night of the iguana

517 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Symbolism essays

Tennessee Williams, an American playwright wrote many delightful plays that contain much detail and thought. The Night of the Iguana is a great example of a play that captures the symbolism of a story of an iguana that is captured and tied down close to a hotel. The iguana was captured by two employees of the hotel, Pedro and Pancho. It depicted the iguana “trying to go on past the end of its goddam rope.” This would mean that as a symbol of fate, there would be many characters in the play that are tied down to their individual struggles and are later let go and relieved of their struggles once the iguana is set free.
One struggle that may not seem so big to some is Nonno’s struggle to finish his poem. Nonno, a 97 year old grandfather and poet has been stuck in the middle of his poem for years. At one point, he needed to stay at a hotel but he didn’t have any money. This was a struggle for him because in order to pay by displaying his work, he wanted to finish his poem. This would depict the symbol of the iguana being tied down and not getting anywhere. When Shannon finally cuts th...

Show More
Related

  • Overview of Flight of the Iguana by David Quammen

    1218 Words  | 3 Pages

    This chapter, or in this case the introduction, is exactly what it is labeled as; an introduction. The main ideas of this introduction are more or less used to explain the goals of this book and also used to familiarize the reader with what is to come. Throughout the introduction, the author, David Quammen refers to a wide variety of unique and unheard of organisms that exist in nature. Not only do these organisms sound weird, but many often behave in unordinary ways. The okapi, the Xylocaris, the chambered nautilus, and the plant that eats frogs are just examples of the many different organisms Quammen talks about. The reason for Quammen’s use of such organisms is not to scare readers away from nature, but to actually lure them in. The main idea of Quammen’s whole introduction is basically to show readers that nature is not a freak show, but to show simply nature itself. At first this whole idea may seem a little cloudy and vague, but as you read on, one will start to understand what Quammen is really striving for. Quammen uses animals and plants as examples to show the very intricacies of nature and the natural world. One example that he uses that has helped my understanding of this idea was the black widow spider. Quammen tells us of his strong fear of spiders and he goes on telling us how the black widow is very poisonous and menacing, yet possesses an undeniable beauty. He also states the black widow as being dangerous but not malicious, and gorgeous or hideous depending upon how we see it. Quammen’s point is that no matter how you see the spider, it is still part of nature.

    Read More

  • Identity And Empowerment In Juan Felipe Herrera's Poem 'Borderbus'

    362 Words  | 1 Pages

    In a story of identity and empowerment, Juan Felipe Herrera’s poem “Borderbus” revolves around two Honduran women grappling with their fate regarding a detention center in the United States after crawling up the spine of Mexico from Honduras. While one grapples with their survival, fixated on the notion that their identities are the ultimate determinant for their future, the other remains fixated on maintaining their humanity by insisting instead of coming from nothingness they are everything. Herrera’s poem consists entirely of the dialogue between the two women, utilizing diction and imagery to emphasize one’s sense of isolation and empowerment in the face of adversity and what it takes to survive in America.

    Read More

  • The Legend of La Llorona

    1972 Words  | 4 Pages

    A Guatemalan native, a male graduate student that I work with in my research group at the University told this story. He came from the countryside, living in a small village back home. According to him, the story of La Llorona, involving a weeping woman, arose sometime in the 1700s and became well known both at school and home. Some claimed to have actually seen the weeping woman. Some disregard it as unscientific and implausible. No one is sure of the exact origin of this urban legend. This story was told to me and another graduate student in our research group while sitting in lab waiting for the experiment results. The story began as we started sharing our own background and the culture of our own countries when the storyteller decided to make a little shift and started to tell a story told to him by his older cousin--the story of La Llorona:

    Read More

  • kettle bottom

    1272 Words  | 3 Pages

    The struggles that many face while experiencing poverty are not like any other. When a person is experiencing poverty, they deal with unbearable hardships as well as numerous tragic events. Diane Gilliam Fisher’s collection of poems teaches readers about labor battles within West Virginian territories, at the beginning of the twentieth century. Some of these battles include the Battle of Matewan and Battle of Blair Mountain. The collection of poems is presented in many different manners, ranging from diary entries to letters to journal entries. These various structures of writing introduce the reader to contrasting images and concepts in an artistic fashion. The reader is able to witness firsthand the hardships and the light and dark times of impoverished people’s lives. He or she also learns about the effects of birth and death on poverty stricken communities. In the collection of poems in Kettle Bottom, Fisher uses imagery and concepts to convey contrast between the positive and negative aspects of the lives of people living in poverty.

    Read More

  • Michael Ondaatje's Running In The Family

    186 Words  | 1 Pages

    Nature often plays an important role in the books and poems. Through the use of imagery, an author is able to help the reader to visualize the surroundings and the habitat in which the book is set up. In Michael Ondaatje’s memoir Running in the Family nature is interspersed here and there with the newly discovered family history. In addition to facts that Michael Ondaatje discovers, through the use of nature he associates the behavior of some of his family members. Michael Ondaatje connects his father with dogs and snakes, and his grandmother with horses and gardens. By connecting the nature with one of the most important characters in the book, the author uses symbols to imply his father and grandma’s true personalities. By doing this he is

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Richard Blanco's 'America'

    1032 Words  | 3 Pages

    Poems are forms of communication that give an applicable view of the past, present and future events. Reading the poem titled “America”, written by Richard Blanco brought me memories from my childhood in my parent’s house and also what is happening now in my house as a parent. The poem explains how one person doesn’t have all the knowledge about something. It also, describes the daily life struggles I experienced during my childhood, when my parent 's and I moved from our hometown to live in another town becuase of their work and it brings to light the conflict of cultures I and my children are going through since we moved to United State of America .

    Read More

  • Birdfoot's Grampa Compare And Contrast

    545 Words  | 2 Pages

    Have you ever gone to the store and seen something you have always wanted to buy, but can’t because of your current situation. A similar thing occurs in the poem “Traveling Through the Dark” when the speaker is unable to help the dead doe and her fawn because of the situation. However, in the poem “Birdfoot’s Grampa” the old man was able to help the toads because he was in a better situation to help. The contrast between these poems reveals the fact that our ability to accomplish a goal is most dependent on the situation we are currently in.

    Read More

  • The True Meaning Of Language In Bad Mother Blues, By Linda Mccariston

    1307 Words  | 3 Pages

    Poetry is often forgotten in our society. Poetry is mistaken for something less than its greater meaning. Four specific poets demonstrate the true meaning of poetry through their words and imagery. These poets use their own language to speak to us in poetry, by describing a major event that has happened in their life. It is truly captivating to hear these poets speak from another aspect that we are not use too.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of I Am Offering This Poem

    1267 Words  | 3 Pages

    The 1990 poem “I Am Offering This Poem” by Jimmy Santiago Baca is themed around the life of a prisoner who has nothing else to offer except poetry. As one learns, more about the author’s background, the context of the poem becomes clearer. Examine this piece of information taken from the biography of Baca, “A Chicano poet, Baca served a ten-year sentence in an Arizona prison and his poetry grows out of his experience as a convict” (Baca). Baca’s experience as a prisoner reflects in his writing in that prisoners are often deprived of their rights and many of their possessions while serving a sentence. In his poem, “I Am Offering This Poem”, Baca speaks from the point of view of a prisoner having nothing to offer his love interest except the

    Read More

  • Overcoming Obstacles In Edgar A. Guest's Poem See It Through

    681 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout life there will always be difficulties that surround the individual. Whether social or personal, there are countless problems that one must learn to face and overcome. Especially as one wishes to advance their dreams, one will realize that many obstacles must be overcome before their dream is achieved. Through a relatable situation, Edgar A. Guest's poem, See it Through, illustrates overcoming these obstacles through the use of figurative language, personification, and other poetic devices.

    Read More

  • The Book of Yolek by Anthony Hetcht

    1317 Words  | 3 Pages

    Strand, Mark and Evan Boland. The Making of a Poem: A Norton Anthology of Poetic Forms. New

    Read More

  • Parent and Son Relationship in one of Nye, Naomi Shihab´s Poems

    638 Words  | 2 Pages

    In a typical family, there are parents that expected to hear things when their teenager is rebelling against them: slamming the door, shouting at each other, and protests on what they could do or what they should not do. Their little baby is growing up, testing their wings of adulthood; they are not the small child that wanted their mommy to read a book to them or to kiss their hurts away and most probably, they are thinking that anything that their parents told them are certainly could not be right. The poem talks about a conflict between the author and her son when he was in his adolescence. In the first stanza, a misunderstanding about a math problem turns into a family argument that shows the classic rift between the generation of the parent and the teenager. Despite the misunderstandings between the parent and child, there is a loving bond between them. The imagery, contrasting tones, connotative diction, and symbolism in the poem reflect these two sides of the relationship.

    Read More

  • Sadest Poem

    461 Words  | 1 Pages

    Tow weeks ago one of my classmates has presented a poem from his culture, and I am sure that it’s a Latin culture. The poem is called “Saddest Poem” written by Pablo Neruda who is as I understood one of the most famous Latinos poet. This poem was translated to English, even though it didn’t lose its original structure. No one can argue about the main idea of this poem that it’s a sad poem and we can clearly see that from the title. Neruda uses many of the poetry techniques to complete a perfect picture ending with this poem. Sitting, metaphor, sounds, and imagery all were the elements that leaded to this nice piece of literature.

    Read More

  • Literary Analysis: "A Worn Path"

    1647 Words  | 4 Pages

    Welty tells the story with “some dreams and harassments and a small triumph or two, some jolts to [Phoenix’s] pride, some flights of fancy to console her, one or two encounters to scare her, a moment that gave her cause to be ashamed, a moment to dance and preen…” (quoted in Moberly, 109). The early harassments evoke symbols of slavery such as coming through the “dark pine shadows” in slave garb, “dark striped dress…an equally long apron of bleached sugar sacks…all neat and tidy” (Roberts, 95). The “chains about my feet” and the uphill climb is descriptive of literally being a slave in chains. Being caught in the “pretty green bush” (Rogers, 96) that turns out to be a thorn bush is a figurative hard worn path to equal rights, with unseen snags and pitfalls. “Purple stalks” (Rogers, 96) and the buzzard and through the “old cotton” (Rogers, 96) represents the mourning of the African American people,...

    Read More

  • The Lady of Shalott

    1652 Words  | 4 Pages

    It will further deal with the development of tension throughout the poem. By making a distinction between tension through formal aspects, such as rhyme scheme, and tension through content it will try to show the interconnection between both of them. Additionally, the paper will deal with the possible effect of tension on the reader and how the poem might be perceived by him/her.

    Read More

More about night of the iguana

Open Document