English Literature: Lauren Gapper

Poetry- Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s Kubla Khan Coleridge’s supposedly “opium induced” masterpiece, Kubla Khan, seems to have resonated with me in a way that epitomises the aspects I love about Romantic poetry. Its highly embellished descriptions and narrative-style encounters with the sublime position this poem as one of high creativity and genuine entertainment. The following copy of the poem is taken from www.thepoetryfoundation.org  : Or, a vision in a dream. A Fragment. In Xanadu did Kubla Khan A stately pleasure-dome decree: Where Alph, the sacred river, ran Through caverns measureless to man    Down to a sunless sea. So twice five miles of fertile ground With walls and towers were girdled round; And there were gardens bright with sinuous rills, Where blossomed many an incense-bearing tree; And here were forests ancient as the hills, Enfolding sunny spots of greenery. But oh! that deep romantic chasm which slanted Down the gr...

Jane Eyre: A Review As one of Bronte’s most popular works, Jane Eyre has always been on my list of books to read, and I have to admit that it did not disappoint. Its Bildungsroman structure follows the development of the young and misunderstood protagonist, Jane, and her journey to becoming a respected teacher and mistress, whilst grappling with the romantic affliction she encounters with Mr Rochester. Bronte’s ability to intermittently inject Romantic language within such a critically acclaimed Gothic novel was perhaps the aspect that I enjoyed most about this read and, for this reason, it is definitely a text that I wish to analyse in more depth in the future, beginning with the exploration of the masculine sublime throughout the novel. I think, predominantly, the power of this novel lies in the transparency of the protagonist; whilst we may sympathise with Jane’s repressed upbringing at the hands of Mrs Reed, Bronte strips Jane’s character of any unwarranted self-pity, leavi...

How to: Analyse Poetry Whether you enjoy writing poetry, reading poetry or you are simply a meter junkie, analysis is a crucial element to succeeding in the literary field. To me, poetry is often the most subjective composition and you can find yourself interpreting a piece of poetry completely differently to perhaps the poet or someone else. Here, I will look at the basic steps of analysis and how to enhance the ways in which we can interpret certain works. Below, I will explain the steps through the use of a worked example- ‘The Passionate Shepherd to His Love’ by Christopher Marlowe. 1.        Read the poem and establish your initial impressions I think before even beginning to pick apart any literary works, it is so important to read them for enjoyment first. After reading, I like to mind-map/bullet point any associations I make with the poem and perhaps pick out certain words that I feel define the themes of the poem and brain-storm some...