Once More To The Lake Analysis

1014 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Introduction to the canterbury tales

Once More to the Lake and The Pond. White and Thoreau, two diverse minds. When you look into their writings you seem to find something that rises to your attention, some of what you see seems to fit into the others writing. Yet taking a closer look you see that they are not particularly saying the same thing. Is it because they felt like writing or did something cause these writers to exploit there minds and make something out of their thoughts? Every sentence and every word say something much deeper. When reading these writings you have to look deep within the writing. You begin to notice you are reading something quite fascinating. Once More to the Lake by E.B. White, the canoe calmly floating in the lake. The Pond by Thoreau, the boat …show more content…

He pulled his dripping trunks from the line where they had hung all through the shower, and wrung them out. Languidly, and with no thought of going in, I watched him, his hard little body, skinny and bare, saw him wince slightly as he pulled up around his vitals the small, soggy, icy garment. As he buckled the swollen belt suddenly my groin felt the chill of death.” White is finally beginning to see it is no longer himself in his son but his son is growing up and White is only getting older. On the other hand, Thoreau is giving the visual of the pond itself over time and as the seasons change the details and perspectives of the pond are all becoming something else. As the seasons pass the way the pond changes and the view and elements around it …show more content…

Yet throughout White’s essay you see how peaceful he keeps the tone the entire time. With the subtle approach White has on the parts of his memories he thoroughly explains to this audience. Look at the melodrama of the storm White uses. While in The Pond the tone is more spiritual and religious. For example in The Pond, Thoreau is using The Pond as a spiritual symbol. Then there is the dominant impression. In both The Ponds and Once More to the Lake they share something. The way they share their views. The views of the memories, environment around them, and the way they felt throughout the entire thing. Once More to the Lake is on the memories surround the lake White has always known of as a boy and that is his dominant

Show More
Related

  • Summer by David Updike

    353 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the beginning we find the family and its surrogate son, Homer, enjoying the fruits of the summer. Homer wakes to find Mrs. Thyme sitting alone, “looking out across the flat blue stillness of the lake”(48). This gives us a sense of the calm, eternal feeling the lake presents and of Mrs. Thyme’s appreciation of it. Later, Fred and Homer wildly drive the motor boat around the lake, exerting their boyish enthusiasm. The lake is unaffected by the raucous fun and Homer is pleased to return to shore and his thoughts of Sandra. Our protagonist observes the object of his affection, as she interacts with the lake, lazily resting in the sun. The lake provides the constant, that which has always been and will always be. As in summers past, the preacher gives his annual sermon about the end of summer and a prayer that they shall all meet again. Afterward, Homer and Fred take a final turn around the lake only to see a girl who reminds Homer of Sandra. “And there was something in the way that she raised her arm which, when added to the distant impression of her fullness, beauty, youth, filled him with longing as their boat moved inexorably past…and she disappeared behind a crop of trees.

    Read More

  • Once More To The Lake Syntax Analysis

    298 Words  | 1 Pages

    In the essay “Once More to the Lake,” E.B. White, uses diction and syntax to reveal the main character’s attitude towards the lake in Maine. He has an uncertain attitude towards the lake throughout the essay because he is unsure of who he is between him and his son. On the ride there White, pondering, remembering old memories, keeps wondering if the lake is going to be the same warm place as it was when he was a kid. The lake is not just an ordinary lake to White, it’s a holy spot, a spot where he grew up every summer. “I wondered how time would have marred this unique, this holy spot-the coves and streams, the hills that the sun set behind, the camps and the paths behind the camps” (29). White’s diction and syntax

    Read More

  • Analysis of Greasy Lake by Tom Coraghessan

    750 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Greasy Lake" by Tom Coraghessan Boyle, is the story of a group of adolescents, searching for the one situation that will proclaim them as bad boys and how their minds change. As the story begins, the narrator gives the impression that he feels he and the others boys should have taken notice of some obvious clues about themselves. These clues would have led them to the conclusion that they were far from the bad guys they wished to be. However, the oblivious teenagers ignore these obvious signs and continue in search of their goal.

    Read More

  • Water in T. Coraghessan Boyle's Greasy Lake

    1360 Words  | 3 Pages

    Water is a powerful medium for introspection. This truth is evident in the short story, 'Greasy Lake,' by T. Coraghessan Boyle. In this story, water serves as a catalyst for self-reflection, as it propels the protagonist into a certain degree of conflict, and ultimately works to reveal and confront the character?s inner struggle.

    Read More

  • Once More To The Lake 'And Shooting An Elephant' By E. B. White

    1854 Words  | 4 Pages

    Within the essay “Once More to the Lake”, E.B. notes that “I bought myself a couple of bass hooks… returned to the lake… to revisit old haunts… When the others went swimming my son said he was going in… As he buckled the swollen belt, suddenly my groin left the chill of death (White 464). The essay “Once More to the Lake” brings a significant amount of attention towards the author’s attempt to secure personal satisfaction. It becomes quite obvious in the first few paragraphs, that the main character is on this vacation with his son, to recreate the careless feeling he use to have while vacationing with his dad as a child. Even though E.B. does not come out clearly and say it, the author is chasing some type of nostalgic feeling he clearly needs to feel better about life. On each page, White uses comparison and contrast to explain to the reader how the trip resembles the one he use to experience with his dad. By the end of the reading, the father begins to realize his vacation trip with his son will never be the same as the one he has dreamt about. He is no longer a child who can only notice the positive components of life. At this point, the father is an adult who will never have the innocence he once clung too. It takes some reflection for him to finally realize his place as a father in the situation. Comparison and contrast displays the idea that even though everything may look the same, it does not mean it feels the same. This mode rhetoric reflects back to the theme at the end of essay, as it concludes the author’s failed attempt to find some satisfaction from the

    Read More

  • Views of Slavery and Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau's Works

    1726 Words  | 4 Pages

    Two men, similar in their transcendentalist beliefs and yet so different in their methods of expressing their beliefs on handling the issues of society, were major voices in the anti-slavery movement. While their focuses are more on the subjects of morality and individual choice, they still reflect on how slavery should be addressed by the American people, American referring to the free whites who actually make the decisions. Ralph Waldo Emerson is highly regarded for his views on Transcendentalism during what some of deemed the “American Renaissance.” Emerson establishes his place in history by expressing his liberal agenda through his beliefs that truth is based on intuition and law should be based on individual reflection. He believes that the only way one could truly learn about life is by ignoring knowledge from outside sources and relying on one’s internal voice; he incorporates this belief into the convincing rhetoric of “Last of the Anti-Slavery Lectures.” While Emerson asserts his views on self reliance, he is really trying to sway the views of his audience. This makes us ask the question: Is he really right, or is he only convincing us that he is right? Henry David Thoreau, however, serves as both a complement and a foil for Emerson; while he also expresses his transcendental beliefs, he converges on a split between these beliefs and reason. He articulates his ideas in “Slavery in Massachusetts,” a piece that illustrates how Thoreau separates himself from his own state because of his “contempt for her courts” (1991). While some would argue that Thoreau is somewhat of a better writer than Emerson, it cannot be denied that one cannot reach...

    Read More

  • Why Should We Knock Under And Go With The Stream Analysis

    575 Words  | 2 Pages

    We often focus on the unimportant and minor details of life. Rather than just going on about life peacefully, we tend to complicate things for ourselves by never being satisfied. Throughout the story, Thoreau uses rhetorical questions as a literary device. He questions the actions of those who surround him by asking, “Why should we knock under and go with the stream?” This is similar to asking, “Why make things harder for yourself when you can just go with the flow?” He asks, “Why should we live with such a hurry and waste of life?” This question is straightforward, simply meaning; we often tend to rush life without completely living it. Instead, we should rather pace ourselves and enjoy every present moment before it’s gone.

    Read More

  • Thoreau Distinctions

    1536 Words  | 4 Pages

    ... which represents how fleeting time is. Thoreau is aware that the time he has been given is so very limited, especially compared to an eternity, but like the river, time will go on even if he isn’t alive to witness it. “I have always been regretting that I was not as wise as the day I was born.” Compared to where he was in his life when he wrote this, when he was born there was a lot less to be concerned about. Babies are able to live the simple life which Thoreau desires. When we’re young we don’t possess as much of the knowledge as we do when we get older, our intellect can be compared to time. As we grow older we gain more knowledge, the two go hand in hand, but when we are young we aren’t wise so nothing is troublesome, which is why Thoreau says he wishes he was as wise as he was when he was born, life is never as simple as it was the moment you were born.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Devices Used In Where I Live And What I Lived For

    1055 Words  | 3 Pages

    He uses imagery to show how complicated people make life; how much of life is unnecessary. In turn, it evokes emotional responses from the readers. An example is, “ Hardly a man takes a half-hour’s nap after dinner, but when he wakes he holds up his head and asks, “what’s the news?” as if the rest of man kind had stood his sentinels. Some give directions to be waked every half-hour, doubtless for no other purpose; and then, to pay for it, they tell what they have dreamed. After a night‘s sleep the news is as indispensable as the breakfast. “Pray tell me anything new that has happened to a man anywhere on this globe”-- and he reads it over his coffee and rolls, that a man has had his eyes gouged out this morning on the Wachito River; never dreaming the while that he lives in the dark unfathomed mammoth cave of this world, and has but the rudiment of an eye himself.” (page 278). In this part of the text Thoreau explains the life of a man. In the end however, it turns into a sorrowful ending. What Thoreau was trying to say in this part of the text is that people could go experience things themselves instead of listening to stories. Instead of staying home and asking what is happening with the world, you could experience it yourself and that it is unnecessary to hear the stories in the

    Read More

  • Thoreau's Personification

    1025 Words  | 3 Pages

    How people see one another vary in numerous ways, whether it be from actions or what is gathered through spoken conversations. When an intellectual meets someone for the first time, they tend to judge by appearance before they judge by how the person express their thoughts or ideas. In Thoreau’s excerpt, he emphasizes the importance of his philosophy, especially by making sure the reader is aware of his own feelings about it. He puts literary devices such as metaphors, personification, and imagery to construct his explanation for his philosophy as well as provide several attitudes to let the reader identify how he feels towards people and the value of their ideas.

    Read More

  • Emerson and Thoreau

    780 Words  | 2 Pages

    While Emerson and Thoreau certainly have difference of opinions, they recognize the need for public discussion and discourse. Emerson declares “a foolish consistency” to be “the hobgoblin of little minds” (Emerson 367). This is shown in their essays “Self-Reliance” and “Civil Disobedience” in which they support individuality and personal expression. Despite their contrasting views of society and government, the two most prominent transcendentalists in literary history share a passionate belief in the necessity that every American must exercise their constitutional rights and make known their views even and especially if it challenges the status quo.

    Read More

  • Thomas Williams Goose Pond

    834 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Goose Pond”, written by Thomas Williams seemingly is a novel about the tranquil rural life but intricately portrays the mind and state of a fifty-eight year old man who has just lost his wife. Having natural and peaceful aspects, the story itself is not about the simple rural life in the woods. It depicts how Robert Hurley began to deal and come to terms with his sudden loneliness and realization of his eventual death. Including both the realistic cruelty of life alone and the expectation readers would have from a novel—such like a Norman Rockwell painting; he keeps the readers indulged in the mind and heart of the lonesome Robert Hurley.

    Read More

  • Henry Thoreau's Where I Lived and What I Lived For and E.B. White's Once More to the Lake

    993 Words  | 2 Pages

    At first glance, Henry Thoreau’s, Where I Lived and What I Lived For, and E.B. White’s, Once More to the Lake, have nothing in common. After several readings; however, one can interpret that both authors have the same message. Even though Thoreau and White use extremely different styles, they both portray nature as the simplest way of life. Thoreau writes an argumentative essay in the 1800’s trying to persuade society to “simplify” by going back to relying on nature instead of technology (50 Essays pg. 417). White writes a 1900’s narrative about his visit to his childhood lake where he shockingly discovers how nature reveals the essence of life. While Once More to the Lake by E.B. White is a subtle portrayal that compares nature to simplicity, Where I Lived and What I Lived For by Henry Thoreau is a clear-cut approach in comparing nature to simplicity.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Once More To The Lake

    795 Words  | 2 Pages

    In “Once More to the Lake,” E.B. White expresses a sense of wonder when he revisits a place that has significant memories. Upon revisiting the lake he once knew so well, White realizes that even though things in his life have changed, namely he is now the father returning with his son, the lake still remains the same. Physically being back at the lake, White faces an internal process of comparing his memory of the lake as a child, to his experience with his son. Throughout this reflection, White efficiently uses imagery, repetition, and tone to enhance his essay.

    Read More

  • The Theme of Nature in Robert Frost's Poetry

    392 Words  | 1 Pages

    Second, in the poem “Once by the Pacific” there is a lot of nature expressed. Frost changes his nature view from woods to water.

    Read More

More about Once More To The Lake Analysis

Open Document