Author: Sylvia Plath
Pages 388-389
In the poem "Spinster," Sylvia Plath uses many symbols and images to convey the meaning of the poem. To begin, the title itself refers to an old woman who has never been married or had a child. Standing alone, it is already known that the poem is going to be about someone who is alone and most likely has been for their entire life. Accompanied by the symbolism found in the mentioning of winter and spring, it can be gathered that the subject of the poem rather loathes romance and the youthful springtime, and prefers to be alone in the winter, "each sentiment within border."
Winter and spring and their associated emotions are depicted through imagery and symbolism throughout the poem, representing death and solitude, and new life and romance respectively. What strikes me is the atypical nature of the description of the seasons beyond that as well. Plath ties the seasons together with human emotion, describing winter and solitude as being controlled and refined, seen through the description of the ice, rocks, and snowflakes, all perfectly constructed with defined edges and no intrusion of emotion to muddle them. This image is also enhanced by the line "such a barricade of barb and check," giving it further sharpness and intention of infinite isolation.
Previously, spring is described as sloven, particularly through the images of the "leaves' litter," the "birds' irregular babel," the "petals in disarray," and "her lover's gestures unbalance in the air, his gait stray uneven." These all contribute to the idea of carelessness, therefore judging romance and youthfulness as disorderly as well. The line "let idiots reel giddy in bedlam spring" continues to suggest that only imbeciles would have anything to do with romance and its rather messy consequences (e.g. sex, childbirth, childcare, etc.). The subsequent line concludes spring simply with "she withdrew neatly" showing that, in the end, it isn't difficult to take leave of romance and live on in seclusion. The use of the word "neatly" in particular also contributes to the aforementioned description of winter and loneliness as clean-cut and very far from messy, as spring is described.
My interpretation of this poem is that the speaker, as well as the poem's subject, have no care for immature romance and lust. They would rather be on their own, and logically I wouldn't argue. Isolation is cleaner, excluding the mess of a broken heart and other undesirable results that always accompany springtime, the mating season. It's more sensible, basically, although I personally am not for becoming a spinster. Despite the logic, it does not seem appealing in the slightest. While it may be nice to be alone, an argument against its depressing nature would be difficult to make. "As no mere insurgent man could hope to break with curse, fist, threat or love, either." At that point, all emotion has been shut down, whether good or bad, which is certainly a depressing concept indeed.
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Poem Analysis: Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins
Author: R.S. Gwynn
Pages 365-366
In the poem "Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins," R.S. Gwynn uses irony and rhyme to assist in telling the story portrayed in the poem. An example of irony in the poem is "She knelt... as if a petitioner before the Pope." This line can be classified as irony because of the action she is performing to be kneeling in such a manner: she is picking up Sloth's dirty clothes. Typically when a person kneels before the Pope, she is seeking forgiveness for her transgressions and is offering herself to any necessary task for redemption. While the girl is performing a task, it is not a task for redemption. Rather, she is allowing herself to be enslaved to sin, rather than to righteousness, by cleaning up for the sin of laziness.
It also becomes noticeably more difficult for her to escape as the years go by. As she ages, the sins become greater, so she is no longer the "good Catholic girl." Snow White still confesses her sins to God or the Pope, but her wrongdoings pile up nonetheless. The ironic aspect of this detail is that theoretically, it should be more difficult to resist sin when a person is younger because she has a limited concept of consequences and rarely thinks out an event all the way to the end. As an adult, it should be easier to resist sin because this concept of sin has had a chance to develop, yet Snow White found it to be a greater struggle rather than a lesser one.
Gwynn also uses rhyme to enhance the meaning of the poem. The type of rhyme that he uses is masculine, the rhyme of a single syllable at the end of the poem. The rhyme contributes to the reading style of the poem, of course, but more importantly, it emphasizes the conclusion of the work. Snow White is rescued by a Handsome Prince, who was overall a very desirable fellow. "So debonair! So charming! And so Male." The rhyme scheme throughout the poem is masculine, and the rescuer at the end of the poem is also incredibly masculine. It gives the idea that there really was no other way for Snow White to be freed; only a man could save her from the sins that kept her hostage.
My interpretation of this poem is that sin becomes harder to get rid of as time goes by, and realistically everyone needs someone stronger to come save them. I would say that the poem is implying God for that stronger role, but for the description of the man as debonair and charming. So the poem could very well be saying that women are prone to sin and that they need a strong, handsome, and pure man to marry them to redeem their errors. It could be saying that women are utterly lost without a man, because of course they need a man to save them from their "distressed condition" and take them "to St. Anne's where [they] took the veil." The poem could be saying this, but I won't state is as my interpretation because I don't want to be the next Matt Peters or Chris Loos, especially since I myself am a girl and I do not agree precisely with this viewpoint.
Pages 365-366
In the poem "Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins," R.S. Gwynn uses irony and rhyme to assist in telling the story portrayed in the poem. An example of irony in the poem is "She knelt... as if a petitioner before the Pope." This line can be classified as irony because of the action she is performing to be kneeling in such a manner: she is picking up Sloth's dirty clothes. Typically when a person kneels before the Pope, she is seeking forgiveness for her transgressions and is offering herself to any necessary task for redemption. While the girl is performing a task, it is not a task for redemption. Rather, she is allowing herself to be enslaved to sin, rather than to righteousness, by cleaning up for the sin of laziness.
It also becomes noticeably more difficult for her to escape as the years go by. As she ages, the sins become greater, so she is no longer the "good Catholic girl." Snow White still confesses her sins to God or the Pope, but her wrongdoings pile up nonetheless. The ironic aspect of this detail is that theoretically, it should be more difficult to resist sin when a person is younger because she has a limited concept of consequences and rarely thinks out an event all the way to the end. As an adult, it should be easier to resist sin because this concept of sin has had a chance to develop, yet Snow White found it to be a greater struggle rather than a lesser one.
Gwynn also uses rhyme to enhance the meaning of the poem. The type of rhyme that he uses is masculine, the rhyme of a single syllable at the end of the poem. The rhyme contributes to the reading style of the poem, of course, but more importantly, it emphasizes the conclusion of the work. Snow White is rescued by a Handsome Prince, who was overall a very desirable fellow. "So debonair! So charming! And so Male." The rhyme scheme throughout the poem is masculine, and the rescuer at the end of the poem is also incredibly masculine. It gives the idea that there really was no other way for Snow White to be freed; only a man could save her from the sins that kept her hostage.
My interpretation of this poem is that sin becomes harder to get rid of as time goes by, and realistically everyone needs someone stronger to come save them. I would say that the poem is implying God for that stronger role, but for the description of the man as debonair and charming. So the poem could very well be saying that women are prone to sin and that they need a strong, handsome, and pure man to marry them to redeem their errors. It could be saying that women are utterly lost without a man, because of course they need a man to save them from their "distressed condition" and take them "to St. Anne's where [they] took the veil." The poem could be saying this, but I won't state is as my interpretation because I don't want to be the next Matt Peters or Chris Loos, especially since I myself am a girl and I do not agree precisely with this viewpoint.
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