That Evening Sun Essay -- Literary Analysis

â€Å"That Evening Sun† is a short story written in 1931 by William Faulkner. Faulkner’s life in the South and family history has had a significant influence upon Faulkner’s writing style, in both content and its context, and his knowledge of southern culture and events in its history only add depth to his work. The events in â€Å"That Evening Sun†, like many of Faulkner’s stories, takes place in the fictional town of Jefferson. The story is narrated by Quentin Compson who was nine years old when the story takes place, but is now an adult recounting the events from fifteen years before. The story revolves around the Compson’s and their children’s relationship with the stories main character Nancy. Nancy is a Negro woman who is employed by Compson family. Nancy has got herself into a dilemma first by causing a disturbance by publicly demanding payment from the town banker and church deacon Mr. Stovall for sexual services and next by be coming pregnant with by him. Nancy’s pregnancy causes her husband Jesus to become angered; he then deserts her and leaves town. Nancy communicates to Mr. Compson, that she believes Jesus will soon return to kill her. The story relates to the reader the seriousness of Nancy’s situation and how and how it is taken without any seriousness by the Compsons’. There are several literary terms which are significant to â€Å"That Evening Sun†. â€Å"That Evening Sun† is told from a third person point of view. The narrator of the story is Quentin Compson who is also a character in the story. He tells his story fifteen years after the events have passed looking back upon them as an adult. The setting of the story is in Jefferson, Virginia around 1902. The protagonist of the story is Nancy who is struggling with the fear that her ... ...ed to the crucifixion of Christ where Peter denies him three times. When Nancy is taken to Jail and hangs herself, this can also be compared as a crucifixion. I am still at odds at whom or what is the heart of her suffering. One can also see how unaware the children are of the situation, only Quentin seems to know what Nancy is afraid of. Since it is Quentin who is narrating the story we do not know if his understanding happened at the time of the story or upon his retelling. Reading â€Å"That Evening Sun†, has inspired me to read The Sound and the Fury, which I believe has many of the same characters. Works Cited Faulkner, William. â€Å"That Evening Sun†. literaturesave2wordpress.com.N.p., N.d. Web. 04 February 2012. Johnston, Kenneth G. â€Å"The Year of the Jubilee: Faulkner’s â€Å"That Evening Sun†Ã¢â‚¬ www.jstor.org. Duke University Press. 1974. Web. 04 February 2012.

Colleges Should Educate Student Athletes Essay -- Educating College At

All college students sitting in classrooms today face challenges that can impede their success. A challenging course schedule, competing demand for the student’s time, and college readiness are all factors that can hinder a student’s performance in the classroom. Moreover, these challenges also have the ability to impact the student’s overall student development. While most students share a common set of stressors, there are certain groups on campus that face pressures and challenges that are not shared by the majority of their peers. Student athletes are such a group. Joshua Watson (2005) noted the positive benefits of participating in intercollegiate activities, but also noted that such participation can lead to issues of â€Å"maladjustment, emotional illness, and psychological distress† (p. 442). Because of the unique issues facing student athletes, academic administrators and student affairs professionals are challenged to adequately address these challenges. While there may be existing services on campus to assist all students with success related issues, institutions must also take a closer look at the services that will be the most effective for student athletes. An important element is not only having a conducive learning environment for services, but also staff personnel who understand the complex life of a student athlete. Many athletic advising and counseling programs concentrate on academic eligibility; however, student athletes can also benefit from services that promote the overall development of the student (Howard-Hamilton & Sina, 2001). Based on the aforementioned, institutions could greatly benefit from a dedicated office that works directly and closely with student athletes. An Athletic Student Developme... ...ross models of psychological nigrescence. Journal of Black Psychology, 5(1), 13-31. Evans, N.J., Forney, D.S., Guido, F., Patton, L. D., & Renn, K. A. (2010). Student development in college: Theory, research, and practice (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. Howard-Hamilton, M.F. & Sina, J.A. (2001). How college affects student athletes. New Directions for Student Services, 93, 35-46. Menke, D. (2013). Student-athletes in transition: Applying the Schlossberg model. Academic Advising Today, 36(3). Schlossberg, N.K., Waters, E.B., Goodman, J. (1995). Adults in transition: Linking practice with theory (2nd ed). New York, NY: Springer Publishing Company. Watson, J. (2005). College student athlete’s attitudes toward help-seeking behavior and expectations of counseling services. Journal of College Student Development, 46(4), 442-449.

Ancient Greeces Obsession with Beauty Essay -- Ancient Greece Essays

Ancient Greece was one of the most important civilizations in the history of mankind. Ancient Greece spanned thousands of years, beginning in 1100 BC and ending with the end of the Hellenistic period in 146 BC. Ancient Greece made many contributions to the modern world, such as language, politics, philosophy, science, art, architecture, beauty, and much more. Beauty now a days is in most cases considered as how pretty something looks on the outside. Most people these days look at outer beauty rather than inner beauty. Beauty in ancient Greece is different than beauty now in many different ways. In ancient Greece, beauty can be defined in many things. Beauty in family, art, architecture, sculpture, and literature shows all the many definitions of beauty in ancient Greece. Family was important in ancient Greece. â€Å"The ancient Greeks had a society of Patriarchy and Misogyny† (Katz 71). Patriarchy is a society where the father had supreme authority over the family. Misogyny meant that the women were worthless. Women would usually get married at a very young age of around twelve to sixteen years old. Most women did not have a choice of whom to marry and instead their father, uncle, or brother chose for her. The richer the woman was the earlier she got married, but the poor woman got married at a bit higher age. They did not have the authority to do many things that men did. They were not able to go to the Olympics, the streets of the city, or even sometimes the marketplace. If they ever went anywhere they usually went to weddings and funerals and religious ceremonies, or to visit other women. Since they stayed in their houses for long periods of time they were usually in charge of the house when it comes to cleaning or or... ...aic Period, Archaic ‘patriarchy’ and high sexual culture in Classical Athens. Kats, Marilyn. â€Å"Ideology and ‘The Status of Women’ in Ancient Greece.† History and Theory, Beiheft 31: History and Feminist Theory. Vol. 31. Blackwell Publishing for Wesleyan University. 1992. 70-97. This chapter of the book focuses on the status of women in ancient Greece in comparison to the eighteenth through twentieth century. Levin, Saul. â€Å"Love and the Hero of the Iliad.† Transactions and Proceedings of the American Philological Association. Vol. 80. The Johns Hopkins University Press. 1949. 37-49. In this chapter it talks about the Iliad and what the Greeks point of view is over the Iliad. Plato. The Allegory of the Cave. This piece of literature is written by Plato and in it Plato explains through the use of many metaphors what it is to become the philosopher king.

Dulce et Decorum est by Wilfred Owen: Experiences

In his time he also composed some war poetry. His incredible works also Inspired others to write war poetry e. g. Siegfried Sassoon. However the most famous poem that Owen is renowned for is ‘Dulce et Decorum Est' ‘Dulce et decorum Est' Is a poem written by Wilfred Owen describing his experiences of WWI.The poem is titled ‘Dulce et decorum est' meaning â€Å"it is sweet and fitting to die for one's country' though the poem talks about something very opposite thus mocking the statement and making it a sarcastic comment focused on those who ncourage conflict and proclaim It as being glorious. ‘Dulce et Decorum Est' reveals the truth behind conflict the grief and suffering It causes. The author with the use of graphic imagery and diction tries to convey the horrors of conflict and war. It also shows the futility of conflict and in a quite explicit manner the true reality of death!The ideas the poet wants us to consider are the horrors of war and Its sheer and ut ter futility. Owen also wants us to think about the propaganda that is put forward by the government and how it differs from the exact reality of conflict. The poet is trying to say if you do get through the war you must experience mental torture and live with guilt ALL your life long! We know this when Owen writes â€Å"In all my dreams. before my helpless sight he plunges at me guttering, choking, drowning†. Owen is telling us that he is haunted by the men that died in the gas attack and he can't help them no matter how much he wants to.This poem has a miserable and gloomy atmosphere to it Just like the earth which has an ozone layer around it. In this war poem the mood is very grim and poignant too. There is an effective use of simile†¦ â€Å"like a devil's sick of sin† because it compares the situation to the devil. The devil Is known to be first cause of sin but even If he Is â€Å"sick† of it then it MUST be very catastrophic! There is also a great us e of sibilance. This is effective because when said it will put emphasis on â€Å"sick† to explain how awful of a level the conflict had escalated to.There is a deathly air of resignation around which makes the reader lament the death of the soldiers. Owen's choice of diction is used to create great effect. When he uses a simile in the irst line â€Å"like old beggars under sacks†. Soldiers are supposed to be fit men and a comparison with old beggars indicates that they have been brought down to such a level that they are now equal of hunched, tired, unfed, homeless and old people. Even their uniforms have lost their militaristic crispness, as Owen describes them as â€Å"sacks. † This picture is a definite contrast to the idealized marching formations of ‘OF3 mood.Owen again shows the tiredness of the soldiers in the last line of that stanza when he say â€Å"Of gas shells dropping softly behind† which is very contrasting from ow gas shells actuall y drop. They make a loud hissing noise and can be heard from far. Thus Owen shows that the soldiers' senses had dulled. Only a completely exhausted soldier with no strength could be in this state of mind to not have heard the gas shells. Another rather unusual choice of diction is†¦ â€Å"coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge†. The simile coughing like hags suggests the men were unhealthy.The fact that Owen compares them to hags who are old ugly women suggests that the war has made youthful and healthy into good for nothing women ho have a permanent coughing fit due to old age and illness. â€Å"But limped on, blood- shod. All went lame; all blind;† gives the feeling that these men have become dehumanized and are reduced to an animal-like state. Thus arousing the question as to how could this is glorious. A side theme is highlighted in the first stanza: as to how do young and robust men with bright futures reduced to old ragged men benefit the nation!The gr aphic and vivid imagery used by Owen in the poem, gives the reader a feeling of horror and makes them question as to how humans could do such atrocities. In lines 9-14 there is a change of pace. First the repetition of the monosyllabic word/ onomatopoeia â€Å"gas† which echoes the sound of gun fire and then the oxymoron,† ecstasy of fumbling†, seems a odd choice of diction, but later turns out to be perfect, as Owen uses it to describe the controlled panic instantly awakened with keen awareness- of youthful men with Just seconds to find a gas mask. Owen uses a metaphor when he says â€Å"As under a green sea I saw him drowning†.This is an extended metaphor which is used to a great extent because it enhances the reader's nderstanding of the feeling of being trapped by poisonous gas. This man dies gruesomely after he inhales the gas, ironically showing how helpless and powerless a human is against a man made weapon. In the next stanza Owen uses a metaphor â €Å"guttering, choking, drowning†. This is a very gruesome image for life flickering out. These graphic images are very disturbing but play a very effective role in the persuasion of readers to think that conflict is very futile and horrific.Owen uses one of the most descriptive, gruesome and horrifying imagery in the last stanza. When he ses phrases like â€Å"white eyes writhing in his face,†, â€Å"at every Jolt the blood†, â€Å"come gargling from the froth corrupted lungs/ obscene as cancer bitter as cud†. Phrases like these can scare the hardest of men. The graphic images displayed are profoundly affecting and can never be forgotten. Owen's use of excellent imagery can sway many readers into believing that wars are the worst things that can happen and how dreadful a death a human could face.Owen ties the poem when he says in the last two lines â€Å"the Old lie: Dulce et Decorum est pro patria mort†. When Owen has inished his sentence, we und erstand that there is nothing â€Å"sweet and fitting† to die for ones country. Owen thus creates a Juxtapose, leaving the reader with the feeling of disgust and repulsion. And also shows that conflict can lead to such horrendous and tragic consequences. poem, making war seem absolutely horrid and revolting, which is Just what Owen wanted to do. Reading this poem left me gasping and shocked. The fact that Owen talks about the illnesses the men endure, within the simile â€Å"coughing like hags†.This helps me to see that the men were in horrendous conditions. The poem shows the harshness of war and absolutely condemns the saying that â€Å"it is sweet and fitting to fight for one's country'. Owen's graphic vivid imagery and diction completely ousts all positive words and feelings towards conflict. The fact that I know that Owen was killed one week before the completion of WWI makes it all the poignant as well as the fact that many people are currently indulged in confl ict, as we speak, around the world. It makes me ponder on the fact that war will always be glorified and unfortunately, there will always be conflict!

Deviance And The Factors That Influence Deviant Conduct

â€Å"Deviance is a wide-ranging term used by sociologists to refer to behavior that varies, in some way, from a social norm† (C. Livesey). Based on this definition, we can clearly draw out that deviance would mean a behavior that comes in the form of rule-breaking.Deviance is the recognized violation of cultural norms (geocites. com). Deviance therefore encompasses breaking of rules that are maybe criminal, social, formal and informal rules that have already been established in a certain locality or in a given situation.Thus, deviance is determined and measured against established standards. Such standards are therefore the point of reference for the evaluation of conduct or behavior. When it conforms, then it necessarily means it is not deviant. Otherwise, such is considered deviant.For example, the used of alcoholic drinks is not generally prohibited by law and thus by the basis of law is not deviant. As a social norm, some societies, especially those that are strict to rel igious norms, drinking alcohol is undesirable and is deviant.As a social norm, wearing of improper attire in certain occasions is deviant but under the law, such behavior is not at all deviant because there no law or rule that governs such conduct. Therefore, we can say that deviance is dependent on the established norms and laws in a certain society. Deviance encompasses a wide range of other acts of nonconformity, from variations in hair styles to murder.TYPES OF DEVIANCESocietal Deviance includes those conduct or behaviors that do not conform to the categories or standards that are generally accepted by a certain society.For example, to exhibit dirty finger to your teacher is socially unacceptable, and thus is socially deviant. The judge of one’s conduct is therefore the people in general and they based their judgment on what are the established social norms that they used to live with. Situational Deviance, as compared to societal deviance is said to be more localized, th at is, determining whether an act in deviant or not depends on a single situation. For example, in cases of cops and soldiers on field or in a battle situation are faced with situational deviance.These people need, by demand of duty, to kill their enemies. Killing is by religious and criminal norms not allowed, and therefore deviant. Criminal Deviance is by simple definition a deviance from juridically established norms. When we say, juridical, it has something to do with laws and legality.Any act that deviates or does not conform to and violates established laws are criminally deviant. For example, to be impulsive is not criminally deviant but impulsiveness that lead to inflicting physical injury to others or that of murder is criminally deviant because it violates established laws.Psycho-pathological Deviance implies a shifting from normality (S. Di Nuovo). Abnormal modes of behavior are not crimes but require sanctions as compulsory psychiatric treatments. Antisocial personality disorder which includes inability to conform to legal or social rules, dishonest behavior, being impulsive and aggressive and irresponsibility are deviant conducts that are considered psycho-pathological. Note that these deviant behaviors do not necessarily criminally deviant but these deviant conducts may lead to criminal conduct such as being impulsive may lead to fighting then to murder.Primary Deviance relating to activity that is initially defined as deviant (Edwin Lamert) Secondary Deviance corresponds to a person who accepts the label of deviant. Secondary deviance according to Erving Goffman begins when a person acquires a stigma. Stigma, according to Goffman, is a powerfully negative label that radically changes a person's self-concept and social identity.FACTORS THAT INFLUENCE DEVIANT BEHAVIORS BIOLOGICAL FACTORSGenetics has found out that there is somehow a biological factor that influences an individual’s deviant behavior.The connection between a specific pattern of chromosomes has been shown to be related to deviant behavior; however, there are still not enough studies that will prove that this statement is true. But there are disorders in children that directly influence a deviant behavior.Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a very strong indicator for future conduct disorders. Vaxa. com has provided a medical definition of ADHD as a â€Å"family of related chronic neurobiological disorders that interfere with an individual's capacity to regulate activity level and contributes to impulsivity, inattention and distractibility.† It is specifically a dysfunction of the Central Nervous System (CNS), most specifically the Reticular Activating System, which results in difficulties of maintaining attention and concentration, learning and memory, as well as involving an inability to process and sort out incoming information or stimulus from both an individual's inner (subjective) and outer (objective) worlds.This disorder therefore r esults to the child’s misbehavior such as being hyperactive and impulsive, which are behaviors that are far different from how he is suppose to act and apart from what is considered to be normal, and thus considered deviant.Another disorder called Oppositional Defiant Disorder medically defined as â€Å"a pattern of negativistic (skepticism), uncooperative, defiant, disobedient, and hostile behavior toward authority figures that continues for a minimum of 6 months† (axa. com). Deviant behaviors exhibited by individuals with this disorder include willful disobedience, defying instructions and requests and arguing with adults.PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORSPsychological explanations of deviance concentrate on individual abnormalities involving personality. However, subsequent studies found flaws on the psychological correlation of deviant behavior.Geocites. com enumerated three basic reasons why psychological factors should be ignored. First, most serious crime is committed by peo ple who are psychologically normal. Second, cross-cultural differences in what is deemed normal and abnormal tend to be ignored. And third, the fact that people with similar psychological qualities are not equally as likely to be labeled deviant is not considered.SOCIAL FACTORSAs has been stated earlier, deviance does not necessarily be criminal deviance because there are established social norms that measure an individual’s behavior as deviant or non-deviant.It is therefore but fair to conclude that both conformity and deviance are defined by society. The degree of deviance is determined by the society according to socially accepted behaviors existing in a certain society. The society therefore somehow dictates how an individual should behave.For example, in a religious community, smoking and drinking alcohol are deviant acts as these directly opposed by, in example, the Christian religion. So an individual who mingles with the Christian community will try to behave in confo rmity with the existing norm.On the other hand, communities which view smoking and alcohol drinking as an indicator of social status, as with the elites, consider these behaviors as non-deviant, and thus are normal actions.CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE AND CRIMINAL DEVIANCECivil disobedience is a form of protest in which protestors deliberately violate a law (P. Suber). Originally, the main purpose of civil disobedience is to appeal to the public about certain issues through protests or public demonstrations. On most occasions, issues that drives civil disobedience concerns political and moral issues.For example, laws that legalize euthanasia and death penalty have brought about many protests and public demonstrations. In such instances, participants usually violate traffic rules and trespassing.Their violations therefore are covered by civil laws. On the other hand, criminal deviance is covered by criminal laws. Murder and the use of prohibited drugs are criminal violations and therefore are criminal deviance. Although both deviance and violations are punishable, they are distinguished as to what laws cover such deviance.Deviant behaviors are measured and defined by established rules in a certain community, whether they be formal or informal rules. These behaviors are influenced by biological, psychological and social factors to certain degrees.Deviance does not necessarily violates legally or juridically established rules leading to the conclusion that criminal deviance is inherently behavioral deviance but not all deviant behaviors are criminal deviance. Civil disobedience and criminal deviance are distinguished by the laws that govern such violations.

The Thread That Runs So True A Brief Summary

The vivid detail puts the reader into era that Stuart lived. He gives some information about his life, but most importantly he tells about the community in which he taught school and the ideas of the people around that time, and the emphasis they put on education. He talks about his sister and how that may have been the deciding factor that made him choose to teach. He talk about Lonesome valley and the people there, along with his long time friend Don Conway. Guy Hawkins is probably one of the most pivotal people in his career he came across.Some of the things Stuart had to do in his career would definitely not be acceptable in this day a time. The first chapter of the book tells how his decision to teach and where he chose as his first school was at. His sister had taught there a year earlier and one of the students Guy Hawkins had blacked both her eyes and beat her up pretty bad. He lied about his age to get the teaching certificate. His parents questioned his motive for teaching and choosing the school he chose. He assured them it was not for vengeance.Stuart was not intentionally looking for a fight but he was determined not to let them get away With hurting his sister. When he got the job he was shocked at the condition of the school house ND how the people in the area didn't make their kids go to school. He did understand in those times all members of the family had to help with the chores of the house. Once the crops were harvested then the attendance picked up. It was a one room school with grades one through eight. He was expecting the student who beat up his sister to in ideate the encode enter.One that Stuart was not looking forward to he was smaller than Guy. Late one day Guy came sneaking around the school looking for Stuart. In the school house he confronted him and told Stuart about beating up his sister and he was ongoing to do the same to him. Stuart had run this encounter through his mind more than once his preparedness gave him an upper hand . When Guy lunged for Stuart it was pretty much over from the start. Stuart was the victor he won the fight. But more importantly he won the respect of Guy and the whole community.Stuart was the only person to defeat Guy in a fight. Plus Lonesome Valley people lived with the mentality might makes right. The stronger your was the better. He cleaned up the school house and repainted it. The next year he had a better idea of what he had to do. The attendance picked up, he was involved in his kid's lives. And he showed a lot in the community how a proper education was worth its weight in coal. One of the people in the community came by with a wagon of coal. He had his students estimate its weight.When the man took it to market he was shocked to see he had been cheating himself for many years because he was inaccurately calculating how much he had. Jesse realized how politics and social structure played a part in the general lives. People judged everyone on just about everything where th ey went to church what they wore, or who they talked to. It was a very judgmental and politically motivated time. He became interested in a women in the next town, he tells about one night getting ambushed while walking to see her. He was egged and had gunshots fired over his head.He took his class out of this one room school and put them against a city school in an academic challenge and won. Shocking most of the people in the big city school who made fun of the group as they entered town. His way of teaching and figuring what needed to be done in the classroom was what got his students the achievements they did. His determination to succeed is what fueled his willingness to teach. From his time at this school he went on to be principal at Landlubbers High. He still walked to school because teacher salaries were not much.It took dedicated people to be teachers. He faced similar challenges as far as attendance goes. He started his career as principal walking to school five miles it was then he found out people were questioning if he died his clothes because they were discovered. That is when he learned of an unwritten rule about the principal having to live in town. When he moved to the local hotel e seen why he had attendance problems. His students were out all hours of the night. He observed them drinking, gambling and rebel rousing.He came across a game behind the school fence one day as he walked by he asked ‘ oho was winning† causing the students to scramble. He said nothing to them it was the anticipation that was torturing the students. But one thing he learned was if the POT was not in agreement he was not going to get anywhere with punishments. When they called a meeting and during the meeting he was accused of letting it go on he confronted them. Telling them exactly what he observed and what children were involved, many were prominent figures in the community.It was then that he was able to implement changes and make the school better fo r all the students at the time. Throughout Stuart career as an educator he had many trials and triumphs. What was amazing is how education was view at the time. The emphasis was not to educate but to give them something to do in the off season of farming in rural Kentucky. In the city it was not as much as the off season but the social standing was what decided whether the child was a success in life. It as interesting to see how much teachers got paid and how they were at the mercy of the people who sponsored them.

Edward Estlin Cummings Essay

E. E. Cummings is a poet who is undeniable unique and the majority of his work highly stylized, modern, and controversial. The bulk of his work is usually recognized and noted for his awkward use of letters, structure, and mislaid punctuation. While Cummings is most known for variation on form, his poetry has great depth and meaning. Cummings is the quintessential 19th century poet who stated â€Å"The day of the spoken lyric is past,† and warns that â€Å"The poem †¦ it builds itself, three dimensionally, gradually, subtly, in the consciousness of the experiencer† (Kennedy). Embodying transcendentalism completely, he understood that to live is to constantly be experiencing, changing, and growing. This theme is revisited in his work again and again. Therefore, E. E. Cummings is most strongly influenced, like so many other authors by, by events of his life. Eve Triem, in American Writers, explains that Cummings was born to Edward Estlin Cummings to Edward and Rebbecca Cummings in 1894, both of which were highly intelligent and respected in the community. His father was a professor at Harvard University and his research centered around studying people. He had also been trained as a minister and preached at a local church. Cummings mother, Rebecca, came from a very prestigious family and play a major role in all the social, political, and cultural ongoings in her community (Triem). Cummings had the luxury of the perfect childhood. They spent their winters in Boston and summered in the beautiful farms of rural New England. Triem explains it was here that Cummings, as a youngster, fell in love with nature. These beautiful childhood images would become so embedded in Cummings memory that they were the central images in many of Cummings’ most memorable poems. As explained in Contemporary Literary Criticism, Cummings’ parents encouraged him to study and read as often as possible and offered him their â€Å"full support†. Kennedy states that Cummings, as a young adult. kept a â€Å"journal† of his inner most thoughts at his mother’s request. His mother believed, almost from birth, that Cummings would become a great author and take his place among the ranks of Longfellow. She ensured that his bed stories were from the greatest writers of the time, Dickens and Stevenson. Cummings was highly educated. His home life was focused on literature. Cummings would memorize and recite pieces of stories, and poetry. In addition, he was also a very capable painter who enjoyed illustrating his own writings (â€Å"E. E. C ummings†). As an adolescence he became very involved in his high school newspaper and also the Cambridge Review. â€Å"While Cummings was in school he helped to found the Harvard Poetry Society. He and some of his friends in the society put together Eight Harvard Poets (published in 1917)† (Triem). The Cambridge Review would be the very first place to publish Cummings’ early writing. However, his poetry was still passive and not entirely well received. Though this initial experience of actually being taken seriously inspired Cummings to keep writing and to push the limits of what was considered proper and acceptable. After graduating high school, Cummings followed in his father’s footsteps and entered Harvard. He received a traditional education and earned degrees in Literature and the Classics. Cummings â€Å"was educated in public schools and at Harvard University where he received an A. B. , magna cum laude, and an M. A. for English and classical studies. † (Triem). His analyzing his skills were unparalleled. Much of his interest during this time centered around Shakespeare. He would closely with literary historians who studied Shakespeare’s use of narration and literary devices. It was during this time that Cummings became to experiment with allegory in his poetry. Kennedy asserts that Cummings utilized his formal education and his father’s religious writings to author many essays, short stories, and poems. His work was regularly published in the Harvard Advocate and Harvard Monthly. However, Cummings questioned his skill and wondered if his position in life had effected how people viewed his poetry. In the early 1900s, Cummings was exposed to Cubism and Impressionism. Both of which influence his writing style. He believed that his poetry had home within the modern art movement. â€Å"But by 1918 Cummings had created his own poetic style. Because he was a painter as well as a poet, he had developed a unique form of literary cubism: he broke up his material on the page to present it in a new, visually directed way† (Kennedy). It was during this time that he practiced and created his ever popular variation on poetic structure that he is famous for. He was inspired by the aggressively unique modern artists, specifically Czanne and Gaudier-Breska. Similarly, he looked to modern poets and particularly related to the work of Sandburg and Whitman. Cummings loved lyrical poetry and manipulated the standard structures – intentionally using words, punctuation, and syntax in awkward ways. Cummings’ goal was for poetry not to just sound a particular way, but also have a unique and meaningful visual style (Kennedy). His poetry became extremely tight and well built. He carefully constructed each poem with specific word choice and arrangement creating poetry which was both visually stimulating and meaningful. He visited Paris often and was constantly inspired by the European art movements. Kennedy explains that these â€Å"influences that appear in his increasing experiment with language and ventures into irrational modes of expression in his poem. † Cummings used repetition, extended songs, and words in written in lines to give the allusion of action. An example of his unique style is below: mOOn Over tOwns mOOn whisper less creature huge grO pingness (excerpt from Cummings poem No Thanks, as quested in Triem) Triem explains that Cummings uses this unique structure and style â€Å"to focus the reader’s attention a capital letter may be thrust into the middle of a word. In the opening poem of No Thanks capitals are used to imitate the roundness of the moon and to imply the eternity of the circle. † Though Cummings’ poetry was popular, he made his living in the publishing field. After graduation he took a desk job at a publishing company. This type of job allowed Cummings to focus almost completely on his poetry and prose. It was during his time here that he had the chance to review and be influenced by the world’s news events and read obscure history. Triem believes that this type of exposure produced his famous poem, Buffalo Bill s defunct. He was a prolific writer and continud to hone his skills as a painter. Contemporary Literary Criticism reports that as the first great war approach, Cummings, with the urging of his family decided to volunteer instead of being drafted. He served in a medical division in France. This particular assignment worked well for Cummings because he did not agree with war. â€Å"Cummings was completely charmed by the bohemian atmosphere of Paris and its abundance of art and artists† (â€Å"E. E. Cummings). In addition, France was a place he had never been and full of new adventures and people. Simply by accident his military paperwork was temporarily lost and he had some extra time to visits the streets of Paris. It was in Paris that Cummings, for the first time was away from the oppressive and prudish nature of American society (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). Contemporary Literary Criticism reports that â€Å"during this period, Cummings eschewed upper-class Cambridge values and frequented circuses, bordellos, pubs, and vaudeville and burlesque shows† . Within the burlesque halls and streets lined with prostitutions, Cummings experience a sexual freedom which is well documented in his most controversial poetry. His time in the military was extremely tense. Cummings was intentionally obtuse and did not make an effort to fit in. Cummings was openly artistic and spoke openly about his political views. He often complained about the other men he worked with and was constantly writing to his family about his uncomfortable conditions (Triem). Cummings was so outspoken that the French government actually read and censored his letters home to his family and friends. He became a target of the authorities who watched everything he did and wrote very carefully. The authorities believed that Cummings might be some type of spy and he was placed in a French jail for a couple of months (Kennedy). Cummings found a common bond with the people he was imprisoned with this was the inspiration for his novel called The Enormous Room (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). With the help of his prestigious family he was released and sent home in 1918. The Enormous Room is â€Å"considered a classic of World War I literature, this work concerns the preservation of dignity in a degrading and dehumanizing situation† (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). Contemporary Literary Criticism reports â€Å"it also examines themes that Cummings would pursue throughout his career–the individual against society, government, and all forms of authority†. Cummings went to live in New York where he surrounded himself with friends and peers within the arts (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). Many of which supported and encouraged Cummings to keep writing and painting. Cummings’ painted his most well known piece called â€Å"Traffic†. He continue to write and his uniquely structured poetry was published in local papers and was often debated (Kennedy). Cummings soon fell in love with Elaine Thayer. It was Elaine which is the basis for the majority of Cummings erotic and sensual poetry. His love and desire for her is undeniable. Elaine soon became pregnant, and was still married. The situation was extremely tense because Cummings could not openly father his baby daughter, Nancy. Years later, Elaine divorced and the couple was married in overseas (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). Kennedy explains that their relationship lasted one year and then they divorced. Cummings separation from his daughter was related in much of his poetry and paintings. Cummings’ first novel, The Enormous Room, was about his experiences during the war. While the novel was not actually publish until 1922 and it received a great deal of positive feedback from the literary world because Cummings presented such a horrific subject in an unique and first person perspective. During this time his poetry was also gaining popularity. Cummings’ poetry was being published in the Dial,Vanity Fair as well as other literary journals. It was not until later 1923 that Cummings published his first volume of poetry called Tulips and Chimneys (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). In the next two years he published two more volumes of poetry. With each volume of poetry he became more and more popular. The most intriguing part of Cummings’ works is that he is an author with many talents and tools. He had the ability not just to write poetry but also dramas, prose, satire, and journaling. He was a great painter and sketch artist. Cummings was witty and charming with a quick intellect which is obvious in his poetry. Puns, satire, and slang are often seen in his poetry to create humor while incorporating his comments about political, social, and cultural issues (Kennedy). Many of the themes Cummings developed and the literary tools he used set him apart of his peers during his time and throughout literature as a whole. Cummings have the ability to confront many parts of American life, especially Puritanism and Philistinism as well as a holistic approach to mankind. Contemporary Literary Criticism reports many of his poems preach independence and reliance which are the basis of transcendentalism. â€Å"Cummings effects a softer, more elegiac note, displaying his affinity with New England Transcendentalism and English Romanticism† (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). Cummings asserts that man must live alone to be free and when man lives among other men, he loses his humanity and soul. However, many of his poems are just about the basics- nature, romance, and the seasons. Cummings is easily separated by his peers by his use of lower case letters. His name alone foreshadows that his poetry is something different. â€Å"Cummings made varied use of parentheses: for an interpolated comment or to split or combine words as a guide to his thought. Frequently they occur, in poem-parables, to clarify the relationship between two sentences that run simultaneously through the poem† (Triem). According to Kennedy, Cummings often used alternative methods to express his what he was thinking and feeling. Cummings concentrated on misuse of syntax, often the verb and nouns are transposed. Kennedy continues to explains Cummings also used broken sentences combined with strong street dialect and popular sayings to create poetry most people had never seen before and his poetry as a whole was a â€Å"gathering of work in traditional verse forms as well as in his newest unconventional forms of expressiveness†. He even used traditional poem structure combined with free verse which has become associated with Cummings. â€Å"Cummings is remembered for his innovative, playful style, his celebration of love and nature, his focus on the primacy of the individual and freedom of expression, and his treatment of, in his own words, â€Å"ecstasy and anguish, being and becoming; the immortality of the creative imagination and the indomitability of the human spirit. (â€Å"E. E. Cummings†). It is the combination of the topics as well as his unique style that has created a reputation for Cummings as a modern poet. His poetry is often copied by young poets who are trying to find a style of their own. American lyric poet, a typographical innovator whose contempt for modern, collectivized society and love individuality is reflected in the novel arrangement and punctuation of his poems.