Anna Quindlen
Kaitlin Perez
Bonnie Powell
English Honors Period 7
15 February 2015
Approaching Loneliness and Abandonment Poets often utilize loneliness and abandonment to portray a person’s triumph. ‘Pathedy of Manners” by Ellen Kay and “At Dusk” by Natasha Trethewey explore their poetry in two very diverse manners. In “Pathedy of Manners” Kay describes an individual who lived a successful and ideal lifestyle but later learns the reality of her lost opportunities. She is stripped of her individualism and is left alone. In “At Dusk” Trethewey portrays abandonment through story-telling of one’s yearning for companionship. Although both poems share the themes of loneliness and abandonment, the poems use different tones and points of views to describe one’s triumphs. The contrast between the tones of “At Dusk’ and ‘Pathedy of Manners” begins with their use of imagery and figurative language. “At Dusk” creates imagery when the speaker is describing his/her jealousy of their neighbor. “…left me to imagine her inside the house waiting, perhaps in a chair in front of the TV, or walking around, doing small tasks…”. The speaker uses imagery to convey that the neighbor has no worries about having the cat coming back to her, while the speaker is jealous because he/ she desires for someone to call out to and reach to him/her. The speaker also uses imagery when she imagines that her wishes of companionship are made. “…send it over the lines of stitching here to there, certain the sounds I make are enough to call someone home.” Also using the tone of jealousy, just like the neighbor calling for the cat to arrive back home, the speaker wishes that she had someone to call her/his own and to reach back to him/her. Unlike “At Dusk”, “Pathedy of Manners” doesn’t use a tone of jealousy. The speaker is assumed to be a peer of an “ideal” woman. The speaker uses a mocking tone
Bonnie Powell
English Honors Period 7
15 February 2015
Approaching Loneliness and Abandonment Poets often utilize loneliness and abandonment to portray a person’s triumph. ‘Pathedy of Manners” by Ellen Kay and “At Dusk” by Natasha Trethewey explore their poetry in two very diverse manners. In “Pathedy of Manners” Kay describes an individual who lived a successful and ideal lifestyle but later learns the reality of her lost opportunities. She is stripped of her individualism and is left alone. In “At Dusk” Trethewey portrays abandonment through story-telling of one’s yearning for companionship. Although both poems share the themes of loneliness and abandonment, the poems use different tones and points of views to describe one’s triumphs. The contrast between the tones of “At Dusk’ and ‘Pathedy of Manners” begins with their use of imagery and figurative language. “At Dusk” creates imagery when the speaker is describing his/her jealousy of their neighbor. “…left me to imagine her inside the house waiting, perhaps in a chair in front of the TV, or walking around, doing small tasks…”. The speaker uses imagery to convey that the neighbor has no worries about having the cat coming back to her, while the speaker is jealous because he/ she desires for someone to call out to and reach to him/her. The speaker also uses imagery when she imagines that her wishes of companionship are made. “…send it over the lines of stitching here to there, certain the sounds I make are enough to call someone home.” Also using the tone of jealousy, just like the neighbor calling for the cat to arrive back home, the speaker wishes that she had someone to call her/his own and to reach back to him/her. Unlike “At Dusk”, “Pathedy of Manners” doesn’t use a tone of jealousy. The speaker is assumed to be a peer of an “ideal” woman. The speaker uses a mocking tone