Research Paper

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Saira Sandhu Professor Westrick English 1102 2 December, 2012 Research Paper The topic at hand is that of the use of symbolism, archetypes, and the mythical theme in order to convey messages to the audience. The poems “The Sandbox” by Edward Albee, “A Red, Red Rose” by Robert Burns, and “A Worn Path” by Eudora Welty all use the theme of archetypes and symbolism. Mythology in characters means that characters are usually of the supernatural type and their powers are beyond those of regular human beings. The mythical theme is used in “A Worn Path” when Welty uses the name Phoenix for an old lady who is supposedly reborn through her journey like the mythical creature, The Phoenix. “The Sandbox” also makes use of the mythical theme in that one of the characters represents the Angel of Death. Archetypes in a story represent or symbolize a universally understood symbol, term, statement, or pattern of behavior. This can also be a model of a person, personality, or behavior. Stereotypes and epitomes are often loosely related to archetypes. Some examples of archetypes would be the “caretaker” or “the hero”. Symbolism is used to represent things of a symbolic meaning or character. It can be an object, action, or idea that conveys something other than itself. An example of symbolism in one of these poems is how a rose is used to symbolize love. Welty initially released “A Worn Path” in a publication called The Atlantic Monthly. She eventually published over forty short stories, five novels, three works o nonfiction, and one children’s book. “A Worn Path” became one of Welty’s finest short stories for which she won second place for the O. Henry Award in 1941. “A Red, Red Rose” was originally a song, but it is often published as a poem. It was written in 1979 by Scots Robert Burns which was very popular when it was

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released. People have performed this song many times. “The Sandbox” was produced in 1959 and received an almost universally negative reception....