Poem study 1- James Shirley (1596-1666) ‘Death the Leveller’ Essay

The poem remainder the Leveller was compose for the upper class educated. galore(postnominal) other nation could not understand it. It holds many words that people in the late 1500s didnt understand. Words like Sceptre- an ornamental rod held by a king/queen as a symbol of power are used in termination the Leveller. Shirleys argument is that a high rank+ position wouldnt last and we squirtt def annihilate ourselves from death. He tries to make us see that good and just actions will personify on, nevertheless no matter how rich or poor you are, we will all be judged the same(p) in death. goal the Leveller also has a rhetorical side, and Shirleys tries to put his point across by using phrases like The boast no more about your mighty deeds.The structure of Death the Leveller is a 3-stanza poem of similar shape and length giving it a stereotypical look, except for lines 5 and 6 of each stanza were the lines are given emphasize, as they are the main parts. Words used in lines 5 and 6 of each stanza are very similar, exampleSceptre and Crown must tap down and Early or late, they stoop to fate. Two words that dont hoar are used first, and then the last word of the line always rhymes with the third word used. Many of the words and phrases used are symbols of royalty such as Crown, Garland and Swords and Armor are used. These are a sign of war or battle. Death the Leveller generally has a rhyme age of AB, AB, CC, AD. Come and tomb in stanza three are an exception.The poem is written in English, and was printed at the m of the parliamentary victory for Oliver Cromwell and the execution of King Charles I. Undoubted, such drastic events traumatized writers like Shirley who had sympathized with the monarch. Thats why he uses royalty in Death the Leveller and death as the main theme. He uses personification with death, example Death lays his icy hand on kings. Shirley has given death an icy hand which is placed upon something that Shirley once sympathized with , but is now gone. He uses alliteration in Death the Leveller to emphases the harshness of implements used in burial.The shadow of Death the Leveller is a slow, eerie shadiness that someone speakingat a funeral might use. The tone rest the same except when emphasizing harshness of cutting implements. It then transmits back to the normal tone at the last two lines, but gets a bit softer when the poem concludes to bring back the death feeling. The tone throughout Death the Leveller is generally the same, but when colons are used its emphasized. Yet at the end of line six on the last stanza, a colon is used to show a change in tone and structure.In conclusion, Death the Leveller is an eerie, chilling, serious and somber poem with a hint of melancholy. Its tone can be quite mocking and ironic in reference to those who were successful in the past. The loudspeakers attitude is very determined and patriotic and run on lines add strength and spurring to argue his point, which is,We ar e all equal in death, some whitethorn have money, some may have nothing. Yet when it comes to death, we are judged purely on what is inside.