Term Paper on "Responding to Literature"

Quoted Instructions for "Responding to Literature" Assignment:

3.1B: Responding to Literature

Answer the following questions in your journal. Please write your answers as complete sentences and make sure to number your journal appropriately.

1. Metaphysical poets have plenty of critics. Many people find the images of metaphysical poetry contrived. Do you agree? Samuel Johnson, an 18th century *****, described metaphysical conceits as "the discovery of occult [hidden] resemblances in things apparently unlike . . . the most heterogeneous [dissimilar] ideas are yoked by violence together." Do you think that metaphysical conceits work-that is can you draw meaning from the connections they make between dissimilar things? Support your answer with specific examples from the poems. Your answer should be written in the form of a paragraph and should be at least five sentences long.

2. In "Death Be Not Proud" Donne personifies death. How does this poem make you feel about death? Does in make it seem more or less frightening? How does it change your perspective on death or dying? Write at least a one-paragraph response.

3. *****s convey their tone through their diction (word choice), images, figures of speech, and the details they choose to include. Rhetoric refers to the art of using words effectively to communicate. How does Donne's tone in "Meditation 17" support the point he is trying to make? Your answer should address what the tone of the passage is and the techniques (rhetoric) Donne uses to achieve this tone. Respond in paragraph form and use at least three specific details from the text to support your answer.