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Literature Verbs

06/14/19

Meaning of "He every instant fancies ..." as taken from Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America?

> "Besides the good things which he possesses, __he every instant fancies a thousand others__ which death will prevent him from trying if he does not try them soon." In this sentence, I didn't... more

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Literature Poetry Symbolism Dylan Thomas

06/14/19

What does "the sad height" represent in "Do not go gentle into that good night" by Dylan Thomas?

In the final stanza of Dylan Thomas's *Do not go gentle into that good night*, he says, > And you, my father, there on the sad height, Curse, bless, me now with your fierce tears, I pray. ... more

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Literature Theater William Shakespeare Sequel

06/14/19

Tudor or Jacobean plays that are sequels to a Shakespeare play?

William Shakespeare wrote around 40 plays (depending on how the Shakespeare canon is defined). Except for some of his history plays (*Henry IV*, *Henry VI*) and possibly *The Merry Wives of... more

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Literature Uncountable Nouns Countable Nouns

06/13/19

Is there a countable form for "literature"?

*Literature* is an uncountable noun, so we can't say *one literature* or *two literatures*. But is there a countable form, as there is for *information*? *One piece of information*, for instance.

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Literature Poetry Meaning Wording Choice

06/13/19

What does "kettle at the heel" mean in this Yeats poem, "The Tower"?

> What shall I do with this absurdity — O heart, O troubled heart — this caricature, Decrepit age that has been tied to me As to a dog's tail? > Never had I more Excited, passionate,... more

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Literature Poetry Meter

06/13/19

Is there a name for version of trochaic tetrameter with lines of 8|7|8|7 syllables?

Is there a name for the meter used in Clementine: Drove she ducklings to the water Every morning just at nine Struck her foot against a splinter Fell into the foaming brine or in... more

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Literature Symbolism Moby Dick Herman Melville

06/13/19

What is the meaning of the rescue of Tashtego?

In Moby Dick, Tashtego falls into the sinking head of a sperm whale from which the crew was extracting the spermaceti; he is saved by Queequeg who cuts the head and extracts Tashtego as if the head... more

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Literature Poetry Meaning James Fenton

06/13/19

Why is "waistcoat" modified by "leering" in the poem “A German Requiem"?

In the fifth line from the third stanza of "A German Requiem", the word *waistcoat* is modified by *leering*. I can understand *waistcoat* is personified as a person here. Is this person the... more

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Literature Shakespeare Literary Device

06/13/19

Is this line from The Merchant of Venice metaphorical?

From "The Merchant of Venice", Act IV: > The quality of mercy is not strain'd, > It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven Can we consider that a metaphor?

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Literature Meaning William Shakespeare The Merchant Of Venice

06/13/19

What's the meaning of the text in the scroll that the Prince of Arragon finds in the silver casket in Act 2, Scene 9 of The Merchant of Venice?

This is the exact text (*The Merchant of Venice*, Act 2 Scene 9): >Arragon: >The fire seven times tried this, >Seven times tried that judgment is, >That did never choose... more

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Literature Adjectives Conjunctions Usage

06/12/19

Is "as (adjective) as (adjective)" acceptable usage?

For idiosyncratic reasons of euphony and metre, I want to write (something like) "She wore round her neck many gems, as beautiful as rare." I feel in my bones that this formulation, "... as... more

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Literature William Shakespeare

06/12/19

Looking for an essay comparing Beethoven to Hamlet?

I read an essay in school--I think a survey course on British literature--that compared the music of Beethoven to the soliloquies of Hamlet; the essay said that Beethoven's music is "spoken"... more

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Literature Much Ado About Nothing William Shakespeare

06/12/19

Watchman characters in Much Ado About Nothing?

Are the "first watchman" and "watchman" in *Much Ado About Nothing* actually the same character, or are they different? As Shakespeare doesn't pay much attention to minor characters, I couldn't... more

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Literature Meaning In Context Phrase Meaning

06/12/19

Barlow knife quote meaning in Mark Twain's Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

> True, the knife would not cut > anything, but it was a "sure-enough" Barlow, and there was > inconceivable grandeur in that - though where the Western boys ever > got the idea that... more

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Literature Symbolism V Thomas Pynchon

06/11/19

What is the symbolism of the yo-yo in V.?

The yo-yo is mentioned often in Thomas Pynchon's *V.*, including in a few chapter names. What does it symbolize?

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Literature Meaning Thomas Hardy Jude The Obscure

06/10/19

What does this passage about the atmosphere blowing in Cyprus and the Galilee mean in "Jude the Obscure" mean?

When Jude is in the church, when he was following Sue, we see this line: >...was like the dew of the Hermon, and he remained throughout the service in a sustaining atmosphere of ecstasy.... more

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Literature

06/10/19

In the "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, " is the mariner immortal?

> I pass, like night, from land to land; I have strange power of speech; That moment that his face I see, I know the man that must hear me: To him my tale I teach. This is one of the... more

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Literature Symbolism The Tempest William Shakespeare

06/06/19

Origin of symbolic interpretation of Prospero's breaking of his staff?

At the end of *The Tempest*, which is generally believed to be the last plays that Shakesepare wrote alone, Prospero breaks his staff and drowns his book. This has often been read as Shakespeare... more

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Literature Poetry Allen Ginsberg

06/06/19

Whose were the "best minds" being destroyed in Ginsberg's "Howl"?

In Allen Ginsberg´s most famous poem "Howl", he claims he was witness to the destruction of the best minds of his generation: > I saw the best minds of my generation destroyed by madness,... more

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Literature Character Analysis The Handmaids Tale Much Ado About Nothing

06/06/19

Comparison between beatrice of Much Ado About Nothing and Offred of The Handmaids tale?

> Compare and contrast the way Offred in Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale and Beatrice in William Shakespeare’s Much Ado about Nothing view romantic love. Discuss 2 similarities and 2... more

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Literature Repetition

06/06/19

Repetition and Refrain in literature?

What are the differences between "Repetition and Refrain in literature? and I've looked up some of the examples and sometimes they both hard to recognize which one is Repetition and Refrain. How... more

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Literature Poetry Symbolism William Carlos Williams

06/06/19

What is "This is Just to Say" about?

In ["This is Just to Say"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/This_Is_Just_To_Say) by William Carlos Williams, the speaker appears to deliver an apology for stealing the plums of the person at whom the... more

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Literature Poetry Homer John Keats

06/06/19

Had Keats read any of Homer's works before reading Chapman's translation of them?

In "On First Looking into Chapman's Homer," John Keats writes: > Oft of one wide expanse had I been told <br/> > That deep-browed Homer ruled as his demesne;<br/> > Yet... more

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Literature Literary Device William Shakespeare The Merchant Of Venice

06/05/19

Are there earlier incidences than Merchant of Venice of an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other?

In [act 2, scene 2 of *The Merchant of Venice*](http://shakespeare.mit.edu/merchant/merchant.2.2.html), Launcelot Gobbo is conflicted regarding whether to run from Shylock, or continue working for... more

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Literature Poetry William Blake

06/05/19

What is "the Poetic Genius"?

In ["All Religions are One"](https://www.glyndwr.ac.uk/rdover/blake/allrels1.htm), William Blake develops an argument around a concept called "the Poetic Genius". From the modern, surface meaning... more

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Meaning of "He every instant fancies ..." as taken from Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America?

What does "the sad height" represent in "Do not go gentle into that good night" by Dylan Thomas?

Tudor or Jacobean plays that are sequels to a Shakespeare play?

Is there a countable form for "literature"?

What does "kettle at the heel" mean in this Yeats poem, "The Tower"?

Is there a name for version of trochaic tetrameter with lines of 8|7|8|7 syllables?

What is the meaning of the rescue of Tashtego?

Why is "waistcoat" modified by "leering" in the poem “A German Requiem"?

Is this line from The Merchant of Venice metaphorical?

What's the meaning of the text in the scroll that the Prince of Arragon finds in the silver casket in Act 2, Scene 9 of The Merchant of Venice?

Is "as (adjective) as (adjective)" acceptable usage?

Looking for an essay comparing Beethoven to Hamlet?

Watchman characters in Much Ado About Nothing?

Barlow knife quote meaning in Mark Twain's Adventures of Tom Sawyer?

What is the symbolism of the yo-yo in V.?

What does this passage about the atmosphere blowing in Cyprus and the Galilee mean in "Jude the Obscure" mean?

In the "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, " is the mariner immortal?

Origin of symbolic interpretation of Prospero's breaking of his staff?

Whose were the "best minds" being destroyed in Ginsberg's "Howl"?

Comparison between beatrice of Much Ado About Nothing and Offred of The Handmaids tale?

Repetition and Refrain in literature?

What is "This is Just to Say" about?

Had Keats read any of Homer's works before reading Chapman's translation of them?

Are there earlier incidences than Merchant of Venice of an angel on one shoulder and a devil on the other?

What is "the Poetic Genius"?

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