Yeats

How is W.B. Yeats's poetry both reminiscent of the poetical conventions and themes we have read thus far this semester and innovative?

The Empire in India

A Passage to India is set in the 1920s--during the beginnings of the Indian independence movement.  India was finally independent in 1947.   The racial, ethnic and religious tensions are evident in Forster's characters and plot.  Explain specifically  the attitudes of the British and the Indians toward each other. Do any of the characters serve as the spokesperson for any specific attitudes?  Be specific in your explanation.

FYI, I found one of the original reviews of the novel in 1924--gotta love the internet!  http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/1924/jun/20/classics

Poetry of WWI

If you had to choose only two poems from those we read about World War I to show someone who knows nothing of the poetry of that era, which would they be and why?

Hardy's Poetry

Do you get the same sense of place in Thomas Hardy's poetry (even in the few poems we read) as in his novel The Return of the Native?  If so, how does he achieve it, and if not, what does Hardy seem to emphasize in the poetry?

Theme in The Return of the Native

When we talk about theme in fiction, we talk about the major ideas that the novelist, and the narrative, is exploring in the work.  What ideas do you think Hardy investigates in The Return of the Native?  And, what about the novel--the plot, character, setting, narrative point of view--suggest the theme or themes?  Plot is what happens in the novel, the sequence of events.  Theme is what the novel is "about." 

Elizabeth Barrett Browning

What do you think is the speaker's most persuasive point in "The Cry of the Children"?  In other words, what part of the poem, or technique, would most spur the readers to act against child labor?  On the other hand, do you think that the poem is too dramatic to be really effective?

Tennyson's Politics

It is tempting to talk about Tennyson, and the other Victorian poets, as artists only, but it is difficult to dismiss the political/social/cultural commentary in the poems.  The observations Jared made last week about the working classes in "The Lotos Eaters" and "Locksley Hall" are good examples of the political voice or message in the poetry.

Do you see any other evidence of political or social commentary?  Think about all the poetry we discussed.