An Analysis of "Uphill"
In the past, symbolism in poetry has been an inspiration to write and has sometimes been the sole purpose of a poem: expressing a hidden meaning through an allegory which is a "literary, dramatic, or pictorial device in which characters and events stand for abstract ideas, principles, or forces, so that the literal sense has or suggests a parallel, deeper symbolic sense". This sort of device can be found in Christina Rossetti's poem Uphill, which has an outstanding example. The allegory itself is built over the course of the entire poem rather than just having it appear within two lines or so. Through each stanza one can easily find the symbolism appear between the two speakers: the inquirer and the one answering the questions. To find the meaning in the poem accurately and to discover whom the two speakers are, one has to go through the piece stanza by stanza. The first stanza holds the first instance of an ongoing conversation between two speakers; one asking various questions, and the other answering them with reassuring tone and also some warning. The first question is, "Does the road wind uphill all the way?" is answered by "Yes, to the very end." This obviously could mean anything, but a look at the second question
A few final thoughts on the poem as a whole: the poem, entitled "Uphill" is a dialogue between two unknown characters: one the Questioner and the other the Answerer. However, the two characters could represent God and a man/woman. They could also be a father and a child speaking of the future in a journey-like metaphor. The real identities of the speakers are probably God and a man/woman, since the Answerer has so many answers that seem to be full of wisdom. In turning to the pace of the poem, and to back up the assumption that the Answerer is God, if one reads the poem mindfully, it seems as thought the answers come immediately after the question is asked (read stanza one). It almost seems as thought the answers are interrupting the questions. This is a firm proponent of the idea that the Answerer is God. The poem Uphill, though it has a constant abab rhyme scheme but no constant rhythm, still gives us enough meaning through the poetic device "allegory" to make it a worthwhi! The last and fourth stanza holds perhaps the most comforting lines in the whole poem. "Shall I find comfort, travel-sore and weak?" asks the Questioner, and "Of labor you shall find the sum". "Will there be beds for me and all who seek" / "Yea, beds for all who come." These four lines put a nice cap on the poem thus far. The two speakers, the Questioner and the Answerer, have been discussing a journey and in doing so, the Answerer has had to calm the Questioners nerves by giving him hope of future comfort. This is the last stanza out of three that suggest future comfort. The first two lines offer compensation for labor: the fact that the Questioner can only find as much comfort as much
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1128
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)
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