By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) Emily Dickinson (1830-86) is one of the most original poets of the nineteenth century. If we set her work alongside that of her contemporaries, perhaps it is only Walt Whitman, who pioneered free verse, and, in Britain, Gerard Manley Hopkins, who opted for ‘sprung […]
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A Summary and Analysis of Bret Harte’s ‘The Outcasts of Poker Flat’
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘The Outcasts of Poker Flat’ is a short story by the American writer Bret Harte (1836-1902), published in 1869 in the Overland Monthly magazine. The story helped to confirm Harte’s reputation as an exciting new talent, and by 1871 he was the highest-paid writer […]
11 of the Best Synonyms for ‘Poetic’
By Dr Oliver Tearle Sometimes we might wish to describe something as ‘poetic’: we might speak or write of an author’s or speechmaker’s ‘poetic turn of phrase’ or describe the style of a novel as ‘almost, at times, poetic’, or something similar. We all know what ‘poetic’ means: having the […]
The Curious Hidden Meaning of ‘Poker Face’ by Lady Gaga
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) ‘Poker Face’ is a 2008 song by Lady Gaga, written by Lady Gaga and the Moroccan singer and record producer RedOne. But although the song was recorded and first released in 2008, it was in 2009 that it became a worldwide smash hit – […]
10 of the Best Examples of Similes in Poems
By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University) A simile is a literary device whereby you liken one thing to another, using the word like or as. Sometimes we use similes in everyday language: describing someone as being as sick as a parrot, for instance. This can be contrasted with metaphor, which […]