Poetry Term paper

While the free essays can give you inspiration for writing, they cannot be used 'as is' because they will not meet your assignment's requirements. If you are in a time crunch, then you need a custom written term paper on your subject (poetry)
Here you can hire an independent writer/researcher to custom write you an authentic essay to your specifications that will pass any plagiarism test (e.g. Turnitin). Waste no more time!

Sharon Olds poem Late Poem to My Father exposes the profound effect that childhood trauma can have on someone, even in adulthood. The speaker of the poem invokes sadness and pity in the reader by reflecting on the traumatic childhood of her father, and establishes a cause and effect relationship between the abuse he endured as a child and the dependence he develops on alcohol as an adult. The idea of emotional retardation caused by childhood experiences is not uncommon, especially in our modern world of prevalent substance abuse, dysfunctional families, and child abuse. However, Olds poem is a moving testament to this tragic loss of innocence due to the powerful imagery she weaves throughout the first half of the poem. In addition, Olds skillfully uses figurative language and deliberate line breaks throughout the poem to develop the

dismal sorrow her speaker feels while reflecting on the childhood of her father.

The poem opens with the speaker experiencing an epiphany while contemplating on her

father s childhood, and later in the poem we learn that this contemplation is more specifically

focused on the causes of her father s dependence on alcohol. In the first seven lines of the poem

she uses descriptive details to establish a dark, foreboding image of the setting. For example, in

lines two and three she describes the house with unlit rooms and a hot fireplace . She goes on

to portray her father as a boy of seven, helpless, smart,... which reinforces his innocence in this

imagery of darkness. It is interesting to note how the speaker distinguishes these details, yet in

lines three and six, she refers to her father s father only as the man . She intentionally refers to

him in this flat way so as to convey to the reader that he is unworthy of any characterization. She

also omits characterization in line six when she writes, there were things the man did near you,

purposely emphasizing things with no other explanation. This leads to the assumption that some

actions are too abominable to convey in words, thus leaving us with a vast array of uncomfortable

possibilities to consider. The description of the sweet apples picked at their peak...rotted and

rotted, in lines nine and ten establishes a comparison between her father s loss of innocence, and

the ripe fruit being left to waste. In line eleven she writes, past the cellar door the creek ran and

ran which is a contrast to the apples being trapped within the cellar (like the child in the house),

and the creek being on the outside, where the idea of escape exists. The silent actions of the

apples and the creek are parallel to each other as well.

The realization the speaker comes upon during her pondering is stated in lines twelve and

thirteen, something was not given to you, or something was taken from you that you were born

with, . This line is crucial because not only does it present the overall theme of the poem, but

also the...

You should cite this paper as follows:

MLA Style
. EssayMania.com. Retrieved on 24 May, 2012 from
    <http://essaymania.com/143295/poetry>

More College Papers

1984 essay
Lee Hickmott April 20, 2000 1984 1984 is Orwell's most perfect novel, and it remains one of the most powerful warnings ever made against the dangers of a totalitarian society. This book is among the most famous member of the genre of the negative uto

Treaty Of Versailles essay
2. Describe the peace conference of Versailles & the values & and concerns of its members. To what extent was this conference the basis of World War II? In 1919 leaders of Allies met at a place at Versailles to decide on a peace settlement after the Great War. The decisions that they took were go

Malcom X essay
Malcolm X May 19, 1925 was just like any other day for most people. The sun would come up and the sun would go down just like any other day. Except there was one thing about his day that is unlike no other. This would be the day that Malcolm Little was born in Omaha, Nebraska. You probably don t r