The Twentieth-Century Poetic Revolution
Which word best describes W.B. Yeats's attitude toward his imitators in this poem? To a Poet, Who Would Have Me Praise Certain Bad Poets, Imitators of His and Mine You say, as I have often given tongue In praise of what another's said or sung, 'Twere politic to do the like by these; But have you known a dog to praise his fleas? A. condescending B. contemptuous C. hateful D. vengeful
B. contemptuous
Read this excerpt from "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Elliot. Assuming that Eliot's reference to mermaids in this excerpt symbolizes the sources of inspiration of traditional poetry, what do these lines imply? Shall I part my hair behind? Do I dare to eat a peach? I shall wear white flannel trousers, and walk upon the beach. I have heard the mermaids singing, each to each. I do not think that they will sing to me. I have seen them riding seaward on the waves Combing the white hair of the waves blown back When the wind blows the water white and black. We have lingered in the chambers of the sea By sea-girls wreathed with seaweed red and brown Till human voices wake us, and we drown. A. The poet wants to escape from the modern world by reverting to traditional poetry. B. The poet likes traditional poetry, but he feels incapable of working with traditional forms. C. The poet draws inspiration from the same sources as traditional poets. D. The poet feels that traditional sources of inspiration are ineffective in the modern world.
D. The poet feels that traditional sources of inspiration are ineffective in the modern world.
Which set of lines in this excerpt from W.B. Yeats's "Easter, 1916" suggests that his response to the Easter Rising goes beyond personal animosity? That woman's days were spent In ignorant good-will, Her nights in argument Until her voice grew shrill. What voice more sweet than hers When, young and beautiful, She rode to harriers? This man had kept a school And rode our wingèd horse; This other his helper and friend Was coming into his force; He might have won fame in the end, So sensitive his nature seemed, So daring and sweet his thought. This other man I had dreamed A drunken, vainglorious lout. He had done most bitter wrong To some who are near my heart, Yet I number him in the song; He, too, has resigned his part In the casual comedy; He, too, has been changed in his turn, Transformed utterly: A terrible beauty is born.
He had done most bitter wrong To some who are near my heart, Yet I number him in the song;
Does Yeats's poem "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death" seem to be traditional or modernist to you? Explain your opinion with reference to the poem.
If you think the poem is more traditional than modernist, you might include the following points: The poem offers a complete statement of a viewpoint. The poem does not offer room for a variety of interpretations. The poem has a definite rhyme scheme and rhythm. The poem does not contain any unusual visual imagery. If you think the poem is more modernist than traditional, you might include the following points: The speaker's choice to take part in the war is not based on a traditional motive such as the pursuit of a noble cause, the love of justice, a desire to free people from oppression, or a desire for glory or heroism. Instead, it stems from the view that life is futile, and his decision to join the war effort comes from an inexplicable, almost absurd "impulse of delight." The absence of a major motive seems to turn the traditional treatment of war upside down. The poem's message to readers seems ambivalent—the airman's choice is clearly explained, but it's hard for readers to decide how to respond to it.
Reread the poem "Nothing to Save" by D. H. Lawrence. Why would the poem be considered an imagist work? Explain your answer. Nothing to Save There is nothing to save, now all is lost but a tiny core of stillness in the heart like the eye of a violet.
Imagist poetry is notable for its economical use of words and its vivid and precise visual imagery. "Nothing to Save" is a very brief poem with a single striking image—the eye of a violet. These two aspects of the poem make it much like Ezra Pound's imagist poem "In a Station of the Metro." Though the title of Lawrence's poem is clearly pessimistic, the subject of the poem is open to interpretation. For example, it's not clear whether the poem is about the author, modern life in general, or some specific context.
Describe the structure of the poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" and explain how it relates to the content of the poem.
In the poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," Eliot uses fragments of different structures with rhymed and unrhymed verse. There is no single rhyme scheme, but many parts of the poem have rhyming lines. Eliot also repeats certain ideas in two or more fragments of the poem. The following lines are examples of this repetition: In the room the women come and go Talking of Michelangelo And indeed there will be time And I have known the eyes[/arms] already, known them all— how should I presume And would it have been worth it, after all, The fragmented structure seems to be a deliberate choice by the poet. Despite the speaker's apparent floundering and hesitation, the repetitions relate the speaker's thoughts across fragments and carry them to his moment of insight: "No! I am not Prince Hamlet, nor was meant to be."
Which set of lines in this excerpt from W.B. Yeats's "An Irish Airman Foresees His Death" suggests that the speaker voluntarily chose to take part in the war? I know that I shall meet my fate Somewhere among the clouds above; Those that I fight I do not hate, Those that I guard I do not love; My country is Kiltartan Cross, My countrymen Kiltartan's poor, No likely end could bring them loss Or leave them happier than before. Nor law, nor duty bade me fight, Nor public men, nor cheering crowds,
Nor law, nor duty bade me fight, Nor public men, nor cheering crowds,
In his poem "Easter, 1916," does Yeats favor either side in the conflict? If so, which side does he favor? If not, how does he avoid taking sides?
Sample Answer: Yeats states that he was not closely acquainted with the people in the Easter Rising. He acknowledges that he only exchanged pleasantries with them before the uprising. He also indicates that he has personal reasons for disliking one person. So he is writing about the cause for which they stood, which, by inference, is important. The comparison of the rebels to "stone" suggests that Yeats may have viewed the rebels' attitude as inflexible or not adapted to the changing times. Yeats also acknowledges the possibility that their deaths may have been "needless" because the British might keep their promises. However, his reference to the "sacrifice" (of all who had supported Irish independence) and the rebels' "excess of love" suggest that he views their cause in a positive light. Moreover, Yeats's repeated description of the kind of change that the uprising has brought about as "a terrible beauty" suggests that his sympathies lie with the rebels. To summarize, Yeats places a certain distance between the rebels and himself, but he supports the rebels' cause.
Think of what the terms modernism and modern art meant to you before starting this lesson. Did your opinion or ideas about these two concepts change after reading the tutorial and watching the video?
Sample Answer: Your answer will vary depending on what meanings you had attached to these terms and how they changed. You might, for example, have said that you assumed modern in both of these terms referred to your own time in the twenty-first century rather than to a movement that took shape in the early twentieth century. (This kind of confusion often arises when movements are labeled with time-sensitive words like new or modern.) You might then have noted that you now see that modernism is about art forms that emerged from radical shifts in ideas related the formation of the modern world and aesthetic rules.
In "And Oh—That the Man I Am Might Cease to Be—" by D. H. Lawrence, what is the emotional state of the speaker? Support your answer with details from the poem.
The speaker in the poem seems to be intensely weary of life, so much so that he does not care to analyze his feelings or express his dissatisfaction with any specific aspect of life. His depression is so strong that not even death will help him overcome this feeling. Instead, he seeks an all-enveloping darkness that signifies the end of the universe itself. The following lines reflect his extreme depression: I wish that whatever props up the walls of light would fall, and darkness would come hurling heavily down, and it would be thick black dark for ever. Not sleep, which is grey with dreams, nor death, which quivers with birth, but heavy, sealing darkness, silence, all immovable.
In the poem, "A Bird in the House" by Elizabeth Jennings, how does the speaker's attitude toward death change? Support your answer with details from the poem.
When the poet witnessed the death of her canary as a child, she was not immediately moved to "tears or sadness" but was struck by the "fitness" of the burial of the canary. However, she later experienced loss as an adult and felt a deep sense of grief: Not knowing death would be hard Later, dark, without form or purpose. After my first true grief I wept, was sad, was dark, . . . After she finished grieving, she recalled her childhood response to the death of the canary. She feels that her first response was wiser, though it seems to lack sensitivity. She feels that all human experience is a form of play, and death is a kind of farewell ritual: The yellow bird sings in my mind and I say That the child is callous but wise, knows the purpose of play.
Later in the lesson, you'll read poems by some of the influential poets of the twentieth century. Look at this list of vocabulary words. Try to determine the meaning of the word from the context in which it appears. You may use a dictionary if you cannot determine the meanings from the contexts. Tiles tumult obliterate venturesome politic callous tedious disorder involving a lot of detail work advantageous at the moment destroy entirely willing to take risks offensively insensitive
disorder: tumult involving a lot of detail work: tedious advantageous at the moment: politic destroy entirely: obliterate willing to take risks: venturesome offensively insensitive: callous Explanation: politic—advantageous at the moment callous—offensively insensitive obliterate—destroy entirely tedious—involving a lot of detail work tumult—disorder venturesome—willing to take risks
Read this excerpt from "The Lake Isle of Innisfree" by W.B. Yeats. From which two aspects of modern life does the speaker likely wish to free himself? I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree, And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made; Nine bean rows will I have there, a hive for the honey bee, And live alone in the bee-loud glade. And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow, Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings; There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow, And evening full of the linnet's wings. I will arise and go now, for always night and day I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore; While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey, I hear it in the deep heart's core. the absence of purpose materialism the lack of religion turmoil
materialism
