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Essay / Robert Frost and Ted Hughes: Journeys in "Out, Out", "Daffodils" and "Red"
By embracing the concept of travel, we often reach our destination with a better understanding of ourselves and our surroundings current. After looking at the concept of travel, it became clear that our lives can be quite fickle. It is therefore crucial to value the insignificant things in life that we often take for granted. In “Birthday Letters,” Ted Hughes illustrates how unpredictable, irregular and fluctuating travel can be. Robert Frost supports this perception and expresses the insignificance of life in his poem “Out, Out”. Both texts showed me how unpredictable and unplanned travel can be. Appreciating and being grateful for the little things in life will bode well for us. This is expressed in the poems “Daffodils” and “Red” by Ted Hughes, where he symbolically describes the emotional journey of his marriage to Plath. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essayThe inclusive language at the beginning of Hughes's first poem “Remember how we chose the daffodils? ” shows how Hughes fondly recalls memories of the romantic start to their marriage and strengthens the bond they once shared. However, the language of the text abruptly changes tone: “She can’t even remember you.” This abusive language, coupled with the shift to the second person, contrasts effectively with the beginning of the poem and represents the problems they had with Plath's mental illness and ultimately the fall of their marriage. In the poem, Hughes refers to the daffodils as if they are struggling and suffering, this is the motif of their relationship. He personifies daffodils to create a feeling of unease and instability "among the sweet cries-/Of their maiden dancing dresses-/Of freshly opened dragonflies." From here, the audience can recognize that Hughes is uncertain and concerned about the connection between him and Plath. This culminates with his realization that his marriage, like the flowers, "opened too soon", expressing his regret at having lost the passion and warmth that was once felt in their relationship. Hughes shows how travel can often be unpredictable and fluctuating. It's important to appreciate moments of joy when they arise to avoid feeling Hughes' anguish. The tragic end of their relationship and Plath's debilitating mental illness are discussed in more detail in the final poem of "Birthday Letters", "Red". Hughes uses strong descriptive language to metaphorically wrap Plath in the color red: “But red/That was what you wrapped around you.” Hughes uses this color symbolism to represent his self-inflicted suffering and to show his animosity towards Plath. In the poem's final message, we are introduced to a new color as Hughes uses a metaphor to represent Plath's motherhood and grace with blue. "But the jewel you lost was blue", although Hughes displays the qualities of Plath that appealed to him, his bitterness is still evident and the audience is once again confronted with their disappointment that Plath was unable to overcome her illness even with the help of the motherhood, that she dropped her jewel and was consequently lost. Hughes illustrates his mistakes in taking the happiness of his marriage for granted and gives us a lesson to appreciate the little things in life. Thus, the poem reinforces to the audience that journeys always continue, because we regularly want to relive past experiences that we constantly yearn for. Ultimately, Hughes shows that travel not only allows us.