Happiness lasts only as long as the person pursuing it, this is evident in “To an Athlete Dying Young”. Written in the 1896 by A. E. Housman, an english poet. This poem is about someone looking back at the life of a young athlete. This athlete won many races and challenges but ended up dying young. This poem has a lot of themes that show what it really is about. One of those is repeated use of home in the first stanzas. The rhyme scheme is also another theme the repeated AA BB in every stanza. Also the Narrator's point of view is very important and some things he chooses to say characterize him well. Finally some of the figurative language has double meanings and this poem has a lot of symbolism. All of these themes add up to make this poem …show more content…
At first glance you would think that home would mean where the athlete lives. But the narrator makes it seem like home could be heaven because when the narrator states “Shoulder-high we bring you home” (ln. 6). The narrator is talking about the athlete dying and being brought to heaven which is everyone's “home” in the end.
In the third and fourth stanzas the narrator brings his opinion into the poem. This is when he says “Smart lad, to slip betimes away” (ln. 9). He is saying that the athlete is smart to die young while he is still famous. If he were to live a full life then his fame would die with his old age. Also the narrator refers to a laurel growing early but withering quickly. The laurel symbolizes the athlete and how he was young when he grew to a good athlete. The withering represents how he died young, that he grew quickly but withered quicker.
In the fifth stanza the narrator talks about how all the athletes that did not die young were less famous than the athlete who did die young “And the name died before the man” (ln. 20). This is because the public gets bored after awhile, they need something new. They then forget all about the people who used to be famous, unless they die young because they are known just for being famous not being famous then growing old then
In the book, “Eleven Seconds” by Travis Roy, he talks about himself about what had happened to him during his hockey game and how he got injured in his hockey game. Roy becomes part of, and moves on from, many different “homes”. All the different homes remain significant throughout his life. Even though these different places are not permanent homes, he experiences a sense of home that remains important to him. Here are three examples of the “homes” Travis Roy becomes part of and how each of them had such an enduring influence on him. Those three “homes” Roy finds significant in his life are, Maine, Boston, and Shepherd Center.
Home is a term that is used throughout the world as the place where one lives. Is this really what home means? In looking deeper at what the word really means, many interpretations become apparent. Another word that sometimes is confused with home is the word house. A house is the actual building where a person lives, whereas a home is more personal. The dictionary defines the word home as the place in which one's domestic affections are centered (Scott, Foresman Advanced Dictionary p.528). A house is made of mud and bricks but a home is made from love. A home is made of love, sorrow, laughter, excitement, hope, care, atmosphere and feelings of everyone. A home reflects your personality. When a guest enters in the house, he/she comes to know what sort of person you are. A home is a place to rest. There's no place except home which seems like heaven to us.
“As I Lay Dying, read as the dramatic confrontation of words and actions, presents Faulkner’s allegory of the limits of talent” (Jacobi). William Faulkner uses many different themes that make this novel a great book. Faulkner shows his talent by uses different scenarios, which makes the book not only comedic but informational on the human mind. As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner is a great book that illustrates great themes and examples. Faulkner illustrates different character and theme dynamics throughout the entire novel, which makes the book a humorous yet emotional roller coaster. Faulkner illustrates the sense of identity, alienation, and the results of physical and mental death to show what he thinks of the human mind.
Lucinda lived a very long life of ninety-six years. From what Masters conveyed with his poem, it seemed like Lucinda enjoyed her life and was very satisfied with everything she had accomplished. In the first few lines of the poem she talks about going to different dances and how the frequently switched partners, until one day she met Davis. They were soon married and stayed together for seventy years. She and Davis had twelve children, but eight of them died. How the eight children died when never explained in the poem, but it could relate to the time period in which the poem was placed in. In the early 1900?s it was normal to have many children, but unless a family had the resources needed, some of the children may die. She also did many activities such as spinning, weaving, kept the house up and also nursed the sick, which could relate to the time period this poem is taking place in also. The intent that the author was trying to get across is one that, people could life happy lives in a very simplistic way, such as Lucinda did.
My home is my haven and the place that I feel the safest and most comfortable at. It is where many good memories and feelings arise and I am able to be myself with no false pretenses. It is my “Home Sweet Home” yet the stories “Young Goodman Brown,” by Nathaniel Hawthorne, and “Soldier’s Home,” by Ernest Hemingway show a different attitude about home going and the effects it has on the main characters.
In “Football Dreams” by Jacqueline Woodson, the message that any dream can come true if you put the work in is supported by the structure of the poem. The structural elements that are most impactful are repetition and the title. While she talks about her father’s dreams at the beginning. Later towards the end of the poem, she starts to explain how they came true. “My father dreamed football dreams, and woke up to a scholarship at Ohio State University” (10-12). The repetition is “dreams” and “football” which tells the audience that her father dreamed of playing football and he put in the effort and got a “scholarship at Ohio State University.” The title “Football Dreams” is the repetition
Webster's College Dictionary defines home as: An environment offering security and happiness" and "a valued place regarded as refuge or place of origin." Anyone can build a house but the emotional security a home provides is created by the people who live there. In Homer's Odyssey, the Greek hero Odysseus leaves his home in Ithica to fight in the Trojan war. The Odyssey tells the story of his treacherous journey back to Ithica, and the turmoil he experiences. Due to his strong desire to return to the place he remembered as home, Odysseus endurs the hardships of his journey. He hopes his homecoming will return him to the same home, and same life he built twenty years ago. Odysseus will never truly return home because he is not the same king, husband, or man he once was; He is not capable of recreating the home he once had.
Taffler, a character of Timothy Findley's book, The Wars, is a multi-decorated soldier who many people, such as his fellow soldier and the country he fights for, sees him a hero. On the other hand, the poem A.E Housman created "To an Athlete Dying Young" talks about an athlete who died young and offers a different perspective on dying. According to the speaker of the poem, the athlete is “a smart lad” for dying while being in the spotlight (9). The definition of heroism is when a person shows bravery. However, bravery is not the only characteristics of heroism but also doing acts that are helpful and inspire people. Aspects of heroism found on, "To an Athlete Dying Young" applies Taffler, in various ways, such as the requirement for an individual
A. E. Houseman and John Keats are two poets who have wrote many poems about death. In particular, I will be speaking about Houseman’s “To An Athlete Dying Young,” and John Keats “When I have fears that I may cease to be.” Houseman speaks about a young athlete who died shortly after winning a race. Many people would think that this was a life that was short lived; however, Houseman believes this is the best way to go. If you die at your prime, that is how people will remember you, and no one will break your record. Keats speaks about some things that he wants in life: success, face, love, etc. He believes these things are crucial to the value of one’s life, and he realizes his death is coming soon, and he will not be able to fulfill these things.
The final stanza starts off by saying, “So set, before the echoes fade”, this shows that the athlete has been buried. The rest of the stanza talks about how people will gather around and be able to look at his crown in remembrance of him. It’s also important to mention that since he died at the peak of his athletic career, the “laurel” will go “unwithered” meaning nobody will mess with it in respect of the successful life of the
“A Story about the Body”, a prose poem by Robert Hass, is literally about a man who supposedly loves a woman but then finds out about her health conditions and then changes his mind. This poem, when I read it, was more like a short story than a poem. The poem uses imagery and a variety of adjectives which allow the reader to put themselves in the story as if they were watching it happen.
Home is a term that is used throughout the world as the place where one lives.
Katherine Philip’s “Epitaph,” written in a couplet form, is memorializing her firstborn son who only lived less than six weeks after he was born. In this poem Katherine Philips is desperately trying to renew her faith in life, but she is struggling to do so because of the death of her son. She is attempting to justify the loss of her child, but is also questioning whether there is even a reason for hope. “What on earth deserves our trust?” If you cant trust anything then you have to rely on faith. Even things that we know as certain, like the sun rising in the morning, Katherine seems to not trust, “And so the Sun if it arise…” The “if” implies such a strong sense of doubt that it clearly emphasizes Philip’s struggling attempt to renew her faith in life.
The Theme of Death in Poetry Robert Frost and Emily Dickinson are two Modern American Poets who consistently wrote about the theme of death. While there are some comparisons between the two poets, when it comes to death as a theme, their writing styles were quite different. Robert Frost’s poem, “Home Burial,” and Emily Dickinson’s poems, “I felt a Funeral in my Brain,” and “I died for Beauty,” are three poems concerning death. While the theme is constant there are differences as well as similarities between the poets and their poems. The obvious comparison between the three poems is the theme of death.
“Home is where love resides, memories are created, friends always belong, and laughter never ends (Robot check).” A place becomes a home for me when I am around all the things that I enjoy and love. For example, when I am around everyone that I love, I enjoy a peaceful environment and the beautiful landscapes around me. The interpretation of home for me is not a physical thing that I see or that I can remember or even certain thoughts that I can relate, but it is a sensation that overcomes me when I envision being in the comfort of my own home. However, I know that this is a feeling that is calming to my soul and it quietly reassures me that I genuinely belong in a place where I can be free from people constantly judging me.