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Denotation and Conotation


            
             Denotations are the literal meaning of a word and Connotations are what people associate with the word. The two following poems "The Good-Morrow" by John Donne and "Barbie Doll" by Karen Dunn will be used as example and the denotations and connotations of each title are going to be compared. .
             At first the general meaning of denotations and connotations are discussed. Denotation(s) is/are " the dictionary meaning or meanings of the word". ( Chapter Three, Page 41). Connotations are different; they suggest what people associate with the word. "The Connotations are what it suggests beyond what it expresses: its overtones of meaning." ( Chapter Three, Page 41). Basically this means that you can't always take the denotations of a word literally and that everybody has a different association with a word and so there is a different connotation for all of these people. The Book uses the word home as an example. I think this is a really good example. Home means by denotation only a place where one lives. By Connotation however it means a lot more. A lot of people associate home with a place they feel good and with their family. That's why most people that moved out of the house they were raised in, and their parents live in, still call this place home.
             A Barbie doll is by denotation only a toy little girls play with. However to the girl in the story it means a lot more. To her the "Barbie Doll" is the perfect person and she wants to be like the Barbie doll. For me this poem is a picture of our society. It just shows how far people go to look perfect, but what is perfect. There is no definition for perfect. Perfect is what the society makes it. A century ago being overweight only showed that you"re healthy and you are in a high society level. .
             The girl goes so far that she cuts off her legs and her nose, because a boy tells her these parts of her body are too big." Then in magic of puberty, a classmate said: You have a great big nose and fat legs" (Page 115).


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