Metamorphosis By Edith Sitwell Essay
Edith Sitwell: The Eccentric Wordsmith
[Slide 1] Edith Sitwell was a British poet whose writing was looked favorably upon by many prominent authors and poets of the 1920’s. Her poetry, which was influenced by her life as a child, evolved exponetially over the years. In her final period of poetry, Edith Sitwell formed her writing around “traditional values, spiritual matters, and orthodox Christianity” (Cevasco). Edith Sitwell’s harsh childhood and Christian beliefs greatly influenced the evolution of her poetry. [Slide 2]
Edith Sitwell’s childhood significantly impacted her view of life. Edith was born on September 7, 1887 and was the eldest of three children. She had no friends before her brothers were born. Her only friends were the birds …show more content…
Like the Sun, Jesus will melt the “eternal ice/ Of Death” (Kari, “Metamorphosis”). The conclusion of this poem connects flawlessly with the theme and equally establishes her future of Christian allusions in poetry. The title Metamorphosis implies that the metamorphosis in this life that will “foreshadow the greater metamorphosis yet to come” (Kari, “Metamorphosis”).
Metamorphosis contains a noteworthy amount of iambic pentameter with rhymed couplets. Iambic pentameter is the “natural walking meter” of the English language (Kari, "Metamorphosis”). However, the ending of the poem contains a variety of metric rhythms resembling the work of Gerard Manley Hopkins, who Edith admired (Kari, “Metamorphosis”). Metamorphosis represents a shift in Edith’s poetic career. While her early poems give an artificial impression, her later poems demonstrate her sense of balance between human suffering and the sacrifice of Christ. She uses poetry to expose how corrupted the world around her has become since she was …show more content…
The poem begins by referencing the bombing of England in World War II. The “rain” alludes to either a typical rain of water or the bombs falling out of the sky. One of her most notorious readings of this poem occurred at the Allied Forces’ Churchill Club in 1944. When she began to read, a buzzer went off indicating a bomb was headed towards London. Edith refused to stop reading, even with the foreboding bomb on its way. She finished reading “Still Falls the Rain” just as the bomb exploded, amassing a deafening applause from the audience (Kari, “Still Falls the Rain”).
“Still Falls the Rain” constructs many Biblical allusions centered around Christ’s Betrayal and Crucifixion. “The Potter’s Field” is the piece of land purchased with the thirty silver coins which Judas Iscariot received for betraying Jesus. The plea for mercy on “Dives and Lazarus” refers to the parable about a rich man and a beggar. In this parable, the rich man lives his life for himself and spends eternity in Hell; the beggar is blessed with eternity in Heaven. Edith pleads for “both the innocent and the guilty” in this poem (Kari, “Still Falls the
[Slide 1] Edith Sitwell was a British poet whose writing was looked favorably upon by many prominent authors and poets of the 1920’s. Her poetry, which was influenced by her life as a child, evolved exponetially over the years. In her final period of poetry, Edith Sitwell formed her writing around “traditional values, spiritual matters, and orthodox Christianity” (Cevasco). Edith Sitwell’s harsh childhood and Christian beliefs greatly influenced the evolution of her poetry. [Slide 2]
Edith Sitwell’s childhood significantly impacted her view of life. Edith was born on September 7, 1887 and was the eldest of three children. She had no friends before her brothers were born. Her only friends were the birds …show more content…
Like the Sun, Jesus will melt the “eternal ice/ Of Death” (Kari, “Metamorphosis”). The conclusion of this poem connects flawlessly with the theme and equally establishes her future of Christian allusions in poetry. The title Metamorphosis implies that the metamorphosis in this life that will “foreshadow the greater metamorphosis yet to come” (Kari, “Metamorphosis”).
Metamorphosis contains a noteworthy amount of iambic pentameter with rhymed couplets. Iambic pentameter is the “natural walking meter” of the English language (Kari, "Metamorphosis”). However, the ending of the poem contains a variety of metric rhythms resembling the work of Gerard Manley Hopkins, who Edith admired (Kari, “Metamorphosis”). Metamorphosis represents a shift in Edith’s poetic career. While her early poems give an artificial impression, her later poems demonstrate her sense of balance between human suffering and the sacrifice of Christ. She uses poetry to expose how corrupted the world around her has become since she was …show more content…
The poem begins by referencing the bombing of England in World War II. The “rain” alludes to either a typical rain of water or the bombs falling out of the sky. One of her most notorious readings of this poem occurred at the Allied Forces’ Churchill Club in 1944. When she began to read, a buzzer went off indicating a bomb was headed towards London. Edith refused to stop reading, even with the foreboding bomb on its way. She finished reading “Still Falls the Rain” just as the bomb exploded, amassing a deafening applause from the audience (Kari, “Still Falls the Rain”).
“Still Falls the Rain” constructs many Biblical allusions centered around Christ’s Betrayal and Crucifixion. “The Potter’s Field” is the piece of land purchased with the thirty silver coins which Judas Iscariot received for betraying Jesus. The plea for mercy on “Dives and Lazarus” refers to the parable about a rich man and a beggar. In this parable, the rich man lives his life for himself and spends eternity in Hell; the beggar is blessed with eternity in Heaven. Edith pleads for “both the innocent and the guilty” in this poem (Kari, “Still Falls the