Throughout Lewis Carroll’s “Jabberwocky”, his proficiency in the nonsense genre of poetry is evident. The poem is set in the same fantasy world as Alice in Wonderland. Carroll exhibits the use of childlike diction and uses the perspective of a father escorting his young son. “Jabberwocky” exhibits peculiar, infantile diction. The poem consists of informal diction, characteristic of the fantasy world it takes place in. Carroll uses words that are characteristic of a young child’s vocabulary. He uses words that do not exist, characteristic of the nonexistent, illogical world of Carroll’s imagination. He also employs the heavy use of alliteration to enhance certain words throughout the poem. Carroll writes: “So he rested by the Tumtum tree” …show more content…
At the beginning of the poem, the poem is calm and peaceful. As the stanzas change, so does the tone. The second stanza’s tone is one of concern as the father cautions his son regarding the beasts of the area. The father warns “’Beware the Jabberwock, my son!”(5). The tone then reverts to one of calm in the following stanza, as Carroll shows the boy stopping to rest by a tree. A drastic shift in the tone occurs as the jabberwocky emerges to where the boy rests, changing it from a serene, almost monotonous tone to an exhilarating one marked by a clash between the jabberwocky and the boy. Carroll writes, “The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame, came whiffling through the tulgey wood”(14-15). The jabberwocky is depicted as a fierce beast, changing the tone from a calm one to a more violent one. Once the battle is over and the boy stands triumphant over the powerful beast, the tone of the poem shifts to a jovial and congratulatory one. The father expresses his praise to his son for conquering the beast. The father exclaims, “’Come to my arms, my beamish boy!”(22). He is ecstatic about his son’s triumph over the jabberwocky and the tone reflects the father’s sentiments. Finally, the poem reverts to the tone of the beginning: one of calm and peace. Carroll’s utilization of tone shifts throughout the entire poem keeps the reader on their heels. The constant shifts allow the reader to remain entertained and engaged with the poem. The constant shift in tone used by Carroll is characteristic of a mountain climb. The tone begins as a peaceful, normal one then escalates into one of violence as the clash against the jabberwocky ensues, then reverts back to the peaceful tone expressed at the beginning. The constant variability of the poem’s tone mirrors that of the actual story, one that starts slow, quickly escalates, and then recedes to exactly the same place the poem began
In “A Barred Owl”, Wilbur uses certain words and phrases to convey a dark, then humorous tone in the first stanza, then transitions back in the second stanza. The poem begins with a
There were a few similes, such as in stanza 1, line 1 – ‘like old beggars under sacks’ that emphasised the description made. There were several instances of alliteration; one of them in the last stanza, line 3, with the words ‘watch the white eyes writhing’. They all help to stress the meaning and importance of these lines, bringing a vivid picture to mind. We noticed the use of internal rhyme in stanza 2 lines 3 and 4, ‘stumbling/flound’ring’, drawing attention to the description. The rhyme scheme of alternating rhyming end-lines, with 10 syllables per line, gives the poem rhyme, metre, structure and order, making the words flow; making it easier to read, more memorable, and drawing attention to the sounds of the words. There are some disruptions to this, such as the short, sharp, last line, which makes the reader more aware, and places emphasis on, the meaning and importance of those words. We both noticed that stanza 2 appeared to be shorter than verse 1 with a shorter, 2 line stanza following it. I interpreted this as another disruption to the scheme of the poem to place importance on the words of the 2 line stanza. The final verse is longer than the others, again a disruption for effect. It also contains a Latin quote that, at that time, would have been taught in grammar schools, so Owen would have expected his readers to understand the Latin quotation at the
Tone- Jabberwocky appears to have a somewhat humorous tone, considering the nonsensical words used, the brevity of the story, and lack of moral. There is no issue or theme addressed that can be applied as an allegory, unlike The Lorax. However, the entire story of the Lorax is rather darker and more applicable in real life, and the tone is both a call to action for the readers and also rather accusatory towards large factories and companies. However, the Jabberwocky appears to have no clear accusations or calls to action and is a vivid contrast to the dark tone of The Lorax. The Jabberwocky poem’s tone is rather ironic, because it presents a usually serious topic (Defeating a vicious beast) with nonsensical baby words, which makes the author’s intent rather humorous. The quote below showcases an action scene with these nonsense words, which changes the tone from serious too rather humorous.
Lastly, Wilbur and Collins use contrasting rhyme schemes to imply that children must be kept uninfluenced and pure in order to flourish in their childhood. In “A Barred Owl”, Wilbur uses a very consistent end rhyme scheme in which he rhymes every two lines, AABBCC to create a playful, childish feeling. The reader can then connect more with
In 1862, floating upon the river Isis, Charles Dodgson narrated for Alice Liddell and a few others in company his original tale of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. Gliding along underneath the blue sky, Dodgson wove his words into one of the most classic children stories of all time. Thesis: Although Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland may have only begun as a children’s story, many adults have sought to discover the “true meaning” of the novel. Curiosity has led to years of searching and interpretation of the origins of Carroll’s novels, and the symbols inside, developing into theories ranging from practical to nearly impossible, eventually evolving into their own stories in the film industry.
Repeated onomatopoeic terms again set the scene. We are told that a hunt is in progress, and it is described in descriptive detail. Anderson does not romanticise the scene as the duckling cowers from a ‘fearfully big dog’.
In “A Barred Owl,” Wilbur adopts a playful tone through rhyming: “We tell the wakened child that all she heard/ Was an odd question from a forest bird” (3, 4). The rhyme imitates the style of nursery rhymes, creating a joking tone. The playful tone avoids seriousness and weakens the horror of the owl, which contributes to the poem’s style like a nursery rhyme. Wilbur also euphemizes the owl to help create a nursery style. He does not represent the horrible creature of an owl as a carnivore with sharp claws that hunts during the night, but euphemizes it as a “forest bird” (Wilbur 4). The owl’s representation as a safe forest bird refers its figure to the enthusiastic birds with heavenly sounds in cartoons and story books, which often help the protagonist to overcome difficulties and dangers. Referring to nursery imageries of birds, the euphemism contributes to the poem’s style as a nursery rhyme. Creating a playful tone and a nursery style, Wilbur uses rhymes and euphemism to “domesticate fear” (Wilbur
The tone of the poem changes as the poem progresses. The poem begins with energetic language like “full of heroic tales” and “by a mere swing to his shoulder”. The composer also uses hyperboles like “My father began as a god” and “lifted me to heaven”. The use of this positive language indicates to the responder that the composer is longing for those days – he is nostalgic. It also highlights the perspective of a typical child. The language used in the middle of the poem is highly critical of his father: “A foolish small old man”. This highlights the perspective of a typical teenager and signifies that they have generally conflicting views. The language used in the last section of the poem is more loving and emotional than the rest: “...revealing virtues such as honesty, generosity, integrity”. This draws attention to a mature adult’s perspective.
Lewis Carroll's use of puns and riddles in Alice in Wonderland help set the theme and tone. He uses word play in the book to show a world of warped reality and massive confusion. He uses such play on words to reveal the underlying theme of growing up', but with such an unusual setting and ridiculous characters, there is need for some deep analyzing to show this theme. The book contains many examples of assonance and alliteration to add humor. Carroll also adds strange diction and extraordinary syntax to support the theme.
What features or characteristics of the human condition can you identify in Judith Wright’s Legend? How has the poet used specific language techniques to emphasise these attributes of life.
"Wn a bby fst ts 2 kmnikt the wrds snd gibberish. " No one knows what the baby is trying to say. The poem, "Jabberwocky," written by Lewis Carroll, uses meaningless speech to either frustrate or amuse the reader. When trying to pronounce the nonsense words in the poem, the sounds of the words come out as gibberish. The sounds are the important element of the poem. Often, people like to hear poets read in languages they cannot understand. A woman leaving a reading by the Polish poet Czeslaw Milosz said she was glad he'd read some of his work in Polish because the language sounded exciting, like horse hooves over cobblestones.
Alice in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll endures as one of the most iconic children 's books of all time. It remains one of the most ambiguous texts to decipher as Alice 's adventures in Wonderland have created endless critical debate as to whether we can deduce any true literary meaning, or moral implication from her journey down the rabbit hole. Alice 's station as a seven year old Victorian child creates an interesting construct within the novel as she attempts to navigate this magical parallel plain, yet retain her Victorian sensibilities and learn from experience as she encounters new creatures and life lessons. Therefore, this essay will focus on the debate as to whether Alice is the imaginatively playful child envisaged by the Romantics, or a Victorian child whose imagination has been stunted by her education and upbringing.
1. I could see the speaker of this poem to be a man telling his son a folklore about the "Jabberwock" around a campfire. I think this because of the intensity of the speaker and how he says, "Beware the Jabberwock, my son!"
Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland creates a warped reality, causing each character’s identity to become confused. An exception to this confusion of identity is the Cheshire Cat, who shows an uncanny awareness of his own madness, giving him considerable control over his presence and allowing him to occasionally leave only a grin behind. Alice, contrarily, is strewn all over as she loses herself in Wonderland. In Wonderland, all are “mad,” but to Alice this is preposterous, even as she fails to explain who she is – both to herself and to others. Carroll’s juxtaposition of the Cheshire Cat and Alice in their first meeting scene exaggerates Alice’s insecure identity and its development throughout her adventures in Wonderland.
'Alice in Wonderland' by Lewis Carroll seems a first a simple fairy tale, but in fact its meaning is a lot more profound. This novel criticizes the way children were brought up during the Victorian era. Carroll presents the readers with the complications these offspring must endure in order to develop their own personalities/egos, as they become adults. For Alice, Wonderland appears to be the perfect place to start this learning adventure. A way to understand her story is by compering it to the world as if being upside-down. Nothing in Wonderland seems to be they way it’s supposed to. The first lesson, Alice must learn in this peculiar journey through Wonderland is to achieve separation from the world around her and to stop identifying herself through others, in order to discover who she