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Baudelaire: Difference between revisions
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==Her Hair== | ==Her Hair== | ||
==Themes== | ===Themes=== | ||
==Study Questions== | ===Study Questions=== | ||
==To The Reader== | |||
===Themes=== | |||
1. The evils on society and the temptations that we can't resist. It seems to be a recurring that theme that the general public can't resist the temptations that the devil throws at us. "The devil, watching by our sickbeds, hissed old smut and folk-songs to our soul, until the soft and precious metal of our will boiled off in vapor for this scientist." (1544). In this stanza from the poem we can see that the devil is merely a scientist testing experiments on society. When our sins come unbearable to us the devil uses his evil ways to tempt us. "Each day his flattery makes us eat a toad, and each step forward is a step to hell," (1544). Baudelaire is expressing is pessimistic view onto society, and complains of our lack of motivation to further ourselves from evil. "It's BOREDOM. Tears have glued its eyes together." (1544). | |||
===Study Questions=== | |||
1. What are the faults, or sins, that Baudelaire believes plagues the human race? | |||
2. Why do you think, according to Baudelaire, "we play to the grandstand with our promises"? | |||
===Relating to the Author=== | |||
Baudelaire had a very pessimistic outlook on society, he was continuously complaining that our free will isn't strong enough throughout the poem. He once said that "we must restrain our natural impulses in order to be good." In the 1st stanza of the poem we see that our infatuation, sadism, lust, and avarice are all natural impulses according to Baudelaire. More on our free will, in the poem he points out that the devils flattery is so strong that we would eat a toad just because he advised it. | |||
==Work Cited== | ==Work Cited== | ||