Modernist Poetry Discussion: Context, Work, and Conversation Analysis

This discussion post analyzes modernist poetry, focusing on the works of William Butler Yeats, Rainer Maria Rilke, and Pablo Neruda. The assignment begins with an exploration of the biographical context of these authors, followed by an analysis of their poems, including Yeats' "The Second Coming," Rilke's "The Panther," and Neruda's "Ode to the Tomato." The analysis examines the qualities of modernist literature present in these poems, such as experimental forms and themes. The response also includes a discussion of the authors' perspectives and the themes they explore, such as the impact of time, personal experiences, and the exploration of new forms of expression. The assignment seeks to understand how these poets shaped modern literature and the impact of their work on modern thought and culture.

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Author Note

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Modernist poetry involves new style, form, expression and have complex themes which are often
open ended in nature. Modernist poetry also marked an ideological shift as the poets broke away
from the archetypical modes, syntaxes and referential practices but attempts to establish a link
between thought and feeling though freedom of expression and personal imagination.
Some of the most prominent modernist poets are William Butler Yeats, Pablo Neruda and
Rainer Maria Rilke. The Second Coming, written by Yeats is very representative of the new era
as the poet amalgamates his personal ideologies with time, history and culture, The Second
Coming marks a passage of time which is symbolic of an apocalyptic world and a conviction
about a second coming. The narrative has been presented from a subjective point of view yet
Yeats asserts that “Surely some revelation is at hand; /Surely the Second Coming is at hand.”
Rilke is considered to be one of the most prominent writers in German language, writing
during the twentieth century and presenting haunting images of Christianity. His poems are deep
and have themes which concern anxiety, disbelief, solitude and so on. Even though it is much
debated whether or not Rilke was an entire modernist but several modernist themes as he was
one of the most conscientious artists whose works share a terrible intimacy with death. The
poem, The Panther is a remarkable piece of work as Rilke underlines numbness and
imprisonment. He presents a bleak picture of the world, which the modernists did which has
been symbolized by the caged condition of the panther, which dies at the end “An image enters
in, /rushes down through the tensed, arrested muscles, /plunges into the heart and is gone.”
The Ode to the Tomato do not conform to the illustrious history of the Odes written by
Romantics or Greeks as Neruda develops his own style of Ode, as he has done on the poem. He
takes the most common things and describes them in the most extravagant manner by beautifying
them, which can be interpreted in several ways.

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