Introduction This poem is more than the grating panegyric that the title might imply. It is a delicate and exquisite expression of belief in the ancient order and norms of English society. It largely glosses over social disparities and class conflicts by picturing a form of equality upheld by shared religious convictions and national loyalty. … Read more
Introduction Rudyard Kipling composed the poem “Hymn Before Action” in 1896. On the eve of war, soldiers pray to God and Mary in this manner. The poem was influenced by Samuel John Stone’s hymn The Church’s One Foundation from 1860. It was written and printed in The Times as word of the disastrous Jameson Raid … Read more
Introduction William Shakespeare, an English poet and playwright, wrote “Sonnet 138.” The poem was most likely written in the first half of 1590. The poem delves deeply into an incongrous and complex relationship. The speaker and the lady he loves lie to each other all the time, about little things like whether or not his … Read more
Introduction Leigh Hunt’s “The Glove and the Lions” explores the perilous love games played at the king’s court as well as the results of going too far. Leigh Hunt’s four-stanza poem “The Glove and the Lions” was first published in The New Monthly Magazine in London, England, in May 1836. The speaker’s tone is consistently … Read more
Introduction During World War II, Anglo-Irish poet Louis MacNeice wrote the poem “Prayer Before Birth,” which was originally published in his 1944 collection Springboard. The speaker, an unborn kid, expresses tremendous wisdom regarding humanity’s propensity for self-destruction and violence while praying for future direction and protection from the tragedies of the modern world. In the … Read more
Introduction Paz Latorena, a writer from the Philippines, is the author of “The Small Key.” A woman named Soledad and her husband Pedro Buhay is the subject of the story. They are rural dwellers. One morning, Soledad wakes up knowing the farm will yield abundantly, yet she still feels unsatisfied inside. Some of her husband’s … Read more
Introduction: �The Man He Killed� is a poem written by Thomas Hardy. It is a poem that delves into the mind of a man traumatized by war, thus allowing the reader a peek into the mind of a soldier from a war-torn region. About the Poet: Thomas Hardy (1840-1928) was a prominent English novelist and … Read more
Introduction Shakespeare’s “Is This A Dagger Which I See Before Me” is one of his most well-known soliloquies. It first appears in Act Scene 1 of his well-known tragedy “Macbeth,” as it becomes clear why he killed Duncan: to claim the throne. The soliloquy portrays his self-control being overpowered by the act he is going … Read more
Introduction: �Daffodils� or �I wandered lonely as a cloud� is a notable Romantic poem written by William Wordsworth. Based on one of a stroll the poet took himself, this poem brings out the thoughts and feelings he had experienced then through the daffodils he had seen. About the Poet: William Wordsworth (1770-1850) was an eminent … Read more
Introduction John Donne in his poem “No Man is an Island” explores the interconnectedness of all people. Donne essentially makes the case that because each person is a part of the larger whole that is humanity itself, people need one another and are better off together than they are alone. The passage is a well-known … Read more