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  1. The Singing Lesson by Katherine Mansfield is a short story that explores the theme of the fleeting nature of youth and beauty, and the painful realization of aging and mortality. The story follows Miss Meadows, an aging singing teacher, as she gives a lesson to her young, attractive student, Millie.Read more

    The Singing Lesson by Katherine Mansfield is a short story that explores the theme of the fleeting nature of youth and beauty, and the painful realization of aging and mortality. The story follows Miss Meadows, an aging singing teacher, as she gives a lesson to her young, attractive student, Millie.

    Throughout the lesson, Miss Meadows is painfully aware of her own fading beauty and youth, as she observes Millie’s youthful energy and beauty. She reminisces about her own past, where she was once a talented singer with her whole life ahead of her. However, now she is left with a sense of loneliness and regret, as she realizes that time has passed her by and she has missed out on so much.

    The theme of the fleeting nature of youth is reinforced by the imagery of the setting. The story takes place in a dark and damp music room, where the only source of light is a flickering candle. This symbolizes the transience of life, as the flame of the candle is a metaphor for the fleeting nature of youth and beauty, and the inevitability of aging and death.

    In conclusion, the theme of The Singing Lesson by Katherine Mansfield is the fleeting nature of youth and beauty, and the painful realization of aging and mortality. Through the character of Miss Meadows, Mansfield highlights the regrets and loneliness that can come with growing old and losing the vitality and beauty of youth.

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  1. The poem 'John Brown '  by "Bob Dylan" is considered a modern ballad as it criticizes the ritual of war . Throughout the poem the poet has shown the ill effects of war . The mother of John Brown was very happy that his son is going to fight in the battlefield . In the beginning she romanticizes warRead more

    The poem ‘John Brown ‘  by “Bob Dylan” is considered a modern ballad as it criticizes the ritual of war .

    Throughout the poem the poet has shown the ill effects of war .

    The mother of John Brown was very happy that his son is going to fight in the battlefield . In the beginning she romanticizes war and feels proud of his son .

    But by the end of the poem her romanticism about war transforms to criticism . When she encounter her son , she was shocked to see that his face was shot up , his hand was blown off ; he was wearing a metal belt on his waist that gives him support to stand …..even his voice was changed .

    When his mother asked him about the reason of his bad condition , John Brown became sarcastic of his mother and her idea of glory in the war .

    John Brown explains tot ha readers that in the war we are just tryin to protect us or kill someone of same kind , we are just like puppets in the hands of the government. The idea of war is disgusting , it only brings destruction of life and property .

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  1. Thomas Hardy's poem , "The Darling Thrush" conveys a sense of 'despair and hopelessness' as the poet mourns the end of the dying nineteenth century. With the enhancement of industries with the help of science and technology , the mankind's relationship with the nature is lost. The setting of the poeRead more

    Thomas Hardy’s poem , “The Darling Thrush” conveys a sense of ‘despair and hopelessness’ as the poet mourns the end of the dying nineteenth century. With the enhancement of industries with the help of science and technology , the mankind’s relationship with the nature is lost.

    The setting of the poem takes place in a dark , frosty and barren landscape where there is no signs of hope or renewal. Even the sun’s light is weakening and is getting dull with the passing of the day which is in contrast to the usual connotations associated with it that is warmth and brightness. In the beginning of the poem , the speaker is leaning on a “coppice gate” which is a symbol of a new century or a new place  and also the act of leaning indicates that the speaker is tired and  dejected. He is found to be standing in an isolated surrounding on a frosty evening where everything was “spectre grey” that is as grey as a ghost thereby adding horror to the landscape . He compares the “tangled bine stems” to the strings of an old musical instrument showing the absence of joy and harmony in speaker’s vision of life . He is left brooding over the humanity’s bleak future whereas everybody else “sought the warmth of their household fires” . The poem further intensifies in the second stanza with the ideas portraying death and darkness. He further personifies ” Century” by using a capital letter ‘C’ . He gives it the characteristics of a corpse whose sharp features are similar to the sharp outlines of the winter landscape, and the “cloudy canopy” as it’s tomb with the cold blowing winds being it’s death song. He feels that the next spring might not come as the very “pulse” of life and germ were “shrunken hard and dry”. The speaker believes that every man on the planet is as “fervourless” as he. It is suggestive of the death of hope that energises him and other people. The poem’s tone suddenly shifts from that of desolation to hope as the speaker hears an aged thrush singing an evensong of “illimited joy” which is in contrast to the environment and also the image of the the bird for it appeared ,  ” frail , small and gaunt” with “blast beruffled plume” that is scruvy feathers. Even though it is the last day of the century , the bird still chooses to ” fling it’s soul” upon the growing gloom indicative of the fact that it knew of some ” blessed hope ” that the speaker was not aware of . It is an indirect reference to Jesus Christ’s sufferings and death on the cross ; followed by his  resurrection from death bringing hope to mankind. The last stanza of the poem is filled with life and hope as the speaker continue to thing about what “terrestrial things” made him so joyful and happy. Although he expresses his inability to understand the cause behind the thrush’s joyful singing in such a dark broken world , he could not help but still feel despair as in his vision , there was nothing which could replace or revive the old century .

    • Hence, Hardy depicts this poem as a theme of despair and hopelessness with no meaning left in life. As a reader , I agree to the question with the clear  explanation above.
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  1. In "The Darkling Thrush," Thomas Hardy depicts nature as a powerful force that is both beautiful and ominous. The poem takes place on a bleak winter evening, and the description of the landscape is desolate and lifeless, with "the tangled bine-stems scored the sky/Like strings of broken lyres." HoweRead more

    In “The Darkling Thrush,” Thomas Hardy depicts nature as a powerful force that is both beautiful and ominous. The poem takes place on a bleak winter evening, and the description of the landscape is desolate and lifeless, with “the tangled bine-stems scored the sky/Like strings of broken lyres.” However, amid this dreary setting, Hardy introduces a small ray of hope in the form of a thrush bird, who begins to sing a joyful and uplifting song.

    The thrush’s song is contrasted with the dark and oppressive atmosphere, highlighting the beauty and resilience of nature in the face of adversity. The bird’s song also symbolizes the possibility of renewal and regeneration in a world that seems to be on the brink of collapse. The imagery and language used in the poem convey a sense of melancholy and despair, but also a glimmer of hope and optimism, suggesting that even in the darkest of times, nature has the power to inspire and uplift the human spirit.

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