Theme of Indolence Explored in Ode on Indolence Essay Example for Free

Theme of Indolence Explored in Ode on Indolence Essay Question: How is the theme of indolence explored in the poem ode on indolence? Ode on indolence is the praise of indolence/sluggishness; it makes the claim of the attractions of lethargy being more alluring than the attractions of the more active emotions of love, ambition and poetry. It is the admiration of the state of non-doing and non-feeling. The ode is a simple, straight forward story of a man who spends a lazy summer day in a state of numbness and does not want his visions of love, ambition and poesy to disrupt his indolence. These three figures are strikingly contrasted to the condition of indolence. The poetic persona could be Keats himself. The ode begins with the poetic persona seeing three figures one summer morning passing him by in a dream/vision, as if on a marble urn they returned with each turn of the vase. Their description resembles that of pilgrims with bowed necks, and joined hands wearing placid sandals and white robes, they were seen in profile. The figures are called shades and strange, the narrator is confused and cannot identify them. The narrators confusion is shown in the next stanza with the repetition of the questions regarding the identity and the nature of the figures. The word ripe is used to describe his time of idleness; this has positive innuendo and gives the impression of richness. The figures were robbing him of his summer-indolence, they are described as constructing a deep-disguised plot and are said to steal. These terms are negative and show these figures to be menacing or malevolent at least to a slight degree. In contrast indolence is compared to a blissful cloud that favourably makes pain numb and takes its sting away [metaphor], however it also takes the joy away from pleasure or pleasures wreath no flower [metaphor]. The narrator begs the shadows to leave him to his much longed-for nothingness. The term used- shadows insinuates the visions are dark and ominous. The third verse is commenced with yet another question addressing the reason for the figures appearance. His confusion is echoed in the word baffled. His soul is compared to a beautiful lawn strewn with flowers, stirring shades and baffled beams; the sky was clouded but there was no rain, only dew drops called the sweet tears of May. This pristine image of the narrators soul is brought on by the state of inactivity, thus we are made to believe that this state of being is desirable or covetable. He wants to bid farewell to the three shadows. The fourth verse shows the third turn of the urn and brings forth the realisation of the there figures- the fair maid love, ambition pale of cheek with fatigued eye and the maiden most unmeek poesy. Their description has negative connotations; only love is shown in a slightly positive light. In this verse the narrator feels intense urge to follow the three and longed for wings to fly in pursuit of them. Poesy is said to be the most appealing of the three and is called a demon; this could be justified by saying that it is because the narrator finds poesy most difficult to resist and it holds an almost enchantment like hold on him. Keats has expressed his wish to fly on the wings of poesy before in another poem. In the fifth stanza a question is posed to love to establish its elusive nature. Love is also criticised as being fleeting and short-lived and not to mention folly. Ambition on the other hand is condemned as being a mortal emotion that springs from the human heart. From other poems- ode to a nightingale or ode on a Grecian urn- we know that Keats has trouble with mortality and impermanence. And as for poesy, it has not a joy compared to honied indolence- the narrator would rather be devoid of common-sense and spend his drowsy noons numb and listless completely ignorant to the world around him [I may never know how change the moons]. The concluding stanza says adieu to the three and marks their defeat in rousing the narrator from his laziness. He commands the phantoms to vanish and never more return. He banishes them back to the dreamy urn and reduces them to faint visions. But taking into account that the state of indolence as compared to the three visions is hardly mentioned, it is not very convincing that the poetic persona prefers indolence over his other temptations [especially after reading some of his other poems]. It does however come across that he is trying to deny his passions even to himself.

Irony in Oedipus the King Essay -- Oedipus the King Oedipus Rex

Irony in Oedipus the King      Ã‚   When Sophocles wrote Oedipus the King, he knew that his audience would have some idea as to the outcome, his tale being a Greek tragedy which follows a strict form. Not wanting to write a predictable, bland play, Sophocles used this knowledge to his advantage and created various situations in which dramatic irony plays a key role. Dramatic irony is present when the tragic truth is revealed to the audience before it is revealed to the characters within the story. Through this use of irony, Sophocles succeeds in telling a fresh tale. Even though the audience knows how the story will end, they are intrigued by the presence of irony. By crafting irony into his tale, Sophocles gives the reader a desire to see how Oedipus is going to mentally react to the events that are sure to transpire.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Oedipus is self-confident, intelligent, and strong willed. Ironically these are the very traits which bring about his tragic discovery.   Because of these traits Oedipus was able to solve the riddle given to him by the Sphinx.   When this riddle was solved he acquired great popularity and power.  Ã‚   He was then challanged into a riddle of his own where he had to find out the truth of his past and the fate of his future.   By solving this riddle he lost all the power and glory, left to be exiled and become a beggar in another land.   If Oedipus had not been so determined to escape and prevent the prophecy by the Oracle, he would not have fulfilled it. Possibly, he was doomed to fulfill the prophecy because he believed he could avoid it. Nevertheless, his fate was sealed by his actions of pride and determination. His pride of conquering the Sphinx led him to the marriage of Jocasta, his mother. Whe... ... truth, whereas when he blinded himself he knew the full truth of what the oracles had said. Sophocles successfully attained his objective in "Oedipus the King" through the use of dramatic irony.   Works Cited and Consulted: Abrams, M. H. A Glossary of Literary Terms, 7th ed. New York: Harcourt Brace College Publishers, 1999. Ehrenberg, Victor. "Sophoclean Rulers: Oedipus." In Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex, edited by Michael J. O'Brien. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1968. Sophocles. Oedipus Rex. Transl. by F. Storr. no pag. Available:   http://etext.lib.virginia.edu/etcbin/browse-mixednew?tag=public&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&part=0&id=SopOedi Yaeger, Werner. "Sophocles' Master of Dramatic Irony." In Readings on Sophocles, edited by Don Nardo. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1997.   

Columbian Exchange

The Columbian Exchange â€Å"Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492† is a common expression used today about the discovery of the Americas. What happens after the discovery of the Americas? Transculturation. This is the mixing of cultures in which both sides change in one way or another (Murphy, 1-14-13). The Columbian Exchange happened when people from Europe and Africa settled into Latin America and the Caribbean after the discovery of the Americas. The Columbian Exchange brought over diseases to the Americas, plants and animals, and the exchange of silver.The colonization of the Americas made exchanging animals and plants happen daily. Sugar was one plant that was brought over. Sugar was brought over to Brazil from the coast of Africa (Crosby, 69). Towards the end of the 16th century, Brazil became the biggest producer of sugarcane. At first, sugar was only bought by the rich but over time it was an important crop in everyone’s day to day life. Sugar coul d be boiled down into concentrated, making it easy to fit in ships, causing it to become the cash crop for centuries (Chasteen, 24).Brazil was producing 57, 000 tons of sugar annually in 1610, in which the English started to produce sugar which drove the production down in Brazil (Crosby, 69). Sugar created harsh working environments and ended up having slaves do all of the work. Slaves were purchased and brought in from West Africa (Wolfe, 150). Maize, potatoes, tomatoes, and many other plants were added to European and Africa diets. Many crops that exist in European nations have come from the Americas during the Columbian Exchange.Tomatoes were grown in the Americas before they made their way to Italy. Italy is known for their food that uses tomatoes and many people think that the tomato originated in Italy. The tomato got brought back to Italy throughout the trips from the Americas. Maize was introduced to Asia in the 16th century, which was a factor for population growth in Asia (Crosby, 65). As Winn states â€Å"But not much of the Columbian exchange was not positive for the indigenous people of the Americas† (Winn, 43), most of the Columbian exchange was lop sided.Europeans and Africans got the better end of the Columbian exchange due to the fact that they transferred many of the diseases instead of receiving them. Along with plants, imported animals arrived in the America during Columbus’s second voyage in 1493 (Crosby, 75). Horses, dogs, pigs, cattle, chickens, sheep, and goats all arrived in the Americas in the 16th century. Pigs were the first animals to blow up, with 30,000 pigs in Cuba by 1514 (Crosby, 76). Cattle, like pigs, reproduced in great numbers and quickly adapted to the new environment.All of these animals were used some way or another to produce a profit. Skin became the biggest export from America to Europe after colonization to the America’s happened (Murphy, 1-23-13). The fat was used to produce animals and sheep were used to produce clothing (Murphy, 1-23-13). Horses gave Bernal Diaz the advantage in defeating the Aztec to claim Mexico. Cattle provided meat which would not have been there if it wasn’t for the colonization. The Spaniards realized that silver from the America’s could bring them indefinite money, while the silver lasted.There was virtually no silver being exported from the Americas to Europe before Columbus discovered the Americas. At the beginning of the 16th century, silver production in the Americas started to sky rocket due to the Spaniards discovering the benefits of silver. In the 1540’s, a silver mine located in Potosi, Peru was opened up by the Spaniards (Chasteen, 50). The town of Potosi blew up due to this new economic growth that was happening. The working environments were harsh; men had to carry pounds and pounds of silver down the mountain (Murphy, 1-28-13).From 1503-1660, 700 million pounds of silver gets exported from the Americas to Europe (Murphy, 1-28-13). The problem with silver is that it has boom and bust cycles, where one year silver may be at its all-time high and the next the economy takes a beating. The money being made was through the taxing of this silver. The exchange of silver brought the Americas and the rest of the world together. This was due to the trade that was happening with the silver. The crown in Spain received around 40 percent of all the silver profits (Wolfe, 139).The crown received this money due to the royal fifth or settlement of American taxes (Wolfe, 139). Around 30 percent of the silver was illegally traded to the crown did not receive that money (Murphy, 1-28-13). No food is able to grow at Potosi so all of it had to be imported from other countries. This created huge trade relations across the world. The food from Potosi would be imported from elsewhere because it was cheaper, causing the prices to rise in the Potosi economy (Wolfe, 139). In the early 1800’s, the silver ran ou t and the town of Potosi went down with it.This shows how much the Spaniards had an impact on the Americas, Peru in this instance. The diseases that Europe and Africa brought in during colonization to the Americas were the biggest negative impact of the Columbian Exchange. Diseases wiped out populations in the Americas. Native Americans had no immunity towards the diseases that were coming in. Diseases like smallpox, measles, malaria, plague, and many others were killing native people uncontrollably. In lower and upper Peru, the population declined from 5 million to less than 300 thousand in 1780-1790’s (Wolfe, 135).As shown in this quote by Winn â€Å"The result was the greatest demographic disaster in history† (Winn, 43), this epidemic effected wherever colonization happened in the Americas. The old world diseases were not intentionally spread to the Americas but were a side effect of transculturation. The Columbian exchange was a major factor in the Colonization of the Americas. New foods were exchanged between the Americas and Europe and Africa. Animals were also swapped during this exchange, which created economic opportunities.The finding of silver in Potosi helped Spain gain money through taxes. This was a boom and bust cycle which leads to Potosi becoming a ghost town. With colonization happening, diseases brought from the Europeans and Africans killed an uncountable amount of people in the Americas. The Columbian Exchange changed Latin America and the Caribbean fully. The real question is what would Latin America and the Caribbean be like if the Columbian Exchange never happened? Works Cited Chasteen, â€Å"Encounter,† in Born in Blood and Fire, pp. 11-42 (3rd ed), 25-53 (2nd).Chasteen, â€Å"The Colonial Crucible,† in Born in Blood, pp. 49-80 (3rd ed), 59-89 (2nd). Crosby, Alfred, â€Å"Old World Plants and Animals in the New World,† in The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492 (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1973), pp. 64-121. Wolfe, Eric, â€Å"Iberians in America,† in Europe and the People without History (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997 [1982]), pp. 131-157. Winn, Peter, â€Å"The Legacies of Empire† in Americas: The Changing Face of Latin America and the Caribbean (New York: Pantheon Books, 1992), pp. 39-83 Columbian Exchange The Columbian Exchange â€Å"Christopher Columbus sailed the ocean blue in 1492† is a common expression used today about the discovery of the Americas. What happens after the discovery of the Americas? Transculturation. This is the mixing of cultures in which both sides change in one way or another (Murphy, 1-14-13). The Columbian Exchange happened when people from Europe and Africa settled into Latin America and the Caribbean after the discovery of the Americas. The Columbian Exchange brought over diseases to the Americas, plants and animals, and the exchange of silver.The colonization of the Americas made exchanging animals and plants happen daily. Sugar was one plant that was brought over. Sugar was brought over to Brazil from the coast of Africa (Crosby, 69). Towards the end of the 16th century, Brazil became the biggest producer of sugarcane. At first, sugar was only bought by the rich but over time it was an important crop in everyone’s day to day life. Sugar coul d be boiled down into concentrated, making it easy to fit in ships, causing it to become the cash crop for centuries (Chasteen, 24).Brazil was producing 57, 000 tons of sugar annually in 1610, in which the English started to produce sugar which drove the production down in Brazil (Crosby, 69). Sugar created harsh working environments and ended up having slaves do all of the work. Slaves were purchased and brought in from West Africa (Wolfe, 150). Maize, potatoes, tomatoes, and many other plants were added to European and Africa diets. Many crops that exist in European nations have come from the Americas during the Columbian Exchange.Tomatoes were grown in the Americas before they made their way to Italy. Italy is known for their food that uses tomatoes and many people think that the tomato originated in Italy. The tomato got brought back to Italy throughout the trips from the Americas. Maize was introduced to Asia in the 16th century, which was a factor for population growth in Asia (Crosby, 65). As Winn states â€Å"But not much of the Columbian exchange was not positive for the indigenous people of the Americas† (Winn, 43), most of the Columbian exchange was lop sided.Europeans and Africans got the better end of the Columbian exchange due to the fact that they transferred many of the diseases instead of receiving them. Along with plants, imported animals arrived in the America during Columbus’s second voyage in 1493 (Crosby, 75). Horses, dogs, pigs, cattle, chickens, sheep, and goats all arrived in the Americas in the 16th century. Pigs were the first animals to blow up, with 30,000 pigs in Cuba by 1514 (Crosby, 76). Cattle, like pigs, reproduced in great numbers and quickly adapted to the new environment.All of these animals were used some way or another to produce a profit. Skin became the biggest export from America to Europe after colonization to the America’s happened (Murphy, 1-23-13). The fat was used to produce animals and sheep were used to produce clothing (Murphy, 1-23-13). Horses gave Bernal Diaz the advantage in defeating the Aztec to claim Mexico. Cattle provided meat which would not have been there if it wasn’t for the colonization. The Spaniards realized that silver from the America’s could bring them indefinite money, while the silver lasted.There was virtually no silver being exported from the Americas to Europe before Columbus discovered the Americas. At the beginning of the 16th century, silver production in the Americas started to sky rocket due to the Spaniards discovering the benefits of silver. In the 1540’s, a silver mine located in Potosi, Peru was opened up by the Spaniards (Chasteen, 50). The town of Potosi blew up due to this new economic growth that was happening. The working environments were harsh; men had to carry pounds and pounds of silver down the mountain (Murphy, 1-28-13).From 1503-1660, 700 million pounds of silver gets exported from the Americas to Europe (Murphy, 1-28-13). The problem with silver is that it has boom and bust cycles, where one year silver may be at its all-time high and the next the economy takes a beating. The money being made was through the taxing of this silver. The exchange of silver brought the Americas and the rest of the world together. This was due to the trade that was happening with the silver. The crown in Spain received around 40 percent of all the silver profits (Wolfe, 139).The crown received this money due to the royal fifth or settlement of American taxes (Wolfe, 139). Around 30 percent of the silver was illegally traded to the crown did not receive that money (Murphy, 1-28-13). No food is able to grow at Potosi so all of it had to be imported from other countries. This created huge trade relations across the world. The food from Potosi would be imported from elsewhere because it was cheaper, causing the prices to rise in the Potosi economy (Wolfe, 139). In the early 1800’s, the silver ran ou t and the town of Potosi went down with it.This shows how much the Spaniards had an impact on the Americas, Peru in this instance. The diseases that Europe and Africa brought in during colonization to the Americas were the biggest negative impact of the Columbian Exchange. Diseases wiped out populations in the Americas. Native Americans had no immunity towards the diseases that were coming in. Diseases like smallpox, measles, malaria, plague, and many others were killing native people uncontrollably. In lower and upper Peru, the population declined from 5 million to less than 300 thousand in 1780-1790’s (Wolfe, 135).As shown in this quote by Winn â€Å"The result was the greatest demographic disaster in history† (Winn, 43), this epidemic effected wherever colonization happened in the Americas. The old world diseases were not intentionally spread to the Americas but were a side effect of transculturation. The Columbian exchange was a major factor in the Colonization of the Americas. New foods were exchanged between the Americas and Europe and Africa. Animals were also swapped during this exchange, which created economic opportunities.The finding of silver in Potosi helped Spain gain money through taxes. This was a boom and bust cycle which leads to Potosi becoming a ghost town. With colonization happening, diseases brought from the Europeans and Africans killed an uncountable amount of people in the Americas. The Columbian Exchange changed Latin America and the Caribbean fully. The real question is what would Latin America and the Caribbean be like if the Columbian Exchange never happened? Works Cited Chasteen, â€Å"Encounter,† in Born in Blood and Fire, pp. 11-42 (3rd ed), 25-53 (2nd).Chasteen, â€Å"The Colonial Crucible,† in Born in Blood, pp. 49-80 (3rd ed), 59-89 (2nd). Crosby, Alfred, â€Å"Old World Plants and Animals in the New World,† in The Columbian Exchange: Biological and Cultural Consequences of 1492 (Westport, CT: Greenwood Press, 1973), pp. 64-121. Wolfe, Eric, â€Å"Iberians in America,† in Europe and the People without History (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1997 [1982]), pp. 131-157. Winn, Peter, â€Å"The Legacies of Empire† in Americas: The Changing Face of Latin America and the Caribbean (New York: Pantheon Books, 1992), pp. 39-83

Analysis Of The Poem The Chrysanthemums - 966 Words

Freedom is the ability to speak, act, think, and do what you want without any restrictions from anyone or anything. The stories â€Å"The Story of an Hour† and â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† have a theme of freedom that is expressed through the use of the main characters Elise and Mrs. Miller (Louise). The two characters are woman who wish for freedom. Though they are women with husbands that love them and beautiful homes they are restricted by their marriage, gender, and the social norm of their time period. These two women do not just want any type of freedom, they want freedom of independence. To do as they wish, act as they wish, speak as they wish. In the story â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† the theme of freedom is very subtle. Elise the main character is an intelligent, ambitious, beautiful woman with a lot to offer but because she is a woman her potentials is ignored. Elise does not have the freedom to do the things that men can do such as working in a ranch, or goi ng around in car fixing things like the Tinker does. Elise is trapped in the social norm of her time period. The 1930s was a time were women had the right to vote and were becoming more and more independent but they were far from being equal with men. Women were still considered the subordinate sex. They cook, clean and do all the housework while the men go to work. When Elise’s husband says he wished â€Å"[she] would work out in the orchard†, Elisa answers â€Å"[she] could do it† instead of she will do it (Steinbeck, 589). She answeredShow MoreRelatedJohn Steinbeck2062 Words   |  9 Pagesbeen develop such as novel, poems, and short stories. Short Stories are described has miniature versions of books or novels, where an author takes a tale and crams it into a ten to twenty page story. John Steinbeck is not only a well-known novelist, but also writes short stories like â€Å"The Chrysanthemums† and â€Å"Flight†. In Steinbeck’s â€Å"Th e Chrysthemums† Elisa Allen is married to a negligent ranch owner. While her husband works on the ranch, Elisa tends to her chrysanthemum garden daily. One day whileRead MoreEnglish All Semester 26504 Words   |  27 Pagesconquer in battle; subjugate; to defeat in a contest, conflict, or competition. | virulent | adjective | bitterly hostile or antagonistic; hateful | yarn-spinner | noun | a weaver of tall-tales, a spinner of stories | 6.04A The Chrysanthemums ------------------------------------------------- Top of Form Question 1 (Multiple Choice Worth 5 points) How does Steinbeck show the simple lifestyles led in this story? Elisa and Henry worry about how they will pay for their dinnerRead MoreAnalysis of â€Å"Dark Shadows† as a Gothic Masterpiece2169 Words   |  9 PagesAnalysis of â€Å"Dark Shadows† as a Gothic Masterpiece To most, when asked to define what Gothic is, they will state that it is similar to any other story, just with more â€Å"darkness.† This is because Gothic stories all have a classic story line. First, there is the main character’s back story, if any is then told. Next, there are events that lead up to a horrible incident that is the climax of the story. Lastly, the character finds some way to fix the situation or free him- or herself fromRead MoreSex and Dominance in The Ghost Road Essay3936 Words   |  16 PagesLizzies contribution to the war effort.   Unfortunately for Lizzie, five of the seven turned out not to have enlisted at all   (Barker 36).   Despite the fact that Lizzie was Priors best friends mother, he copulates with her, inviting a Freudian analysis of Priors sexual motivations.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Next, a Scarborough whore called Elinor feigns to trip across Prior as he walks down the road.   Prior is tempted, but hesitant; he eventually concedes and follows Elinor to her flat.   Inside, Prior