Of all that breathes and crawls across the earth, our mother earth breeds nothing feebler than a man. so long as the gods grant him power, spring in his knees, he thinks he will never suffer affliction down the years. but then, when the happy gods bring on the long hard times, bear them he must, against his will, and steel his heart. which message from the passage is outside the cultural context of the author? a. hard times bring about a loss of faith in the gods. b. power is granted to humans rather than gained c. people must rely on themselves to overcome adversity. d. there are many gods who gave powers to humans.

“tell me o swan, your ancient tale” by kabir “the swan” by rilke “spanish dancer” by rilke “your laughter” by pablo neruda “birthplace” by shaffarzadeh “it’s this way” by nazim hikmet “counting small-boned bodies” by robert bly choose two poems that you would like to write about. analyze each poem. study the perspective, or point of view, of the speaker in each of the two poems that you select for this assignment. consider these questions: who is the speaker in each of these poems? what is the speaker’s tone? is there a conflict? is there a message? what does each of the poems have in common? what is different about each of the poems? which literary devices are used in the poems? are these literary devices found in both of the poems? what does the speaker hope to achieve in each of the poems? how are these achievements/goals been met? directions: using the two poems of your choosing, write a clear, concise, two hundred and fifty word essay that compares and contrasts the two poems. make sure you include at least two of the following to support your thesis: tone, point of view, literary devices, and meter.