almost endless source of inspiration. Using aspects of nature as symbol or metaphor to

convey ideas is a common technique used by poets. However, they are by no means

similar and poems can differ greatly from one another. Regardless of using the same

technique, poets make their work distinctive through individual experiences, use of style,

tone and language. In this essay I will explore poets’ unique encounters with nature, by

analysing a collection of poetry by Elizabeth Bishop, Philip Larkin and Sylvia Plath.

Elizabeth Bishop’s The Fish utilises the poet’s eye for detail and unique talent for vivid

description. A large portion of the poem is used to describe the fish, and the poet

remarkably imagines the colours and surfaces within: “…coarse white flesh /packed in

like feathers…reds and blacks/ of his shiny entrails, /and the pink swim-bladder /like a

big peony.” Bishop is clearly observant of details and preoccupied with the senses of

sight and touch, as she describes the texture of the fish, its brown skin hanging “…in

strips /like ancient wallpaper”, its eyes “…pa

cked with tarnished tinfoil…scratched

lines are “like medals with their ribbons…a five-haired beard of wisdom” marking his

Some topics in this essay:
Box Plath, Hemmingway’s Sea, Sad Steps, Bishop’s Fish, Mushrooms Plath, Love Medallion, , Darkling Thrush, Elizabeth Bishop, Trees Larkin, elizabeth bishop, sylvia plath, sad steps, “rainbow rainbow rainbow”, technique poets, bee box, poet describes, religious experience, philip larkin, bishop philip, bishop philip larkin, elizabeth bishop philip, encounters nature,