Sea Farer vs Sea Fever
Abby Fitzgerald
May 16, 2013
Period 3
"The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" Comparative Essay
People have been drawn to the adventures the sea has to offer for centuries. Many attempts have been made to express this desire in various ways. Voyaging on the sea has been a constant topic in all of the arts throughout history. "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" are poem that both express how a sailor's love for the sea creates an obligation to be on the sea, whether it is wanted or not. This necessity is reflected in positive and negative ways through the speaker, diction and tone of each poem.
The poems "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" discuss a sailor's love for the sea expressing different tones. The "Seafarer" describes the torture the sea brings him while the speaker is searching for his true purpose in life. This pain and longing creates a somber and melancholy tone form the poem. On a lighter note, "Sea Fever" discusses the various possibilities the sea has to offer, creating a tone of freedom.
The speakers from each poem are both in search for a meaningful life which they believe the sea will provide for them. The diction and imagery of each poem describes the enigma of the sea. The imagery in "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" take the adventurous sea to a new level by both successfully appealing to the five senses. The diction helps reveal this experience as well, but the context of the different poems cause "The Seafarer" to sound fearful and painful, while "Sea Fever" is taken in as a more enjoyable venture, while they both remain an obligatory venture. While discussing the sea in "The Seafarer", the author uses phrases such as "bound by frost in cold clasps" (lines 9b-10a) and "I, wretched and sorrowful, on the ice-cold sea dwelt for a winter in the paths of exile" (lines 14-15), which both give the poem a colder feeling. The context of "Sea Fever" changes the meaning of the diction by describing the sea as "the vagrant gypsy life" (line 9b) and "the
May 16, 2013
Period 3
"The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" Comparative Essay
People have been drawn to the adventures the sea has to offer for centuries. Many attempts have been made to express this desire in various ways. Voyaging on the sea has been a constant topic in all of the arts throughout history. "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" are poem that both express how a sailor's love for the sea creates an obligation to be on the sea, whether it is wanted or not. This necessity is reflected in positive and negative ways through the speaker, diction and tone of each poem.
The poems "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" discuss a sailor's love for the sea expressing different tones. The "Seafarer" describes the torture the sea brings him while the speaker is searching for his true purpose in life. This pain and longing creates a somber and melancholy tone form the poem. On a lighter note, "Sea Fever" discusses the various possibilities the sea has to offer, creating a tone of freedom.
The speakers from each poem are both in search for a meaningful life which they believe the sea will provide for them. The diction and imagery of each poem describes the enigma of the sea. The imagery in "The Seafarer" and "Sea Fever" take the adventurous sea to a new level by both successfully appealing to the five senses. The diction helps reveal this experience as well, but the context of the different poems cause "The Seafarer" to sound fearful and painful, while "Sea Fever" is taken in as a more enjoyable venture, while they both remain an obligatory venture. While discussing the sea in "The Seafarer", the author uses phrases such as "bound by frost in cold clasps" (lines 9b-10a) and "I, wretched and sorrowful, on the ice-cold sea dwelt for a winter in the paths of exile" (lines 14-15), which both give the poem a colder feeling. The context of "Sea Fever" changes the meaning of the diction by describing the sea as "the vagrant gypsy life" (line 9b) and "the