Coleridge may be one of the most well-rounded and intellectual writers that we are reading. He was a poet, theologian, good talker, and an idea man. I belive that he had strong Christian values that he tried to incorporate in most of his poems. This idea seems to be a constant theme of his.
After listening to the podcast for "The Eolian Harp", I realized that I did not interpret it the same way at all. Dr. Glance discusses how it talks about how Coleridge is receiving new ideas which he must share to the world. His new wife, Sara, is the person that must ground him for this and he despises her for it. I did not think that is what this poem was about at all. I read that he wrote this during the honeymoon after the wedding. I thought he was talking about the new feeling of being married and how is made him feel excited and happy. When it says, "O the one life within us and abroad, Which meets all motion and becomes its soul" (325), I thought it was talking about his excitement of sharing his life with someone till their two souls felt like one. I also thought he was relating the beautiful music of the eolian harp to the beauty of his new wife. At the end of this poem it says, "I praise him, and with Faith that inly feels; Who with saving mercies healed me, A sinful and miserable man" (326). I thought he was praising God for giving him this wife because he was a miserable man. I guess this is a perfect example of how easily I can misinterpret these kinds of poems.
The next poem that I would like to talk about is "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." I like the wedding guest was curious of what happened to this mariner. As soon as the mariner killed the albatross, he was cursed. All of the things that happened to him were very interesting to read. I felt like I was reading a children's tale since the events were very unlikely. I personally think that his characters were created out of hallucinations that he may have had. Since he did have an addiction to opium, he may have had reoccurring hallucinations. At the end of this tale, I was interested in the moral of the story. I think the ultimate purpose of this story was again a type of Christian value. It seems like he valued the idea of love, and everyone should have love for all things even animals such as birds. I, as well as the wedding guest, may have gained a little perspective from this tale. It is not understood how much something is loved until it is gone such as the bird and his crew.
After I read the poem, "Epitaph", I could also see Coleridge's Christian values once again. I think that he was trying to show that everyone should look towards God because God is in everyone. In order to live like a Christian and not a Christian Passer-by, a person needs to live with the following values, "Mercy for praise-to be given for fame" (350).
It was interesting to read about how close William Wordsworth and Coleridge actually were. They traveled together and planned out how they wanted to combine poems for a book. They each agreed to write in a specific format which they seemed to stick to. Coleridge agreed to that his "endeavors should be directed to persons and characters supernatural, or at least romantic" (353). Wordsworth wanted "to give the charm of novelty to things of every day" (354). I think there were two reasons why Wordsworth ended up being more successful than Coleridge. First, Coleridge did have that addiction to opium. This caused him to struggle with some of the works he started and he was not able to finish them. The second reason is the type of writings each agreed to do. I think that more people can relate to every day things and most people may think that the supernatural is more of a childish thing. Either way, Coleridge works today are interesting to read especially because the supernatural is a part of the types of movies and television shows that people enjoy to watching.
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Dorothy Wordsworth
Dorothy Wordsworth never considered herself a poet and did not want to receive any fame from her writings. She only chose to write her poems and journal to make her brother, William, happy. I think there were a number of reasons that she did not believe that she had a talent for poetry. The first reason is the fact that she was a female. Women at that time were not as respected as males did. The second reason is that fact that her brother was such a well known and famous poet. I think she revered him and always felt like she was in his shadow. She lived with her brother most of her life and watched him at work. I think through the years she learned from him and was able to elaborate on his ideas through an alternate view. The influence of her brother is shown because she writes about similar topics such as nature and her appreciate of it.
In her poem, "Address to a Child", I thought that she was showing her love for children and her need to console them. Even though she was afraid of the wind because of all the destruction it had done, such as kill her brother John in a boating accident, she wanted to hide her fear for the child. She explains that even though the wind is a dangerous thing, the house will protect against it. As long as they are inside there is nothing the wind could do. This may also have a deeper meaning. It may also be a poem that focuses on the importance of love and family and that family can always keep a person safe.
In the poem, "Thoughts on My Sick-bed", she reflects on her life when she was younger and not sick. She shows her appreciation for the bigger things in life such as the beauty of nature. Even though she can no longer go out into nature, the memories of it suffice and she feels like she is there. This poem made me feel mixed emotions. I was very sad to hear about her sickness, which through the writing, I could really feel. It also made me happy that someone that sick can still think of the good things in life such as reflecting on her happiest moments. No matter how sick she got, her happiness could not be taken from her.
Her journal reflected her life day by day. Throughout that journal, I noticed that she seems to mention all of the vulnerable and poor people that she encounters. She seems to truly care about everyone and tries to help as many people as she can. An example of this is when she bought the gingerbread from the poor family even though she was making it herself. She saw how grateful the family was for the money so she gave it to them. Because of this goodness shown by her, Dorothy's writings have been my favorite to read.
In her poem, "Address to a Child", I thought that she was showing her love for children and her need to console them. Even though she was afraid of the wind because of all the destruction it had done, such as kill her brother John in a boating accident, she wanted to hide her fear for the child. She explains that even though the wind is a dangerous thing, the house will protect against it. As long as they are inside there is nothing the wind could do. This may also have a deeper meaning. It may also be a poem that focuses on the importance of love and family and that family can always keep a person safe.
In the poem, "Thoughts on My Sick-bed", she reflects on her life when she was younger and not sick. She shows her appreciation for the bigger things in life such as the beauty of nature. Even though she can no longer go out into nature, the memories of it suffice and she feels like she is there. This poem made me feel mixed emotions. I was very sad to hear about her sickness, which through the writing, I could really feel. It also made me happy that someone that sick can still think of the good things in life such as reflecting on her happiest moments. No matter how sick she got, her happiness could not be taken from her.
Her journal reflected her life day by day. Throughout that journal, I noticed that she seems to mention all of the vulnerable and poor people that she encounters. She seems to truly care about everyone and tries to help as many people as she can. An example of this is when she bought the gingerbread from the poor family even though she was making it herself. She saw how grateful the family was for the money so she gave it to them. Because of this goodness shown by her, Dorothy's writings have been my favorite to read.
Monday, May 28, 2007
William Wordsworth
I found some of William Wordsworth's poems very difficult to interpret and others more easily interpretable. By the end of his life, he was greatly admired for his poetry and the change in the type of writing. My first impression when I was reading his workds was that he was really in touch with nature. He came from a town that was not very industrialized therefore he grew up in the heart of nature.
He lived a good life until his mother and father passed away. Even then, he had very generous relatives which put him through Canbridge, where he received a good education. I think this is the time that he may have realized the importance of family. He seems to get a lot of imspiration from family love of each other over material things. This is shown in the poem "We Are Seven". When the little girl was asked how many children were in her family she always responded by saying seven even though one of her brothers and one of her sisters had passed away. This child still plays are their graves and considers them still alive in her heart. I think it is important to think like this because a person can always remain with another forever.
A major theme for a lot of Wordsworth's poems is reestablishing the connection between human beings. This can be done in a number of ways, but he seems to be a firms believer that when humans are away from society and in nature they can become one easier. In his peom, "Simon Lee", he talks about a man who has become old and helpless over the years even though he was known for his strength. This poem shows how the narrator helped Simon Lee with an easy task, however it was not for Simon. This poem makes Wordsworth sad but it is not entirely sure why it does. I believe that the man made him sad because no matter how great and strong one is during one's life, they will one day lose this strength.
I believe that Wordsworth believes in a higher power in nature. I think the best definition of this power is he believes in Mother Nature. I have known Mother Nature to be the ruler of all nature and gives all things life and purpose. The importance of nature to Wordsworth is shown in his poem "Lines Written a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey". He revisits a scene along with his sister and recalls the feeling this river and nature brings to him. The exposure to nature puts him at calm and allows him to appreciate the world better. In his heart he believes that all of the things there will make him a better person because everthing in nature has a higher significance.
One of Wordworth's main puposes it seems, is his desire to transform poetry to use more simplistic language. He wanted to use the everyday language because he felt that poetry was the same as writing prose. In the poem "Strange fits of passion have I known" I felt like it was talking about Wordsworth's actual lover. I think that he uses simple answers but there is still some things that need to be interpreted. I feel like as the narrator was riding to the cottage because he got word that his lover was sick. The moon represents the life of Lucy and when the moon disappeared before he reached his destination, she could have died. That is what I got from the poem.
William Wordsworth is considered the poet of nature. By the end of his life he won his fight and his poetic theories became the norm. His type of poetry has influenced all of the writing since that time.
He lived a good life until his mother and father passed away. Even then, he had very generous relatives which put him through Canbridge, where he received a good education. I think this is the time that he may have realized the importance of family. He seems to get a lot of imspiration from family love of each other over material things. This is shown in the poem "We Are Seven". When the little girl was asked how many children were in her family she always responded by saying seven even though one of her brothers and one of her sisters had passed away. This child still plays are their graves and considers them still alive in her heart. I think it is important to think like this because a person can always remain with another forever.
A major theme for a lot of Wordsworth's poems is reestablishing the connection between human beings. This can be done in a number of ways, but he seems to be a firms believer that when humans are away from society and in nature they can become one easier. In his peom, "Simon Lee", he talks about a man who has become old and helpless over the years even though he was known for his strength. This poem shows how the narrator helped Simon Lee with an easy task, however it was not for Simon. This poem makes Wordsworth sad but it is not entirely sure why it does. I believe that the man made him sad because no matter how great and strong one is during one's life, they will one day lose this strength.
I believe that Wordsworth believes in a higher power in nature. I think the best definition of this power is he believes in Mother Nature. I have known Mother Nature to be the ruler of all nature and gives all things life and purpose. The importance of nature to Wordsworth is shown in his poem "Lines Written a Few Miles above Tintern Abbey". He revisits a scene along with his sister and recalls the feeling this river and nature brings to him. The exposure to nature puts him at calm and allows him to appreciate the world better. In his heart he believes that all of the things there will make him a better person because everthing in nature has a higher significance.
One of Wordworth's main puposes it seems, is his desire to transform poetry to use more simplistic language. He wanted to use the everyday language because he felt that poetry was the same as writing prose. In the poem "Strange fits of passion have I known" I felt like it was talking about Wordsworth's actual lover. I think that he uses simple answers but there is still some things that need to be interpreted. I feel like as the narrator was riding to the cottage because he got word that his lover was sick. The moon represents the life of Lucy and when the moon disappeared before he reached his destination, she could have died. That is what I got from the poem.
William Wordsworth is considered the poet of nature. By the end of his life he won his fight and his poetic theories became the norm. His type of poetry has influenced all of the writing since that time.
Saturday, May 26, 2007
William Blake
When William Blake writes a poem, it seems very simple but looking at each poem, I realized that he always had a deeper meaning. I found it very difficult to understand completely what message Blake was trying to convey in each poem. Blake desired to be an artist as a child, but his father could not afford to send him to school. Instead he became an apprentice at the age of 14 for an engraver. He ended up using this talent to accompany his poems with arts and creativity. He liked to combine images and words together when publishing his works. During his apprenticeship, Blake wrote many poems for his first publication.
Blake had two different publications which went together with one another. His first publication was the Songs of Innocence and the second was the Songs of Experience. Even though it is hard to come up with a constant theme between these works, my first thought was that he wrote the Songs of Innocence when he was happier and more naive himself. Most of these poems were written when he was working as an apprentice and he was a younger child. He did not write the Songs of Experience until he was older and maybe more experienced with the cruelties of the world. I think Blake was trying to show that there are two sides to every story and that each side needs the other in turn. It was said that some of the poems were switched around so this theory is not entirely correct.
When I first read "The Lamb" in the Songs of Innocence, I thought that he was trying to show that all things on this Earth should be equal because everything was made by the same God, therefore everything is blessed. The opposition of this theory is shown in the other poem "The Tyger". Blake is trying to say that if everything was made by the one God then everything should in fact be blessed, but there are evil things on this Earth. This is very contradictory to his previous statement.
As with "The Lamb" and "The Tyger", the other poems called "The Chimney Sweeper" deals with the contradictory issues. The first one shows these children looking at the bright side of the world and they know that God will reward them in the end and the second deals with a more pessimistic child. This child it bitter and wants to blame everyone for his horrible and unfair life.
All of this contradiction by Blake makes it difficult to decipher what his personal opinions and theories actually are. I think that his poems show the emotions of true life where every person has good times and negative times. When I am happy with my life, everything seems to go right and I look at the bright side of everything. I think when he was writing most of his poems for the Songs of Innocence, he must of been in a good time in his life. Then when things are not going well, it is easy to be pessimistic and blame others for everything and it seems like nothing can go right. I think that Blake must have faced a lot of personal hardships in his life because in order to write such negative things, a person needs to have had experienced these emotions.
I had a lot of trouble when I was trying to understand what was happening in "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell". This poem is from the view point of the devil. I personally think that it is not talking about the devil that we all know as Satan, but the devilish side of the human being. No matter how good a person can be, they will always show a side of them that resembles this devil such as with their individuality, sexuality, and imagination. Since each person displays these kinds of characteristics, there really is a marriage between heaven and hell: good and bad. In order for the world to keep going to survive, they need one another.
Blake had two different publications which went together with one another. His first publication was the Songs of Innocence and the second was the Songs of Experience. Even though it is hard to come up with a constant theme between these works, my first thought was that he wrote the Songs of Innocence when he was happier and more naive himself. Most of these poems were written when he was working as an apprentice and he was a younger child. He did not write the Songs of Experience until he was older and maybe more experienced with the cruelties of the world. I think Blake was trying to show that there are two sides to every story and that each side needs the other in turn. It was said that some of the poems were switched around so this theory is not entirely correct.
When I first read "The Lamb" in the Songs of Innocence, I thought that he was trying to show that all things on this Earth should be equal because everything was made by the same God, therefore everything is blessed. The opposition of this theory is shown in the other poem "The Tyger". Blake is trying to say that if everything was made by the one God then everything should in fact be blessed, but there are evil things on this Earth. This is very contradictory to his previous statement.
As with "The Lamb" and "The Tyger", the other poems called "The Chimney Sweeper" deals with the contradictory issues. The first one shows these children looking at the bright side of the world and they know that God will reward them in the end and the second deals with a more pessimistic child. This child it bitter and wants to blame everyone for his horrible and unfair life.
All of this contradiction by Blake makes it difficult to decipher what his personal opinions and theories actually are. I think that his poems show the emotions of true life where every person has good times and negative times. When I am happy with my life, everything seems to go right and I look at the bright side of everything. I think when he was writing most of his poems for the Songs of Innocence, he must of been in a good time in his life. Then when things are not going well, it is easy to be pessimistic and blame others for everything and it seems like nothing can go right. I think that Blake must have faced a lot of personal hardships in his life because in order to write such negative things, a person needs to have had experienced these emotions.
I had a lot of trouble when I was trying to understand what was happening in "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell". This poem is from the view point of the devil. I personally think that it is not talking about the devil that we all know as Satan, but the devilish side of the human being. No matter how good a person can be, they will always show a side of them that resembles this devil such as with their individuality, sexuality, and imagination. Since each person displays these kinds of characteristics, there really is a marriage between heaven and hell: good and bad. In order for the world to keep going to survive, they need one another.
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
The Rights of Man and the Revolutionary Controversy
This reading turned out to be very educational for me, and I learned a little bit about the British and French history. On July 14, 1789, there was the French Revolution. Prior to this time, the monarchy had started to become corrupt and taxed the lower class people more and more due to the gradual move of the government towards bankruptcy. The French Revolution was a very radical movement which was suppose to bring equality to all of the French people. The French king, Louis XVI was executed out of fear by the people in case he would gain a following and ascend the throne once again. Throughout this time, the English people had very different view points of the happenings occurring in France. Some were opposed to the events and others supported them.
This type of writing style was difficult for me to understand. Some of the paragaphs were worded in ways that I had no idea what was going on. After listening to the podcast, the readings became more clear and I was able to understand the material. Our readings covered two different view points of the English people. One excerpt by Edmond Burke showed his clear opposition to the French Revolution while others such as Helen Maria Williams, Mary Wollstonecrest, and Thomas Paine agreed with the end of the French Monarchy.
Helen Maria Williams went over to France to look at the effects of the revolution first hand. Her first section in her letters written from France described the Federation. Even though she said throughout this section that she could not describe it , I felt like I got a good idea of how the people felt during that time. Williams was obviously very moved and touched by the events and how millions of people were rejoicing in the streets. She was delighted to report that even members of noble families were willing to give up their titles in an act towards patriotism. She went into great detail of all the activities leading up to the actual execution of the king. She did not believe that he needed to be murdered however in all she believes that the French Revolution will bring only prosperity to the country.
In contrast to Williams, Edmond Burke took the opposition side of the French Revolution. He states, "Everything seems out of nature in this strange chaos of levity and ferocity, and of all sorts of crimes jumbled together with all sorts of follies." He believes that it is unnatural because it does not go along with tradition. He firmly thinks that all people have a right to their property and that includes property inherited by parents. It goes against basic rights if people are forced to redistribute their weath among the poor. Even though there is a contract between society and the people, he thinks that it will not be improved upon by getting rid of the current society but there needs to be improvements on the existing one.
When Edmond Burke released his opinion in the Reflections on the Revolution in France, there were numerous rebuttles from radicals such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Thomas Paine. Wollstonecraft does not believe that men have the right to nobility because of the family they have been born into because it will create monsters. She has two major points that she continuously addresses: (1) property should be equally distributed among all people and (2) the history only brought about oppression and hardship among the lower class of people and things needed to be changed. She claims that Burke only is writing for effect and fame and does not truely believe in what he is writing. She supports this claim by showing Burke's conflicting beliefs, because he supported the American Revolution. Thomas Paine continued with the criticism of Burke. He claims that a country should not be ruled from the grave, and all living people have the right to chose the type of government in their country. He agrees that their is a contract between people and society, however the people have the right to get out of that contract.
I can see where both of these views come from. In the case of Edmund Burke, I understand why he was so hesitant to agree with the French Revolution. Sometimes change can be very difficult, especially if it makes the future unclear. This can be very scary and being a member of the more elite class, I would not like to give up my title and wealth. However, I am more in agreement with the other side of the argument. Just because a group of people are born into a lower class does not give anyone, especially a king, a right to continously tax them and keep them from moving up in the ranks. Every person has the right to gain as long as they are willing to put in the work to gain wealth.
This type of writing style was difficult for me to understand. Some of the paragaphs were worded in ways that I had no idea what was going on. After listening to the podcast, the readings became more clear and I was able to understand the material. Our readings covered two different view points of the English people. One excerpt by Edmond Burke showed his clear opposition to the French Revolution while others such as Helen Maria Williams, Mary Wollstonecrest, and Thomas Paine agreed with the end of the French Monarchy.
Helen Maria Williams went over to France to look at the effects of the revolution first hand. Her first section in her letters written from France described the Federation. Even though she said throughout this section that she could not describe it , I felt like I got a good idea of how the people felt during that time. Williams was obviously very moved and touched by the events and how millions of people were rejoicing in the streets. She was delighted to report that even members of noble families were willing to give up their titles in an act towards patriotism. She went into great detail of all the activities leading up to the actual execution of the king. She did not believe that he needed to be murdered however in all she believes that the French Revolution will bring only prosperity to the country.
In contrast to Williams, Edmond Burke took the opposition side of the French Revolution. He states, "Everything seems out of nature in this strange chaos of levity and ferocity, and of all sorts of crimes jumbled together with all sorts of follies." He believes that it is unnatural because it does not go along with tradition. He firmly thinks that all people have a right to their property and that includes property inherited by parents. It goes against basic rights if people are forced to redistribute their weath among the poor. Even though there is a contract between society and the people, he thinks that it will not be improved upon by getting rid of the current society but there needs to be improvements on the existing one.
When Edmond Burke released his opinion in the Reflections on the Revolution in France, there were numerous rebuttles from radicals such as Mary Wollstonecraft and Thomas Paine. Wollstonecraft does not believe that men have the right to nobility because of the family they have been born into because it will create monsters. She has two major points that she continuously addresses: (1) property should be equally distributed among all people and (2) the history only brought about oppression and hardship among the lower class of people and things needed to be changed. She claims that Burke only is writing for effect and fame and does not truely believe in what he is writing. She supports this claim by showing Burke's conflicting beliefs, because he supported the American Revolution. Thomas Paine continued with the criticism of Burke. He claims that a country should not be ruled from the grave, and all living people have the right to chose the type of government in their country. He agrees that their is a contract between people and society, however the people have the right to get out of that contract.
I can see where both of these views come from. In the case of Edmund Burke, I understand why he was so hesitant to agree with the French Revolution. Sometimes change can be very difficult, especially if it makes the future unclear. This can be very scary and being a member of the more elite class, I would not like to give up my title and wealth. However, I am more in agreement with the other side of the argument. Just because a group of people are born into a lower class does not give anyone, especially a king, a right to continously tax them and keep them from moving up in the ranks. Every person has the right to gain as long as they are willing to put in the work to gain wealth.
Monday, May 21, 2007
About Me
My name is Nichole Roche and I am going to be a senior next year. I am a pre-med, MAP major concentrating in Medical Administration. I am a member of Mercer University's women's golf team and have been since my freshman year.
I am taking this class to meet a General Education requirement. I am very nervous to take this course because English has always been my weakest subject. I am more inclined to excel in math and science classes. Hopefully, I will become a better writer and a better interpreter of literature through this class. I am also nervous because I have never taken an online class before. I am hoping that I am able to figure out how to use all of the web resources for this class.
I am taking this class to meet a General Education requirement. I am very nervous to take this course because English has always been my weakest subject. I am more inclined to excel in math and science classes. Hopefully, I will become a better writer and a better interpreter of literature through this class. I am also nervous because I have never taken an online class before. I am hoping that I am able to figure out how to use all of the web resources for this class.
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