The Beat Generation and Their Influence Today
[ send me this paper ]
A ten page paper analyzing the characteristics and influence of the Beat generation of poets and writers in the 1950s. Although many poets and writers are mentioned, particular attention is paid to the work of Jack Kerouac; Allen Ginsberg; and Lawrence Ferlinghetti. Bibliography lists 16 sources.
Filename: KBbeat.wps

Identity in the Work of Olds and Plath
[ send me this paper ]
A five page look at Sylvia Plath’s poem “Mirror” and Sharon Olds’ “The Death of Marilyn Monroe,” in terms of both poets’ observations on the nature of identity as opposed to appearance. Plath argues that as many times as we return to the mirror to see our reflection there, it is not ourselves we are seeing -- we are merely seeing something similar to what others see. Olds continues this argument by asserting that if others feel they know us by our outward appearance, they are wrong, because the outer shell is not us.
Filename: KBplath.wps

Sylvia Plath's 'Mirror' / Imagery
[ send me this paper ]
The use of a mirror as illusion/allusion in poetry is compelling, to say the least. The most obvious use of the imagery of the mirror is that it is a reflection of the author. A search in a mirror is ultimately a search for the self. The image that is important is that of the woman, not the child whose innocence has drowned in the depths of the lake; nor the old woman who is like a terrible fish. Most people have the desire to reminisce about the past and, or speculate on the future. It is important. This 4 page paper explores the multiple meanings of the imagery presented by Sylvia Plath in the poem, 'Mirror.' No additional sources cited.
Filename: Mirror.wps

Sylvia Plath's 'The Bell Jar' / Violence & The Father
[ send me this paper ]
A 6 page paper on the strange mixture of violence and sexuality in the autobiographical novel by Sylvia Plath. The paper asserts that Plath was haunted all her life by the fantasy of rejoining her dead father, and unfortunately, it would take violence to do this. Bibliography lists six sources.
Filename: Platjar.wps

Routine Transcendent
[ send me this paper ]
Daily routines are the salt and flowers of life, according to Tom Wayman’s philosophy, and his poem “Routines,” focuses on the “salt,” or negative side of that daily existence. Wayman uses the experience of performing manual labour to make a point in his academic work, so that everyone knows the difference between what is academic and what is the real world of working people. He sees the definition of this difference as extremely relevant to the pursuit of a professional degree, so that students understand the necessity and inevitability of work. Beyond that, it is Wayman’s personal mission to bring the two into alignment, to make the mysterious and dreamy world of academics heed reality for the overall purpose of modifying the stark reality of the workaday world – to make it better. This done, the world will evolve and become a planet on which its residents will want to work. In other words, “routine” could become a positive. Bibliography lists 3 sources. jvWayman.rtf
Filename: jvWayman.rtf

A Lament and A Complaint: Comparing the Style of Shelley and Wordsworth
[ send me this paper ]
A 5 page paper which discusses the different poetic styles of romantic poets Shelley and Wordsworth. The poems are, respectively, 'A Lament' and 'A Complaint.' No additional sources cited.
Filename: RAlament.wps

Blake’s “Marriage of Heaven and Hell” and Shelley’s “Prometheus Unbound”
[ send me this paper ]
A seven page paper looking at these two works in terms of the way their respective authors, William Blake and Percy Bysshe Shelley, define love. The paper concludes that although their approaches are very different, both poets seem to feel that love is a great healer, and that seeming opposites can be reconciled through its power. No additional sources.
Filename: KBblake.rtf

Percy Bysshe Shelley / Critical Assessments
[ send me this paper ]
A 6 page paper examining the change in critics' views of Shelley's work from his own day to ours. It looks particularly at the style and subject matter of five poems, in an effort to discover what critics of the first few decades of this century found so objectionable about Shelley in particular and the Romantics in general. Bibliography lists 6 sources.
Filename: Shelleyp.rtf

Shelley and Wordsworth: A Discussion of “Mutibility” and “Mont Blanc”
[ send me this paper ]
A 6 page discussion regarding three poems written in the early part of the nineteenth century: Shelley’s “Mutibility” and “Mont Blanc” and Wordsworth’s “Mutibility”. Contrasts Wordsworth faith in religion and Shelley’s faith in self and nature. No additional sources are listed.
Filename: PPshelle.rtf

Shelley’s “Alastor”
[ send me this paper ]
A five page paper looking at Percy Bysshe Shelley’s long poem from a feminist perspective. The paper charges that the poem’s vision of womanhood is really less a representation of a flesh-and-blood woman than an idealized feminine version of Shelley himself. No additional sources.
Filename: KBalast.wps

The Theme of Nature in Romantic-Era Poetry
[ send me this paper ]
A 4 page paper discussing poetry of the Romantic period. The writer focuses upon the importance of nature in the poetry of this time, particularly the works of Shelley, Keats, and Blake. Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Filename: Romantic.rtf

The Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley
[ send me this paper ]
A 6 page paper discussing an overview of Shelley's work and how his work reflected his personal beliefs and the conditions of society. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: Shellp.wps

W.B. Yeats / Irish Nationalism As Reflected In 'Easter 1916'
[ send me this paper ]
A 3 page essay that analyzes the poem in terms of the political climate of the time as well as the literary trends of the day. Bibliography lists 3 sources.
Filename: Yeats.rtf

An Analysis Of Life And Art: Three Poems By Joy Harjo
[ send me this paper ]
This 5 page paper considers two poems by writer Joy Harjo which relate her life as a Native American and demonstrate a number of the contemporary problems facing Native American communities. This paper reflects upon the poems as they are a product of Harjo's own life, and focuses on her poems Mourning Song, Northern Lights and The Dawn Appears with Butterflies. No additional sources cited.
Filename: Joyharjo.wps

Marge Piercy's 'Barbie Doll'
[ send me this paper ]
A 3 page essay defending the title of Piercy's poem as an appropriate description of the manufacturing process of women she describes within the poem. Bibliography lists 1 source.
Filename: Barbdoll.wps

Marge Piercy's 'Rape'
[ send me this paper ]
A 4 page paper on Piercy's poem entitled 'Rape.' The writer discusses the poem's meaning, relevance to Piercy's other works, and its psycho-emotional impact. Poetic technique, rhythm, symbolism, and intent are among the many other elements elaborated upon as well. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: Piercy.wps

Seventeenth Century Poetry / Pleasure, Conflict & Time
[ send me this paper ]
A 5 page paper examining three poems by John Donne, Robert Herrick, and Andrew Marvell, in terms of the presence or absence of overlapping themes. The paper concludes that while evidence exists that all three writers incorporated into their poems thoughts on pleasure and conflict, the most obvious similarity was an obsession with the passage of time. Bibliography lists 4 sources.
Filename: 17thpoet.rtf