English Literature

I.A. Richards: A Critic Life and Works-    Ivor Armstrong Richards Was born in 1893 and was educated at Clifton and Magdalene College , Cambridge, where in 1912 he was also appointed a professor of English Literature. Later he became one of the Pioneers of New Criticism . His works include- 1 . The Foundations of Aesthetics   (1922), Co-authored with C. K. Ogden and James Wood.   2 . The Principles of Literary Criticism   (London, 1924; New York, 1925)    3 . Science and Poetry   (London,   1926).   4 . Practical Criticism   (1929).   5 . Coleridge on Imagination   (London, 1934; New York, 1935).   6 . Speculative Instruments (London, 1955).   7 . 'So Much Nearer: Essays toward a World English   (New York, 1960, 1968), includes the important essay, "The Future of Poetry."

Ode to Melancholy Stanza I The first stanza tells what not to do: The sufferer should not �go to Lethe,� or forget their sadness (Lethe is the river of forgetfulness in Greek mythology); should not commit suicide (nightshade, �the ruby grape of Prosperpine,� is a poison; Prosperpine is the mythological queen of the underworld); and should not become obsessed with objects of death and misery (the beetle, the death-moth, and the owl). For, the speaker says, that will make the anguish of the soul drowsy, and the sufferer should do everything he can to remain aware of and alert to the depths of his suffering. No, no! go not to Lethe, neither twist   Wolf's-bane, tight-rooted, for its poisonous wine;   �           Lethe : river in the underworld Hades in which souls about to be reborn bathed to forget the past; hence, river of forgetfulness. �          wolf's-bane : poison. This name is the direct ...

How to Write a Critical Appreciation of a Poem By  Rohit (RJ) Chaturvedi Critical appreciation of a poem is defined as the critical reading of a poem. The meaning of its words, its rhyme, scheme, the speaker, figures of speech, the references to other works (intertextuality), the style of language, the general writing style of the poet ( if mentioned), the genre, the context, the tone of the speaker and such other elements make up the critical reading or appreciation. It does not mean criticising the poem. A critical appreciation helps in a better           understanding of the verse. �          Meaning- Read the poem more than once to get a clear idea of what the speaker is trying to say. Look up the meanings of difficult or unusual words in a thesaurus. The title of the poem is a key to the general meaning and summary of the thought presented. A poem might be about lost love, 'Lucy' ...