Thursday, May 23, 2013
Thursday, April 11, 2013
"She Walks in Beauty"
TPCASTT
Title: The poem will be about the beauty of a woman.
Paraphrase:
A woman walks beautifully like a night
Without clouds and
with stars;
And all that is good and bad
Are in her and her
eyes:
Free of harshness in this light
Which cannot compare
to the gaudy daylight.
One shadow more, or one highlight less,
Would hinder the
beauty of her grace
Which is seen from the strands in her hair
To the light on her
face;
Where her calm thoughts show
How pure and dear
their owner is.
And on her cheek, and on her brow,
Her thoughts are
serene and soft,
Her smile and her glow
Say that her days are
good,
Her mind is at peace with everything,
Her heart is pure and
innocent!
Connotation:
From the very first line, Byron uses contrast in describing
this woman who is beautiful “like the night”. Unlike many other works where
beauty connotes light and radiance, Byron compares the beauty of this woman to
the night “of cloudless climes and starry skies”. The contrast between the
lightness in the stars and the dark night contributes to the beauty of this
nameless woman, showing the pulchritude of this woman both in her flaws and her
perfections.
The alliteration of “Thus mellowed to that tender light”
builds up the intensity in order to lead into the next line where the woman’s
beauty is one “which heaven to gaudy day denies”. The repetition of the hard D
consonant in this line is utilized by Byron to contrast and emphasize how this
woman’s internal radiance is greater than that of nature.
In the second stanza, Byron focuses on flawlessly balanced
the woman is by using an anaphora. He says that if “one shade the more, one ray
the less,” this “nameless grace” would be hindered of her beauty.
Contrast in the woman’s appearance is seen again in the
second stanza. Byron compares this woman’s “raven tress[s]” and the paleness of
her face, again showing both the woman’s character and her perfected balance in
dark and light.
The use of alliteration at the end of the second stanza
connotes the thoughts of the woman. With the soft S consonant, the image that
Byron conjures for this woman’s inner being is sweet and serene like her
countenance. He even says “how pure, how dear their dwelling-place”,
reiterating his inner thoughts that this woman’s pure mind reflect in her being
and character.
Byron uses repetition of words and word order in the third
stanza to again emphasize the balance of the beauty of this woman. Through the
rearrangement of the same words, Byron finally states that she has “a mind at
peace with all below, / A heard whose love is innocent!” This last couplet sums
up the internal beauty of this woman.
Attitude: The attitude of this poem is earnest. The speaker
of this poem is sincerely attracted to this beautiful woman.
Shifts: The shifts in the poem occur in lines 11 and lines
16. These lines shift from talking about the physical beauty of this woman to
the internal beauty.
Title: This poem is about the overall beauty of a woman. Not
only is she physically beautiful, but also she is internally beautiful.
Theme: Beauty is not just of appearance but of heart as well.
Point of View: The point of view is third person omniscient.
Biographical Critical Perspective:
This poem was inspired by Lord Byron’s first encounter with his
cousin, Anne Wilmot. She wore a black dress that had a layer of spangles,
reflected in Byron’s poem when he says that the “nameless” woman is beautiful
“like the night/ of cloudless climes and starry skies”. The origin of the light
and dark contrasts throughout the poem is also said to be where Byron first met
Wilmot. She was in mourning, and her dark state of her being and her clothes
also contrasts with the apparent beauty that Byron saw in her. Despite the
darkness that enshrouded her, he saw that her beauty was accentuated and was
not hindered.
Based off of the poem, the pure attraction and love that
Byron had for Wilmot is reflected through the form of the poem. Using the repetition
of both harsh and soft consonants, the contrasts enhance the image of Wilmot’s
flawless beauty and character. Even the iambic tetrameter, which is usually
used for hymns, emulates the simplicity and sincerity of Lord Byron’s
intentions and love for Wilmot.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Biography
Part I:
George Gordon was born on January 22, 1788 in London as a
son of John Byron and Catherine Gordon. When he was only 10, George inherited
the estates and the name that which he is known as today, Lord Byron (“The Life
of Lord Byron” 1). When he was nine, a maid made physical advances towards him,
and a similar situation occurred when his mother’s suitor also made advances on
him. The younger years of Lord Byron’s life were also marked with the
manifestations of love towards Mary Duff and Margaret Parker, his distant
cousins. These sexual experiences and fits of passionate love “shaped his
paradoxical attitudes towards women” and influenced his writing later on in
life (“The Life of Lord Byron” 1).
Even as he grew older, Lord Byron’s romances continued and
sparked further inspiration for his works. When he attended Trinity College in
Cambridge, he fell in love with John Edleston, “a choirboy at Trinity two years
younger than he” (“Lord Byron (George Gordon)” 1). Furthermore, his affairs continued
from Lady Caroline Lamb to even his half-sister, Augusta Leigh were reflected
in his poems, showcasing the passionate love and exultation that his love life
entailed (“The Life of Lord Byron 1). Byron
was open with his feelings and thoughts, so “there was no difference between
the man and his writing” (“Lord Byron – Biography” 1). Byron composed many pieces whilst in love,
letting them be windows into his very emotions at the time.
Lord Byron also had preference towards orientalism. He
boldly stated that he “used to hate [his] country” (“Lord Byron – Biography”
1). Through this inclination, many of his works had an oriental flare and style
including The Giaour and The Bride of Abydos (“Lord Byron – Biography”
1).
The death of Lord Byron was only short after his election
into the Greek committee of liberation in combat with the Turks (“Lord Byron –
Biography” 1). The Romantic writer died
of a bad fever on April 19, 1824 in Greece (“Lord Byron – Biography” 1). The Greeks mourned his death and was seen as a hero to them.
"Lord Byron -
Biography." Lord Byron. 19 Mar. 2013
<http://www.egs.edu/library/lord-byron/biography/>.
"Lord Byron (George
Gordon)." : The Poetry Foundation. 19 Mar. 2013
<http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/lord-byron>.
"The Life of Lord
Byron." The Life of George Noel Gordon, Lord Byron. 19 Mar.
2013
<http://englishhistory.net/byron/life.html>.
Literary Movement/Time Period: Romantic Movement
Part III:
.jpg/250px-George_Gordon_Byron,_6th_Baron_Byron_by_Richard_Westall_(2).jpg)
Part IV:
Poet Links:
http://www.poetryfoundation.org/bio/lord-byron
http://englishhistory.net/byron/life.html
http://www.online-literature.com/byron/
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/historic_figures/byron_lord.shtml
http://www.internationalbyronsociety.org/
http://www.poemhunter.com/george-gordon-lord-byron/
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