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The skilful utilisation of literary devices and structure enables composers to represent the overarching impact of dominant political doctrines on the personal and societal aspects of life. Excellent Thesis. W. H. Auden’s ballad, O What is that Sound which so thrills the Ear (1932), conveys the impeding nature of political ideologies on a community and intimate relationships. Whilst, Auden’s tripartite poem, Spain (1937) reveals that competing ideologies are the cause of war and thus, repression of individualism and the destruction of a civilisation. In both compositions, contradictory diplomatic policies eventuate to the fear of persecution and destruction of human morals. Overall, the careful articulation of form and structure enables composers to represent the extensive impact of governing principles on individuals and society. Fantastic Thesis paragraph, no comments at all, it works brilliantly and links to the module really well!
Prevailing political doctrines eventuate in the collision between the public and private spheres of life. I'd like to see some more detail in this concept, it's a little simplistic for my taste, what do you mean by this collision? It works well but it could be better. This notion is represented in Auden’s, O What is that Sound which so thrills the ear, which exposes the strain on the personal politics of intimate relationships due to overarching ideologies. The opacity in the ballad is emphasised through the naivety of the female persona whilst, the questions explore the overt impact of war on individuals due to the instability of society. This instability is reflected within the withering relationship of the two personas. This is a tad too long on sweeping statements about the text, try to get into techniques and analysis a bit faster! The seemingly calm relationship is interrupted as the tension and conflicted trust reaches a climax. The wife’s tone of desperation in “Stay with me here!” coupled with the exclamation mark juxtaposes the husband’s challenged loyalties as he says “But I must be leaving.” Retell. The dehumanisation of her husband and extent of betrayal due to political force is emphasised in “O it’s broken the lock.” The symbolism of “lock” as the sacred bonds of marriage discloses how hegemonic doctrines can negatively impact the personal politics of intimate relationships. Good conceptual link there. Moreover, the cowardly actions of the husband further exposes and is symbolic of a fractured society due to complete distrust. Don't use a plot device as an example of a concept, keep the focus on techniques! The husbands’ decision to leave the wife could be a direct result of competing political perceptions and therefore, the fear of being persecuted which eventually overpowered his relationship. Make sure you are sure of your ideas, even if you actually aren't don't say "could represent this," be sure of your own arguments! This is evident through the balladic form and increasing pace of the poem that mimics the rapid movement of the approaching soldiers this also reflects the man’s anxiety as he can no longer deny the formidable truth. Hence, the ballad highlights the universal impact of war on both individual lives and communities regardless of context. Good paragraph, but the analysis could be more sophisticated; more an emphasis on techniques, and less textual retell.
Similarly, war stems from differing hegemonic principles, leading to the destruction of past national achievements. This notion is represented in Auden’s tripartite poem, Spain which reveals the restriction of human ideals as a direct impact of opposing governing principles. Great. The accumulative listing of the human advancements in “language of size… trade routes…[and] the invention of… clocks” reveals the ability of humans to advance in the world. Excellent. However, the foreboding tone, “shadow-reckoning in the sunny climates,” depicts the prevailing conflict and ensuing war, clearly outlining the futility of these hopes, dreams and advancements. I'd like to see you make an explicit reference to the audience about now, be sure to include the audience in your response, but excellent nonetheless! This notion is also reflected through the cyclical nature of the first six stanzas which symbolises the inevitability of war and its disastrous impact on individuals and society. Through the repetition of the truncated statement, “I inquire. I inquire.” Auden reveals the disillusionment and loss of human values during war, due to psychological manipulation and the “adoration of madness.” Fantastic! The analysis in this paragraph is much stronger.He evidently discloses the restriction of individualism, consequently, limiting progression in society, as war demands allegiance to one ideology thus, preventing inquisitions. Competing ideologies may be theologically based, as reflected in the verse, “theological feuds in the taverns.” This is depicted in the historical allusion of the closed “tavern” exploring the leftist in-group fighting during the Spanish Civil War. Through the employment of post-modernist imagery, “The stars are dead. The animals will not look.” Auden further exposes that the ultimate outcome of partaking in constant conflict is the self-destruction of humanity. As in, O What is that Sound which so thrills the ear, it is revealed that conflicting doctrines eventuate to the abandonment of human principles. Therefore, Spain reveals that the restriction of individualism and destruction of human achievements, is a direct consequence of war. This paragraph is MUCH more powerful, no retell here which is fantastic, very very effective. I'd still love to see some more explicit links to the audience: What exactly do we learn? You imply it but you could be more direct with this part of your analysis.
The eventual outcome of hegemonic regimes on a civilisation is a fractured society. This concept is portrayed in Auden’s O What is that Sound which so thrills the ear, which utilises brevity and ambiguity to highlight the impact of politics on a population. The multiple layers of meaning in this ballad allow for different historical interpretations of the “scarlet soldiers,” which could allude to the British Army. Which DO allude to the British Army! This historical ambiguity is symbolic of the everlasting nature of destruction due to differing ideologies and the impact it has on a population. The auditory imagery and metaphor, “Down in the valley drumming, drumming?” is reflective of the unstable nature of society’s foundations due to political and military turmoil. Excellent! This instability is reflected in the question, “It must be the farmer so cunning, cunning?” implying that the farmer might be the informant leading to the division in society and in turn, destroys intimate relationships and limits social cohesion. Remove that bit of retell in the middle there. The employment of the truncated sentence, “And now they are running,” exposes the foreboding fear civilians experience due to the overarching principles. This fear and uncertainty experienced by innocent civilians, is revealed through the utilisation of rhyming couplets, “O its the gate where they’re turning, turning… And their eyes are burning,” which portrays the impending nature of the omnipresent soldiers and as a result, the suppression of individuals due to their immersed anxiety. What I'd like to see you do with your techniques (since almost everything else is spot on) is link the technique itself to the effect. For example, rhyming couplets are a technique which gains audience attention, it accentuates something. This is different to what imagery does (develops audience understanding), or what an exclamation does, etc. Be sure to not just say every technique portrays/represents something, consider it a little more carefully. Similarly, the listing of the soldiers’ journey represents the atmosphere of intensifying fear, “the doctor… is it the parson?... they have passed the farmyard.” Whilst, portraying the disruption in the flow of society due to the rise of competing political views thus, contributing to the devaluation of social institutions and harmonious interactions. Hence, Auden highlights the instability in a society, as a result of the prevailing conflict.
On the other hand, Spain explores that unity within a population could provide the prospect for a better and more harmonious future. Try to make this sentence conceptual like your others! This is portrayed in the simile, “Many… have heard and migrated like gulls,” which reveals the want for the international audience to join the civil war and fight for their beliefs in the overarching aim of a better future for Spain. Be careful with how you pick your quote; here, you only need "migrated like gulls" to make your point. Correspondingly, the involvement of the International Brigade in the Spanish civil war, called for supporters globally that travelled, “through the unjust lands, through the night, through the alpine tunnel…” Exposing the emotional appeal of competing ideologies and its potency in calling for an international alliance. The utilisation of inclusive language, “Our moments of tenderness blossom… Our hours of friendship,” provides positive imagery of unity and comradery among the People’s Army and their growing strength against dominant power. Excellent, this is what I mean about linking technique more specifically to effect; what does this do for the audience though? It also gives hope and reinforces the need to stand up in order to make a difference. The repetition of “To-morrow,” allows the reader to speculate the future and the possibility of positive change whilst, insinuating that the eventual outcome of Spain’s future, is determined by mankind’s struggle in the war. Great. Comradery between the militants portrayed in the accumulative listing of their day-to-day activities, “the shared cigarette/ The cards…/ The masculine jokes,” reveals the need to, suppress their fears, develop courage and continue fighting for what they believe in, regardless of their minority status in the conflict. Try to be more conceptual; this is retell. The reference to democracy and positive diction, “the eager election of chairmen,” is in contrast to the previous political dictatorship and thus, provides a vision of a more just future for the citizens of Spain. Analysis in this paragraph is a little too text focused, just like the first paragraph. Be as conceptual as possible just like Paragraphs 2+3. Unlike, O What is that Sound which so thrills the ear, Spain represents the ability of different entities within a society to unite against dominant political doctrines and thrive for a better future. I like that you are comparing the two individual representations, that's fantastic to include.
Ultimately, W. H. Auden effectively utilises strategically constructed poems in order to represent the overarching impact of competing hegemonic doctrines on individuals and society. Like your Thesis, try to start conceptual! This is evident in the ballad, O What is that Sound which so thrills the ear whereby, differing political views results in the instability of a community and eventually, the fear of being persecuted results in the abandonment of human morals. Whilst, Auden’s tripartite poem, Spain (1937), represents the eventual outcome of conflicting ideologies is war; which eventuates in the repression of individual beliefs and the destruction of a nation.I'd like to see a more conclusive sentence to finish this off, besides that fabulous!
This is a crazy good essay Sahar8642, you should be really really happy with it! Masterful analysis, excellent conceptual drive, well organised; this essay has lots of fantastic things going for it!
of course you want me to tell you how to make it better, not just rave about it, but just know that it's already extremely impressive
My suggestions are mostly small, a few over-arching things to consider in addition to the in-text comments:
- More audience links. Try to be more explicit with linking to the audience, and consider things like, Why do we as an audience respond to that technique? What is the composer trying to show their contextual audience? Do we gain the same meaning as a 'universal' responder?
- More consistency. Paragraphs 2 and 3 are absolutely amazing analysis wise; No retell, only technique driven ideas. Paragraphs 1 and 4 drop back into textual retell a bit, just explaining what happens in the text. Try to raise everything to that amazing level you reach in the middle
- More consideration of technique vs effect. Consider the impacts of specific techniques on the audience: Figurative language does different things and serves a different purposes than a truncated sentence, for example. Consider what the technique does specifically, why was it chosen and not others?
- A stronger evaluative aspect. This is a Critical Study Module, so be ready to incorporate a stronger judgement for most questions (for this specific question, not super important, so fair enough)
On the whole, not much to say at all, I think this is a great essay. Some careful polish and adjustment will make it really shine, but you have a super solid foundation you can now build on
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Topic: English Advanced Essay Marking (Modules Only) (Read 732929 times)