"The Young House Wife"

“The Young House Wife" really caught my attention this week because though it is a rather short poem there is so much meaning and symbolism behind its words. The narrator describes this woman as this "Shy, Uncorseted" (Line 7) woman that is seen already working early in the morning.  She is this beautiful woman that is noticed at first glance yet the narrator compares her to "a fallen leaf." and one asks the question why?  Why is this beautiful woman "a fallen leaf"(line 7)  This woman so young and full of youth is compared to such a leaf because she herself has fallen as a woman due to the fact that she stays within the walls of her house confined and obligated to the rules of her husband.  She must do as he says everyday always obeying and never daring to do otherwise.  The only freedom she has left is that of going to the fence every morning at 10 to yes call out to "ice man, fish man" Line 6 for that is her duty but this is also where she can let others see the young beautiful woman that is left in her before she loses herself completely to her husband and her fallen marriage.

Edna St. Vincent Millay's "First Fig"

"First Fig" Caught my attention this week because I see a relationship between the burning candle and a person's life.  In many ways each and every person's life is indeed like a candle.  When someone buys a newly fresh candle everything about it seems so perfect just like our friends and family view a newborn baby.  A new candle begins it's new yet short journey as it is constantly used to bring freshness to a room.  As we begin our own life and journey we also bring joy and a fresh outlook to all who love and care about us.  There is so much to our lives that at times we forget to sit back and enjoy the beauty of it all. This is the connection that I see within the candle and life itself.  In the poem there is a line that states, "It will not la the night."  Unfortunately a candle doesn't live to burn forever just like how our life must also come to an end one day but it is because of this that we should live our life to the fullest and enjoy the blessings that surround us.  We are given such a great opportunity to let our life be the shining light to our journey so that we to can say "It gives a lovely light!" Line 4

"The Waste Land" Part 2

After reading the poem one more time I have come to see that Eliot's intention was to help his readers see how every new beginning, every life begins its journey from a waste land that was left behind by those who are now dead.  From the start of the poem Eliot says, "April is the cruelest month, breeding/Lilacs out of the dead land, mixing/Memory and desire, stirring/Dull roots with spring rain" (Lines1-4)  When I first looked at these first four lines I thought to myself how ironic it was that the dead were being buried in the spring where everything is supposed to be joyful and full of life, but I never stopped to think that with an example like the first he was trying to also remind us that when Jesus the son of God came to our world to love us and sacrifice his life to save us he to left "The Waste Land" that had become our world.  He left "The Waste Land" to be brought back to life and to be restored by the people left behind.  This poem is very much a way for all of us to see how easy it is to find ourselves in a waste land but to realize that we do have the power to change that land into the beautiful place that we all want and wish it to be.

"The Waste Land"

"The Waste Land"  is one of the most interesting poems that I have read to this day.  This poem really opened my eyes up to see how much time is wasted or how the resources that we are given are wasted.  One of the examples I really liked was that of the lady who was given money by her husband to fix her teeth.  How many of us have done the same thing that she did with betting the money in a game that never should have been considered. It's amazing to see how T.S, Eliot used simple examples to draw in his reader to see that our constant betting of the simple things in life become our very own waste land of our life.  It is always easy to receive the resources given to us whether it be from a loved one or a friend, but it is always harder to keep that resource, whether it be money or something else, and put to good use.  In many cases many of us tend to use the resource carelessly instead of putting it to good use and saving it for when we need it.  I believe that "The Waste Land" was a way for T.S. Eliot to help all his readers understand that we are in power of putting everything we have into to good use and not into something that will cause us to just loose and throw everything away.  This poem was in a way a help to all his readers to prevent them from creating a waste land that they can never come out of.