Symbol/Theme #4

Time as a symbol in "Second Coming" and "As I walked out one evening" is viewed in two vasty different ways. When Time is spoken of in Second Coming, it is not directly named, yet it is referenced to when Yeats tells of how many years it has been since the first coming of Christ. Yeats may also be trying to say that when given to much time, one can become tainted as seen in the apocalyptic Second Coming. "As I walked out one evening" starts off with time being a great friend but as the poem progresses, Time becomes an enemy slowing breaking the two lovers apart until they are no more. Time is directly quoted in this poem and even is personified in some instances. Time as a symbol/theme is apparent in both poems whether it is directly or indirectly quoted.

Plot Blog #1

In Hamlet and Pride and prejudice, one would think there would be no similarities between the two, however, that would be incorrect. They do in fact hold few of the same instances when compared to one another. Hamlet and Elizabeth alike have difficulty making decisions and acting on their decisions in a timely manner. It seems as though whenever they have a chance in taking a step forward, there is always something holding them back. Both characters do end up acting on there feelings, however, Elizabeth's ending is a little more heartwarming that Hamlet's. Hamlet and Pride and Prejudice also have the common grounds of one character who is commonly seen as rather dim witted, in Hamlet it is Polonius and in Pride and Prejudice it is Ms. Bennet. Polonius and Ms. Bennet each have one character that mocks them in some way, both being oblivious to its occurrence. Hamlet constantly uses word play to subtlety tease Polonius, while Polonius continues to converse with Hamlet as though it is a legitimate conversation. Mr. Bennet has the tendency to belittle his wife many times throughout the novel, and finds it in his own enjoyment to laugh at the expense of Ms. Bennet. Hamlet and Pride and Prejudice hold similarities is the main characters in each have difficulty in making decisions, and each has a character to be viewed as dim witted.

Comments on the essay

The main concern for me about my essay and essays in the past are the length of each one. This past essay has been the shortest one i've written in this class, even though I believed my topic had a good basis behind it. I had great ideas for things to elaborate on in the essay but when it came down to the actual formation of the ideas and incorporating those ideas into the essay, it didn't work to well. The other problem could have been that I was focusing on one character, Claudius, and at times it seemed as if it would have been easier to compare or contrast him to another character in the play to help create more length, but I think that would have taken away from the central points of my essay.

Ponder, The Second Coming

"Ponder" begins with the idea of time eating at the remains of "busted statues" and "the stone cringes clinging to the stone", his reason for expressing all of this is he believes time is against him and is slowly running out for all mankind and in this realization of his, Cummings finds that the most important thing to do with time running out is "horizontal business... let us make haste". Obviously, Cummings has no desire for love, just the pleasures it brings.

"The Second Coming" has nothing to do with horizontal business, but a much more sacred arrival of Christ, again. The only downside is this second coming is it is not what the world had been expecting, but they knew it was bound to happen at some point. It seems as though the second coming has brought along armageddon, with God cleansing the world of sin and restarting life again. "And what rough beast, its hour come round at last". Yeats in essence embraces the idea of the second coming, but in addition, instills fear in what it may actually have to offer.

Compare and Contrasting Ozymandias and Ponder

The first obvious contraction of the two poems is their formatting. Ozymandias is more free flowing while Ponder is staggered and broken. Ozymandias is mainly about ancient society and the irony of a king declaring his might and depair and Ponder begins with describing the remains of busted statues and the remains of stone cringes. Both poems can relate in this sense that each has some description of something to do with the remains of some society in the past. Ponder excercices many sexual refrences in the poem while Ozymandias does not. In the end it is much easier to read and understand the flowing language of Ozymandias as opposed to the broken lines of the much more complex Ponder poem.