The Rainy Day by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

          Born on February 27, 1807, in Portland, Maine, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow became a Harvard scholar versed in several European languages. He was heavily influenced by Romanticism and made a name as a poet and novelist with works like Hyperion, Evangeline, Poems on Slavery and The Song of Hiawatha. He was also known for his translation of Dante’s The Divine Comedy. Longfellow died on March 24, 1882, in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Source: https://www.biography.com/people/henry-wadsworth-longfellow-9385673

The Rainy Day

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;

It rains, and the wind is never weary;

The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,

But at every gust the dead leaves fall,

And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;

It rains, and the wind is never weary;

My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,

But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,

And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;

Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;

Thy fate is the common fate of all,

Into each life some rain must fall,

Some days must be dark and dreary.

Short Analysis

        The poem talks about a sad moment in the life of man. The rain symbolizes the sadness that is felt by the speaker. It is implied that he was clinging to a past memory, which made him sad, because it was already a done moment in his life. However, in the last stanza, as mentioned by the lines, the speaker encourages himself to not give up for whenever the rain stops, a rainbow appears. There is always happiness waiting for you after the seemingly endless rain. 

Point of View

         The poem used the first person point of view. 

Figures of Speech

         Personification was used in the first (The vine clings) and last stanza (Be still, sad heart!). The title might also serve as a metaphor for sadness (Rainy Day).

Theme

   

         I believe the theme for this poem is "recovering from sadness" or "Hope or light amidst darkness."

Misery/ To Whom Shall I Tell My Grief? by Anton Chekhov

Anton Chekhov

          Anton Chekhov was born on January 29, 1860, in Taganrog, Russia. Through stories such as "The Steppe" and "The Lady with the Dog," and plays such as The Seagulland Uncle Vanya, the prolific writer emphasized the depths of human nature, the hidden significance of everyday events and the fine line between comedy and tragedy. Chekhov died of tuberculosis on July 15, 1904, in Badenweiler, Germany.

Source: https://www.biography.com/people/anton-chekhov-9245947

Vocabulary
mare- an adult female horse.
hunchbacked- having a back deformed by a sharp forward angle that forms a hump.
kopecks- a monetary unit of Russia and some other countries of the former Soviet Union, equal to one hundredth of a rouble.
epithets- an adjective or phrase expressing a quality or attribute regarded as characteristic of the person or thing mentioned.

Characters
Iona Potapov- main character of the story, a sleigh driver who recently lost his son and wife.
Military Officer- a busy man who rode the sleigh of Iona. He was disinterested with Iona's story.
Three Young Men (One hunchbacked)- (I referred to them collectively since they were similar) They rode Iona's sleigh after attending a party. The hunchbacked one made fun of Iona's clothes and cursed at him.
Young Man- he drank with Iona in the yard.
Mare - Iona's horse.

Setting
The story was set in a twilight evening, somewhere in Russia.

PLOT
Exposition
       Iona was introduced as a sleigh driver who was waiting all day for someone to ride. The mare also appeared in here.

Rising Action
       Iona found customers, his first customer being a military officer, who didn't show compassion or interest when Iona tried to talk about his troubles, and was set on reaching his destination as fast as he can. Saddened by this encounter, Iona waits for another customer.

Climax
       Iona had his second set of customers, three young men who came from a party. The hunchbacked one ridiculed Iona's set of clothes, which Iona responded to positively. They then proceeded to throw curses at him. He tried to tell the story of his son who died, but the hunchbacked one responded that all shall die someday, not showing any sympathy. More of Iona's story was revealed, as he stated that his wife also died. They then rushed him, without trying to listen to Iona's story.

Falling Action
        Returning to the yard, Iona found a young man, to whom he offered a drink. He tried to tell his story to the young man, yet the young man fell asleep. He then tried to recall all of the events that occurred in his life.

Conclusion

         He then took care of his mare. Desperately wanting to tell his grief to someone, he then told his story to the mare, who stayed with him as he told his story.

Symbolism

         I believe that this story represents the current state of our society, where society turns a blind eye to what happens to unfortunate people. They show no compassion for those who are less fortunate, while they indulge in pleasure. Iona was ignored too much, only having a mare to listen to his stories.

         The night and the snow may represent Iona's sadness. He was truly in the dark moments of his life. His wife and son died, and he doesn't have anyone to share the burden to.

Theme

          I believe that the story's theme is "despair and sorrow". His story was filled with sadness and grief. He cannot even share his story to someone. In this story, he was only kept company by a horse, but aside from that horse, he was alone.

Moral

         Do not turn a blind eye to those who suffer.
         Have compassion for the less fortunate.
         Ignore your status in society and help those who are in need.

A Night in the Hills by Paz Marquez Benitez

For information regarding Paz Marquez Benitez, please refer to this post: http://mohamadjoshuanarvajaliterature.blogspot.com/2018/01/dead-stars-by-paz-marquez-benitez_4.html

Vocabulary

azotea- a flat roof or platform on the top of a house or other building.

widowerhood- the fact or state of being a widower.
kaingin- employing a technique of clearing land by slashing and burning underbrush and trees and plowing the ashes under for fertilizer.

clambered- climb or move in an awkward and laborious way

stalwart- loyal, reliable, and hard-working.

Characters

Gerardo Luna- main protagonist of the story, a jewelry store salesman who is middle-aged, and always aspired to go to the forest.
His wife- a woman whose mind is centered on her business.
Ambo- an orchid gatherer, told many stories about the forest to Gerardo
Sotera/Ate Tere- she took care of Ambo and married him off to someone. She manages Ambo's life in a way.
Peregrina- owner of a pawnshop or jewelry store.She may like Ambo.

Setting: 

The first part of the story was held in Intramuros, while the other parts were held in the hills of Laguna.

PLOT

Exposition       Gerardo was introduced as a widower who always aspired to go to the forest, which was beautiful in his dreams.He kept this dream a secret from those around him for they only looked at profitable actions, and they also warned him that going to the forest will be rough on him. His desire was fueled more after hearing stories from Ambo, an orchid gatherer.

Rising Action

       His wife died, and now he was free to go to the forest, which he always dreamed off. He went under the guise of looking at public lands, which Sotera did not agree to. She believed that it was better for Gerardo to marry Peregrina and inherit a pawnshop, which is more profitable than buying land. Nonetheless, he still went and traveled to the hills together with Ambo.

Climax

       Gerardo arrived in the forest, only to realize that it was not as beautiful as what he imagined.Not only that, he also experienced different things which he never knew about the forest, like seeing the aftermaths of kaingin and thirsting for water while being drenched in sweat.

Falling Action       He experienced a lot of uncomfortable experiences.He also remembered and thought about God and his wife, which he remembered unpleasantly. He then realized that the forest wasn't as beautiful as what he thought.

Conclusion

        He went home and met Peregrina. He then decided to ask which was "very very important to him". 

Symbolism
       His whole experience represents the reality of life.There are times where we expect something to be exceptional, only to be left disappointed in the end. The forest represents someones dreams, aspirations, and imagination. It was described as beautiful, but when he experienced going to the forest once, he realized that it was different from what he thought of. It may also be interpreted in this way: there is always more to something. We only think of the beautiful aspect of the forest, without recognizing what are its bad sides.

Theme

       I believe that its theme would be something along the lines of "dreams vs reality".

Moral

       There is always a good and bad side to everything
       There is always more to everything.