I think that the poem Richard Cory was really sad. It sounds like he had everything going for him. He was rich and it sad he was admired by others and he seemed to be a nice gentleman. He said good morning to others and he seemed to brighten everyone’s days, but I guess he was a little insecure inside because he committed suicide at the end I the story. I was honestly expecting a happier ending to the poem because everything was going so perfectly for him until the very last like where it said that he went home and shot a bullet through his head. This is really sad because I know some suicides really happen like this in real life. People see the victim as being really confident in everything they do, but in reality they are just really good at hiding their inner emotions. This went against the ideas of Emerson and Thoreau because they were into individualism. They believe that you could have a successful life just by living up to your full potential. I think that suicide is a very selfish thing for anyone to do. Just because you think that it is going to help you, it really hurts all of you friends and family more that you were suffering in the first place. I guess that the idea of Realism was accepted in the Realism time period. The characteristics of Realism say that Realism works will show the imperfections of life. I think that this situation would have been an imperfection. It also says that Realism was showing life as it really is, not as people think it should be. I think that they should not have talked about this man committing suicide, but that was how life really was, so they were not going to sugar coat the truth at all. This guy, Richard Cory was definitely more concerned about himself than anyone else around him. It was really selfish to kill himself because it negatively affected so many other people.
Diamond, Marie Josephine, ed. "realism." Encyclopedia of World Writers, 1800 to the Present. New York: Infobase Publishing, 2011. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= GEWW480&SingleRecord=True (accessed February 21, 2012).
I know this was essay was written a long time ago, but I'd like to respond anyway. I am trained in psychology, and I love poetry (and have studied poetry some.) And, both a psychological analysis and literary analysis of the poem point to the same thing: Happiness doesn't come from having what you want. It comes from wanting what you have. What you are saying -- that Richard Cory was selfish because his suicide hurt others -- is something our society emphasizes, but has nothing to do with the poem. (And, if this work was being submitted for a grade, it's important to realize that knowledge of the poem, and the ability to apply the analysis techniques one has learned in class, is what counts. Things people in general know, from outside class, don't give students points towards their grade.) The poem talks about how rich and physically attractive Cory was, but doesn't mention any family, or even friends, who might miss him when he dies. Instead, the poem is about how everyone was dissatisfied with their own lives, because Cory's life seemed so much better. But, his life wasn't better. Their lives were better than his, because he killed themselves and he didn't. Instead of "cursing the bread," because Cory had meat and they didn't, they should have thought about how good the bread was.
ReplyDelete*Their lives were better than his, because he killed themselves and he didn't, meant "Their lives were better than his, as shown by the fact that he killed himself and they didn't"
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