A Comparative Essay between two poems: "The jaguar" and "The Domescity of Giraffes".

Good morning/afternoon ………… and class. I present myself here to talk to you about how many poets use the world of nature to comment on the world of man. To accomplish this, I will refer to two poems called The domesticity of Giraffes by Judith Beveridge and The Jaguar by Ted Hughes. Mans relationship with nature is portrayed by Judith .1. Beveridge and Ted Hughes in their poems, The Domesticity of Giraffes and The Jaguar. They both express their views in their poems about 2 animals in a zoo. The two of them also have a negative opinion which creates a link between their poems. A link is also produced by the devices used by both poets which are similes, metaphors, personification, imagery .2.Oxymorons, repetitions, onomatopoeia, figurative and descriptive language.

In Judith Beveridge’s poem, The Domesticity of Giraffes, she clearly expresses her point of view on man’s relationship with nature.

A portrait of Ted hughes by Rob Lycett. Date: Marc...

Hughes' birthplace at 1, Aspinall Street, Mytholmr...

English: Birthplace of Ted Hughes, Mytholmroyd. Lo...

Her point of view is that she disagrees with the captivity of animals. In this poem she explores the uncomfortable prospects of an animal cont .3.

Being held captive in a zoo. “Bruised-apple eyed she ruminates towards the tall building she mistakes for a herd”. This quote from stanza one uses imagery and descriptive language to depict the giraffes misery in the captivity of a zoo. The effect of these devices on the quote exposes the suffering of the giraffe. Suffering is a theme that is used in both poems. .4.The theme of suffering is also present in Ted Hughes’ poem The Jaguar. Just like Beveridge, his point of view is also a pessimistic one. In this case it a Jaguar that is held captive in a zoo. The Jaguar is a poem that displays suffering by the jaguar’s confusion. “Cage after cage seems empty”. This quote displays the suffering not only for the jaguar, but for the .5. other zoo animals as well. This quote also uses a repetition, which emphasizes the purpose of the quote which is to reveal the emptiness of the zoo which is the cause of suffering.

There are many other themes in these poems. One of them is Isolation.

Isolation in these poems is exposed by the loneliness shown by the two animals. .6.

In the Domesticity of Giraffes, isolation is a large issue. Even though the giraffe is with a bull, it is still lonely. Judith Beveridge takes advantage of this loneliness in her poem and uses this against the world of man. “Her gaze has the loneliness of smoke”. This particular quote clearly displays her loneliness. .7. This quote portrays the giraffe’s isolation by relating her loneliness to smoke.

In The Jaguar, it is presented that the jaguar is by itself in the cage. Even though the common jaguar is used to this, this jaguar is still angry because of the attention it’s creating. Also the quote “Cage after cage seems empty” displays the theme of isolation. .8.Again this quote uses repetition to, this time, emphasize the jaguar’s loneliness. Also this quote places an image in people’s mind of a row of empty cages which is a type of imagery.

The next theme I am going to discuss is freedom.

In these two poems, the poets have shown that man has deprived these two animals .9.

Of their freedom. They also reveal a flicker of hope for these two animals. Judith Beveridge has executed this in a clever way. “In the distance running she could be a big slim bird just before flight”. The derivation of this quote is that the giraffe could be free and that there is still some hope for the giraffe. But throughout the poem, Judith Beveridge stresses what little hope the giraffe has. .10.This quote uses an alliteration which creates a link in the sentence.

Ted Hughes has waited for the very last stanza in his poem to expose a little light of freedom. He informs the reader that man has done many wrong things but there is still a little hope for man to redeem itself. “Over the cage floor the horizons come”. This is the last line of the poem. And this line bears .11.Witness to the flicker of hope the jaguar has.

I thank you for your time and hope that you have learnt from my speech.

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Bibliographywww.alchemyit.com.au/users/paula/TheDomesticityofGiraffes.htmwww.wright.edu/~alex.macleod/summer05/300/jaguar.pdf

Jaguar front

English: Painting on Canvas

English: Ted Hughes Plaque Ted Hughes, Poet Laurea...