Provide examples of simile and personification in Walden.

It's not
surprising that Thoreau should usegiven his pantheistic worldview. Like all pantheists, he
regards everything in this worldfauna and flora, rocks and trees, man and animals, (indeed man
and God)as all linked together in a gigantic cosmic unity.

As far as Thoreau
is concerned, the features of the natural world he so deeply venerates have as much personality
as any human he's ever encountered; more so, in fact. We can see this point illustrated in one
particularly notable passage of , where he describes the lips of the
lake:

These are the lips of the lake, on which no beard
grows. It licks its chops from time to time.

The lake, of
course, isn't literally a mouth, let alone a human one. But Thoreau's use of personification
dramatizes the lake's presence in nature, allowing us to feel the same kind of connection to it
as Thoreau himself feels.

A great example ofcomes when Thoreau describes
humans in so-called civilized society as living "meanly, like...

What is the difference between a "request" and an "inquiry"?

As a
noun, the word "inquiry" is commonly defined as an act by which information is sought.
In this instance, it is used in the form of a question or a query.  Furthermore, the word can
also refer to a formal or official investigation. Synonyms in this regard would be
investigation, examination, probe, review, exploration, analysis, review, hearing, and
inquest.

As a verb, the appropriate form is "inquire" and it has
the same meanings as defined above. 

A request (in its noun form) is defined
as an act in which one asks for something to be done or given, mostly as a favor, solicitation,
or petition. Synonyms in this regard would be plea, petition, application, call, demand, appeal,
and entreaty.

If used as a verb, it means to politely or formally ask for
something.

The difference between the two words should be clear from the
above definitions. To further clarify the contrast, one may look at the context in which each
word is used, as in the following examples:

Inquiry:

The committee lodged an
inquiry in which it sought more information on what it believed was excessive
expenditure.

Upon my inquiry about her whereabouts, she explained that she
had been to the grocer.

A medical inquiry has a very formalized
structure.

At his inquiry, Peter informed them that he lived in Aberdeen and
that he had been unemployed. 

I instituted an inquiry to determine the facts
of the matter.

You should inquire why the task was not completed.

I inquired why such a large batch of documents had to be completed.

Request:

The teacher's request for more
funding was turned down by the board.

I rolled down the car window at my
passenger's request.

The agreement was signed after the president's request
that they come to some kind of accord.

The student was told that he should
request permission to leave the classroom.

"I hope I have fulfilled your
request for greater care," said Norman.

The community lodged a request
with the council for greater protection.

Which era, in term of treasuring enriched literature, contributed more: Anglo-Saxon or Anglo-Norman?

Both periods
of English history have produced pieces of literature we treasure, but in terms of English
literature, more treasured pieces have come down to us from the Anglo-Norman period. This is not
to say that the Anglo-Saxons didn't value or produce great literature, but less of it has
survived.

The main work in the English literary tradition that is treasured
from Anglo-Saxon literature is Beowulf. It's difficult to overestimate the
value of this work. It has provided anof the knight-hero slaying the monster/dragon that became
a common motif in Anglo-Norman literature, usedin ways that were imitated by the Anglo-Normans
(not to mention modern writers), and provided a template that has in many ways, through writers
like Tolkien, become immensely popular in twentieth and twenty-first century fantasy
literature.

A greater volume of treasured literature, however, survives from
the Anglo-Norman period. At that point, the Normans had invaded and conquered England, and the
Germanic English language became heavily inflected with French and romance language elements.
The shift in language was so dramatic that it became called Middle English. This is the first
language that is close enough to modern English, at least in its London , that we can read as
recognizable, if alien, English.

This later Medieval period produced a great
flourishing of literature, and we remember such towering figures as Chaucer and the Gawain poet,
and the growth of such genres as rood poetry, allegorical religious drama, and Arthurian
romance. So many genres developed and flourished during this period, from bawdy humor to
deeply-felt emotional poetry that the Renaissanceand the modern erahas had much to borrow
from.

Is there any figurative language (similes, metaphors, personification, symbols) in the poem "Smalltown Dance" by Judith Wright and what is their...

The
referenced poem, Smalltown Dance by  has several metaphors. The poem
features a sheet €“ or the operation of folding it €“ which it describes as a dance. The dance
begins with arms wide: together: again: two forward steps: hands meet and the reader can just
imagine the steps of the dance and at the end spread arms: then close them leaves the reader
with no illusions as the dance ends.

There is definite confusion within the
poem and the poet is conflicted. The sheets are referred to as high-scented walls in the
second verse but  "they wrapped and comforted bringing an element ofbut only briefly as we
return to the clean corridors of hiding. Furthermore,€¦ "saying, Your sins too are made
Monday-new is personification as the sky €“ the roof with blue-  encourages what is
apparently a child - to "see ahead.   This figurative language gives the second verse a
reminiscent quality, remembering a world of possibilities when there is still a change to
"run,run!". 

Life, however,  develops a fence and opportunities
to get out are few. The sheets are representative of the effort to get away as they struggle
from the peg but do not travel far. Life restricts the womens movement but there is no money
for travel and where danger lies personifies danger as if it is  tangible and more than just a
possibility so it is better to keep things orderly.

The use ofin the last
verse does give closure to any thought of those beckoning roads. Closing the cupboard door is
significant as dreams must remain dreams and reality returns.

To what degree were the U.S., Great Britain, Germany, the USSR, and Japan successful in regards to their efforts in economic mobilization during the...

This is
an enormous question that can't really
be answered fully in this small space. But a few
generalizations can be made.
Both Germany and Japan had put their economies on a war footing
years before
the actual outbreak of hostilities.An important factor to remember with respect
to
the German economy was that they used massive slave labor forces, as did
the Japanese in China.
The Soviet Union, having been accustomed to massive
mobilization efforts during the 1930s,
were...

How is American imperialism of the late 1800's similar or different to today's foreign policy?

There are
major similarities between these two foreign policies.  

In each case, the
policy was based on economic, military, and cultural/political ideas.  The US wanted an empire
in the 1800s in part so it could have access to raw materials.  Current foreign policy is very
concerned with keeping the world's oil supplies flowing.  In the 1800s, the US...

What is the significance of the title Hills Like White Elephants?

Eleanore Trupkiewicz

The title of the short story "" by Hemingway is significant because it is the
topic of conversation between the two characters represented in the story, the girl and the
American man, and yet the conversation they are actually having with one another, almost
entirely in subtext and with very few actual spoken words, has nothing to do with their
surroundings.

The story opens with a description of the setting to establish
place and, perhaps, to indicate the tone of the scene about to happen: Despite the hills in the
distance, "there was no shade and no trees," indicative...

]]>