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"Not Waving But Drowning" And "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" - College Essays

"Not Waving But Drowning" And "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers"



Stevie Smith's "Not Waving but Drowning" and Adrienne Rich's "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers" are similar in that both poems' characters have lived their lives with regret and sorrow. Neither of their lives were lived to the fullest and as death approaches, the question of, "what could have been?" remains forever unanswered.
Upon first reading, Stevie Smith's "Not Waving but Drowning," the image of a man, out in the middle of the ocean, may first come to mind. In desperation he is waving for help because he has swam out too far and is unable to make it back to the shore. But people misinterpret his cries as simply being a wave hello.
However, a deeper examination of the poem brings forth ...

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"It must have been too cold for him his heart gave way," refers to the loneliness in this man's life. Perhaps he pushed people away from him and lived his life in isolation. Maybe he never opened himself up enough to engage in personal relationships and to love and feel love for another. Or, perhaps he was active in society and took part in social gatherings and hosted parties. And by doing this, he was seen as being happy. But he may have done this just to further disguise who he really was or how he really felt inside. No one really knew him. The irony of the poem is that the very stereotype placed on this man throughout his life ends up being the downfall to his death.

"I was much too far out all my life," could mean a number of things. Perhaps the misconceptions pertaining to this man began during childhood. It's possible that he came from an abusive or unstable household, in which he was ashamed of. And when in the presence of others, he would put on ...

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him to, in a sense, wear a mask concealing his true identity. He may feel as though he's standing in the middle of a crowding room screaming, and yet no one can hear him. It may not be because they're ignoring his screams; it may just be that he is not allowing them to hear him.

This lyric poem creates a type of sullen mood in the reader's mind. The man's struggle is something that can be related indirectly or directly to each reader's own personal experiences in life. In a way, all people put on a sort of act when they're around others. Experiences one has gone through helps to shape who a person is and how others perceive that person. The word "cold" could be used to ...

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""Not Waving But Drowning" And "Aunt Jennifer's Tigers"." Essayworld.com. May 24, 2006. Accessed December 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Not-Waving-But-Drowning-Aunt-Jennifers/46416.
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PAPER DETAILS
Added: 5/24/2006 02:56:50 AM
Category: Poetry & Poets
Type: Free Paper
Words: 1477
Pages: 6

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