Ms.McCain
English AP-IV
April 5, 2013
When Life Gives you Time, Make it Last Life is a spontanoeus journey we all must travel on at one time or another that essentially takes our breath completely away. William Shakespere author of " Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore" demonstrates how life may be beautiful but fades away quickly. Edna St. Vincent Millay, author of “What My Lips Have Kissed, and Where and Why” presents how life itself may fade away but emotions and memories last forever.Shakespere and Millay both focous on the concept of life coming to an end but thorugh different perspectives. Shakespere sees time as the culprit to lifes end and lifes beauty. Millay sees life and time as something that …show more content…
Shakespere’s title Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore"” eludes to the theme of the poem. The poem begins by stating “Like as the waves make towards the pebbled shore, So do our minutes hasten to their end" the poet grabs our attention with this short line by highlighting the theme of life's end is as definite as the expectancy of a wave hitting the shore. While Shakespere is more direct with his theme of life end , Millay uses a more subtle approach. Millay uses symbolism with her poem to convey her emotions for her past memories of her loves. Within Millay's poem “What My Lips Have Kissed, and Where and Why”, “the lonely tree” (line 12 Millay) represents her lonesome feeling due to her old age. Millay’s “heart stirs with a quiet pain” (line9 Millay) for her fading memory of “what [her] arms have held” (line3-4 Millay). Both poets emphasize that “life and memories enevitabally will come to an end and lifes "minutes will hasten nto thier end"(line 2 Shakespere). Both poets recognize the dettioration of life. Life end is expected and spontaneous. Life happens quickly and with little regard to our well being and if we allow ourselves to waste our time then we become supceptible to watching our possible memories “vanish one by one” (line 10 Millay) right in front of our …show more content…
The diction in both poems signifies the end of life without memories or remeberance is dooming to oneself. Shakespere states in his poem " And yet to times in hope my verse shall stand" ( line 13 Shakespere),shows that even though death may be fall him his words will ring forever in life. One is unable recognize what memories have “come and gone” (line12 Millay) without the experience of life and death. Shakespere's poem often reiterates the end of life through his morbid diction. Shakespere states “Time doth transfix the flourish set on youth And delves the parallels in beauty's brow," shakespere is emphasizing the turmoil and destruction time places on the youth of life and everything significantly beautiful. Both poems are intended to be read in a slow pace which adds to the dramatic affects of the morbid diction. The use of such morbid diction attracts the reader’s eye's and helps the meaning of the theme by emphasizing the seriousness of the