Comparing the Poetry of Gary Snyder and Ruth Stone Essay -- Comparison

Comparing the Poetry of Gary Snyder and Ruth StoneGary Snyder is not only a poet, but a preacher of sorts. His poems carry powerful messages slightly getting back to your roots. His poems operate strong themes of anti-consumerism and spirituality. Facts is a short piece consisting of facts on consumerism in America. This piece warns of the dangers of over consumption and lack of moderation. In most cases, however, Snyder does appear far too extreme in his views, care in By Frazier Creek Falls where is says We could live on this Earth / Without clothes or tools. This theme of primitivism is a common theme in Snyders poetry. Many of his poems are about nature and the uncivilized world. the settings of his poems are often woods, lakes, mountain trails, or other similar uninhabited uncultivated areas. Snyders poetry is sometimes political activism in disguise. Four Changes is less like a poem and more like an environmental extremists manifesto. Each of the convinces cl oses with a suggestion of what type of social or political action to take in order to make the aforementioned change occur.Loss is a major theme in Ruth Stones poetry, although her poems are rarely depressing as one might expect from loss poems. Instead, her poems contain a bitter yet sharp tone of humor. She writes about the loss of her husband, old lovers, her mother, and the past. Stone also writes about the dangers of getting too caught up in the modern world and losing touch with our roots. In The Solution she refers to My friend the Supermarket which brings her gratification in several ways. In Lullaby she writes about babies who kiss their computer goodnight and tells how they platform computers after putting on thei... ...aired Mother and writes many poems about mothers.Both Snyder and Stone make use of strong concrete images in their poems. In The vat Snyder appeals to almost all of the senses by talking about the crackle of waterdrops and the scent of cedar and h is wife entering the sauna, letting in cool air. In rest Stones intense use of adjectives and figurative language creates strong images in the readers mind. She describes her surroundings as wrinkled skin on a cup of boiled milk an describes the waters muscular flow.The writings of both poets can be described as both transparent and complex at the same time, just like the world theyre writing about. While on a purely literal level you may be reading about loss, family, traveling, or nature, all of the poems have a deeper meaning about these topics that the poet leaves the reader to discover.