Literary Analysis: “Variations of the Word ‘“love”’”
A poem is a piece of writing that partakes of the nature of both speech and song that is nearly always rhythmical, usually metaphorical, and that often exhibits such formal elements as meter, rhyme, and stanza structure. In her poem, “Variations of the Word ‘“love”’,” Margaret Atwood introduces to her audience the word “love” from many different perspectives. Google defines “love” as “an intense feeling of deep affection”, or “having a deep feeling or sexual attachment to (someone).” But “love” is not something that can easily be described. Atwood goes on to present and portray the word through different illustrations, beginning with cliché examples and ending with her own personal scenarios. The author’s tone and metaphorical language effectively conveys her perspective of “love”.
Tone is a literary device that is common in most works of writing. It is an attitude of a writer toward a subject or an audience. It is significant in that not only does it express the attitude of the author, but it also helps to quicken the pace of the plot. In the poem “Variations of the Word ‘“love”’,” Margaret Atwood wrote:
“…we insert it also in the one empty/space on the printed form/that comes with no instructions/There are whole magazines with not much in them/but the word “love”, you can/ rub it all over your body and you/can cook with it too. How do we know/it isn’t what goes on at the cool/debaucheries of slugs under damp/pieces of cardboard? As for the weed-/seedlings nosing their tough snouts up/among the lettuces, they shout it (lines 7-18).”
One can suggest that Atwood has demonstrated a light and informal tone. The poem is more informal in its writing, leaning more towards intimate entertainment. In her writing, the author is able to capture the attention of her readers by giving real-life situations that one may relate to. A well-written poem would help one to engage into the work with their senses. One should be able to ask themselves what the poem caused them to think, hear, see, feel, taste, and to determine what he or she learned from the poet’s words. Many people believe that because poetry is an enigmatic art, and that there is no way for sure to know the
Atwood displays her feelings about not only the art of creative writing, but also the equally artistic act of living one's life to the
Poetry is oftentimes associated with the subjects of love and romance. Poets throughout the ages have used this medium to express their deepest emotions in the most eloquent of ways. Whether the poet is a man or woman is irrelevant. Poets of both genders have succeeded in expressing a heartfelt love to another with a poetic language that speaks volumes in a relatively short amount of text. Two poets from two separate eras each wrote a poem with just such a theme. Anne Bradstreet in “To My Dear and Loving Husband” and Edgar Allan Poe in “Annabel Lee” created magic by writing these poems that express a love for another that transcends time and place.
Love is not always an easy adventure to take part in. As a result, thousands of poems and sonnets have been written about love bonds that are either praised and happily blessed or love bonds that undergo struggle and pain to cling on to their forbidden love. Gwendolyn Brooks sonnet "A Lovely Love," explores the emotions and thoughts between two lovers who are striving for their natural human right to love while delicately revealing society 's crime in vilifying a couples right to love. Gwendolyn Brooks uses several examples of imagery and metaphors to convey a dark and hopeless mood that emphasizes the hardships that the two lovers must endure to prevail their love that society has condemned.
Tone is the technique by which the author conveys his attitude toward his subject. Describe Edwards’ tone. List some words or phrases that help create the tone. Does the tone change? Where? How do you
One example of tone that affected me was Hosseini’s unflinching and fearless tone . He write scenes with violence and warfare and isn’t afraid to describe it in detail, making the reader frightened of certain passages, but it only adds to the emotion. “Assef knelt behind Hassan, put his hands on Hassan's hips and lifted his bare buttocks. He kept one hand on Hassan's back and undid his own belt buckle with his free hand. He unzipped his jeans. Dropped his underwear. He positioned himself behind Hassan. Hassan didn't struggle. Didn't even whimper. He moved his head slightly and I caught a glimpse of his face. Saw the resignation in it. It was a look I had seen before. It was the look of the lamb” ( 75-76). This would be a perfect example of the unflinching tone that Hosseini uses to make sure that the reader understands his point. It was almost like a slap in the face for me. The author isn’t afraid to write anything and it adds a steely edge to the novel's overall emotion. Another use of tone would be irony. “Your father, like you, was a tortured soul, Rahim Khan had written. Maybe so. We had both sinned and betrayed. But Baba had found a way to create good out of his remorse. What had I done, other than take my guilt out on the very same people I had betrayed, and then try to forget it all?” (303). Isn’t it ironic how Amir’s father betrayed his friend even though he
Love is undoubtedly one of the most frequently explored subjects in the literary world. Whether the focus is a confession of love, criticism of love, tale of love, or simply a tale about what love is, such literary pieces force readers to question the true meaning and value of love. Raymond Carver accomplishes this in his short story “What We Talk About When We Talk About Love.” As the unadorned setting and the personality of each character unfold, the reader realizes that Carver is making a grave comment on the existence of love. Carver utilizes strong contrast, imagery, and diction to ultimately suggest that love cannot be defined concretely and therefore cannot be defined in words, and because of this, it is better off unexplored.
Through the use of poetic devices such as repetition or alliteration, the author originally describes what love is not capable of providing and defines love as unnecessary but by the end of the poem, the author reveals that love has some value.
Tones towards specific topics can be revealed in a variety of numerous differing ways. Along with that, tone can reveal many different elements about a theme in a certain piece of literature. Two pieces of writing serving as examples to this would be “Abuelito Who” and Bless Me, Ultima. Both these works of literature are comparable through the way the tones used towards the shared topics of family, devotion, and change were revealed which aided in revealing their respective themes.
In literature, tone is often described as the attitude of the story. It is the method used by the author to add personality or emotion. Without tone, even the best-rounded characters can easily come across as flat. Tone is not simply style, diction, or setting, but instead is the tool that holds all of these pieces together. In, “The Lottery”, author Shirley Jackson’s use of tone not only leads the reader down a familiar easy path to follow, but also sets the stage for the climactic change in events that leaves the reader’s emotions spiraling out of control.
In many poems, the use of imagery and sound causes the reader to consider them to be "good" or "bad". Repetition, alliteration, the use of metaphors and images together with rhymes and the text itself work together to create that special feeling or message the poet wants to share. The Romantics believed that poetry should express the poet's feelings or state of mind and should not be worked with or thought through too much, since the original feeling thus would be lost, but in order to share your feelings or ideas to the public, I believe it is important to present them in as good a form as possible.
What makes a good poetry? It is not only in the idea or thought of what the author is trying to express. What makes a good poetry beautiful is in how the writer makes use of the words, lines, and spaces and indents. The rhythm of the poem can make a significant impact in the expression of the idea. Even the structure of words can make a
In today’s modern view, poetry has become more than just paragraphs that rhyme at the end of each sentence. If the reader has an open mind and the ability to read in between the lines, they discover more than they have bargained for. Some poems might have stories of suffering or abuse, while others contain happy times and great joy. Regardless of what the poems contains, all poems display an expression. That very moment when the writer begins his mental journey with that pen and paper is where all feelings are let out. As poetry is continues to be written, the reader begins to see patterns within each poem. On the other hand, poems have nothing at all in common with one another. A good example of this is in two poems by a famous writer by
Have you ever wondered why people use tone while writing ? Tone is a very strategic way to get the reader's attention. While reading, people can have a different opinion than you. De Vaca did not know that he would have to use tone or even write a report on all that happened in order to save his own life.
If all authors used the same tones, there would be no differences between books. Tone is the literary element that shows the author's attitudes toward a subject. In the beginning of the hero cycle, reverent tone is used many times, however, as the character progresses through the book, they begin to show their flaw, which, many times is revealed by the changing tones the author uses. In the conclusion of the story, they accept defeat with honor after discovering their flaw. Changing tones used by both Chinua Achebe in his book, Things Fall Apart, and William Shakespeare in his playwright, Othello, progress the tragic hero cycle of Okonkwo and Othello.
poem is not merely a static, decorative creation, but that it is an act of communication between the poet and