Compare and Contrast
Melina Aracely Mora
English 111
Prof Kumar
29 November 2012
Loneliness is the Common Ground
Loneliness and alienation is a feeling that most everyone feels at one point or another anywhere in the world. The poems “Embrace” by Billy Collins and “Daystar” by Rita Dove share this theme in common. After thoroughly reading both I was able to compare the two poems beyond its similar theme and as well as highlight their differences by analyzing the different ways they utilize literary devices to convey their message. The most efficient way for a poem to speak to the reader is by using metaphors, indirectly representing an image or an even. In both poems the authors use metaphors as a way to grasp the reader into the text and make them think beyond the obvious. In Billy Collins’ poem it compares a man embracing himself to a man in a strait jacket. When first reading the poem without the reference to the strait jacket one might think he would be joking and would not look into the desperation the character might really be in. Once Collins’ introduces the idea of a man being tailored for a strait jacket it really leads the reader to think about the tragic reality of this man’s loneliness. The description of the man’s “screwy grin” just reassures the reader of this man’s insanity caused by his lonesomeness.
Dove also opens up her poem with a metaphor that gives the reader background to the characters tiredness from motherhood and running a household. “But she saw diapers steaming on the line, a doll slumped behind the door,” Dove suggests this line to provide the reader with a mirror image of the main character herself. The women then discovers a comforting place behind the garage and the littlest objects such as “the pinched armor of a vanished cricket” or “a floating maple leaf” serve as a humble desire and harmony. “When she closed her eyes she’d see only her own vivid blood” here the author is implying that the women feels animated and at liberty
English 111
Prof Kumar
29 November 2012
Loneliness is the Common Ground
Loneliness and alienation is a feeling that most everyone feels at one point or another anywhere in the world. The poems “Embrace” by Billy Collins and “Daystar” by Rita Dove share this theme in common. After thoroughly reading both I was able to compare the two poems beyond its similar theme and as well as highlight their differences by analyzing the different ways they utilize literary devices to convey their message. The most efficient way for a poem to speak to the reader is by using metaphors, indirectly representing an image or an even. In both poems the authors use metaphors as a way to grasp the reader into the text and make them think beyond the obvious. In Billy Collins’ poem it compares a man embracing himself to a man in a strait jacket. When first reading the poem without the reference to the strait jacket one might think he would be joking and would not look into the desperation the character might really be in. Once Collins’ introduces the idea of a man being tailored for a strait jacket it really leads the reader to think about the tragic reality of this man’s loneliness. The description of the man’s “screwy grin” just reassures the reader of this man’s insanity caused by his lonesomeness.
Dove also opens up her poem with a metaphor that gives the reader background to the characters tiredness from motherhood and running a household. “But she saw diapers steaming on the line, a doll slumped behind the door,” Dove suggests this line to provide the reader with a mirror image of the main character herself. The women then discovers a comforting place behind the garage and the littlest objects such as “the pinched armor of a vanished cricket” or “a floating maple leaf” serve as a humble desire and harmony. “When she closed her eyes she’d see only her own vivid blood” here the author is implying that the women feels animated and at liberty
Cited: 1. Collins, Billy. ""Embrace"" Backpack Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 4th ed. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2006. Print. 2. Dove, Rita. ""Daystar"" Backpack Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. 4th ed. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2006. Print.