Posts
Sunday, 30 October 2016
Saturday, 29 October 2016
My Parents by Stephen Spender
SUMMARY
Stanza 1
The poet’s parents sought to protect him from the street children. They were rude in speech and were dressed in rags. They were uninhibited and stripped off their clothes and swam in the country rivers.
Stanza 2
The speaker feared the brute strength of the boys. They were muscular and did not hesitate to use their arms and legs. The poet was also scared of their mocking ways. They laughed behind his back, imitating his lisp.
Stanza 3
The boys were like vandals; they threw mud at people and pounced on them. But despite all this, the speaker was forgiving. He wanted to be friendly and smiled at them. But they did not reciprocate the friendly overtures.
ANALYSIS
This poem could be a personal or biographical depiction of Spender's early life suffering the disability of a club foot and a speech impediment.
The use of the first person, stark contrasts, and ambiguity give us a vivid picture of a child troubled by a superiority/inferiority complex.
While his parents are condescending towards the rough coarse children, the child appears envious of their carefree liberty, their unbridled animal prowess and uninhibited playfulness, yet resentful of their bullying behaviour to him.
We can visualise the persona through contrast. He is everything that they are not; softly spoken (words like stones), well dressed (torn clothes, rags), passive (they ran and climbed), inhibited - modesty (they stripped by country streams), weak (muscles of iron), well mannered (salt coarse pointing) lisp (parodied by copying), clumsy (lithe), and friendly ( hostile- they never smiled).
His attempts at conciliation and acceptance are rebuffed but he appears to blame his parents for psychologically damaging him by over protection or shielding him from a natural childhood. While their superior attitude (snobbery?) has excluded him from mainstream society he ambivalently identifies with his parents by having the boys spring “like dogs to bark at our world”.
Saturday, 22 October 2016
How to identify the Writer's Tone, Purpose and Intention
The Author's Tone:
If the author was speaking to you, what would it sound like? Is the author passionate about the topic? Sarcastic? Neutral? Is the author arousing emotions? Does it evoke feelings of sympathy, anger, happiness or sadness?
Looking at the author's tone can lead the reader to the overall purpose.
The Author's Purpose
An author’s purpose is the reason an author decides to write about a specific topic. Then, once a topic is selected, the author must decide whether his purpose for writing is to inform, persuade, entertain, or explain his ideas to the reader.
To determine the author's purpose it is important to analyze the...
• Language used - look at the words the author chooses to use. Do they convey certain emotions? Is it formal or informal?
• Development - How has the author chosen to develop his or her thoughts?
• The audience - Who is the author speaking to? Is the vocabulary technical and specific? Is it targeted to a specific audience? Is the language easy to read and understand?
• The author's point of view - What is the author's attitude toward the subject?
Writer's Intention
The writer’s intention is the meaning or interpretation of the passage that the author had in mind when he or she was creating it. It also includes the meaning the writer is trying to convey.
If the author was speaking to you, what would it sound like? Is the author passionate about the topic? Sarcastic? Neutral? Is the author arousing emotions? Does it evoke feelings of sympathy, anger, happiness or sadness?
Looking at the author's tone can lead the reader to the overall purpose.
The Author's Purpose
An author’s purpose is the reason an author decides to write about a specific topic. Then, once a topic is selected, the author must decide whether his purpose for writing is to inform, persuade, entertain, or explain his ideas to the reader.
To determine the author's purpose it is important to analyze the...
• Language used - look at the words the author chooses to use. Do they convey certain emotions? Is it formal or informal?
• Development - How has the author chosen to develop his or her thoughts?
• The audience - Who is the author speaking to? Is the vocabulary technical and specific? Is it targeted to a specific audience? Is the language easy to read and understand?
• The author's point of view - What is the author's attitude toward the subject?
Writer's Intention
The writer’s intention is the meaning or interpretation of the passage that the author had in mind when he or she was creating it. It also includes the meaning the writer is trying to convey.
Thursday, 20 October 2016
Things Fall Apart -Analysis of Chapter 7
Chapter 7
With the killing of Ikemefuna, Achebe creates a devastating scene that evokes compassion for the young man and foreshadows the fall of Okonkwo, again in the tradition of the tragic hero. Along the way, the author sets up several scenes that juxtapose with the death scene:
The opening scene of the chapter shows the increasing affection and admiration Okonkwo feels for Ikemefuna, as well as for Nwoye.
On the journey with Ikemefuna and the other men of Umuofia, they hear the "peaceful dance from a distant clan."
In Chapter 2, the author comments that the fate of Ikemefuna is a "sad story" that is "still told in Umuofia unto this day." This observation suggests that the decision to kill Ikemefuna was not a customary one. Before dying, Ikemefuna thinks of Okonkwo as his "real father" and of what he wants to tell his mother, especially about Okonkwo. These elements combined suggest that the murder of Ikemefuna is senseless, even if the killing is in accordance with the Oracle and village decisions.
The murder scene is a turning point in the novel. Okonkwo participates in the ceremony for sacrificing the boy after being strongly discouraged, and he delivers the death blow because he is "afraid of being thought weak." At a deep, emotional level, Okonkwo kills a boy who "could hardly imagine that Okonkwo was not his real father" — someone whom Okonkwo truly loves as a son. Okonkwo has not only outwardly disregarded his people and their traditions, but he has also disregarded his inner feelings of love and protectiveness. This deep abyss between Okonkwo's divided selves accounts for the beginning of his decline.
For the first time in the novel, Okonkwo's son, Nwoye, emerges as a major character who, in contrast to his father, questions the long-standing customs of the clan. Achebe begins to show the boy's conflicting emotions; he is torn between being a fiercely masculine and physically strong person to please his father and allowing himself to cherish values and feelings that Okonkwo considers feminine and weak.
With the killing of Ikemefuna, Achebe creates a devastating scene that evokes compassion for the young man and foreshadows the fall of Okonkwo, again in the tradition of the tragic hero. Along the way, the author sets up several scenes that juxtapose with the death scene:
The opening scene of the chapter shows the increasing affection and admiration Okonkwo feels for Ikemefuna, as well as for Nwoye.
On the journey with Ikemefuna and the other men of Umuofia, they hear the "peaceful dance from a distant clan."
In Chapter 2, the author comments that the fate of Ikemefuna is a "sad story" that is "still told in Umuofia unto this day." This observation suggests that the decision to kill Ikemefuna was not a customary one. Before dying, Ikemefuna thinks of Okonkwo as his "real father" and of what he wants to tell his mother, especially about Okonkwo. These elements combined suggest that the murder of Ikemefuna is senseless, even if the killing is in accordance with the Oracle and village decisions.
The murder scene is a turning point in the novel. Okonkwo participates in the ceremony for sacrificing the boy after being strongly discouraged, and he delivers the death blow because he is "afraid of being thought weak." At a deep, emotional level, Okonkwo kills a boy who "could hardly imagine that Okonkwo was not his real father" — someone whom Okonkwo truly loves as a son. Okonkwo has not only outwardly disregarded his people and their traditions, but he has also disregarded his inner feelings of love and protectiveness. This deep abyss between Okonkwo's divided selves accounts for the beginning of his decline.
For the first time in the novel, Okonkwo's son, Nwoye, emerges as a major character who, in contrast to his father, questions the long-standing customs of the clan. Achebe begins to show the boy's conflicting emotions; he is torn between being a fiercely masculine and physically strong person to please his father and allowing himself to cherish values and feelings that Okonkwo considers feminine and weak.
Resource Site: cliffnotes.com
