Edwin Arlington Robinson – "Richard Cory" and "Miniver Cheevy"

These two works are also very different, even though they are by the same author. They both tell stories of people yearning for something that they do not or can not have (Robinson). In "Richard Cory", everyone thought that he was the greatest thing on earth and that he had everything and could never be in want (Robinson). They went home and cursed the few things that they owned, when suddenly, Richard Cory killed himself by shooting himself in the head (Robinson). No one could believe it because of how amazing they thought he was, but he obviously wanted something that he could not have and he found no alternative solution (Robinson). In "Miniver Cheevy", Miniver is a young boy that was born in the time period that the work was written, but he had always wanted to be with King Arthur and his knights (Robinson). He always felt like something was missing and that he would never be able to do what he really wanted to do, because he really wanted to live in that time period, and that was basically all he could think about becuase his desires consumed him that much (Robinson). He was desperate for the chance to live with King Arthur, but he never got the chance (Robinson). These works fit in the Realist period becuase they are both realistic (Robinson). Often, it seems like the people that have the most or are the greatest are more likely to kill themselves, and it is totally plausible for someone to kill themselves(Robinson). It is also realistic that people feel like they were born in the wrong time period, and feel like they should be able to go back in time so that they could fit in and find somewhere to belong (Robinson). They are in the moment, and they are full of emotion as well (Robinson). These works are not in the Naturalist period, because they have nothing to do with science or the evaluation of humans or their reactions to certain situations (Robinson). These works are also not Regionalistic, because they have nothing to do with land or any regions whatsoever, so they can not be from the Regional time period (Robinson). These works reflect society pretty well, because they proclaim that everyone wants something that they can not have, and they can go mad over not getting it (Robinson). These works have nothing with religion or with government, and there is nothing in there about nature (Robinson). These do reveal things about human nature, however, and they are things such as the need for more and the desire to have the best (Robinson). These ideas have been taught to people since they have been born, and by this time it is human nature to want to have and be the best. These works have not much about the American Dream, except for the fact that they both want something that they can not have (Robinson). There is no figurative language, and there is nothing about a Hero, because these poems end well for neither of the subjects (Robinson). Robinson did a good job in writing these poems, because they are intruiging and the endings are unexpected.

Robinson, Edwin A. ""Richard Cory"/"Miniver Cheevy"" American Literature. Comp. Jeffrey D. Wilhelm, Douglas Fisher, Beverly A. Chin, and Jacqueline J. Royster. Columbus: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2009. 573-76. Print.