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Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Tears, Idle Tears

Read Tears, Idle Tears. List three adjectives that the speaker uses to describe the past and explain how the adjectives are different or similar. Briefly state the tone of the poem. What does the speaker believe is precious about the past? Do you think the speaker had a joyous or miserable past? Why?

Lord Tennyson is comparing all his memories with adjectives to describe his feelings over the poem. At first he compared his memories which are “fresh” because birth is represented with this adjective, which describes the birth or friendships. Then, in the same stanza he uses another adjective describe his memories, because he think that the loss of friendship is something “sad”. Well, in this stanza he say that all things, specially friendship starts being something fresh, something new and with a lot of positive feelings around it, but then as time goes by, the friendship is lost and it is represented with sadness because the friendship went to an end and dies. The special things that the friendship had over him started and then went to an end.

 He describes life full of “sad” moments, comparing many things that had happened in life as something sad because things are no more there, and this is the way that we go though the way to death. He describes death as a moment in which a man wakes up for the very last morning of life.  However, it is a “strange” moment too because a man who is just starting to discover what life is about, his life is ending and becoming a strange situation.

Of course Lord Tennyson feels really miserable of t he past because he does not agree that in the moment that he is just knowing about life and the time is going and death will be there really soon.

The Power of Nature

Both “The Eagle: A Fragment” and “Flower in the Crannied Wall” contain lessons or messages. Explain how each quotation reveals the message of the poem.

“Close to the sun in lonely lands” (From The Eagle: A Fragment)

Tennyson describes an eagle, which is close to the sun in lonely lands and this shows that the hope that he has; this infers that he is waiting for something to happen, and the comparison that he makes with a thunderbolt shows the incredible power and strength he has over all the things his future will have.

“(If) I could understand what you are… I should know what God and man is” (From Flower in the Crannied Wall)

The little flower represents the beautiful relationship between humanity and God. The flower in the man’s hands shows that humanity understands the incredible truth about God and the creation of the whole world and humanity, so tt make us understand too the power that nature.

What is the speaker’s attitude toward nature in each poem?

Lord Tennyson, in “The Eagle: A fragment” show the respect that he has for nature and shows also the power and strength that nature has over him and over many other humans. He also shows us that humanity, nature and God are in the same path, showing that nature has a strong power over humanity, and that it was created by God for us, so we have to respect it and take care of it as the creation of God.

In what ways are the two poems different?

The two poems are different because in the first one, Lord Tennyson shows the respect that he has for nature and the respect that all humans have to have over it. In the second one he says that nature is a creation of God and that nature has a great power over humanity. In the first poem he represents nature as something magic and in the second one he says that nature is something soft and delicate.

Shattering Glass

After reading “The Lady of Shalott“, what associations do you have with the following words from the poem? Use words, symbols or images to communicate the ideas or emotions you associate with each of the following poem.

Cracked, mirror, curse, shadows.

The “Cracked” mirror makes the lady of Shalott victim of a curse that she does not want to follow. Her life becomes miserable and full of things she does not wanted. She acts disobedient over the curse because she is exhausted of it and knows that her life would never be the same with that curse over her.

The “mirror” shows the world around the lady of Shalott, what she does not have and the world she would like to have, but the curse does not permitted her to have the magic and mystery world around her. All she has is the shadows of the mirror and the simple and depressive life she has.

The lady of Shalott committed a great mistake, just by having this “curse” in her life, which will be there forever. This curse makes her life simpler and really depressive because it was not what she wanted to have. This curse does not allow her to be free and live the life she wants to have, so she is not happy neither comfortable with it.

The “shadows” are the only things that the lady of Shalott can see in her world, the miserable images around her that does not permit her to be free and happy, she is totally trapped in a world that she does not want to have. The shadows show just a simple view of her life, which she cannot have because of the curse.

Why do you think the Lady of Shalott becomes “half sick” of the shadows she sees in the mirror?

The Lady of Shalott becomes half sick because she only sees the shadows around her because of the curse she received. She becomes half sick because she wants to have the life she sees through the mirror but she cannot have it, because she is completely trapped in the curse of the mirror. She really wants to live the life she does not have, of course she knows what her life would be if she would not had made the mistake, but now she is only living the miserable truth of her life.

Remembering the past: do you find it sad or satisfying to look backward? You’re probably thinking, “Obviously, that depends on what’s being remembered -happy or sad times”. But is that the only view? Is there a way in which memory itself -the very FACT of the past- always shadows life in the present?

My past has been something that makes me feel satisfied, of course I can find moments that I would like to change, but those have taught me many lessons for life. The past is full of pleasant and unpleasant situations. The pleasant moments in my life will be in my mind will be there forever and I will always remember those moments as incredible experiences.

In the other hand, the unpleasant situation are the ones that I wouldn’t like to remember, because were moments in which I felt really bad, but I know that those moments are not in my mind as a remembrance, they stay there as lessons for the future.

I think that I don’t live in the shadows of the past, I think that everyday’s life is the best thing that I can have and is the consequence of positive and negative decisions I took in the past, even though that the past makes the person who I am. Many people live frustrated because they want to revive many moments that they had lived and that’s the reason they don’t enjoy the present. Once I heard a quote that says that people waste their life and don’t live the present because they live remembering the past or planning the future.

Therefore, I do think that I have to have a plan for the future, and also dreams and goal. I also know that I have to remember good things from the past and learn from the bad ones. The most important thing in life is that I have to live the present with all the energies I have and totally enjoy it.

How can tears be “idle” -can you cry without knowing why?

It all comes from somewhere, and that somewhere is your subconscious mind. Since you cannot get access to your subconscious most of the time it just feels as if there is no real cause. Well when you cry and you have no reason it’s because you’re not thinking of what is causing it but your heart feels it.

What do you think the “divine despair” is in line 2? Could you relate it to Adam and Eve’s fall in Genesis -would that story explain the speaker’s existential sadness?

The author talks about how the tears come to him because of the happy thoughts he is thinking about. He cries these tears while “looking on the happy autumn-fields.” At first, it seems strange that looking at something happy would form tears, but the fact that these are fields of autumn suggests that they are produced by  the memories of a spring and summer that have vanished, leaving the poet with nothing to look forward to except the dark and cold of winter. He thinks that tears are the product of a “divine despair,” suggesting that they do indeed have a source: they rise in the heart and stem from a profoundly deep and universal cause.

Does the contradiction in the phrase “Death in Life” (line 20) make sense to you? Explain. What is your response to this line? Have you ever felt this way?

The author declares the past to be dear, sweet, deep, and wild. It is as dear as the memory of the kisses of one who is now dead, and it is as sweet as those kisses that we imagine ourselves bestowing on lovers who actually have loyalties to others. So, too, is the past as deep as “first love” and as wild as the regret that usually follows this experience. The speaker concludes that the past is a “Death in Life.”

When you read Ode to the West Wind, consider why people find such power (and fear) thrilling. What moves Percy Shelley so?  Why would he shout to the wind, “Be thou me…!”

Nature has a great power on people’s life, it makes people feel in different way, but the most common feeling is peace. People feel the power of nature, it makes that people feel emotive about it because nature represents the creation that God made and it also expresses that we do not know what will happen in the world, it gives us a great view of what the world is and the immensity it has.

Shelly expresses the feelings over nature, over the wind and the power it has. Shelley asks the wind to be his spirit, which will play him like a musical instrument, the way the wind strums the leaves of the trees. He says that the older generation of Romantic poets viewed nature as a source of truth and authentic experience

 Free writing:

Have you ever experienced the sublime aspect of nature? When?

Nature forms an important part of my life, every time I have to visit an ecologic park I try to enjoy it in the best way. I do think that nature is a great medicine for the heart, mind, body and soul, so I always experience the sublime aspect of nature. Nature is one of my passions; I love to see some virgin forests because those landscapes represent peace for me.

Last Monday, I went with my boyfriend and his family to an ecologic park, it was incredible; well I think that I was the only one that enjoyed it. I’m a person that loves technology and those things, but I like to have some moments to be surrounded by nature and have some time to enjoy it. In nature, I have the time to think and leave my mind to go into the beauty and power that nature has.

Is incredible what nature makes on me. Sometimes when I feel frustrated the best thing that I can do is go out of my house and enjoy the beauty of the sun, trees, grass and sound of birds. Is really amazing when I can hear a waterfall too, it makes me relax and feel the power of nature over my mind.

Suppose you’re a creator. Among architecture, sculpture, music, and literature, which do you think offers the most promise of an enduring monument? Explain your answer.

Between these types of art, I think that the one that last more between centuries is architecture. As time goes by, the architecture gains more value because people appreciate the art that was made in other centuries. The problem is that many other people do not know that architecture has an important position in history and in everyday’s life, so these type of people destroy many monuments or just ruin them. In architecture, you can see what the creators wanted to express and all the influences that they had during that period of time. As an example, in Europe, you can see the appreciation of architecture in all the churches and museums. People consider architecture to be a visual experience, but the other senses play a role in how we experience both natural and built environments. Attitudes towards the senses depend on culture.

Irony is the discrepancy between expectations and reality. Explain the fundamental irony in the sonnet.

This is a poem with too much power, knowledge but so little wisdom. The author illustrates with words the influence of men on the world’s destiny that chose cruelty and domination for their method. There are two contradicting themes among men, one that man improves spiritually and socially over time, and another that man never changes. The poem emphasizes the permanence of power struggles, art, and nature itself, in a world where nothing seems eternal. It also describes how the power of nature and time far surpasses the power of human beings.

Discuss what you think is the speaker’s message about pride -and whether it also applies to artists.

The authors says that people look for pride over time with their poems and other expressions of art, but at the end everything that the artists gained over time and all the effort they made go to an end. People look for things that are not too important than other things, like artists look for pride that at the end does not make sense in life.

Could this poem apply to any contemporary figures who wield political power? Explain.

Many people that work in politics look for power and after many things they do, they gain power. After these people gain power they use it for cruel things or they just do not know how to manage it that they use it in the wrong way. A good example is the power that Hitler has, but he did not use it for positive things.

what in the woman’s appearance does the speaker praise? what conclusions does he draw about her character and personality?

The one that seems to be pure, that in her eyes he can see a beautiful soul and a innocent mind. He thinks that a beautiful woman is the one that lives with serenity and tranquility, the one that with her expressions, like her smile and eyes, can express the truth of her heart. This type of woman expresses a mind full of peace and a heart full of love.

 In conclusion, he says that a beautiful woman does not express the beauty in her physical characteristics, he says that the beauty is seen through the eyes and the expressions but it represents the incredible, peaceful and sweet characteristics that the heart and the mind have.

This poem has been criticized as sentimental and dependent on clichés. Tell me whether or not you agree and why.

This poem seems to be a cliché because it talks about the beauty of a woman and that everything is just in the right way when he is with her. He says that everything seems to be perfect, but in life nothing goes that way. The poem gives us a different perspective when he says that his eyes and smile represent the beauty that the woman have inside, in her mind, soul and heart, this makes me doubt in the idea that the poem is a total cliché.

Do you think that inward nature can be revealed by outward appearances? Explain.

Yes, the inward nature of a person can be expressed by the outward appearances. The eyes and the expressions of a person show many feelings and thoughts that a person has. The problem is that many other persons express a lot of feelings and thoughts that are not real; they demonstrate other things because they are afraid to show their reality. In conclusion, most of the people express their feelings and thoughts by their eyes and expressions; the problem is that sometimes those expressions are not accurate.

Ah! well-a-day! what evil looks
Had I from old and young!
Instead of the cross, the Albatross
About my neck was hung.”

In everyday’s life people do things that have the consequences they were not expecting, so they feel guilty for those things during many time. Guilt is considered as an emotion that occurs when a person realizes that something he or she has done is wrong; nobody is perfect and everybody does mistakes.

The selfsame moment I could pray;
And from my neck so free
The Albatross fell off, and sank
Like lead into the sea.”

Guilt has its own power; many people have to do many things to stop feeling guilty and to realize and found the problem’s solution. Praying is a good way of expressing how sorry a person is about something he or she made, and in that way he or she will take out the guilt that is inside.

He prayeth best, who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all.”

God is a good guide for life, following his steps is the best thing that anybody can do. He loves everybody, but he also forgives the mistakes in life. The important thing about loving God, is that people has to be honest, well, everybody has to be followed by values and morals;  and that is the way that He teaches us the lessons of life.

He went like one that hath been stunned,
And is of sense forlorn:
A sadder and a wiser man
He rose the morrow morn.

Morals and values makes people become more realistic about life, this is something really good because people cannot life a fantasy, even though reality is more hurtful that a dream. In life, is really important that people learn from other one’s experiences and become a wise person with more knowledge about life.

My opinion about Coleridge’s poem

In my opinion, Coleridge added a lot of moral lesson in his poem, but I do think that the message was well explained in this poem, so I do agree with it. Morals is the basic part of life; as Coleridge says in his poem “the Wedding guest became a sadder and wiser man” he is explaining that life is made of experiences that makes people more realistic about every situation. Clearly, Coleridge added too much moral lesson in the poem but is really important that the poem had a message and it explains that even in the most irrelevant situations in life, people have to act in the right way, with morals and values.

Simile

The bride hath paced into the hall

Red as a rose is she………………………………

Metaphor

Personification

The Sun came up upon the left

Out of the sea came he! 

Alliteration

The Wedding-Guest here beat his breast

Assonance   

In mist or cloud, on mast or shroud,

Internal rhyme

a speck, a mist, a shape, I wist!

Animal Encounter

Every time I see a kitty, I like to take it into my arms caress it. I would like to have one, but the problem is that my parents does not like kitties or cats. Five years ago, I realized that kitties are the most beautiful pets in the world, every time I go to a pet shop I like to ask for the kitties on sale, just to pet them and have a happy moment.

I remember that one day I went to the house of one of my boyfriend’s friends to have some lunch. We were there and I saw a kitty, it was black, beautiful and really playful. In the moment that I took it into my arms he made some movements that expressed that he wanted some care. I started playing with him; I was really happy and amazed because of what was happening. In the moment I had to leave him I was really sad, but now every time I see a kitty I know that someday I want to have an incredible cat as the one I saw that day.

My Little Kitty

Oh my sweet and little kitty

Sitting there looking so pretty,

Looking for a time to play,

And trying to have fun today.

You like to drink milk,

Your fur is like silk.

I like to nourish you

I never wanna live without you.

Why do human beings do evil?

Some people are great persons that even though they do not have a good socio-economical status they tend to be people full of values and positive characteristics that lead them to great things in life. Many other people do not have those characteristics and that is because they do not have the basic values to succeed in their life. Those persons were not educated in a right way, so now they do not know the difference between the good and the evil. Many other people know the difference but they do not know the importance of it, this maybe caused because of power, but also because of the lack of values they have.

Why do evil people sometimes prosper?

Evil people can change if they see the reality of the world. Many people says that life is a unit full of lessons; some evil persons are changed through those lessons because they realize that life has to be in the right way not in the evil one. All the things that one persons do evil does not bring them positive consequences, so in that way they learn the lesson, people have to follow the right way of everything.

Why does God allow innocent children to suffer?

Many people think that God is the one that makes children suffer and the one that make others to have sad or frustrating moments. In those situations many people ask themselves if God exist, but as the Bible says “God gives us challenges that we can handle” and those challenges that God gives us is to teach us through experience. In this way people can learn the truth of life and how to be prepared for the future. Not everything is good and beautiful; children have to learn for the future experiences.

If you could cry out against an evil of our day -and get people to listen-, which social problem would you choose? Why would you choose it?

I would like to explain to people the lack of values that the society is having. People are raising their children with lots of libertinage and are not focused on the values that they need for future experiences, for life and the new things that they would have to live. Life is more difficult as time goes by, and people have to explain that. Children have to be prepared for the challenges they will have when they grow up.

What happens to anger that is allowed to grow and fester, anger that is nurtured with our own deceit?

Anger that is inside a person is accumulated and has some consequences that do not bring any good to the person. This anger is accumulated and grows as time goes by; a person with too much anger has to take it out and forgive the persons or just express what happened to someone, so it is taken out. If it is not removed from the thoughts and feelings of a person it can explode or just bring another series of consequences, like some mental problems and changes in attitude. When a person does not remove the anger t hat is inside, he or she will suffer more when the anger explodes and also will hurt or damage somebody’s life.

What does confession mean to you?

Confession is a really hard word, that does not means only to go with a priest and confess the sins I have, it is also to tell the guilt that I have inside my soul, heart and mind to someone. When somebody had done something wrong the best way to take that guilt out is to confess that he or she has done something in the wrong way and that he or she is asking for forgiveness. Many people are afraid of those confessions, but they have to be done as soon as possible, before the problems go bigger and bigger.

What purpose does confession have for the teller and listener?

The real purpose of a confession for the teller is to take that guilt out from the mind, sould and heart; but most of all to ask for forgiveness. The purpose for the listener is to forgive that persons that has damage him or her and also to prevent resentment. The purpose for both is to get an arrangement over the situation.

 Is a listener even necessary?

In every situation, even if it is religiously or something in a relationship between two or more people, is necessary that there exist a listener. When a person is asking for forgiveness, he or she is doing an act of humility because this person is really sorry because of something. The basic essence of a confession is to be sorry about something and ask for forgiveness, so this persons can understand the basic part of the mistake that he or she has done.

Why do you think the act of confession plays such an important part in law and religion?

Because it shows that the person is sorry about his or her act and that it is a compromise that the mistake won’t be committed again. Is really important that people ask for forgiveness just to understand the basic thing about the problem and to compromise with her or himself that it won’t happen again and to understand the reality of the problem.