Tuesday, June 23, 2020
How Sylvia Plath and Ted Hughes Present Violence in Their Poetry Cut, Pike, Daddy, and View of a Pig - Literature Essay Samples
The theme of violence is commonly identified within both Plaths and Hughesââ¬â¢ poetry; however, the way in which it is incorporated by the two very different poets contrasts one another, from the use of techniques, the different tones throughout ââ¬â even down to the subjects and content of the poems. Hughes, as a poet, was considered more ââ¬Ëpopularââ¬â¢ at the time as he was at his peak, as his poetry was viewed as more traditional to the era, because he wrote ingenious poetry about average topics, whereas Plathââ¬â¢s revolutionary ââ¬Ëconfessionalââ¬â¢ poetry was less widely read by the oppressed society of the mid-20th century. This is because her poetry was seen as complex, as she wrote about suppressed and sensitive topics such as childbirth, the immense difficulties and struggles of motherhood and her lifelong depression, which the society would have been shocked to read and perhaps made uncomfortable. This results from the conditioning of the society i nto classifying these topics as ââ¬Ëtabooââ¬â¢ since childhood, meaning Plathââ¬â¢s poetry was not given nearly as much recognition as she is now, after her death, in our modern and contemporary society. One poem by Plath in which I will be writing about ââ¬â ââ¬ËCutââ¬â¢ ââ¬â explores violence in an almost self-destructive manner which, although is graphic in terms of the imagery created and language used, not as explicit as Hughesââ¬â¢ poetry in the way that he writes about violence in a blunt and inescapable way. The poem, overall, is about Plath in the domesticated setting of a kitchen, inferably making dinner alone, when she suddenly cuts her thumb with the knife she is using, but her follow-up response suggests psychological tensions running deeper than any ordinary one to a kitchen accident. It is arguable that the ââ¬Ëcutââ¬â¢ she writes about refers not only to her physical one, but perhaps an emotional one that could foreshadow her future suicide. Plath opens the poem by saying ââ¬Ëwhat a thrillââ¬â¢ in description of her feeling towards this injury. It is inferred that she is indulging in self-harm here; and the rest of the poem supports this also, as there is no evidence suggesting that this was actually an injury, as she opens the poem not by stating the injury, but in fact the thrill that she has felt as a result of it. There is a parallel to this suggesting tone of self-harm in her novel ââ¬ËThe Bell Jarââ¬â¢, which describes the characterââ¬â¢s thoughts on self-harm in which the protagonist Esther calls her experience a ââ¬Ësmall, deep thrillââ¬â¢. She also briefly mentions the Klu Klux Klan in a simile comparing them to the medical gauze she uses to cover her cut, which is an American right wing organization which Plath heavily disapproved of. The image of their white uniforms being stained by her blood here is symbolic of the blood of their violent attacks on black people. The inclusion of the colo ur red prevailing over white here reinforces the theme of violence. White, as a colour, has positive connotations of purity, innocence and virginity whereas red can be interpreted as a negative representative for anger, danger and violence. The theme of violence against others and herself is clear here and also extends to many of her other poems. However, Hughes incorporates the theme of violence in a much more explicit manner in comparison to his wife Plath. For example in his poem ââ¬ËPikeââ¬â¢; which describes the nature of the fish as well as his experience with it. In the first stanza, he describes Pike as being ââ¬ËKillers from the eggââ¬â¢. Firstly, his odd use of capitalizing the noun ââ¬ËKillerââ¬â¢ suggests an admiration toward the fishââ¬â¢s ability to do so without question or judgement, which explores the theme of violence in an extremely plain and obvious way, and creates a sense of immediate discomfort within the reader, almost giving the effect of victimizing the reader as the Pikeââ¬â¢s prey. In addition, he describes their role of being a ââ¬ËKillerââ¬â¢ as being pre-determined ââ¬Ëfrom the eggââ¬â¢. This implies that the Pikeââ¬â¢s job isnââ¬â¢t a choice, but almost its inescapable fate. This simplistic statement is arguably almost like Hughesââ¬â¢ is justifying their taboo acts, as if he possibly relates to them, which is disturbing in its own manner. He then begins stanza four with a sudden change in focus, and begins to describe his memory of owning three Pikeââ¬â¢s in his youth; ââ¬ËThree we kept behind glassââ¬â¢. This separation by glass objectifies the Pike and reinforced human power over the Pikes, but could also suggest that the only way we can protect ourselves from the wrath of this creature is by putting it in a tank. He then writes; ââ¬Ë-Suddenly there were two. Finally one. With a sag belly and a grinâ⬠¦Ã¢â¬â¢, which obviously suggests that the Pike have devoured each other in their tank as an act of cannibalism. The hyphen followed by ââ¬ËSuddenlyââ¬â¢ creates a pause, emphasising the shock of the act and reinforces the unpredictable nature of the Pike and what it can do. The inclusion of full-stops also gives a ââ¬Ëmatter-of-factââ¬â¢ tone to the poem and creates a statement out of the fact which suggests the undeniable truth of the violent nature of the Pike. The remaining Pike is also described as having a sag belly and ââ¬Ëa grinââ¬â¢ after killing its peers which the reader can infer as being the absence of any remorse or guilt, creating a disturbing atmosphere. In contrast, another poem by Plath; ââ¬ËDaddyââ¬â¢ also shows themes of violence, but again reflects her pattern of indirect and suggestive violence. The subject of the poem itself is violent ââ¬â an attack on her dead father (when she was 9) and as a result of her lack of closure, she blames him for ââ¬Ëleavingââ¬â¢ her when she was so young and therefore couldnââ¬â¢t grasp understanding of the event. She writes; ââ¬ËMy tongue stuck in my jaw. It stuck in a barb wire snareââ¬â¢ which represents her feeling of inability to express herself around her father, however she uses extremely violent imagery to imply this with her tongue stuck in barbed wire, which has connotations of being a way of physical constriction through inflicting pain on a passersby. The oxymoronic sounds of ââ¬Ëtongue stuckââ¬â¢ contrast against each other, the soft sound of ââ¬Ëtongueââ¬â¢ against the harsh consonants in ââ¬Ëstuckââ¬â¢ which symbolizes her inner conflicti ng feelings about her father. She also compares her father to Hitler by describing him with a ââ¬Ëneat mustacheââ¬â¢ and even more references to the Nazis by saying ââ¬Ëevery German was youââ¬â¢ . This use of extreme metaphoric comparison puts emphasis on how negatively she views her father, by referring to him as the ultimate villain and therefore making herself the ultimate victim. A feeling of sympathy is evoked within the reader as it is inferred that she is calling for attention, which has obviously been previously absent in her life. Hughes again explores violence explicitly in yet another poem of his, following his common theme of animals. However, ââ¬ËView of a Pigââ¬â¢ incorporates violence in a different way to his other poems about animals, with less of an admirative tone, but a negative and objectifying one. Overall, the poem is about Hughes looking upon a dead pig which is just lying there. In his opening line, Hughes describes the pig as simply lying ââ¬Ëdeadââ¬â¢. The immediate image of violence created is shocking to the reader in its starkness and brutality and emphasizes how the truth of its death is so inescapable and ââ¬Ëin-your-faceââ¬â¢. He also describes the dead pig as ââ¬Ëit was like a stack of wheatââ¬â¢, and this simile immediately commodifies the pig, and puts it as less than a life and only as food ââ¬â just something to be bought and sold.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)