Richard Cory" and "Miniver Cheevy

Edwin Arlington Roberts led a tragic life. By the time he was six he had already began to wonder why he had even been born (Meet). After having been accepted to Harvard he was only able to complete two years before his families financial issues forced him to forget about his education. Within just a few years of each other both his mother and father died, one brother became a drug addict and the other brother became an alcoholic. With such a terrible family life it is now wonder that all of his literature has a very ironic and satirical feel to it. In the poem Richard Cory Roberts relates the story of a man who is widely viewed as a very successful man, and someone everyone should try to emulate. The man is the perfect gentleman, never insulting anyone. Then one day he goes home and shoots himself in the head. The ending is very frank and surprising. During the poem Roberts relates how wonderful this mans life is and how everyone wishes they could be the man. When in the poem Roberts writes " And he was rich, yes, richer than a kind and admirable schooled in every grace: In fine, we thought that he was everything to make us wish we were in his place" (Roberts). Roberts uses this part of the poem to set up the ending to be more dramatic and ironic. This quote gets the reader to relax, and expect to read a nice calm poem. Then all of a sudden the next part reads " So on we worked, and waited for the light, and went without the meat, and cursed the bread; and Richard Cory, one calm summer night, Went home and put a bullet through his head." (Roberts). In the poem Miniver Cheevy the main character is going on about how he should have been born in a different age. How the idea of medieval suits of armor and swords appealed to him, and khaki outfits make him sick. Roberts writes " Miniver loved the days of old when swords were bright and steeds were prancing; the vision of a warrior bold would set him dancing" (Roberts). Many people have felt like they did not be long at some point in their life or that they should have been born somewhere else or in another time. Thats not the point of the poem though. The point of the has to do with the last line "Miniver coughed and called it fate, and kept on drinking" (Roberts) That last line shows those were idle thoughts of a drunken man. Like many of his works this poem ended with a bit of irony and something to make the reader think about whether them thinking about being born in another time is really such a good thought. Whats so bad about this time? Its the best period humanity has ever had, best life span, best everything. Oh well, back to drinking.

Robinson, Edgar Arlington "Richard Cory." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 575. Print.

Robinson, Edgar Arlington "Miniver Cheevy." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 576. Print.

"Meet Edgar Arlington Robinson." Glencoe Literature. Comp. Jeffery D. Wilhelm. American Literature ed. Columbus: McGraw Hill, 2009. 573. Print.