NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
I think my feelings right now could be summarized from a quote from the made for TV movie: The House Without a Christmas Tree (Mary Catherine Gallagher Christmas). Just as Mary Katherine Gallagher, a character from the popular television show Saturday Night Live, has mastered expressing her feelings through words, so has the famous poet, Edna St. Vincent Millay. Her expert skill over the words of the English language was far superior to most others.
It was this dominance that led Edna St. Vincent Millay to be so excellent at conveying her thoughts, feelings, and beliefs through the medium of language. As a result, she was very influential not only to her readers, but also to writers. Overall, Millay s poetry had a huge effect on so many people and groups solely because of her ability to control, with simplicity, the messages she gave when she wrote.
In the New York Times Book Review on March 15, 1992, Liz Rosenberg commented on a new compilation of old Millay poems. In general, Rosenberg seemed to enjoy most of Millay s works. She found that there are beliefs of feminism, anti-fascism, and social justice scattered all across the stanzas. This article also communicates to the reader that the simplicity of Millay s works is beautiful. She also comments that Millay is able to express an important thought or belief in a brief poetic line.
This furthers the idea of Millay being able to use words so effectively. Millay s sense of natural speech (3) in her works also clarifies her mastery of the use of vocabulary. This New York Times article suggests that Millay is able to give ideas to the reader in such a straightforward style. This way the reader is not overwhelmed by the superfluous and the point comes across simply.
When Edna St. Vincent Millay published her first book, Renascence, and Other Poems, in 1917, she was young and new to the writing community. Her poetry was praised for its freshness and vitality. (Edna St. Vincent Millay 864).
But as she grew older, she gained critics. By the time one of her final books was released many criticized her. The form she violates continually (Di Mauro 221) said one critic. After the 1920 s and 30 s, Millay s works began to decline in popularity. Her 1941 book, Collected Sonnets, practically went unnoticed. Her anger over her own aging, the failure of her books, and other aspects of her life were expressed in her poetry.
She violated the standard form of poetry perhaps in an effort to display her sadness and anger. In summary, the poetry of Edna. St. Vincent Millay changed over the course of her life based on how she was feeling emotionally. As a result, she lost her readers. However, her writing ability remained the same, and her mastery of English was still exceptional.
It is sad to see that one of Millay s best books, Collected Sonnets, was so unpopular. This is because it is one of her best collections of poetry. From all the poems in the book a reader can pick up a different emotion and a whole new world of ideas. For instance, in Just be Mindful of the Sodden Earth in Spring, one of Millay s sonnets from this book, she puts across her thoughts of flight, time, and nature, etc. Her words, so well selected, allow the reader to create a vivid image.
Of a bird s wings too high in air to view, (Millay 7) is a line from this poem. It paints a picture in the reader s mind of flying high with nature and animals and things unseen. Imagery such as this is very common today; largely thanks to Edna St. Vincent Millay. In closing, Millay uses artistically descriptive imagery to tell her ideas. This imagery laid the path for future writers.
One of Millay s last books was Mine the Harvest. This book was not published until after her death. Contained within the poems of this collection are several links to feelings of death and dying. In the poem Not for a Nation the underlying theme is of death.
Lines like Will I give up my life? (5) and others reflect a sadness to the readers. This whole poem is about solitude, isolation, and being alone. For Warmth Alone gives a small amount of relief to the reader. In a book filled with so much grief, the reader finally arrives at a little bit of warmth in this piece.
For Warmth Alone talks of repenting for sins, bringing happiness from sadness, and changing life for the better. Warmed a little but far from warm (3) and other lines like it give the reader a sense of relief in a book otherwise filled with anger and sadness. To sum up, Millay s collection of works, Mine the Harvest, expresses her feelings of anger and sadness around the time of her death and has set an example to writers today as to how to write about their own personal feelings of despair. Though Millay is known for her mature literature, she is also well known for her children s poetry.
Her poems are featured in the children s book The First Book of Poetry. One of Millay s pieces in this book is Wonder Where. This poem was written with a general feeling of happiness. Its words are playful and childish (Elgin 26) and convey another whole side of Millay.
Perhaps it is her inner child displayed through her playful words such as Wonder where the horseshoe went. / Up and down, Up and Down, (27). Her other poem in this book is titled Portrait by a Neighbor. It too is childish (26). Her word choices allow the poem to flow out of your mouth with great ease. Take this quote as an example: Any day you ll find her, / A-sunning in the sun (27).
Millay adds a syllable a- in order to make the poem have a rhythm that flows. It is apparent that Millay also had a soft side (Chuck III s College Resources). Her children s poetry communicates her inner child and her playfulness waiting to get out on paper. As a result, she laid the groundwork for so many children s poets that are popular today such as Shell Silverstein and Dr. Seuss. Today, the value of Millay s masterpieces is understood.
Collected Sonnets is universally recognized as one of poetry s best. Intense feeling goes with chastity of soul, and the humblest of details, like the commonest of creatures, win dignity from the art they incite, both to very great height and to equally great depth. (Modern American Poetry). Most of Millay s other books are still renowned today and are known mostly for the manner in which they changed the way poetry is thought of in the modern world. On the whole, Millay s novels are still revered today for changing poetry, as we know it. From showing her sadness, her loneliness, her childishness, and her anger, Millay has been innovative the whole way through. Most of her works are credited today as some of the most influential literature of the twentieth century.
Without Edna St. Vincent Millay, today s poetry would be a great deal different. Her imagery was ground breaking, and so was the natural flow of her words. Without a doubt, Edna St.
Vincent Millay had a profound influence on modern poetry and literature.
Free research essays on topics related to: millay, edna st, york times, first book, vincent millay
Research essay sample on Vincent Millay Edna St
