Desperate Sophistication (A submission for HOA SEN short story)

It has been forever since the Chen family had a gathering. Tonight, they are having a dinner as Agnes Chen thought that there are so many things worth celebrating. Agnes’ second daughter, Elisa just got married a month ago. Toby, Agnes’ youngest son just got his position in law school. Lionel, her oldest son just expanded their family business.

George Chen, Agnes’ husband, left a legacy of a prestigious model agency for his wife and first son to run when he passed away two years ago. But now it’s only Lionel and his wife who are running the company, since Agnes has retired.

From the outside looking in, the Chen seems like a perfect, admirable family. When George was alive, people see him and his wife as a “golden” couple: an intelligent, wealthy husband, with the beautiful, loving housewife with such bright children. But were they truly a “golden” family couple? At the age of fifty-six, Agnes still possesses a sedate, glamorous beauty that is very modern, but still traditionally Asian. Her living eyes and bright smile instantly reveal the sharpness of this woman. There’s a sense of elegance in her every movement like she’s incapable of doing any wrong. Everything about her is exquisite: from her classy, expensive outfit to the sparkling necklace caressing her neck. Certainly, it would take enormous effort to spot any imperfection of her and this family.

In every room of the family, there has to be a family picture on the wall. Those pictures are the emblem of Agnes’ pride. Whenever she looks at those pictures, she can imagine them praising her lifetime achievement of nurturing this prestigious family. However, Agnes could never justify why no one in the family ever shows appreciation for her contribution. One thing that is evident about those “talking” pictures is each of her children inherits bits of their mother’s beauty: Elisa with a smile that could melt any heart, Toby with those big round eyes that seem endlessly deep… Each face reveals the flawless sophistication bearing with the essence of the Chen.

The brown oak dining table is covered with an expensive table cloth. A big vase with tasteful choice of flowers is placed at the centre of it. Delicious food smelling spectacular is placed decoratively on expensive Chinas, soothing everyone’s senses. Everyone is now settled on the table. There are Agnes, Lionel, Nina – Lionel’s wife, Annie – their daughter, Elisa and Toby.

Despite the frostiness of the weather, Agnes feels warm inside seeing her family reunites. She has been trying so hard to revive the buried memory. The emptiness has been invading her soul ever since she lives alone in the Chen’s massive mansion.

While all of her children, grand-children and in-laws are busy getting food onto their plate, Agnes performs her habit of taking a long glance at each person on the dining table like a subtle inspector on the job.

“Be careful Annie darling! Don’t make noises when you eat. That’s not ladylike etiquette, is it?” She says to her grand-daughter with a frown.

With a quick, timid glimpse at her grandmother like a frightened kitten, her jaw is now moving slower and slower, quieter and quieter. Silence consumes the table for a little while, and then Agnes asks Lionel:

“Have those models drop the charges against you yet, for the law suite of sexual harassment?”

“The judge still hasn’t decided. The models are very troubling. But surprisingly, one of them in court yesterday sounded very anxious.” says Lionel, frowning doubtfully.

“Oh, that’s because I’ve taken care of it, son! Just a couple of brawny bodyguards and a knife could solve it all.” Says Agnes haughtily.

“I told you not to do it the last time we met! Don’t you remember? You know that they could press more charges against me, right?” says Lionel angrily.

Suddenly, the memory of the previous conversation between him and his mom stirs up Lionel’s mind like a fuming flame. He can remember clearly how he stormed out of the room, worrying that if he stayed there a moment longer, he could have strangled his own mother.

“Mother, I’m fine without your help” Says Lionel with a grumpy grunt.

There’s tension fueling up the table, but everyone chooses to ignore and keep eating.

Again, silence consumes the table, but it is the kind of deafening silence that annoys everyone. Suddenly, a text message beep of Agnes’ phone breaks the ice. She looks at it for a long while, with an uncomfortable expression.

“Oh Elisa! Where’s your husband, Nathan?” asks Agnes curiously.

“He has loads of work at his firm to finish, so he can’t make it tonight.” Elisa replies

“Hmm…Interesting!” with a brief pause, Agnes then continues. “I just received a text message from my minion, who is following your husband…”

“You hire someone to stalk my husband? Are you out of your mind?” Elisa angrily interrupted her mother.

“Well, he is now drinking beer with some escorts in a filthy strip club. How do you think about that, darling?”

The news about her husband slaps her face so hard that it is turning redder and redder. Right now she only wants to bang something right on her husband’s face to release the monster inside, but still not as much as she wants to do it to her mother.

“I’ve had enough of your insanity! Why do you always have to be such a control freak? We don’t need you to take over our lives” yells Elisa furiously.

Elisa’s tone indicates an alarm for a family fight. She removes herself from her seat to stand up, she’s breaking the chains that is controlling the anger towards her mother.

“Don’t be such a disrespectful brat! We are the Chen! We have a name to preserve. Without my hand, this family wouldn’t be as thriving as today. You wouldn’t be sitting here sipping expensive wine and your dad wouldn’t have built up that multi-million dollar company for Lionel to run right now.”

“Now look who’s talking about “helping” dad build this family up”. Toby thinks to himself sarcastically. “His blood was literally on her murderous hand”

“Well, without your filthy hand, little Jake would still be here. Only because you couldn’t accept the fact that Jake was having a baby with his 15-year old girl-friend, you had to push her down the stairs to destroy their baby, their whole future. You still have the guts to pretend it was an accident”. Elisa yells exhaustedly.

“You did not just say that…after I’ve sacrificed my whole for you all!” shouts Agnes angrily, while trying to maintain calm.

“We feel sorry for you, mother! All your life, the Chen’s reputation is your only child, instead of any of us here.”

“All of us thought you’ve finally changed and you invited us here to apologize.” Elisa continues to shout. “Why do you have to control our lives with your deceitful ways? The world would disgust you if they knew the things you did to Dad!”

“Your Dad was a cheating, nasty bastard. He and your shameful aunt were strangers to human morals. You all knew that they had an affair right under my nose for two years. I only did what was right.”

Even though George Chen is dead, the memory is still living vividly in Agnes’ brain: her hand holding a razor underneath his neck, and the will on the table with blood all over it. The statement on the will is to leave the company to Agnes, instead of her sister, who was also George’s mistress.

After a while, Toby can feel a load of rage piling up and stuck on his throat, as if he could vomit at any moment. He leaves the room immediately in heavy footsteps. The next few minutes, Lionel’s family decides to leave. His wife says to him with a sigh of disappointment.

“…So much for a normal family dinner!”

Elisa is finally tired of the fighting. She shouts an angry goodbye to her mother, and then storms out.

Agnes stands up with a pale, blank face. For a moment, she stares annoyingly at one of the “emblem of her pride” as if she could smash it into pieces. How can a picture portray such a illusory reality of this wrecked family?

She couldn’t take it anymore. She could feel her lips and limbs start to shiver. She could feel her heart revolting, trying to escape her tiny chest. She could feel her head hammering so hard like it could break in half any moment.

But the pain of loneliness is the most excruciating of all. She helplessly consumes the last bit of her energy to reach for the syringe on the drawer. Tragically, her body surrenders to the pain and tumbles down.

Lying there on the cold, wooden floor of the massive mansion is a desperate, beautiful woman whose greed for power has destroyed everything in her life, even her own self.

–The end–

Impression on the novel “Mao’s Last Dancer”

I have heard of the novel “Mao’s Last Dancers”, and already been introduced to this book but paid no interest in reading it. Both the title and front cover reveal the book’s historical context of China Communism period (early 1900s), which I can somewhat relate to due to the closeness of Chinese’ and my own nation’s cultural principles in the past. My impression after a glance at the gloomy-colored cover is the novel encompasses many sorrowful stories of the merciless, superficial customs of Chinese history. Also, the vocabulary “last dancer” indicates a permanent end, which sounds quite unpleasant, in my opinion.

After reading a few pages of the novel, I started to doubt the writer’s proficiency. The writer dedicates many parts describing details of his family’s house and other irrelevant things, which makes the story needlessly lengthy. This causes distraction and boredom while I am reading, as there are so many details mentioned with no effective purpose. Sometimes I lose focus of what the writer is trying to inform us.

However, so far I am quite fascinated with the story due to its influence by the historical, political and cultural context. It helps me realize how much an impact culture and politics affects people’s feelings and how it controls their lives. Especially, it makes the poor, rural characters suffer most, which creates a sympathy and stimulation for us as readers. I have a strong impression that the cultural context of “Mao’s last dancer”, along with the plot, will create a great story.

“Valley of Heartbreaks” visual presentation (video)

Valley Of Heartbreaks – Original poem

The Valley of Heartbreaks

Tran Le Duy

Broken hearts

A filthy craze or a tempting disease?

Boys and girls are falling madly apart

Piling up the valley without an ease

So many hearts are breaking

With a single beat sheds a thousand tears

So many hearts are aching

Shouting in sorrow, bleeding in fears

The humane hearts, hearts of mankind

So strong for love, yet fragile for pain

Lost in the pretend truth we find

Struggle so hard, but all in vain

Heart! I’ll try to mend you

Flee from the agony so unfeeling

Heart! Just be true

With me you can be anything

The little ray of hope appears

When your greatest despair invades

May you unravel the unclear

May the heartbeat beats the shade.

IF – David Gates – Analysis

IF

David Gates – Bread

If a picture paints a thousand words, then why can’t I paint you?
The words will never show

The you I’ve come to know.

If a face could launch a thousand ships, then where am I to go?
There’s no one home but you,
You’re all that’s left me too.

And when my love for life is running dry,
You come and pour yourself on me.

If a man could be two places at one time, I’d be with you.
Tomorrow and today

Beside you all the way.

If the world should stop revolving spinning slowly down to die,
I’d spend the end with you.
And when the world was through,

Then one by one the stars would all go out,
Then you and I would simply fly away

————————-

See the analysis below

The poem “If”, which is originally a song, was composed in 1971 by singer/songwriter called David Gates of the band Bread. It is a classic, romantic song, which is still loved by contemporary society. “If” was covered by many famous artists such as Frank Sinatra, and read in the form of poem by Telly Savalas. This essay will explore the subject matter, theme, style and tone that this poem conveys. Gates’ use of literary devices and its effect in expressing the theme of the poem will also be analyzed.

With the theme of eternal love and faith, Gates conveys the significant tender companionship of unconditional love and faithfulness. It’s the gratitude of a man to his lover, and the hope for her to stay by his side forever. In the poem, Gate also expresses the joy of falling in love in one’s life. No matter what the world may turn out, they will stay the same for eternity. “If” is a lyrical poem, written in the ballad form. This poem has six stanza overall. It can be divided into two major parts, as each part is quite similar to each other and recur twice, in terms of structure. The poem has four hypothetical question verses beginning with “If…”, then a free verse, then it repeats that pattern the second time, except there’s no question in the “If” verse the second time. The rhymes occur at the two bottom lines of each “If…” verse. The poem carries a suavely romantic and utmost caring tone which creates a heart-warming mood to the readers.

Gates illustrates the familiar theme of love with so many profound literary devices, and a completely unique interpretation.  A metaphor is brilliantly implied in every line of the first stanza “If a picture paints a thousand words…the you I’ve come to know” A picture can tell a meaningful story with thousands of hidden words , but there is not enough words to portray all the characteristic of the poet’s lover. In the first line, Gates’ purpose is to emphasize the indescribable exceptionality that his lover possesses by applying a rhetorical question “…then why can’t I paint you”. Another use of imagery and rhetorical question recur in the second stanza: “If a face could launch a thousand ships…You’re all that’s left me to” Hypothetically, the first line refers to a significant event occurred in medieval history. It was said of Helen of Troy by Agamemnon, because of her beauty, his son Paris kidnapped her from the kingdom and the king launched his fleet to go after her. The fight for Helen started a vigorous war. The rhetorical question, combined with hyperbole expresses the idea that if the world is drowned in chaos, he would return to his ultimate sanctuary, which is back to his lover. The man will then only need his lover to survive through trouble times. The next stanza is actually the chorus of the song “And when my love for life….pour yourself on me” Gate uses euphemism in the first line to soothe the unpleasantness of his exhaustion in life. That is when his lover comes to ease his pain and “pour” herself on him. It is very insightful of the poet to use the verb “pour”, as it metaphorically expresses both the physical action of gentle comfort, and the serene relief of troubles.

Next is the second major part of this poem, which is the repetition in structure of the previous part. The first stanza of this second part also begins with “If”. “If a man could be two places….Besides you all the way” Gates uses hyperbole to exaggerate the chance that a man could duplicate himself to be with his lover while being somewhere else. The anaphora “to” of the phrase “Tomorrow and Today” is purposefully applied by the poet to stress that he will be with her for eternity, specifically everyday in his life. The line “Beside you all the way” also has a metaphorical meaning that he wouldn’t rather be at any place than to be with his lover. He desires to stay beside his lover through the rest of this life. The next stanza “If the world should stop revolving…and when the world was through” Once again, hyperbole is used to present the poet’s faithfulness to his lover and his desire to be with her. It is an unchangeable fact that the world revolves in an orbit. The poet’s claim of the world stop revolving, spinning slower and slower is going against the law of nature, which is pretty extreme. He promises to stay with his lover even if the world collapses. Gates has used a powerful statement to imply the eternal, unconditional love for his soul mate. “Then one by one, the stars….simply fly away” The use of imagery of the first line of the last stanza suggests that the night will eventually fade away with the stars slowly vanish along. The lover couple will peacefully drift through the night, and “fly away” to somewhere that only two of them exist.

Gates has brilliantly made use of many literary techniques in “If”. The most remarkable feature of this poem is the use of imagery and metaphors which makes the meaning of “If” stands out beautifully. Despite the poet’s powerful praise for love, the poem still maintains its simplicity. We can relate at once the significance of this poem. Gates has successfully delivered the message about eternal love in this incredible masterpiece. These words warm out heart and helps us appreciate love more.

“A Valentine” of Edgar Allen Poe – Analysis

A VALENTINE

Edgar Allen Poe

For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,
Brightly expressive as the twins of Leda,
Shall find her own sweet name, that nestling lies
Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader.
Search narrowly the lines!- they hold a treasure
Divine- a talisman- an amulet
That must be worn at heart. Search well the measure-
The words- the syllables! Do not forget
The trivialest point, or you may lose your labor
And yet there is in this no Gordian knot                                                                                             Which one might not undo without a sabre,
If one could merely comprehend the plot.
Enwritten upon the leaf where now are peering
Eyes scintillating soul, there lie perdus
Three eloquent words oft uttered in the hearing
Of poets, by poets- as the name is a poet’s, too,
Its letters, although naturally lying
Like the knight Pinto- Mendez Ferdinando-
Still form a synonym for Truth- Cease trying!
You will not read the riddle, though you do the best you can do.

—————————-

This poem, “A Valentine” is written by the famous Edgar Allen Poe. This love poem is written for a woman, who is already married. The chosen subject matter, theme and Poe’s writing style have made this poem lengthen its existence until today, and still can maintain its unique and beautiful meaning. This analysis will focus on the deconstruction of this romantic poem, through the subject matter, theme, context, tone and literary devices used.

This is a lyrical poem, written in the form of acrostic. Other than a poem, “A Valentine” is actually a riddle that Poe made to reveal his secret lover. Edgar Allen Poe composed “A Valentine” to express his affection for a woman, but he’s too afraid to directly tell her because she’s already married. The subject matter is about Poe’s challenge for the readers, to solve the riddle within this poem. Through the puzzle that the writer gives out to the reader, he also blends in the implication for his lover’s beauty. Poe’s love for this woman is a secret affair. He can only express it in discreet, through the meaning of this poem, because it is wrongful to be infatuated with a married woman. The theme of this poem is about a woman’s magnificence to a man when he’s falling in love, and the mysteriousness of this secret love they’re having. Poe wrote this poem under his personal context of being in love, in a secret love affair. The historical context of “A Valentine” is in the 1846, so it is evident that the language used is formal. The tone applied for this poem is very romantic, when refer to the woman and stimulating, in terms of the mystery for the reader. The writing purpose of Poe is to stimulate the readers with an interesting puzzle about his lover. The regular rhyme scheme of this poem is abab cdcd, but sometimes the pattern change unexpectedly due to the appearance of an odd line with no rhyme.

The riddle is the dominant feature of this poem, that’s the main factor that makes this poem so ingenious. Not only does it express the romantic words of the writer, Edgar Allen Poe also composed a hidden riddle within “A Valentine”. If you take the first letter from the first line, the second letter from the second line, the third letter from the third line, and so on until the end, the riddle of this poem will be revealed. The name of the woman who Poe is crazed about exists in every line throughout the whole poem, Frances Sargent Osgood. She was another great poetess who shares her secret affair with Poe through poems.

An array of literary devices is used in “A Valentine”. Simile can be found in the first two lines: “For her this rhyme…twins of Leda”. This comparison illustrates this woman’s gorgeousness, almost as beautiful as a girl named Leda, a character from “Leda and the Swan”. The writer wants to notify the readers that through “Shall find her own sweet name, that nestling lies”, the name of his lover can be found within the huddling lines “lies” of this poem. “A Valentine” contains a lot of metaphors. The line “Search narrowly the lines!- they hold a treasure” has one. This is a hint from the writer for the readers to find his beloved’s name in this poem, implying her name being the treasure. The line “And yet there is in this no Gordian knot” contains another metaphor.  It is used to imply an intractable problem, solved by a bold stroke. So it literally means there is no hard problem in solving a riddle of this poem. “Of poets, by poets- as the name is a poet’s, too”. The repetition of the word “poet” gives a hint to the readers that this woman, which is the solution to the riddle, is also a poet. Another simile, merged with personification can be found in “Its letters, although naturally lying. Like the knight Pinto- Mendez Ferdinando” The effect of this skilful combination of literary devices is to give the letters which represents the answer of this riddle more power, as mighty as the knight Pinto. It is also evident to notify that his choice of vocabulary and language style is very impressive throughout the whole poem, “Eyes scintillating soul”, “Gordian knot”, “Cease trying”…

This is one of the profound love poems of the great Edgar Allen Poe. It is certainly a masterpiece that can still remain its prolonged existence. Not only is this piece romantic and beautiful in the illustration of Poe’s lover, but it’s also clever in the hidden riddle that the writer challenges the readers. Poe’s purpose is stated very clear through the descriptions: to reveal his secret love with Frances Sargent Osgood. He has used his own unique writing style and many literary devices to transfer perfectly the significance of this love, acrostic poem.

“Shall I compare thee to a Summer’s day” analysis

Sonnet 18

Shall I Compare Thee To a Summer’s Day?

                                                             William Shakespeare

Shall I compare thee to a Summer’s day?

Thou art more lovely and more temperate:

Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,

And Summer’s lease hath all too short a date:

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,

And oft’ is his gold complexion dimm’d;

And every fair from fair sometime declines,

By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d:

But thy eternal Summer shall not fade

Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;

Nor shall Death brag thou wanderest in his shade,

When in eternal lines to time thou growest:

 

So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,

So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.

————————————–

     “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” is a classic poem by the legendary William Shakespeare. This poem is his eighteenth sonnet, and perhaps the most well-known out of all Shakespeare’s fifty four sonnets. With the renowned writing style and techniques, Shakespeare has made the meaning of this love poem so intriguing. The chosen subject matter, describing the theme of love has created a remarkable longevity for this poem until these days. The content mentioned above, along with the context, tone and an array of literary devices will be analyzed thoroughly in this essay.

The title “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” partially conveys the theme of the appreciation of beauty, and the sense of falling in love. Hypothetically, the personal context of this poem is Shakespeare falling in love with a remarkably attractive woman. Through the comparison of this woman’s good looks with the nature of “a summer’s day”, the subject matter appears to be Shakespeare being truly infatuated by the loveliness of this lady. The theme suggested is the eternal love and beauty. Due to the historical context being in the 17^th century, the language of this poem is old English, which is formal and complex. The tone of this sonnet is very elegant and suavely romantic, which creates a heart-warming mood for the readers. “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day” is a lyrical poem, comprising complete features of sonnet form. It has fourteen lines in total, divided into three quatrains then followed by a couplet. Almost every line in this sonnet directly conveys the subject matter with many clear and vivid images. The rhyme scheme is structured in order: abab cdcd efef gg.

     Throughout this poem, the use of imagery can be seen many times, through the vivid image of the woman’s beauty compared to the glow summer. The poem starts with a rhetorical question “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?” which implies adoration to his beloved. Then the next line is the admiration for this woman’s magnificence with two adjectives “lovely” and “moderate”. The selection of these two words makes this woman’s good look seems very pleasant but also magnificent. There’s a repetition of the word “more” before the two adjectives, which increases the effect of praising the loveliness of this lady. The next two lines “Rough winds do shake the darling bush of May”, “And summer lease hath all too short a date” expresses the negative aspect of summer. Shakespeare’s use of imagery for “rough winds” implies that the tempestuous weather is ruining the joy of summer and fades the splendor away. Then it’s followed by the complaint of summer passes too quickly, which metaphorically suggests that all beauty is only temporary, all pleasant thing must come to an end at some point.

    The second quatrain addresses about the nature of summer and beauty in general. The fifth and sixth lines have brilliant personifications of the sun as “the eyes of heaven” and “his golden complexion”. They implicitly describe the characteristics on a face, with the use of imagery and metaphor. The next two lines refer to an unavoidable truth that all beautiful things will eventually grow fainter as time goes by, and because of the strenuous encounters in life. “And every fair from fair sometime declines” “By chance or nature’s changing course untrimm’d:” Shakespeare uses the alliteration, as well as repetition “fair from fair” to emphasize the attractiveness fading away. He has combined proficiently two literary devices in just three words. The ninth line deliberately shows a complete contrast idea: “But thy eternal Summer shall not fade” describes the beauty that will stay for eternity, and will always remain the quality and prolonged existence. The repetition of “nor” has the effect of emphasizing that nothing can decline the gorgeousness of this lady that Shakespeare adored.

    The couplet, which is the last two lines of the poem also contain a repetition “So long as”. The aim is to reveal the everlasting beauty of Shakespeare’s beloved. He also used hyperbole “men can breathe….eyes can see” to exaggerate the significance of her exquisiteness to him. The hyperbole also refers to the longevity of this poem: as long as there are people still alive to read poems this sonnet will live, and you will live in it.

          Through the sophisticated language and description of his beloved, Shakespeare has shown his joy of being deeply in love with a beautiful woman. It is very skillful of this renowned writer to use the image of the bright summer to compare with the eternal beauty of this woman. The imagery has expressed entirely the subject matter and theme of this romantic sonnet. Not only does Shakespeare believe that immortality exist through the beauty, it also stays in his poem. Truly, this love sonnet has elapsed through so many generations, and his premise for the endless beauty has come true.

 

The Vision of War through Owen’s Imagery

“Owen’s imagery is often chosen to suggest the horrors of war, the inadequacy of religion, and the validity of love and grief.” Discuss.

——————————————————-

       Owen’s imagery is considered the basis of his poetry. It is often chosen to examine the themes of war. His use of imagery is evident in his illustration of the horrors of war, the inadequacy of religion, and the validity of love and grief. His extraordinary vision has brought back the scenery of war with the terror and pity that haunts everyone, especially numerous unfortunate soldiers. Due to his first hand experience in the army and his vivid imagination, his imagery is often chosen to suggest the haunting and dramatic vision of war.

     Owen’s use of imagery is revealed in the fiery expressions of indignation at the horrors of war and the pity for the young soldiers that sacrificed. What makes Owen’s imagery so unforgettable is that it is entirely distinct and instantly understandable. He also makes use of the techniques creatively, to describe both physical pain (Dulce Et Decorum Est) and mental sorrow (Disabled). The poet has made the horrors of warfare so alive before readers’ eyes. “If in some smothering dreams you too could pace. Behind the wagon that we flung him in,” (Dulce Et Decorum Est). This imagery delivers a profound idea. Not only does it reveal the tragedy of powerlessly witnessing a soldier’s death, it also describes the heartless action of tossing dead soldier’s bodies into the wagon. Owen implies that the memory of death and war is so dreadful that it haunts the soldiers through a nightmare that you wish you never dreamt of. Owen employed imagery to bring to life the sorrow and horror of war – by describing the sounds and sights. “Only the monstrous anger of the guns. Only the stuttering rifles’ rapid rattle” (Anthem of the Doomed Youth). The personification and alliteration of the imagery creates the utmost physical terror of war. In addition, some of Owen’s brilliant imageries on the battlefield are sometimes blended with other figurative speeches, such as metaphor and irony: “His hanging face, like a devil’s sick of sin” (Dulce Et Decorum Est). Typically, a devil entirely devotes his life for tormenting human, hence it is very ironic to see a devil who loathes sins. The writer took that image and compared it with the struggle and intense anxiety of the soldier in war. With a combination of irony and imagery, the frightfulness of war has been raised at a higher level. Owen includes very few physically horrific visions in his imagery, only psychologically tormenting ideas, which is the magnificent thing about his imagery of war disaster. “Poured it down shell-holes till the veins ran dry” (Disabled). This line ruthlessly portrays the lifelessness of the old soldier. The loneliness and helplessness are consuming his soul day by day, and he expects nothing more but death to come. Each poem of Owen is a different essence of implying the horror of war. Through brilliant literary techniques, Owen has successfully delivered the judgment about the horror of war through his diverse, exceptional imagery.

     Religion is also a recurring theme in Owen’s poetry, and appears clearly in his imagery. The force of war can cause conflict with religious belief. In the two poems Anthem of the Doomed Youth and Apolgia Pro Poemate Meo, the idea of questioning God and religion are exposed very clearly. The inadequacy of religion is revealed through the futility of this war. “I too saw God through mud” (Apolgia Pro Poemate Meo). The image of seeing God through mud is incredibly hopeless as it dirties God’s honor. The expression bears a very depreciatory tone towards the faith in God. Although the church officials encourage the soldier to fight for their country, they conceal themselves inside the church, which seems extremely gutless and contrast to the values of religion. After all, the soldiers are the victims that bravely risk their lives for the war, hoping that they have sacrificed for God, for the greater good. This imagery is very critical as it is judging the incompetence of religion, comparing to the deaths of soldiers on the battlefield. In the context of war, religion being so deficient and helpless has made the sacrifices of the soldiers seem so meaningless. “No mockeries now for them; no prayer nor bells” (Anthem of the Doomed Youth). Again, the inadequacy of religion’s expression to this tragic mass death is observed – The prayers and bells indicating the sign of grief and misery are nothing but mockeries to these soldiers. Overall, the religious idea of God has been disregarded, and profane views upon life and people have been turned to, as the war is destroying everyone’s faith in God. The inadequacy of religion is presented brilliantly through Owen’s vivid and truthful imagery.

     The validity of love and grief is what all Owen’s poems share in common. His imagery evokes more from us than just simple disgust and sympathy for the war. It strongly implies the idea of the validity of love and grief for the soldiers. “What passing bells for these who die as cattles?” (Anthem of the Doomed Youth).This opening rhetorical question for the poem, which is also an imagery exposes the writer’s personal grief for the soldiers. It is quite extreme to compare the numerous deaths of soldiers to farm animals. The effect of using rhetorical question is to emphasize how miserable the mourning for these unfortunate soldiers. Owen sympathizes profusely with the vain young men who have no idea of the horrors of war, who are tempted by the complete lies of the honor fighting for the country. “The shrill demented choirs of wailing shells. And bugles calling for them from sad shires”. This line portrays perfectly the grief and sorrow of the people back home, mourning for the death of the soldiers. The personification “shrill demented choirs”, “bugles calling” and “sad shires” indicate the image of a gloomy funeral. Furthermore, it also depicts the depressing state of everyone. Even non-human things are crying out desperately for their deaths. “What candles may be held to speed them all?… The pallor of girls’ brows shall be their pall”. Owen has used everyday life materials in his imagery to express the validity, which makes the suffering seem so genuine and relevant. While the chaotic war is happening stridently, the silent and distant sorrow of people at home is bursting out. Those imageries have represented so vicariously the validity of love and grief, with truthful illustrations of the pain people are going through due to the consequence of war.

Without a doubt, Owen’s imagery has done an amazing job in suggesting the horror of war, inadequacy of religion and validity of love and grief. It is idealistic of Owen to have chosen this technique to exemplify these themes. His imagery is so vivid and memorable that has made the readers instantly relate to his philosophy. Through the images that Owen presented, the readers could almost feel the pain that every soldier has to suffer through war. Owen has left a priceless legacy of treasury poems to the literature world, and so many valuable memoirs and authentic images of the horrific, merciless war.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!