#8 Tone/Mood

Although tone and mood can often be categorizes as being similar, the two are very different and represent emotions felt by the speaker and by the reader. Tone represents the speaker’s attitude, while the mood reflects the reader’s experience as a result of the speaker’s attitude. A great example of this difference is made clear in Andrew Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress”. The tone of this poem, as in the speaker’s attitude toward the subject, is initially quixotic in that the speaker portrays time as everlasting. He asserts that he would spend hundreds of years praising her body parts. (13-15) Then while the previous quote might instill a satisfied mood in the mind of the reader, there is a change in tone to being more vicious and severe as the speaker alludes to what will happen if his “mistress” goes through life without being proactive and taking advantage of the present time. In the mix of all of this, the mood, or the feeling the reader experiences, plays a big part. The initial mood that corresponds with the quixotic tone is euphoric and almost so pleased due to all of the speaker’s impractical promises. Also, a depressing and horrific mood is felt by the reader due to the speaker’s severe tone. An example of this would be when the speaker says that his coy mistress would be alone in a “vault” where “worms shall try that long preserved virginity”(27-28). Again, the use of the words, “vault” and “worms” depicts a frightful image that dutifully addresses the tone and mood of the poem, and specifically the second stanza.  

#7 Diction

In Shakespeare’s Hamlet, each character’s diction helps portray the character’s emotions and allows the reader to be ready to perceive each character’s unique identity. The diction of the queen differs from the diction of Hamlet, himself. For example, in act one, scene one, the very touchy subject of the death of Hamlet’s father is being discussed. Both the queen and Hamlet react separately; this difference in their reactions is seen in their different uses of diction. On the one hand, the Queen responds almost unaffectedly by stating that death is “common” and that “all that lives must die.” In opposition to the queen’s insensitive reaction, Hamlet retorts that “it [ his father’s death]is” a big deal. Their opposite reactions help the reader identity with their individual characters. For example, the Queen’s diction and her seemingly unconcerned responses actually reflect her nature to put things off and to lack proactivity. As the play progresses, this assumption becomes fact. Similarly, Hamlet’s uneasy character and tenseness of diction in the first few pages foreshadows his uneasy character that persists later on in the play. Moreover, as demonstrated by the examples from Hamlet, the diction used in poetry, separately by each character, gives the reader a frame of reference for identifying with the characters and their unique emotions. 

#6 Imagery/Figurative Language

The use of figurative language and imagery in poetry help paint a picture of the moods and themes the poem is trying to portray. E.e Cummings’ poem “Ponder” employs different techniques of imagery and figurative language. For example, personification is used when the speaker describes “the stone cringes clinging to the stone”(L 4-5). Here the use of personification helps the image come alive and helps the reader paint a visual image. Next, imagery is very strong in “Ponder”; this is especially true with the powerful language that is used to describe the “motheaten forum” is mentioned. As the poem continues, many more aspects of imagery can be recognized, evidently with phrases such as “vertical worthless” and “horizontal business”. Additionally, the use of “horizontal business” suggests a possible euphemism by disguising the actual implications of the term. In a unique way  these devices evoke emotions, feelings and, meaning through simple words and phrases. Moreover, the elements contained in imagery and figurative language help the poem speak out to the reader and assist the reader in attaining the complete meaning of the poem. 

#5 Sound

Shelly's poem "Ozymandias" employs many of the techniques of sound. Specifically the poem makes use of enjambment. A majority of the poem flows very nicely with few punctuations or stops. This helps support the cheerful and more positive aspects of the poem. However, in order to emphasize a significant poem within the poem, Shelly makes use of caesura with the line “Nothing besides remains”. With this line, the nice flow comes to an abrupt stop. In addition to Shelly’s use of a caesura, the poem contains harsh sounding words such as “cold command” and “sneer”. The sounds of these words causes the reader to stop mid-way into the line. The use of “cold command” gives off not only a harsh sounds, but also an eerie feeling. Similarly, the s sound in the word “sneer” is very strong and adds to the mood of the poem.

#4 Symbol

Symbols are important in poetry and help hint at the meaning of the stanzas they are in and the poem as a whole. For example, in Andrew Marvell’s “To His Coy Mistress” unique symbols are used in the three stanzas that help allude to the emotions and promises of the speaker. In the first stanza symbols help support the idea of time as everlasting. The use of “rubies” and “empires” suggests riches and corresponds with the speaker’s attempt to lure in his “mistress”. Additionally, in the second stanza the speaker asserts that if his coy mistress does not take advantage of the present time, then she will end up in a “marble vault”. This reference to a “marble vault” connotes a stone, cold, and deadly image, which is exactly the environment that the speaker is trying to describe. To continue along with this theme of death, are the “iron gates of life”, that are mentioned in the third stanza, paint a picture of the loss of life and all hope. Ultimately, the speaker uses these images as symbols to point out what could be if his coy mistress does or does make the most of the time she is given. 

Blog #3 Setting

The setting in a fiction or drama is the item by which the time and place and the when and where are indicated. (Jago 67) Detailed, the setting hints at the overall atmosphere that the story is going to take on. In Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, references to the time of day, the season, and the weather help crystallize the image of the separate environments. For example in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, there is an opening graveyard scene where the setting is described as a castle in Elsinore sometime in the middle of the night. Usually the word “castle” suggests a dark and spooky scene; this connotation is quite accurate in predicting the eerie events that follow in scene one. Similarly, in Austen’s Pride and Prejudice setting helps mold the image of the Bennet sisters’ surroundings. Austen’s novel, however, presents more of a social scene where the attitudes and personalities of each character are introduced right in the beginning. This insight provides the same kind of information that the setting does in Hamlet, just with points about people and their reactions rather than physical details. Both help to form the storylines and hint at the subsequent scenes or situations. Therefore, setting in a fiction or drama is very crucial and helps relate to the meaning of the stories as a whole. (Jago 67). 

Character

Character is an essential element in every fiction and drama, especially because it ties directly into the plot. Without any characters, it would be difficult for the plot to unfold. The plot is laid out and the characters are introduced and the presence of protagonists and antagonists becomes apparent. In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, the characters and their backgrounds are very complex. Hamlet, the main and dynamic character, is the protagonist who also acts in conflict with Claudius, the antagonist. The interactions between both characters aid in the development and progression of the plot. For example, Hamlet’s character reaction to the sight of the ghost, his deceased father, helps present the major conflict of the play, which gives meaning to his need for revenge against Claudius. Similar to the importance of character in Shakespeare’s drama, Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice, presents more internal characters. One of these characters is Elizabeth Bennet, who is the protagonist. She fosters the most conflict because of her judgmental beliefs and reactions against opposite character, Mr. Darcy. Her behavior can be justified by categorizing her as a round character with a range of emotions that change over the course of the story (p64). This justification helps give meaning to Elizabeth’s character and her unexpected actions to fall in love with Mr. Darcy towards the end. Both Hamlet and Elizabeth have foil characters that help their unique character and personality stand out. Moreover, character in Shakespeare’s drama and Austen’s fiction goes “hand-in-hand” (63) with the respective plots and helps give meaning and value to the storylines.