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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 3 page paper discuses Thom Gunn's poem "A Map of the City." Bibliography lists 2 sources.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_HVGunMap.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
to touch everyone, but in a different way, is why poetry is so intriguing. This paper considers Gunns poem and discusses what he is describing, what the "map" is, what
he expects or hopes will happen, and whether the poem is contemporary or modern. Discussion One critic writes that the poem is an affirmation of the "human chaos of the
city" in which the poet sees the citys "concrete boredom and suffering but also its abstract potential for both satisfaction and danger" (Collins and Hilbert, 2003). From his perspective on
the hilltop, the poet can "get his bearings in relation to the city as a whole, as a map, so that when he descends into the maze again, he will
be able to navigate his way through its dangers and flaws" (Collins and Hilbert, 2003). He accepts that the "crowded, broken and unfinished" are as much a part of city
life as its richness, and concludes that the risk is acceptable (Collins and Hilbert, 2003). This analysis is good, as far as is it goes, but it seems superficial, as
if the writer had been unable to penetrate to the deeper meaning of Gunns poem. Lets look at it again. First of all, since hes on a hilltop the poet
has what might be considered a god-like perspective. That puts him in a place where he can not only look at the city, but judge it as well. There is
something menacing in this beings (we cant actually be sure its a person) scrutiny of the city, which claims that "every shape ... is mine" (Gunn). It could even be
that the speaker is Death, or perhaps a vampire, looking out over the city and choosing its next victims. There is something supernatural about this vantage point; something unnerving in
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