Wallace Stevens's poem "The Emperor of Ice-Cream" addresses the helplessness to control death and the capacity to have a decent life. The speaker requests that the listener find a strong man to roll cigarettes. Some sort of festivity is taking place. The speaker advises everyone to keep acting the sRead more
Wallace Stevens’s poem “The Emperor of Ice-Cream” addresses the helplessness to control death and the capacity to have a decent life. The speaker requests that the listener find a strong man to roll cigarettes. Some sort of festivity is taking place. The speaker advises everyone to keep acting the same way they always have, which decreases the festive mood. There is no need to maintain formality. By the time the reader reaches the second verse, it is evident that the incident being discussed is the death of a woman. Like everyone else who has ever lived, she will be buried. There is no escape from death. The Emperor of Ice-Cream Summary
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Assonance: Assonance is the repetition of vowel sounds in the same line. For example, sound /i/ in “The muscular one, and bid him whip”. Symbolism: Symbolism is using symbols to signify ideas and qualities, giving them symbolic meanings different from literal meanings. “Ice-cream” symbolizes opportuRead more
The Emperor of Ice-Cream Summary
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