 1).
Coleridge’s temporary inhabitance of Kubla Khan’s mind has given him access to power that he never had before. The power not only exists in the poem, but it also exists as a form of poetic imagination. Through his utilization of both forms of authority, he creates a masterful depiction of a flawless nature incorporating the objectification of women to heighten the beauty of his dream. Objectification carries along with it negative aspects such as stereotypes, but he was able to use it in such a way that it created beauty. His portrayal of contrasting images in the poem, such as the overpowering male figure against the subtle, fairy-like female figures, suggests a balance between reality and dreams. In “A Vision in a Dream: A Fragment”, Coleridge uses the power of imagination to seek a much wanted reality within his dream.
Authors use many different types of imagery in order to better portray their point of view to a reader. This imagery can depict many different things and often enhances the reader’s ability to picture what is occurring in a literary work, and therefore is more able to connect to the writing. An example of imagery used to enhance the quality of a story can be found in Leyvik Yehoash’s poem “Lynching.” In this poem, the imagery that repeatably appears is related to the body of the person who was lynched, and the various ways to describe different parts of his person. The repetition of these description serves as a textual echo, and the variation in description over the course of the poem helps to portray the events that occurred and their importance from the author to the reader. The repeated anatomic imagery and vivid description of various body parts is a textual echo used by Leyvik Yehoash and helps make his poem more powerful and effective for the reader and expand on its message about the hardship for African Americans living
Hurston’s juxtaposition of the dreams of men in contrast to the dreams of women is signified by the movement from concrete imagery to abstractions. She describes men’s dreams as cargo on a ship which is at the mercy of the tide, while women’s dreams are likened to memory, which can be controlled. Her deliberate choice to contrast the way that men and women dream affects the reader by immediately raising the issue of the differences of perception between the two genders. The purpose of this comparison is to immediately prompt the reader to realize a fundamental difference between men and women by using imagery they can relate to. The difference is also one of the novels thematic concerns: women are proud and defiant, they can control their wills and chase their dreams while men never really reach for their dreams. This is symbolized by men’s dreams on a ship; dreams for men either come to them or leave them, like a ship. A ship is
The readers are apt to feel confused in the contrasting ways the woman in this poem has been depicted. The lady described in the poem leads to contrasting lives during the day and night. She is a normal girl in her Cadillac in the day while in her pink Mustang she is a prostitute driving on highways in the night. In the poem the imagery of body recurs frequently as “moving in the dust” and “every time she is touched”. The reference to woman’s body could possibly be the metaphor for the derogatory ways women’s labor, especially the physical labor is represented. The contrast between day and night possibly highlights the two contrasting ways the women are represented in society.
...ight. The centuries that have elapsed between the two poems indicate that the power of women has increased in direct proportion to the later centuries. Though both these women have power, and each one of them practices it in her own right in accordance to the time period that each inhabits, the perception of their power is nowhere near that of their husbands. Where does that leave these women in their own societies? Though it may seem that both Wealhtheow and the Lady are in their husbands shadow, both considerably contribute to the control of the society in which they are part of the ruling class.
The characterization of women in SGGK actively marginalizes their importance in the poem. Although, in the case of Morgan le Fay, this marginalization is partially due to differences
In all, the misogyny presented in these two poems is not restricted to the time period they were written. Just as in medieval literature, it is still common for today's woman to be recognized only for her physical attributes. I believe that in order to have equality of the sexes and to help overcome the objectifying of women, it is necessary for women not to use the misogynistic views placed against them to their advantage.
The speaker begins the poem an ethereal tone masking the violent nature of her subject matter. The poem is set in the Elysian Fields, a paradise where the souls of the heroic and virtuous were sent (cite). Through her use of the words “dreamed”, “sweet women”, “blossoms” and
Not only does this personification alter the pace of the poem, but the fact that the woman’s breasts – important sexual organs and symbols of female sexuality – are portrayed as sleeping conveys a lack of arousal and general desire, particularly on the behalf of the woman. This sense of a lack of desire between the gypsy and the woman is communicated later in the poem through the description of the characters’ undressing before they begin to have sex:
...ictures for the reader. The similar use of personification in “Snapping Beans” by Lisa Parker and the use of diction and imagery in “Nighttime Fires” by Regina Barreca support how the use of different poetic devices aid in imagery. The contrasting tones of “Song” by John Donne and “Love Poem” by John Frederick Nims show how even though the poems have opposite tones of each other, that doesn’t mean the amount of imagery changes.
In the Homer's epic poem the Odyssey, there are many themes that serve to make a comment about the meanings of the story. The theme of women in the poem serves to make these comments but also establishes a point of view on women in the reader. From this point of view, a perspective is developed into the "best" and "worst" in women. Achievement of this is through the characterization of many women with single notable evil qualities. Similar to the biblical story of Adam and Eve, Eve like the many women in the Odyssey brings about pain and suffering for mankind. Contrary to the depicting of women as roots of evil, the reader sees the other traits of women that are most desirable. The roles of these women are achieved by their portrayal throughout the poem. This in return has a significant affect on how the poem and the message that is conveyed.
Poetry is a way of expressing ones thoughts, morals, feelings and ideas through the use of minimum words. Some peoples only escape is through their poetry and that is where Emily Dickenson poems come into analysis. Many authors like Emily Dickenson use their poetry to express everything from love to hate in which they feel. Emily Dickenson’s wrote three poems How Happy is The Little Stone, I Like a Look of Agony, and I Measure Every Grief I Meet which will be analyze today. Throughout her poetry especially in these three poems Emily Dickenson used many different elements of poetry to express her thoughts. The two elements of poetry that will be mention in this essay are imagery, theme, and symbolism.
“Kubla Khan” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge reveals the awesome power of the imaginative poetic mind. This poetic mind has the ability to create kingdoms, paradise, immortality, and the sacred. This poem reveals the terrifying magnificence of the visions of imagination and the impact of these visions amongst humanity.
Coleridge, Samuel Taylor. “Kubla Khan.” The Norton Anthology: English Literature. Ninth Edition. Stephen Greenblatt, eds. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2012. 459-462. Print.
...ubla Khan, the imagination is more of a physical, creative force, with more raw power than finesse. With it, works such as a pleasure-dome full of physical paradoxes can be inspired, created, and described, far better than with the words of a critic alone “A sunny pleasure-dome with caves of ice!”. The Rime of the Ancient Mariner has it that the imagination is more of an intangible force, subtle yet with as much power as the imagination in Kubla Khan. It connects the huge array of creatures on the Earth together, and without the imagination, they would, die in the end, one by one.
“Xanadu” is a wonderful “Paradise” of fantasy, but Coleridge draws the readers back to reality with the word “I.” He immediately transitions from describing visionary objects to explaining his own poetic challenge. The “pleasure-dome” mirrors the poem and Kubla Khan mirrors Coleridge. The poem ultimately becomes a “vision in a dream,” where the reader recognizes the images that Coleridge recreates through imagination.