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Essay / The Bird Nature of Man in Symmons Roberts Hitchcockian
Symmons Roberts introduces us to the idea of the primal instinct and savagery that is always part of human nature; he compares our natural behavior to that of birds. The poem is obviously not about birds attacking people despite the connection to Hitchcock's film "The Birds", but is about the soul, feelings and instinct and doing "what your heart tells you to do.” This suggests that we each have some sort of "bird" inside of us, and while we may or may not discover what it is exactly, we simply know of its existence. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The first stanza of the poem creates an ominous and uncomfortable feeling, as the midpoint of the first line gives an unexpected and dramatic impact and is then followed by the almost eerie imagery of "chirping" birds. The idea of these birds watching you and "chirping" gives the speaker a slight discomfort while the sinister, childish tone evokes thoughts of paranoia and unease. The imagery of these birds is developed further in the third line when they are described as having "ringed and pit-like eyes", giving the image of evil in their deep, dark eyes. This causes immediate discomfort in the speaker, and they will further discover that the poem suggests that this evil is in fact a part of them, making imagery a very effective technique. The feeling of wildness is developed in the second stanza, as the "The tap-tap-tapping sound forms in the speaker's mind an image that the birds are after them, they are knocking on the windows and searching for them, which is linked to the sense of thrill of Hitchcock's film. This primitive but frightening action is then described as having "the urgency, hunger and brutal sense of nature"; this climax helps produce the sense that human nature is no different from that of birds, as the motif of three foreshadows the motif of three used in the last line of the last stanza. The “rough sense of nature” refers to the primal instinct found not only in birds and other animals, but also in humans. This suggests that beneath our apparent civilization, we all have primal drives and will all act accordingly. The third stanza is where birds stop being described and the image of a “single egg” inside each of us is introduced. The metaphor of comparing the egg to the heart emphasizes the fragility of the heart and soul, and in the last line of this stanza we understand that this egg is cracking due to its fragility. This symbolizes how easy it is to descend into savagery, and the fact that the egg is "housed" suggests that it is neither permanent nor safe; this highlights the uncertainty. Symmons Roberts uses the expression “la petite mort” which in French means “the little death” or “orgasm”. Depending on how you translate and interpret this sentence, you may get a different meaning from this line of the poem; if we think of it as "the little death", the juxtaposition placed immediately before a description of birth suggests the pain as we discover the "bird" or "instinct" inside us. There is further juxtaposition when the type of birds is explained. as it "could be a brown wren, a bird of paradise, a dull rook", as the more positive image of a "bird of paradise" is compared to the boring images next to it , which highlights his rarity and the increased desire to be like him. , to have this type of “egg” placed inside you. “The Little Death”..