Tuesday, December 11, 2007
My Strengths and Weaknesses
During this semester, I have learned to better understand my strengths and weaknesses. One of my strengths is subject/verb agreement. I learned when and when not to use the letter s in my sentences. One of the things that I need work on is comma splices. I have a hard time figuring out when to place commas in my sentences, but by taking this class this semester, I learned not to use a comma unless when separating two complete sentences. One thing I need to work on is when using conjunctions, if it is not two complete sentences, do not use a comma. This particular error is the one that I tend to make the most. Another strength that I have is using present tense in an analysis paper. Before I took this class, I did not realize that the way that I was wording my papers had both past and present tense in them. I now can analyze an essay using only one tense. As far as literary analysis goes, I think my biggest strength is developing my main points. I have learned to focus on one aspect of a literary work and talk about only that particular point. One of my weaknesses in analyzing is developing a thesis. This has been the greatest challenge for me this semester. My literary skills have improved greatly during this semester.
Greed in "The Necklace"
If I could do this piece over again, I would use more specific details. I would work on developing my thesis. I would also focus on one point in the story. I would check more carefully for grammatical and typing errors. Furthermore, I would complete the works cited page.
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"The Necklace" by Guy De Maupassant is about a poor girl wanting to be rich. The girl's wanting to be rich causes her family tragedy in the end. Her husband does all he can to make her appear to be rich, but she is still not satisfied. She wants more than they can afford. She is being very greedy. A person being greedy can lead them to more problems than they have to begin with.
The lady's husband one day got them an invitation to a dinner, and instead of being happy, she also wanted a dress to wear. The invitation is very hard to get, but her husband manage to get one. Instead of her celebrating the opportunity, she got angry, and ask:
"what do you expect me to wear to go there?" (Literature pg8)
If she is thankful to have the opportunity to go there, she would get something out of the closet to wear. Instead she cries, and tells him to give the invitation to someone whose wife will have something nice to wear. She makes him feel guilty. Since he felt guilt, he gave her the money he saved up for summer vacation, to buy a new dress.
After the woman gets the dress, she complains about not having any jewelry to wear:
" It's awful, but I do not have any jewels to wear, not a single gem, nothing to dress up my outfit. I will look like a beggar. I’d almost rather not to go to the party." (Literature7)
Her husband tries to convince her to get something they can afford, but it does not work. She insist on having expensive gems. Her husband had given her almost all of the money they had to buy her a new dress; therefore he can not afford to buy her expensive gems. Then, he comes up with the brilliant idea to borrow some jewelry from her wealthy friend. She agreed to ask her friend.
Since she wants more than she could afford, she go to borrow a superb diamond necklace from her friend. As she tries the necklace on she is fascinated with her beautiful appearance. She asks her friend: "Could you lend me this, nothing but this?"(Literature8)
Her friend lends her the necklace, and she was all prepared for the dinner. She had fine clothes, and to top it off fine jewelry to go along with her outfit.
Since the woman is not honest, and does not tell her friend the truth about losing the necklace, it takes her ten years to pay for the necklace. The woman learns to do heavy housework, and accepts a cheap flat. In order to pay her debts off, she haves to live like a true needy person. She also puts her husband in a struggle to pay the necklace off. Finally, she discovers what living as a needy person really feels like. She can no longer afford a maid, therefore she dismiss her. She hand washes their dirty laundry, she even hangs them out on the line to dry. She has to grocery shop herself, with her basket under her arm. She can not even dress as a middle class person anymore. She carry her trash to the streets, and her water back home. If Mathline would have went to her friend and explained to her what happened to the necklace, she would have saved herself years of hard work.
She did not tell her friend, that she lost the necklace and can not afford to replace it. Instead, she covers it up, and buys a more expensive one. She slaves for ten, long, hard years to pay off the debts from the new necklace. Her beautiful appearance turns into a worn out, hard worker's look. After ten years of long, hard, work she finally told her friend how she lost the necklace. She explained how she bought a new necklace, and worked so hard to cover up her irresponsible actions. Her friend laughed at her and tells her the necklace is not real. The necklace is only costume jewelry. She also told her the necklace was only worth five-hundred francs. If she would have been honest she would have known that the necklace was not worth as much as she thought it was worth. She would have saved herself a lot of money also.
Mathline's greediness for wealth caused her family complete chaos. If she would have accepted the fact that she was just a middle class person, she would have turned outin a better situation in the end. She insists on appearing wealthy, and it caused her family to become truly needy. Mathline was living well, but she wanted to live great. She was able to afford a maid, when she was living middle class. She became the maid in the end.
Works Cited
Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing. "The Necklace." 09 June, 2007.
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"The Necklace" by Guy De Maupassant is about a poor girl wanting to be rich. The girl's wanting to be rich causes her family tragedy in the end. Her husband does all he can to make her appear to be rich, but she is still not satisfied. She wants more than they can afford. She is being very greedy. A person being greedy can lead them to more problems than they have to begin with.
The lady's husband one day got them an invitation to a dinner, and instead of being happy, she also wanted a dress to wear. The invitation is very hard to get, but her husband manage to get one. Instead of her celebrating the opportunity, she got angry, and ask:
"what do you expect me to wear to go there?" (Literature pg8)
If she is thankful to have the opportunity to go there, she would get something out of the closet to wear. Instead she cries, and tells him to give the invitation to someone whose wife will have something nice to wear. She makes him feel guilty. Since he felt guilt, he gave her the money he saved up for summer vacation, to buy a new dress.
After the woman gets the dress, she complains about not having any jewelry to wear:
" It's awful, but I do not have any jewels to wear, not a single gem, nothing to dress up my outfit. I will look like a beggar. I’d almost rather not to go to the party." (Literature7)
Her husband tries to convince her to get something they can afford, but it does not work. She insist on having expensive gems. Her husband had given her almost all of the money they had to buy her a new dress; therefore he can not afford to buy her expensive gems. Then, he comes up with the brilliant idea to borrow some jewelry from her wealthy friend. She agreed to ask her friend.
Since she wants more than she could afford, she go to borrow a superb diamond necklace from her friend. As she tries the necklace on she is fascinated with her beautiful appearance. She asks her friend: "Could you lend me this, nothing but this?"(Literature8)
Her friend lends her the necklace, and she was all prepared for the dinner. She had fine clothes, and to top it off fine jewelry to go along with her outfit.
Since the woman is not honest, and does not tell her friend the truth about losing the necklace, it takes her ten years to pay for the necklace. The woman learns to do heavy housework, and accepts a cheap flat. In order to pay her debts off, she haves to live like a true needy person. She also puts her husband in a struggle to pay the necklace off. Finally, she discovers what living as a needy person really feels like. She can no longer afford a maid, therefore she dismiss her. She hand washes their dirty laundry, she even hangs them out on the line to dry. She has to grocery shop herself, with her basket under her arm. She can not even dress as a middle class person anymore. She carry her trash to the streets, and her water back home. If Mathline would have went to her friend and explained to her what happened to the necklace, she would have saved herself years of hard work.
She did not tell her friend, that she lost the necklace and can not afford to replace it. Instead, she covers it up, and buys a more expensive one. She slaves for ten, long, hard years to pay off the debts from the new necklace. Her beautiful appearance turns into a worn out, hard worker's look. After ten years of long, hard, work she finally told her friend how she lost the necklace. She explained how she bought a new necklace, and worked so hard to cover up her irresponsible actions. Her friend laughed at her and tells her the necklace is not real. The necklace is only costume jewelry. She also told her the necklace was only worth five-hundred francs. If she would have been honest she would have known that the necklace was not worth as much as she thought it was worth. She would have saved herself a lot of money also.
Mathline's greediness for wealth caused her family complete chaos. If she would have accepted the fact that she was just a middle class person, she would have turned outin a better situation in the end. She insists on appearing wealthy, and it caused her family to become truly needy. Mathline was living well, but she wanted to live great. She was able to afford a maid, when she was living middle class. She became the maid in the end.
Works Cited
Literature An Introduction to Reading and Writing. "The Necklace." 09 June, 2007.
Monday, December 10, 2007
MItch Albom: Eddie's War Experiences
This piece will surprise people, because it contains a lot of interesting details. This particular piece goes into detail about Eddie's personal war experiences. This was the longest work that we read, so I chose to focus on one aspect of the book. This essay tells how Eddie's war experience affected his whole life. The emotions that he had while at war had a great impact on his life also.
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The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom is about a man named Eddie, who dies and meets five people in heaven. Eddie meets people in heaven and learns how they played a part in each other’s lives. One of the people Eddie meets in heaven is his captain. Eddie and his captain fight in war together. During the times Eddie is at war, he learns a lot. Eddie has some good and some bad experiences. Being in war affects Eddie’s life physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Eddie’s war experience affects him physically, because he loses his leg and will have to use a false one. Eddie’s captain shoots Eddie in the leg to keep him from running into a burning building. The text reads: “Eddie shook his head. ‘No-no-wait-wait, I think there’s someone in th_.’ He stepped past a burning puddle of oil, and his clothes caught fire from behind. ‘I’LL HELP YOU! COME OUT1 I WON’T SHOO-.’ A piercing pain ripped through Eddie’s leg” (Albom 83-84). If the captain did not shoot Eddie in the leg, he would have gotten burned.
Eddie’s affects from his war experiences are not all negative. Eddie learns to stay low and move in the mud by pulling himself along by his forearms. Eddie also learns to fire a rifle. He learns to ride atop a tank as well. Eddie begins to whistle through his teeth, and sleep on rocky earth. He realizes that scabies are itchy little mites that burrow into the skin. He also begins to spit a great distance and smoke. Eddie even learns to march and cross a rope bridge while carrying all at once: an overcoat, a radio, carbine, a gas mask, a tripod for march guns, a backpack, and several bandoliers on his shoulder.
Eddie’s war experience also has a mental effect on him. One of the major changes that Eddie has to adapt to is to shave with cold water in his helmet. War teaches him the concept of survival. Eddie cannot get over the thought that someone is in the burning building, and this leads to nightmares. Eddie thinks that war is his call to manhood. In his eyes, fighting for his country makes him more of a man.
Another way the war has a mental effect on Eddie is that he learns to be careful when shooting from a foxhole. He also learns not to think before shooting, just shoot. At one point Mickey tells Eddie, “‘Listen to me, Lad.’ “War is no game. If there is a shot to be made, you make it, you hear? No guilt, no hesitation. You want to come home, again, you just fire you do not think (59).”’
Eddie recognizes the sound of the nervous cheer of a soldier’s first survival combat. He learns to pray quickly. Eddie even learns a few words in a few foreign languages.
The war also has an emotional effect on Eddie. Edie figures out where to keep the letters to his family and the love of his life Marguerite if he is found dead. He learns that he and the other soldiers must go into war and come out of war together, dead or alive. War changes Eddie in many ways. "War crawls inside Eddie, in his leg and in his soul. He learns a lot as a soldier. He came home a different man (Albom 85)."
Eddie also learns to kill people without thinking about who he is killing first. He finds out what it is like to become a prisoner. He sees that men’s bones are really white when they burst through the skin. Eddie learns the sinking depression of a soldier’s second combat. He becomes depressed, and all he wants to do is sleep.
The war has an effect on Eddie physically, mentally, and emotionally. Eddie has some good and some bad experiences from being at war. The war changes Eddie’s life in many different ways. Eddie goes in war one person, but comes home from war a different man. In heaven, Eddie learns that the Captain shooting him was not meant to hurt him but to help him. He learns that if the Captain had let him run into the burning building, he would have died before he did. Eddie forgives the Captain and makes peace with him after such a long time.
Works Cited
Albom, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven. New York: New York, 2003.
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The Five People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom is about a man named Eddie, who dies and meets five people in heaven. Eddie meets people in heaven and learns how they played a part in each other’s lives. One of the people Eddie meets in heaven is his captain. Eddie and his captain fight in war together. During the times Eddie is at war, he learns a lot. Eddie has some good and some bad experiences. Being in war affects Eddie’s life physically, mentally, and emotionally.
Eddie’s war experience affects him physically, because he loses his leg and will have to use a false one. Eddie’s captain shoots Eddie in the leg to keep him from running into a burning building. The text reads: “Eddie shook his head. ‘No-no-wait-wait, I think there’s someone in th_.’ He stepped past a burning puddle of oil, and his clothes caught fire from behind. ‘I’LL HELP YOU! COME OUT1 I WON’T SHOO-.’ A piercing pain ripped through Eddie’s leg” (Albom 83-84). If the captain did not shoot Eddie in the leg, he would have gotten burned.
Eddie’s affects from his war experiences are not all negative. Eddie learns to stay low and move in the mud by pulling himself along by his forearms. Eddie also learns to fire a rifle. He learns to ride atop a tank as well. Eddie begins to whistle through his teeth, and sleep on rocky earth. He realizes that scabies are itchy little mites that burrow into the skin. He also begins to spit a great distance and smoke. Eddie even learns to march and cross a rope bridge while carrying all at once: an overcoat, a radio, carbine, a gas mask, a tripod for march guns, a backpack, and several bandoliers on his shoulder.
Eddie’s war experience also has a mental effect on him. One of the major changes that Eddie has to adapt to is to shave with cold water in his helmet. War teaches him the concept of survival. Eddie cannot get over the thought that someone is in the burning building, and this leads to nightmares. Eddie thinks that war is his call to manhood. In his eyes, fighting for his country makes him more of a man.
Another way the war has a mental effect on Eddie is that he learns to be careful when shooting from a foxhole. He also learns not to think before shooting, just shoot. At one point Mickey tells Eddie, “‘Listen to me, Lad.’ “War is no game. If there is a shot to be made, you make it, you hear? No guilt, no hesitation. You want to come home, again, you just fire you do not think (59).”’
Eddie recognizes the sound of the nervous cheer of a soldier’s first survival combat. He learns to pray quickly. Eddie even learns a few words in a few foreign languages.
The war also has an emotional effect on Eddie. Edie figures out where to keep the letters to his family and the love of his life Marguerite if he is found dead. He learns that he and the other soldiers must go into war and come out of war together, dead or alive. War changes Eddie in many ways. "War crawls inside Eddie, in his leg and in his soul. He learns a lot as a soldier. He came home a different man (Albom 85)."
Eddie also learns to kill people without thinking about who he is killing first. He finds out what it is like to become a prisoner. He sees that men’s bones are really white when they burst through the skin. Eddie learns the sinking depression of a soldier’s second combat. He becomes depressed, and all he wants to do is sleep.
The war has an effect on Eddie physically, mentally, and emotionally. Eddie has some good and some bad experiences from being at war. The war changes Eddie’s life in many different ways. Eddie goes in war one person, but comes home from war a different man. In heaven, Eddie learns that the Captain shooting him was not meant to hurt him but to help him. He learns that if the Captain had let him run into the burning building, he would have died before he did. Eddie forgives the Captain and makes peace with him after such a long time.
Works Cited
Albom, Mitch. The Five People You Meet in Heaven. New York: New York, 2003.
Hamlet's Conflict With Revenge
This piece was my greatest challenge because the writing style that the author, William Shakespeare chose was difficult to understand. He used words that I had never heard before. I had to work through the play line by line. I also had to reread several different parts of the play. Even though it was a challenge, I eventually understood what was going on in the play enough to write the essay to the best of my ability.
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Hamlet, by William Shakespeare is about a man seeking revenge for his father’s murder. Throughout the play, Hamlet's only thought is to get revenge. Hamlet does not pay attention to the people around him. He only concentrates on his own inner struggle. Although he is conflicted, Hamlet eventually gives in to revenge, and it begins to consume his life. In the end Hamlet loses his dad, girlfriend, mom, and eventually his mind.
Hamlet's father is murdered, and he seeks revenge for his death. Hamlet’s mom marries his uncle a few months after his father is murdered. Hamlet eventually figure out his uncle is responsible for his father's murder. Hamlet sets up a play to see if his uncle will show guilt for his father's murder. As the actor's act out the play, Claudius does show guilt.
Furthermore, King Hamlet's spirit walks the earth for sins committed in life for a short period of time. Marcellus and Bernardo are the first people to see the ghost. The next person to see the ghost was Horatio, and he tries to talk to the spirit. The ghost refuses to talk to him. Haratio thinks the ghost will not refuse to talk to his son, Prince Hamlet. Hamlet talks to the ghost, and the ghost tells Hamlet how he was killed. The ghost says the murder was foul and most unnatural. The book states ghost says to Hamlet: "Revenge his foul and unnatural death. Murder most foul, strange and unnatural" (1.5.25).The ghost wants Hamlet to revenge his death, but not to act against his mother. Hamlet is angry that his father's murder is not brought to justice, but struggles with doubt if he can trust the ghost and kill Claudius. This causes Hamlet to seek revenge.
Revenge causes Hamlet to lose his girlfriend Ophelia. Hamlet loves Ophelia, because he says no brother can love her the way he can. Hamlet states: “I loved Ophelia; forty thousand brothers could not with all of their quantity of love make up my sum. What wilt thou do for her" (5.1.253). Ophelia contributes to the downfall of Hamlet. Ophelia's brother Laertes cautions he against falling in love with Hamlet also. Then, Hamlet kills Polonius, and causes Ophelia to commit suicide. Ophelia drowns herself, because she is weak and mad. Hamlet's paranoia about revenge is what causes him to kill Polonius.
In addition to Ophelia Hamlet contributes to his mother's downfall. Hamlet does not like his mother's new husband, Claudius. Hamlet suspects Claudius has killed his father. Gertrude loves Hamlet deeply, but is a weak woman seeking affection more than truth. The king sets up a dual match between Hamlet and Laertes. The king says that if Hamlet wins the first or second hit, he will drink to Hamlet's health. He declares that he will throw a valuable gem into Hamlet's cup, which is poison. Hamlet strikes Laertes, but decides not to drink the cup. Gertrude rises to drink from the cup. The king tells her not to drink from the cup, but she does anyway. Claudius tells Gertrude, "Gertrude does not drink. It is the poisoned cup, it is to late" (1499-1500). By Hamlet participating in the duel, has led to his mother's death.
In the end Hamlet even loses his mind. Hamlet pretends to be crazy in order for people in order for people not to know what is going on. Eventually Hamlet really does become crazy. Hamlet thinks about killing Claudius while he is praying, but is afraid that Claudius will go to heaven, and he will go to hell. Hamlet violently slays Claudius and the universe is working through him to deliver justice. Hamlet loses his father, and it causes him to go crazy, and kill Polonius. Rosencrantz and Gildenstern betray Hamlet, and he has them executed. Hamlet loses all sense and commits murder. Hamlet is a good decent man driven to the edge.
Revenge causes Hamlet to lose everyone that is close to him. He eventually even loses his mind. Hamlet seeking revenge for his father's death begins to corrupt his life. Revenge can cause people to neglect their lives, and other things happening around them. By the end a lot of people end up dead, and Hamlet's quest for revenge is the blame.
Work Cited
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 7th ed. Ed.
Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2004. 1307-1406.
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Hamlet, by William Shakespeare is about a man seeking revenge for his father’s murder. Throughout the play, Hamlet's only thought is to get revenge. Hamlet does not pay attention to the people around him. He only concentrates on his own inner struggle. Although he is conflicted, Hamlet eventually gives in to revenge, and it begins to consume his life. In the end Hamlet loses his dad, girlfriend, mom, and eventually his mind.
Hamlet's father is murdered, and he seeks revenge for his death. Hamlet’s mom marries his uncle a few months after his father is murdered. Hamlet eventually figure out his uncle is responsible for his father's murder. Hamlet sets up a play to see if his uncle will show guilt for his father's murder. As the actor's act out the play, Claudius does show guilt.
Furthermore, King Hamlet's spirit walks the earth for sins committed in life for a short period of time. Marcellus and Bernardo are the first people to see the ghost. The next person to see the ghost was Horatio, and he tries to talk to the spirit. The ghost refuses to talk to him. Haratio thinks the ghost will not refuse to talk to his son, Prince Hamlet. Hamlet talks to the ghost, and the ghost tells Hamlet how he was killed. The ghost says the murder was foul and most unnatural. The book states ghost says to Hamlet: "Revenge his foul and unnatural death. Murder most foul, strange and unnatural" (1.5.25).The ghost wants Hamlet to revenge his death, but not to act against his mother. Hamlet is angry that his father's murder is not brought to justice, but struggles with doubt if he can trust the ghost and kill Claudius. This causes Hamlet to seek revenge.
Revenge causes Hamlet to lose his girlfriend Ophelia. Hamlet loves Ophelia, because he says no brother can love her the way he can. Hamlet states: “I loved Ophelia; forty thousand brothers could not with all of their quantity of love make up my sum. What wilt thou do for her" (5.1.253). Ophelia contributes to the downfall of Hamlet. Ophelia's brother Laertes cautions he against falling in love with Hamlet also. Then, Hamlet kills Polonius, and causes Ophelia to commit suicide. Ophelia drowns herself, because she is weak and mad. Hamlet's paranoia about revenge is what causes him to kill Polonius.
In addition to Ophelia Hamlet contributes to his mother's downfall. Hamlet does not like his mother's new husband, Claudius. Hamlet suspects Claudius has killed his father. Gertrude loves Hamlet deeply, but is a weak woman seeking affection more than truth. The king sets up a dual match between Hamlet and Laertes. The king says that if Hamlet wins the first or second hit, he will drink to Hamlet's health. He declares that he will throw a valuable gem into Hamlet's cup, which is poison. Hamlet strikes Laertes, but decides not to drink the cup. Gertrude rises to drink from the cup. The king tells her not to drink from the cup, but she does anyway. Claudius tells Gertrude, "Gertrude does not drink. It is the poisoned cup, it is to late" (1499-1500). By Hamlet participating in the duel, has led to his mother's death.
In the end Hamlet even loses his mind. Hamlet pretends to be crazy in order for people in order for people not to know what is going on. Eventually Hamlet really does become crazy. Hamlet thinks about killing Claudius while he is praying, but is afraid that Claudius will go to heaven, and he will go to hell. Hamlet violently slays Claudius and the universe is working through him to deliver justice. Hamlet loses his father, and it causes him to go crazy, and kill Polonius. Rosencrantz and Gildenstern betray Hamlet, and he has them executed. Hamlet loses all sense and commits murder. Hamlet is a good decent man driven to the edge.
Revenge causes Hamlet to lose everyone that is close to him. He eventually even loses his mind. Hamlet seeking revenge for his father's death begins to corrupt his life. Revenge can cause people to neglect their lives, and other things happening around them. By the end a lot of people end up dead, and Hamlet's quest for revenge is the blame.
Work Cited
Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 7th ed. Ed.
Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2004. 1307-1406.
An Analysis of "Woman" By Nikki Giovanni
This piece is my best work because I eliminated a lot of grammatical errors that I previously had. This particular poem was very short, but I was able to analyze it. I enjoyed focusing on the imagery to analyze this poem. This work had very little errors in it compared to my other essays. Analyzing this poem proved to me that my english is improving day by day.
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The poem “Woman” by Nikki Giovanni is about a woman and the man n her life. The woman wants things in life, but the man will not let her have what she wants. The author, Nikki Giovanni uses several poetic aspects in the poem. One aspect that she uses is imagery. The imagery in the poem “Woman” helps to describe the way that the man holds her back.
In the first stanza, the speaker describes how she wants to be a blade of grass. Then, her man would not be her dandelion. By using the words, “blade of grass amid the fields” (1-2), she describes how she wants to grow. She wants him to be the dandelion, so that he could stand by and support her while also allowing her to grow. By not agreeing to be the dandelion, he did not allow her to grow or support her.
In the second stanza, the poem reads “she wanted to be a robin singing through the leaves but he refused to be her tree” (5-8).The image of the robin makes the reader think of being free, and the robin singing symbolizes her being happy. She wants to be like a bird; free to go her own way and happy while she is doing it. Having the man as her tree means she has someone to come back to. He will not allow her to be the robin, while he is the tree. Instead, he will not be there for her to come home to.
The next stanza reads “She spun herself into a web and looking for a place to rest turned to him but he stood straight declining to be her corner” (14-17). The narrator compares herself to a spider. She spins herself into a web, which symbolizes her no longer being free. She becomes trapped and submissive like he wants her to be. Even though he traps her, he still refuses to be her place to rest.
Next, the speaker tries to open herself up to him and become a book. She tries to allow him to be a part of her life by letting him know everything about her. The man in the speaker’s life refuses to read the book. The fact that he refuses to read the book says he does not want to be a part of her life. She tries to accommodate him by being open with him, but he would not be open with her.
Another line of the poem reads “she turned herself into a bulb but he wouldn’t let her grow” (16-17). By her turning herself into a bulb, she becomes smaller person. She becomes smaller mentally, because he will not support her in any way that he can. By him not supporting he makes her fee like less of a woman. The narrator stating that he would not let her grow means the woman tries to make him understand what kind of effect his actions have taken upon her, but he refuses to see things from her point of view.
The last stanza states “she decided to become a woman and though he still refuses to be a man she decided it was all right” (18-23). In the end, she decides to become a woman, and not try to imitate all of the other things that she could not become. She finally realized that she can only be herself. Although she becomes a woman, he still refuses to become a man. He stays the same way that he always has been. He still refuses to support her and to let her be happy.
The ending of the poem can be seen two different ways. By the lines “and though he still refused to be a man she decided it was all right”(20-23), the reader can infer that the speaker decides to go on with her life without him, because he would not be a man. Perhaps she is okay with being alone and has finally realized that she does not need him in her life. Another way that the ending of the poem can be interpreted as her deciding to live with the fact that he was not going to help her. Then, she becomes a woman and tries to succeed on her own, with her goals in life.
The poem “Woman” by Nikki Giovanni uses imagery to describe the struggle of a woman and her man. The speaker compares herself to several different things. She always tries to be something she is not. In the end, she realizes she will have to become a woman and achieve her goals in life some way. The poem shows the reader what a woman is really worth; something more than just being behind a man.
Work Cited
Giovanni, Nikki. “Woman” . Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 8th ed. Ed.
Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2004. 1307-1406.
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The poem “Woman” by Nikki Giovanni is about a woman and the man n her life. The woman wants things in life, but the man will not let her have what she wants. The author, Nikki Giovanni uses several poetic aspects in the poem. One aspect that she uses is imagery. The imagery in the poem “Woman” helps to describe the way that the man holds her back.
In the first stanza, the speaker describes how she wants to be a blade of grass. Then, her man would not be her dandelion. By using the words, “blade of grass amid the fields” (1-2), she describes how she wants to grow. She wants him to be the dandelion, so that he could stand by and support her while also allowing her to grow. By not agreeing to be the dandelion, he did not allow her to grow or support her.
In the second stanza, the poem reads “she wanted to be a robin singing through the leaves but he refused to be her tree” (5-8).The image of the robin makes the reader think of being free, and the robin singing symbolizes her being happy. She wants to be like a bird; free to go her own way and happy while she is doing it. Having the man as her tree means she has someone to come back to. He will not allow her to be the robin, while he is the tree. Instead, he will not be there for her to come home to.
The next stanza reads “She spun herself into a web and looking for a place to rest turned to him but he stood straight declining to be her corner” (14-17). The narrator compares herself to a spider. She spins herself into a web, which symbolizes her no longer being free. She becomes trapped and submissive like he wants her to be. Even though he traps her, he still refuses to be her place to rest.
Next, the speaker tries to open herself up to him and become a book. She tries to allow him to be a part of her life by letting him know everything about her. The man in the speaker’s life refuses to read the book. The fact that he refuses to read the book says he does not want to be a part of her life. She tries to accommodate him by being open with him, but he would not be open with her.
Another line of the poem reads “she turned herself into a bulb but he wouldn’t let her grow” (16-17). By her turning herself into a bulb, she becomes smaller person. She becomes smaller mentally, because he will not support her in any way that he can. By him not supporting he makes her fee like less of a woman. The narrator stating that he would not let her grow means the woman tries to make him understand what kind of effect his actions have taken upon her, but he refuses to see things from her point of view.
The last stanza states “she decided to become a woman and though he still refuses to be a man she decided it was all right” (18-23). In the end, she decides to become a woman, and not try to imitate all of the other things that she could not become. She finally realized that she can only be herself. Although she becomes a woman, he still refuses to become a man. He stays the same way that he always has been. He still refuses to support her and to let her be happy.
The ending of the poem can be seen two different ways. By the lines “and though he still refused to be a man she decided it was all right”(20-23), the reader can infer that the speaker decides to go on with her life without him, because he would not be a man. Perhaps she is okay with being alone and has finally realized that she does not need him in her life. Another way that the ending of the poem can be interpreted as her deciding to live with the fact that he was not going to help her. Then, she becomes a woman and tries to succeed on her own, with her goals in life.
The poem “Woman” by Nikki Giovanni uses imagery to describe the struggle of a woman and her man. The speaker compares herself to several different things. She always tries to be something she is not. In the end, she realizes she will have to become a woman and achieve her goals in life some way. The poem shows the reader what a woman is really worth; something more than just being behind a man.
Work Cited
Giovanni, Nikki. “Woman” . Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing. 8th ed. Ed.
Edgar V. Roberts and Henry E. Jacobs. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, 2004. 1307-1406.
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