Cluster of Poems

The Two-Headed Calf by Gilpin uses enjambments, imagery and juxtaposition. The continuation of sentences helps create a slightly rushful tone which emphasizes that the calf’s time is limited. It also creates a smooth flow which juxtaposes the cruel fate the calf will face in the near future. The use of peaceful imagery presents a stark contrast to the harsh fate the naive cow will face tomorrow morning. It also contrasts the cow’s appearance as a “freak of nature” with the beautiful natural world surrounding the cow. By juxtaposing the external environment with the future that the cow will face, the author emphasizes the dire fate the calf will face, while also showcasing the broader theme of human beings being unaware of just how cruel life can sometimes be. Like the two-headed calf, when people don’t fit into the status quo set by people who aren't them, they are often subjected to cruelty and mocked by those around them. The eerily peaceful tone of the second stanza, brought by the juxtaposing imagery and smooth flow through enjambments, emphasizes the cruelty that will befall the two-headed calf. 

The Unknown Citizen by Auden uses rhyme, allusions to a dystopic society and irony. The poem uses a simple rhyme scheme that helps reinforce the monotonous machine-like subject of the poem. This monotonous rhyme conveys the loss of identity and the conforming nature of the unknown citizen. The poem also uses allusion to a dystopian society by using different terms such as “eugenist” (associated/present in dystopian settings) and agencies that constantly monitor the citizen, hinting that any discrepancies in the citizen’s behavior will alert the different societies. This allusion to a dystopian society presents unknown citizen’s lives as being constantly monitored by surveillance and warns society that using numbers to weigh value, especially in society constantly obsessed with using numbers to measure the desired (ideal weights, ideal body count, etc), can reduce human value to a mechanical nature. The poem presents irony by celebrating how the main character is a conformist instead of a hero that challenges status quo or brings change to a society. The ending lines of “Was he free? Was he happy? The question is absurd” mocks how the numbers used to measure idealness can never be enough to measure happiness. This formation of mocking the dystopian society presents a satirical tone that remains cold and impersonal, emphasizing the way in which the government treats its citizens as numbers instead of people capable of individuality. 

Those Winter Sundays by Hayden uses imagery, alliteration and metaphors. The use of imagery such as “blueback cold” creates a harsh atmosphere which contrasts with the warm environment inside the house. This juxtaposing environment serves to represent the emotional distance between the father and son. The alliteration of the harsh K sounds with the words “cold” and “cracked”  help emanate the cold and strained emotions between the father and the son. The use of metaphors such as “cold splintering" emphasizes the imagery of the hostile environment that the father works in which further helps the audience understand the harshness of the environment the father worked in that creates the sense of regret in the future that the son or the speaker faces. These poetic devices emphasize the harshness and strain between the father and son to create a reflective, regretful tone from the harsh distance in his childhood to the realization of just how much the father has done for the speaker. This creation of the environment also serves to emphasize the poem’s message of understanding that sometimes a parent’s love for their children is not shown through words, but through their actions and silent devotion. 

We Grow Accustomed to the Dark by Dickinson uses an extended metaphor, repeated em-dashes and imagery. The extended metaphor of dark and light throughout the poem with dark representing difficulties and challenges and light representing hope and perseverance helps emphasize the poem’s meaning of continuing to persevere through challenges that life throws at an individual. The use of repeated em-dashes creates a choppy tone which helps describe all the dips in the path called life that the speaker describes walking on throughout the poem. The imagery helps to exemplify the pain and obstacles that the speaker faces in words like “hit a tree directly in the forehead.” Through its description the poem helps to bring life to the emotions that the speaker is experiencing. The contrast of light and dark and the emphasis of the challenges described by the speaker creates a contemplative and realistic tone about the hardships of life while also helping to emphasize how one must adapt to facing difficulties and find the light in the dark.