  Ŀ
ĳ!Attach This Header To Top of All Paper Submissions!       [TIA]
Eĳ
sSubject/Class Paper was submitted for  [AP English lit and comp]
SSubject/Topic of paper (Please Be As Descriptive As Possible)   
a[AP English part ? essay: Re: comparing Spring and All w/      ]3 Letter
YFor Jane Meyers                                               Abbrev.
 [Year of AP exam is probably 1975 or 1976                      ]for
S       Grade Level (For High School Students):      9 [ ] 11 [ ]Major
u                                                   10 [ ] 12 [X]Education
B                                       (for Ont., Canada) 13 [ ]Areas,
m       Year (For University/College Students)       1 [ ]  3 [ ]MARK one:
I                                                    2 [ ]  4 [ ]
s                                                           5 [ ]English
SSchool/University/College/Institution [St. Joseph's Collegiate ][ENG] [X]
iCity & State (Province) of Inst.      [Buffalo, NY             ]History
OName of Teacher/Prof. submitted to    [Mr. Zabawa              ][HST] [ ]
nGrade Received (If Received Yet)                           [98 ]Science
 Date Paper was submitted (mm/dd/yy)   [               2/12/93  ][SCI] [ ]
FName of Author (Real or Alias)        [The Saint               ]Health &
oHigh School Avg./College GPA of Author                 [95.6   ]Sports
RIf used, Textbook/Novel/Classic Translator/Editor and Version/  [HTH] [ ]
m Edition Info [                                                ] -
 Additional Comments [                                          ]The
 [                                                              ]Information
 Allies
   
Paper 3: Spring and All/For Jane Meyers  Due date: 02/12/93

     In the two poems, "Spring and All" and "For Jane

Meyers," there is a distinct difference between the attitude

the poets assume towards spring. In "Spring and All," W.C.

Williams looks upon spring as a miraculous rebirth of life

that was deadened by the winter, whereas Louise Glazk in the

poem "For Jane Meyers" considers spring to be a facade which

fools unthinking people from seeing the inevitable reality of

death and deterioration. Both poets convey their attitudes

through diction, transition and other elements of writing.

     In the poem "Spring and All," the elements of writing in

the poem are used by the poet to dramatize the coming of

spring. For example, the diction used by the poet in the

beginning of the poem carry connotations of intensity, i.e.

words such as 'surge' and 'scattering.' The "surge of the

blue mottled clouds" suggests the intense movement of clouds

and the "scattering of tall trees" suggests a devastating

phenomenon which scatters even "tall trees." This intensity

contributes to an effect of describing the natural order of

things as a phenomenal event. Another element which causes a

dramatic effect is the transition that occurs from lines 14-

21 where the lifelessness of winter is broken by the revival

of life that spring brings. The transition is so dramatic

because of the intensity that is created by the organization

of the stanzas and the diction. The poet, by first describing

the "lifeless" "appearance" of spring as it approaches, then


by interjecting the general description of organisms being

revived to life as "they enter the new world naked" and then

by adding a somewhat philosophical observation, i.e. "now the

grass, tomorrow the stiff curl of wildcarrot leaf," and

finally by presenting an image of "objects" being "defined"

"one by one," which is reminiscent of slow motion nature

photography, effectively dramatizes the revival of life into

a phenomenon comparable to the miracle of birth. Furthermore,

this image of rebirth is made by the poet to reach a peak at

the last line of the poem where he says that the organisms

"grip down and begin to awaken." Moreover, this built-up

dramatic effect of rebirth can also be attributed to the

great deal of personification which the poet uses to create

the imagery of spring overcoming winter. Examples of such

personification are the "dazed spring" and the word "naked"

when used to describe the organisms which are described also

as "they." It is also notable that although the persona of

the poet is in the third-person, the point of view of the

poet does not appear to be altogether objective or

unemotional. Rather the poet appears to be fascinated with

the 'event,' this can be inferred by considering the diction

and stylistic elements which he uses to dramatize the

phenomenon.

     The effect of the stylistic elements used in the second

poem suggests that the poet's attitude towards spring is

significantly different than that of the first poet. For



example, the diction the poet uses is effective in suggesting

a veil of spring and cheerfulness upon the inevitable reality

of death which he wishes to uncover. An example of such

diction is when the author uses the paradox "perilous beauty"

to describe the beauty of spring as it emerges. It is also

notable that the way in which the poet describes the growing

of the leaves on a branch in spring using diction such as

"glues two green ears to the dead birch twig" is almost

disgusting, and thus suggests that the poet wishes to expose

the unpleasant reality which has been hidden by the

superficial beauty of spring. Another such paradox can be

found in line 17 when the poet places two opposite moods

adjacent to one another by exclaiming "It is spring! We are

going to die!" The significance of this statement is to sum

up all the ideas of superficiality and reality which the poet

has introduced until this point. This statement implies that

although "it is spring," and some people such as Jane and the

Bartletts can only see that, inevitably, "we are going to

die." With this statement the poet attempts to violently pull

off the veil that the cheer of spring has put on the reality

of death. The poet ultimately conveys the same message in the

last lines of the poem where he says that now that April (and

spring) has arrived "the heart expands to admit its

adversary." The use of the word "expands" suggests that the

heart embraces its adversary, and in the context of the

poem, the heart in embracing the cheer of spring also



unwittingly embraces death, its adversary, which is hidden by

the veil of spring. Another way in which the poet conveys the

idea of superficiality of spring is by the organization of

the poem which intersperses pleasant images of spring with

unpleasant images of death and deterioration. By first giving

the image of the Bartletts in their yard and then by saying

that they did not notice that the season was "wearying,

wearying" and by first giving the unpleasant image of the new

leaf growing and then the image of Jane happily "digging out

her colored tennis shoes," the poet effectively shows the

reader that these people are all enjoying the superficial

cheer of spring whereas they do not realize the true

unpleasantness and deterioration that is taking place around

them. The same message is conveyed when the poet describes

the "mild harping of the breeze" and "the daffodils flocking

and honking" and immediately after orders the reader to "look

how the bluet falls apart" so that the reader may realize the

deterioration that is occurring even as spring is present.

     Finally, it should be said that both poets assume

significantly different attitudes towards spring. The first

poet views spring as a miraculous natural phenomenon whereas

the second views it as a veil which hides the reality of

death and deterioration with the cheerfulness it brings. Both

poets use stylistic elements such as diction and organization

to convey their attitudes.
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