Analysis Of The Psalm Of Life English Literature Essay

This verse form dramatizes the struggle between the truth of life lived in the minute and the disregard of the psyche when a individual focuses on things beyond his control: viz. the yesteryear and the hereafter. There are many subjects expressed by the poet within this work: freedom, felicity, doggedness, truth, futility, spiritualty and success. From the rubric 1 might state that the subject is merely to prehend the twenty-four hours: Carpe Diem ( Harmon, 2009, 87 ) . The verse form ‘s signifier is that of the words ( 324 ) and the poet encourages the reader to utilize their imaginativeness. The word picks and arrangement within its ‘ stanza evoke both a tune and emotion. There are nine stanzas that make up the composing and each contain the qualities of the quatrain [ consist of four lines in which lines two and four must rime while holding the same figure of syllables ( 452 ) ] . Psalm of Life besides carries the traits of the dramatic soliloquy in that the storyteller of the work is the poet himself ( 177 ) .

In stanza one, line one the poet assigns the description of “ plaintive ” to the thought of Numberss. This word was chosen to place the audience: those who seemingly go through life as though it is a job. The word mournful frames the feeling as though something was lost and captures the heartache generated by that loss. “ Life is but an empty dream! ” states why there are so many sorrowful within the audience: if there is no purpose higher than what one can garner on the Earth so life itself has no intent. The poet reveals his motive in lines three through four of the first stanza: “ For the psyche is dead that slumbers/And things are non what they seem ” . Populating life in a rut or for material grounds is the slayer of the psyche. The psyche found unawares, which is what is implied by the word usage of “ sleeps ” , is most vulnerable to ageless decease. Line four Tells the audience that they must look beyond the surface of the universe every bit good as beyond themselves. “ Life is existent! Life is sincere! ” conveys an seriousness and a spot of despair. An emphasized announcement made in a manner of a Southern Baptist sermonizer pleading with those on the way to devastation to turn to the life of the psyche. “ And the grave is non its end ” underlines the thought that life is something to be actively engaged in and non simply a journey to decease. “ Dust 1000 are, to dust 1000 returnest, ” is citing Genesis 3:19 and seems to throw this supplication for life into a light that may talk to the spiritual up-bringing of his audience. The poet makes a really of import differentiation in the undermentioned line, “ Was non spoken of the psyche ” . The creative activity of adult male is wholly alone from the remainder of life on the Earth because “ … the Lord God formed adult male of the dust of the land and breathed into his anterior nariss the breath of life ; and adult male became a life psyche ( Genesis 3:19 ) ” . These two lines bring into the poet ‘s invocation the backup of Bible.

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Stanza four brings frontward the idea of futility: “ Art is long, and Time is fugitive, /And our Black Marias, though stout and brave, / Still, like muffled membranophones, are crushing funeral Marches to the grave ” . It is as though the poet wants to remind his audience that every minute, every pulse is conveying them closer to the inevitable terminal one ‘s life-time. This farther underlines the thought of prehending the twenty-four hours. In utilizing the word fliting the poet efforts to acquire across that clip will merely go on on without respect for the individual- no affair how brave and house one ‘s bosom might be. The poet is once more underlining that life today is all one truly has when faced with the flow of clip. Stanza five, line 18 introduces a word that is unfamiliar in today ‘s manner of life: camp. This word defined in Merriam-Webster as “ a impermanent or insouciant shelter or housing ” and by itself holds the thought of the full verse form which is that this life is impermanent. This stanza evokes urgency through the usage of the exclaiming point. The poet is stating his audience to be the hero of their ain conflicts instead than a pawn in the conflict of another with the words “ Be non like the dumb, goaded cowss! / Be a hero in the discord! ” . Stanza six addresses the two possible places of the audience and convey to them some really specific invocations: for those who are populating for tomorrow the poet says, “ Trust no Future, howe’er pleasant! ” and for those who would keen the yesteryear, “ Let the dead Past bury its dead! ” . The poet does non go forth the audience inquiring what their response should be but obviously provinces, “ Act, – act in the life nowadays! Heart within, and God o’erhead! ”

Peoples can do what they will of their ain lives and can follow the illustration of the great work forces that came before them, “ Lifes of great work forces all remind us/We can do our lives sublime, ” . There is no secret that separates those who are great from those that pass through life without go forthing an feeling. It seems as though the poet is stating that those who are considered great took advantage of the chances of their present. It is those people who “ … departing, leave behind us/Footprints on the sand of clip ” who provide encouragement non merely to their coevals, but for those in the coevalss to come “ Footprints, that possibly another, /Sailing o’er life ‘s solemn chief, /A forlorn and shipwrecked brother, /Seeing shall take bosom once more ” .

The concluding stanza brings a soft point to the compelling statement of the old eight. It is as though the poet it taking the manus of the audience: to draw them gently from the bed of their complacence. The manus held out shows that walking along the route of today does non intend a journey travelled entirely, “ Let us so be up and making, /With a bosom for any destiny ; /Still accomplishing, still prosecuting, / Learn to labour and delay. ” The poet takes the manus of the reader now as he did during his ain clip and seems to state to each person: Let us travel frontward together.

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