Monday, February 7, 2011

Heine responses

59 comments:

  1. A Young Man Loves A Maiden:
    The typical Romantic imagery and link with nature is absent from this poem. There is, however, spontaneity in the action of the woman when she married "the first who [came] along." There is great focus on the individual in the choices of the lovers, with no regards for what the others might feel, merely giving in to their own desires much to the young mans dismay. Yet there is no imagery or nature in this poem. It is Romantic in other elements.
    Callie Stribling, Period 6

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  2. Heinrich Heine- “[A Pine is Standing Lonely]”

    The element of lost love and nature along with the personification of a pine tree emphasizes the Romanticism of the poem. Romantic poetry deals with love and in the case of the lonely pine tree he is yearning for his far away love. The personification of the pine tree brings in the natural element of romantic poetry and the poem beautifully ties the two together. Heine uses connotation and imagery, to contrast the pine tree, enshrouded in ice and snow, to a palm tree on a sun burnt rocky strand. The reader can not only envision an icy plateau but also the use of a pine tree, which has the connotation of typically growing in cold climates as opposed to a palm tree which the has a connotation of a tropical climate/weather emphasizes the difference. The poem’s use of trees instead of people makes the pine’s sadness more relatable because the reader can fit the pine’s sadness to their own personal romantic woes, whereas it would be harder to fit their own issues into the poem if the focal point was a real person.

    Gabby McRoberts 7th

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  3. A Pine Is Standing Lonely

    This poem represents a subtler and less obvious side of Romanticism through the use of simple descriptions of natural surroundings. Although the descriptions appear to be light and fluffy the subject of the poem is in fact dark and forlorn. The author is most likely using the palm tree to represent the way that he is feeling, which is lonely and abandoned. This is shown through the descriptions of where the palm tree is. After reading the poem I felt grief for the author because there is nothing worse that being alone when you don’t want to be. - Mimi Strauss, 8th period

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  4. Heinrich Heine “A Pine is Standing Lonely”
    The whole poem is a celebration of nature, - its, emotions, dreams, and surreal desires. As if personifying the Pine, Heine gives it relatable human moods and longings. Quickly jumping from one range of emotion to another, the pine’s thoughts are spontaneous and unexpected considering how inhuman it is. Heine uses the discrepancy in seasons to drive the tree’s thought pattern. The pine’s musings are simplistic and at the same time familiar and typical of many humans as we express dissatisfaction for our circumstances in a similar manner. To simply personify a pine tree would be different. Yet Heine’s poem exemplifies the power of imagination through giving such specific human deliberations to a plant. At first, it is difficult to wrap one’s mind around the poem and repeated readings are required. After re-reading, the poem becomes thoroughly enjoyable as one is able to appreciate the imagination and creativity involved in the creation of such a distinct character.

    Lydia Liou 8th period

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  5. On "A Pine Is Standing Lonely"
    This poem is incredibly Romantic, as it employs nature as a symbol of love in an irrational way. Although short, it successfully encompasses so many elements that make it worth reading. One of the strongest is definitely the vivid imagery of the pine tree "enrounded in ice and snow", as well as the palm tree "mourning/On a sunburnt rocky strand". Another thing that makes the poem enjoyable is the rhyme that connects the two scenes (one of the pine and one of the palm tree) together, creating comfort without creating complete resolution to the issue. Overall, this poem was probably my favorite due to its ability to include so many redeeming elements in such a clean, compact way.
    (Katie Pastor, period 8)

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  6. Hannah Bangs 7th
    "A Pine Is Standing Lonely"

    This poem is a perfect example of associating the moods of humans with the "moods" of nature. In the poem, the pine tree is longing for the warmth that an also unhappy palm tree has in "a distant land". The loneliness of both the trees shows how humans are naturally dissatisfied with their situation. Heine is making the point that it is our nature to long for something different than what we have without appreciating the fact that our situation might be coveted by someone else. The aspects of nature and it's human emotions allow the poem to de interpreted differently by different people who may have varied views on emotions such as lonesomeness and dissatisfaction. A reader who felt the same way in their current situation would sympathize with the tree, while another reader who refuses to recognize his lonesomeness may feel the pine tree is being unreasonable. I like this poem because it simply illustrates our desire for change through the use of a relatable metaphor.

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  7. A Pine Is Standing Lonely

    This poem takes the emotional aspects of stranded lovers and personifies them in the form of trees. Not only is the figurative subject, two lovers, a step towards the Romantic period, and a step away from the logical politics of the time, but the literal subjects as well. The trees are a direct nod to the Romantic movement because Heine uses them and their respective landscapes to express human moods. Though they are in completely different landscapes, one “enshroud[ed] in ice and snow” and the other on a “sunburnt, rocky strand,” Heine makes them both isolated and unsatisfied. Unlike most Romantic pieces where nature is the most important aspect, this poem’s message is that human emotion transcends location, so that disparate settings may seem the same.

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  8. Heinrich Heine - "[A Pine Is Standing Lonely]"
    Rachel Zein - 8th

    The inclusion of nature in this poem immediately separates it into the Romantic category, but even more factors make it a shining example of the true meaning of ‘Romantic’. Heine personifies the pine tree to mirror the wants of a person, idolizing the individual and emphasizing the need for more personal expression. This creative metaphor that Heine uses also represents the importance attached to the power of imagination and natural genius, both key concepts in Romanticism. Yet the true genius here is the way Heine blends all of these different elements together into a simple eight-line poem. Although the poem is only two stanzas, Heine invites the reader to contemplate what they want in life and then take a step back to think about how much they already have.

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  9. Clara Warner, 6th Period
    "A Pine Is Standing Lonely"

    The soft words comprised in this poem are what make it truly romantic. Heine says that the tree is "wrapped up by the ice and snow." This image is not necessarily a negative one, it is simply serene. He speaks of their "lonely and silent sorrows" which sounds sad but not angry. By using these softer words, Heine creates an atmosphere of calmness which opens the reader to the romance.

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  10. Clara Warner, 6th Period
    "A Young Man Loves A Woman"

    There is not a single mention of nature in the lines of this poem however it still shows a new found interest in a less civilized way of life aswell as the need for spontaneity. The woman of the poem is in love with a man who marries another and in spite of him she choses to take "the first who comes along." The proper thing to do would be to move on and find another man whom you desired just as much as the first. However she spontaneously decides to take the less civil road by marrying the first she man meets. In doing so, this poem becomes romantic.

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  11. Kyle DeHolton
    8th period
    “[A Young Man Loves a Maiden]”, by Heinrich Heine

    In this Romantic poem, the simplicity and brevity of it lend to it a simple and dense tone. “From spite, the maiden marries / [t]he first who comes along” (6), which shows that Heine thinks that spite and the acts of vengeance it causes are not beneficial to love and prosperity. The “youth [who] must rue [the maiden’s marriage of him] long” (8) is stuck in a relationship in which he does not want to be. The maiden’s spontaneous, vengeful marriage shows how spontaneity is not always a good thing, which is contrary to the Romantic emphasis on the need for spontaneity in thought and action. This is even slightly ironic, as the younger and more innocent he it, the longer he will have to suffer in this relationship. By saying that this story is “still forever new” (10), Heine is saying that love is complicated, with twisting, interconnected paths, and won’t always work out.

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  12. Alexa Etheredge "A Young Man Loves a Maiden"

    This poem shows not one direct instance of nature, or the way it is intertwined with the human life. However, it perfectly embodies a different type of romantic writing, which is the melancholy sadness that is found amongst a broken heart. This maiden gets so caught up in loving this married man, that she loses patience and just marries the first man she can, while all the while the "young man loves" her. There is a pettiness in all of this that is also found in other romantic pieces of literature, a pettiness which is connected to the efficient and industrial new way of doing things. Something that with a little patience could have been sorted out is made into an even bigger deal because all are unhappy and a young "man's heart is broken in two".

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  13. Kyle DeHolton
    8th period
    “[A Pine Is Standing Lonely]”, by Heinrich Heine

    This Romantic poem, like “[A Young Man Loves a Maiden]” by the same author, is very simple. This simplicity adds to the loneliness of the pine tree in the poem, as the bare structure parallels the bare landscape and emptiness. This poem also shows how human moods are present in and correspond to those of nature, as loneliness is a human trait or mood, while it is being applied to a tree. The tree, in a barren landscape, is dreaming of its love – a foreign palm tree. This represents the futility and loneliness of unfulfilled love in mankind.

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  14. A Pine Is Standing Lonely, Heinrich Heine

    Heine uses two opposing scenes of nature to create moods – definitely a Romantic tendency. The two verses mirror each other, though the trees they describe are apparently different. The first is a northern pine, the second a palm of the Orient. The first tree sleeps, while the second is the dream of the first. The poem creates a melancholy feeling, echoing a sentiment of Romanticism – that of isolation, the inevitable result of reaching for something unreachable. The one “lonely pine” dreams of another with which it could unite itself, but will never be joined with. Both the pine and the palm are lonely, one “sleeps” and the other “droops.” The situation is hopeless. Nothing will progress: the pine tree will remain lonely, pining and dreaming, not entirely in this world, blanketed in snow and ice, victim of an unattainable ideal (here, love).

    Katherine Nehyba, period 8

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  15. "The grass is greener on the other side of the fence". That could be one interpretation of Heine's poem "A Pine is Standing Lonely", where the poor little cold and lonely pine is dreaming of a palm tree far away in the sun. And yet the palm tree is not too happy either, sunburnt and lonely as well.
    I like the poem; it's short and sweet but evocative. With the Romantic twist of ascribing human emotions to nature, this poem probably reminds most readers of some similar situation they might have been in -- isolated, far from someone they love, or from someone they only dream about.

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  16. A Pine is Standing Lonely

    The pine and the palm standing alone in such a great distance from each other reflect separated lovers, one waiting for the other to return and be with them once again. The pine tree “enshroud[ed] in ice and snow” acts similar to a soldier in war, taking a moment of silent reminiscence and dreaming of the one he loves most, while the palm stands for the woman at home, “silently mourning” waiting for her love’s return. This sort of romantic imagery is emphasized on the women’s ability to express their feelings during the romantic period, as well as a classic heartfelt scene that touches the souls of the readers. The readers are able to grieve for the loneliness of the two trees, and pity their separation, as well as respect their devotion to one another. The fact that these two trees are able to be compared just as effectively as two human lovers gives rise to the connection between humans and nature, and presents nature with an ability to feel as well as humans.

    Jeanne-Jo Gregory 6th period

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  17. A Pine is Standing Lonely, Heinrich Heine

    (Basen reprezentuje spojujeni dvou propletajicich se lidskych tuzeb - touhu po zmene a touhu po sdileni. Volba dvou kontrastujicich prirodnich prostredi symbolizuje vrozenou lidskou touhu po novem, jinem, odlisnem. Tato vecna hnaci sila je konfrontovana opacnou touhou po sdileni, spocinuti, nalezeni spriznene duse. Kladenim techto dvou protikladnych snu do tesne blizkosti basnik odhaluje marnost snahy o jejich spolecne naplneni.)
    The poem represents the joining of two interweaving human desires – the desire for change and the desire for settling with someone. The choice of two contrasting natural settings symbolizes the intrinsic human want for something new, different, and other. This eternal driving force is confronted with the opposing want for sharing, joining, and the finding of a soul mate. Placing these two contrasting dreams side by side, the poet reveals the futility of trying to fulfill them both.

    R. Hrdlickova, mother of Katherine Nehyba

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  18. “[A Pine Is Standing Lonely]” by Heinrich Heine

    This poem demonstrates it’s place in Romanticism most obviously through the scenery. Not only is the subject of the poem a tree, but two natural, undistrubed areas are described. Neither scene is a typical situation either, but a irregularly placed plant in the middle of a weather extreme, showing the movement’s fascination with the drama of nature. Furthermore, both inanimate objects are given human traits, first that of sleeping, then of longing. This personification relates to the trend of discussing the ‘moods’ of Nature, but Heine goes one step further, giving not only the plants but the atmosphere emotion. The precipitation has a gentle quality, almost perceptible as floating down, partially due to the maternal aspect of placing a blanket around one sleeping, partially due to the companionship the snow and ice offer each other and the “lonely” tree on the “barren height”. The palm-tree meanwhile exists in a hostile, unfriendly world, empty except for the tree and the “burning” surface it sits on. These two contrasting images make me uneasy as I read-- it seems almost as if the pine tree enjoys the desperation of the palm tree, or that dreams are always doomed to be the opposite of reality, and are therefore impossible. While the opposing heat and cold could be artistically beautiful, the negative diction (“burning”, “barren”) within the poem make the emotion I get off of it more disturbing than enjoyable.

    Courtney Trutna,
    3rd period

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  19. "A young man loves a maiden", Heine

    This poem is clearly a romantic one because not only does it use a simple rhyming style but it laments about ones love for another. Yet, Heine does not seem to give love any gravity or importance, calling the woman's love's choice to marry another a "mere vexation". Either this is an understatement satirizing the woman's actually feelings or Heine is mocking what most people call love. The women is then said to marry the first man that ask for her hand, and her feelings are not stated at all. Come to think of it, no major emotions are discussed in the poem. The last line speaking of the man's broken heart is not elaborated on at all. I am disappointed in this poem.

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  20. A Pine is Standing Lonely
    In this poem, Heine reflects on the lonely nature of distant love by replacing people with trees. It is an example of how nature reflects emotion, specifically on how trees are solitary and lonely. These trees dream of each other in distant lands with vastly different grounds and air. The seasons also play a part in the mood, as the first tree is sad and lonely in the wintertime. The metaphor of loneliness is extended because the tree's cannot move to get to each other.

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  22. Heinrich Heine:
    Analysis by Selin Kutanoglu (6th period)

    "[A Pine is Standing Lonely]"
    This poem, as many of the Romantic poems, includes the idea of nature and moods of nature. The description of these two trees being different and in entirely different places brings mood to this scene in nature, by making it seem lonely and glum. This also reminds me of the need for freedom of thought that the Romantic artists were trying to express, because these trees don't have the freedom to leave their current state or even be near each other. They are only left to wonder what it's like in the other tree's "shoes". Nature is an obvious theme, and the personification of these elements brings mood into it, as if these trees had thoughts and feelings of their own.

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  23. A Young Man loves a Maiden
    Mo Quinn, period 3
    This poem is from the romantic period, but I don't find it romantic at all. It's actually pretty emo, more about love lost than any newfangled happiness. I was expecting it to be a little more deep and interesting, since I believe heartbreak can lead to some of the most interesting art. This poem though, fails to utilize interesting language and is overall just depressing. The short stanzas and elementary rhyme scheme remind me of a hallmark card, rather than a great poem from the age of romance.

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  24. A Pine Standing Lonely
    This can be classified as being a romantic poem for two reasons. First there is definitely a growing interest in scenery depicted. The entire poem is taking time to describe the intense scenery like the “bare plateau” or the “bright white blanket” that “Enshrouds him in ice and snow” or finally the “sunburnt rocky strand”. This shows a high attention to nature and she uses scenery to build her theme, set her setting and basically write her poem. There are also moods of nature in “A Pine Standing Lonely”. The tree is described as “lonely” and “dreaming”, two things a tree cannot do. His moods are used to give the feeling of loneliness in humans and the unquenchable desires we all have. This poem made me feel sad and realize that we all have goals we wish to achieve but there are just some things we cannot ever do no matter how hard we try.
    Annalee Alston
    Period 3

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  25. "[A Young Man Loves a Maiden]"
    This poem is a blantantly romatic poem, romantic not only in the style of Romanticism but also in the generic description of something being romantic. It also displays emphasis on spontaniety, with the maiden marrying "the first that comes along". She has not been spited by the man who loves her, but the other man she loves, and yet she still chooses to marry a random guy who has not loved her the way the young man loves her. Heinrich uses simple language to convey how terribly sad the scenario is, and how "every time it happens, it breaks the heart in two." He also puts emphasis on the young man who is chasing after the girl, another element of Romanticism, which serves to make the reader feel more pain for all of the people that have that happen to them,
    Clare Lewis, 7th Period

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  26. "A Pine is Standing Lonely" is a lovely poem in both English and the original German. It describes scenery and nature, which is a key point of Romanticism, as well as the importance of imagination, which is demonstrated in the description of how the pine 'dreams of a palm tree.' I quite like this poem, since its literal translation can be taken many different ways. It's interesting to me that different translators choose such varying words to describe the 'Morgenland,' which can be literally translated to 'tomorrow-land.' I saw translations that simply called it 'sunrise-land,' some that referred to the Orient and the East, or calling the land 'exotic,' but they all convey the same feeling of distance and loneliness that the original poem intended. Another point that I noticed was that in the original German poem, there is only one rhyming set of lines (Die, fern im Morgenland...Auf brennender Falsenwand), but every translation I read had a set of rhymes in both stanzas.

    ~Kerry Anderson
    3rd Period

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  27. A Young Man Who Loves a Maiden by Heinrich Heine

    This poem is simple within of itself, there is no imagery, although the short sentence creates the tone very well. This is notable in the line "And wed that one". The briefness of the sentence shows the impulsiveness and desperation in the girl who was rejected. I feel that there was little Romantic elements, there is nothing to back up the word "love" that was loosely thrown in the poem. Whether Heine was making fun of love or treat it with disdain because he was the unfortunate fellow who had "his heart broken in two" is questionable.

    -Kim Pham, 1st period

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  28. In this poem, romanticism is expressed by the lonely scenery of nature. The loneliness is expressed by the emphasis of the tree standing alone. The author incorporates tone by using vivid imagery to explain to the reader the vivid emotion of loneliness.This could represent the desire to find love with another being and an appeal to human emotion. Furthermore, this poem incorporates two prominent human emotions: loneliness and desire. Although they are opposites, they are intertwined to the point that without one, the other cannot exist. This poem evoked emotions such as pity, but also an underlying feeling of gratification: the ongoing desire and sometimes reward of finding love.

    Anna Provenzano, 1st period

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  29. You can tell the poem is about romanticism because it is about nature and has a sense of longing. The pine tree longs to be somewhere warm, an escape from the lonely winter wasteland that it is in. The only problem is that even with a change in scenery the tree is still alone. This to me says in a metaphor that everywhere in the world people are lonely and have the idea of the grass is greener on the other side. I suppose the poem is meant to show that everywhere there are problems and there isn't anywhere you can go to get rid of them.

    Bailey Shelton "A Pine Is Standing Lonely"

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  30. "A Young Man Loves a Maiden"
    This poem tells of a forever human problem. The problem of love, that is when you feel you love someone but they do not like you in return. Humans are cursed with this ability of feeling and that's what I see in this poem. In the end someone gets hurt but as humans we adapt and move on. Though like humans we never forget that pain.

    Bailey Shelton

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  31. "A Pine Is Standing Lonely"
    Sander Trubowitz, 7th Period

    This poem focuses on nature and feeling, which are both key aspects to romantic art. Heine personifies the tree, saying that "He dreameth of a palm-tree," further emphasising the romantic aspect of the poem by apposing the scientific or rational view of nature. Heine uses imagery to show the loneliness of the pine, writing that "ice and snow flakes swathe [the tree] in folds of white." The pine dreams of a tree in a warmer, tropical location, but this tree is "lonely...on her burning bank of sand." For these two pines, "the grass is always greener on the other side." Both trees are suffering, envoking a bleak, somber tone in the poem.

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  32. Lonely Pine Tree personifies two symbols of nature representing very different circumstances of the human condition. The cold barren snow covered and hibernating pine tree contrasts with the sad and sullen palm standing on burning stone. It contrasts a dreamer that sees possibilities to one that faces its own reality and is saddened by it. Both suffer harsh conditions, both are lonely, but one dreams while the other mourns, an outcome that is entirely irrational behavior in people. It reflects on how ones perspective can alter ones perception of one’s condition. The author uses allegories from nature (trees, snow, and sand) to represent human conditions of optimism (dreaming) and hopelessness (mourning). Ironically, the dreamer sees the mourner is an optimistic view (grass is greener on the other side), much like a New Yorker yearns for Florida in the winter time. By contrasting hope and hopelessness, optimism and pessimism, half full compared to half empty, the verse evokes and amplifies feelings of calm slumber and sad loneliness on both ends of the emotional spectrum.

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  33. Heinrich Heine
    “A Pine Stands Lonely”
    Sydney Cho

    “A Pine Stands Lonely” uses a simple and artistic metaphor to express Romantic concepts of the increased interest in scenery and the association of human moods with the ‘moods’ of Nature, and inspires the feeling of powerful longing for someone beyond reach. The “lonely” pine in the North represents a man in love – perhaps himself – who dreams of a palm tree, equally alone, “far in the East”, which in turn symbolizes a woman who comes from a different level in society or another culture. Although alike in their loneliness, the pine tree “on a barren height” while “ice and snowdrift quilt him in covers of white” and the palm tree “from her cliff of blazing stone”, they are kept apart by distance and the fact they can only thrive in opposite environments. While pine trees are the quintessential trees of cold climates and cannot survive elsewhere, palm trees are the ideal tropical trees, and thus they cannot coexist in the same environment. This sadness is expressed concisely, a manner which is different from other Romantic poems that utilize more flowery and descriptive language to express their message. This gives the reader insight to the author’s point of view on the impossible situation – the language offers a no-frills interpretation, suggesting the author’s sober resignation to the circumstances, despite his pain at being apart from his love. “A Pine Stands Lonely” may be my favorite of the Romantic poems. I especially love Aaron Kramer’s interpretation of Heine’s originally German poem, in which he describes the snow “quilt[ing]” the pine. I am impressed by the power of the imagery and of the poet’s ability to so swiftly and effectively deliver his message in such few words.

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  34. A Pine Is Standing Lonely
    Monica Falcon, period 1

    This particular poem is a perfect example of Romanticism that deals with two conflicting trees wishing that they could be in the other one's place. The poem deals with the contrasting emotions of being a dreamer and being someone who knows their own existence in reality and deals with it by mourning. Both these emotions are two real perspectives in the everyday lives of people in general. Because one of the trees dreams of being in the others place, this is a classic example of 'the grass is greener on the other side.' Heine uses images in nature to represent the two separate perspectives to symbolize the human condition of being optimistic and being depressed and saddened by one's own existence. The effect of the poem gives off the same mood of being sad and lonely because the trees cannot get what they so rightfully believe they deserve. In the end, the result is a feeling of hopelessness.

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  35. "A Pine is Standing Lonely"
    This poem focuses on nature as a way of expression, a common theme in romantics works. First, Heine mentions the tree sleeping in "ice and snow" in the north. The tree then dreams of a "burning bank of sand" in the sunrise-land. The contrast put forth here as well as the personification of the tree shows human mirrors. By not creating a scientific picture, but one that emphasizes emotion, Heine creates a romantic scenario that calms the reader as well as suggests they ponder if we are all "lonely", cold individuals wanting warmth like the tree.

    - Jenna Lang, 7th period

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  36. A Pine is Standing Lonely

    Heine personifies the tree with emotions of loneliness and false hope. He sets a mood of depression by using the two trees and relating them to human emotions. He uses imagery to set this tone in stone by relating the feeling loneliness to harsh cold weather, which seems to be prevalent through out most of these poems. While one tree suffers in the cold the other lives it up in the sun.

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  37. “a pine is standing lonely”
    Heine personifies the pine and palm tree in this poem to describe love. The two trees live in different worlds, pine tree is “[swathed] in folds of white,” and the palm tree sits “on her burning bank of sand.” Heine describes both trees as “lonely” and yearning for something or someone else, which represents the human need for companionship and our fear of being alone. The trees are not burning with desire, they are quietly dreaming of each other. This poem is simple and short with only two stanzas, yet it manages to convey love in a romanticized way and by doing this Heine separates the ideas of passion and love.

    Shannon Plunkett
    period 3

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  38. Elizabeth Bowie, period 1
    "A pine is standing lonely"

    This poem is definitely Romantic in its mood, personification and description of nature. He describes the spruce as lonely and drowsing, dreaming of a palm tree in scorching sand, giving wild Romantic extremes. It feels human in its writing that we want what we cannot have- we want it to be summer when it is winter, and I bet the palm tree is dreaming of winter as well. It also works as a metaphor for someone pining after a lover who has gone away or moved, giving more Romantic ideas to the poem.

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  39. Heine's "A Pine Is Standing Lonely" is most obviously romantic through its focus on nature, particularly a pine and palm to tree and by giving the trees human like moods and thoughts. The pine tree is standing alone as "he dreameth of a palm-tree". By giving the pine tree human moods the reader relates by thinking of a time when he or she may have been in someplace they didn't want to be and were dreaming of something different. But then when he describes the the situation of the palm tree as a "burning bank of sand" it serves as a warning to the reader that not everything is always better where you think it will be. Also by describing the palm tree as "Lonely and silent longing" it serves to warn that while the situation may be better, which it arguable isn't in this case, that won't make the original problem disappear.

    Mason Shea-- 1st

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  40. A Young Man Loves a Maiden
    Absent are the usual markers for a Romantic poem. Where A Young Man lacks in imagery of natural settings it makes up for in the emphasis on emotions. Up to this point in time men had been seen as closer to the logical side of things, women were the ones who chased emotion. At this point, however, a young man admits an emotional love for a women, and allows for a revenge settlement. He must bear with his situation but his heart is still broken in the end.

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  41. Alina Vega
    A Pine Is Standing Lonely
    This poem is very Romantic in that it is very sensual and connected to nature. It may seem very bare bones in its language, but it is quite the opposite. In writing about a barren landscape, an entire picture is painted. The pine is lonely, a human emotion, personified by Heine to try reconnecting humans to nature. While the pine’s feelings are very plain, almost as if it were a small child, they are undeniably human. While it varies from translation to translation, the poem still serves the same purpose: to compare the life of a lone, cold tree to some aspect of a human’s life. My own response is very straightforward. When I compare myself to this pine, I think of my mornings, tired in the dark and cold before my bus arrives.

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  42. Ari Rogers, 3rd
    A Pine is Standing Lonely

    This poem clearly displays the scenic and natural aspects of Romantic literature. The subject is a pine tree, and the majority of the poem is descriptions of landscapes. For example, in the first stanza, "He sleeps; a bright white blanket/
    Enshrouds him in ice and snow." Now, the less obvious Romantic tool found in "A Pine is Standing Lonely" is the hints towards the power of imagination and natural genius. The tree is constantly personified, and Heine uses personification to express this theme. An example of this theme by the use of personification is"He is dreaming of a palm tree." First of all the tree is referred to as 'he', a pronoun we most commonly use when talking about humans, and secondly the tree is said to dream. Dreaming is an ability few animals have, but humans are the 'best' at it, as it were. So because of this the tree is personified. Heine uses this personification to give the tree a mind, which dreams itself out of its solitude. This is the power of imagination, and Heine gives it to the tree with personification.

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  43. A Pine Is Standing Lonely

    In this poem, the pine tree is given human traits. This helps the reader to identify with the tree and feel its loneliness as they read. This poem is heavy with feelings of forlornness. This much emotion is typical of a Romantic work. Also like other Romantic works, it uses images in nature and describes them with great detail. As I read I can almost see both trees growing in front of me.

    Katelyn Alexander 7th

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  45. Heinrich Heine, “A Pine Is Standing Lonely”

    This poem is a clear example of Romanticism because it personifies humanistic longing through the motif of a solitary tree. There is a clear association of human moods with the ‘moods’ of Nature. The lonely tree “in the North” dreams of a palm tree in a warmer region, which exemplifies the unattainable qualities of true love, or at least, the idea of such. The line “enshrouds him in ice and snow” found in the final line of the first stanza not only explains the tree’s physical appearance, but also his disposition. The tree is hidden, and in a way, crippled by his mindset, due to the cold environment he lives in. While I thoroughly enjoyed the simplicity and succinctness of this poem, I felt the ending was anticlimactic. The tree in the North is “dreaming of a palm tree/Far away in the eastern land”, but little does he know that the other tree is “lonely and silent mourning/on a sunburnt rock strand.” Despite the difference in locations, it is made obvious by Heine that the other tree is still unhappy. This speaks volumes to the idealistic nature of humans, and the unrelenting whip of reality. Perhaps the grass is perceived as greener on the other side, but in actuality, it is just as unsatisfied as the grass somewhere else.

    Olivia Berkeley

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  46. A Young Man Loves a Maiden
    (Willa Brown)

    This poem is romantic because of the need for free expression of thought and desires. The poem tells a telling tale of a girl that ruins her life and and her husbands because of jealousy. This jealousy for another man blinds her and doesn't let her truly love another. Heine is noting on the constriction of such thoughts and ways of life. The girl would be much better off if she let it go and freed herself to new emotions. I like how the lines are short but still dense and straight to the point.

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  47. "A Pine is Standing Lonely"

    This poem is Romantic because it deals with human emotions by way of nature. People are not mentioned in the poem, however, the tree is personified. He "sleeps" and "dream[s]" as a person does. He has ambitions and he has desires. He also has the capacity to be alone, and to know that he is lonely and that there is more out there. Want is something all people can relate to, and this poem demonstrates that strong emotion with strong imagery of nature, making it fall under the umbrella of Romanticism.

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  48. In "[A Pine Is Standing Lonely]", Heine makes the point that people are never wholly satisfied with what they have. Even a perfectly serene pine with a pure blanket of snow is "dreaming of a palm tree/far away in the Eastern land." The poem also employs Romantic notions of wisdom being found in things other than old people. The tree longs for a different habitat, but knows that even there it would still be "silently mourning." Heine's poem shows a Romantic interest in nature, projecting civilized thoughts upon a pine to make it feel emotions, to make it feel "lonely."

    Clare Zarker 1st

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  49. A Pine is Standing Lonely

    The pine tree was standing alone. He wanted to be a palm tree instead. He pretends he is with his imagination to escape his melancholy life. This poem makes me gracious that we are able to have thoughts and feelings to gain a momentary escape from reality.

    Carolyn D
    (Danielle's mom)

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  50. Heine uses the description of the landscape around the pine, a frozen plateau, to inspire emotion in the reader. A sadness is created through creating a bare, empty plane that reflects how nothing seems real, or that nothing matters when one is deeply sad. Heine also uses a soft envy. The pine wishes to be in the same environment as the palm tree, theoretically a warm happy beach, yet the tree is less in the way of angry and more in the way of wistful about the separation. In the end, the reader feels sympathy for the pine, due to reflections about the readers own situation.
    Geoff Shannon - 7th period

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  51. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  52. A Young Man Loves a Maiden
    The emotion of having something torn away from you is placed here. The young man thinks that the woman truly loves him, yet she is simply using him to get revenge on another. The young man, realizing this, "must rue it long." The maiden, in the same way, has had the other man torn away from her, as he instead loves another. Heine himself puts it best in the end of the poem, "every time it happens, it breaks the heart in two."
    Geoff Shannon - 7th period

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  53. A Pine is Standing Lonely

    When I originally read this, I interpreted that the pine tree wished he was palm tree. But after reading the poem a second time, I sensed instead that the pine tree felt sorry for the palm tree and was happy that he was a pine tree. The conclusion I came to was that Heine is trying to communicate the idea in the common phrase "the grass is always greener on the other side"- that people are and will always be dissatisfied with their life in some way or another. The tree is personified in the way he is able to feel and think various things. The fact that the author chose to convey this inner thought through a tree represents nature and individual thought, common themes in Romanticism .

    Danielle D
    English 7

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  54. A Pine is Standing Lonely
    This poem can by identified as romanticism because of it has an interest in nature, and it paints a natural scene. Heine personifies the lovers as trees, adding to the romance. He describes the tree "dreaming" and "mourning." These are human emotions and the combination of nature and emotion makes this poem romantic. The author tries to relate to the audience when he was one tree dream of another. He describes the trees as "lonely" and needing companionship, much like people do.
    Luisa Venegoni
    Period 7

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  55. A Young Man Loves a Maiden

    This poem is romantic in that it is themed with what is considered to be one of the most powerful emotions of all: love. The way the maiden "marries the first who comes along" represents spontaniety, another big element found in works from the Romantic period. I believed Heine made this poem as a mockery of the idea that love is such a pleasing thing. It can instead be rather depressing if not satisfied and can leave you feeling sad and alone. I believe this and others of his poems are direct reflections of what he was feeling(lonely), as I read he did become sick in his later years and was frequently confined in bed to rest.
    On a different note, the site that I found this poem the german version was also displayed. Although I cannot understand german, I found it unique how there was still a set rhyme scheme. I looked at some of his other works in german and found that they too follow this same ABAB CDCD EFEF rhyme scheme.

    Danielle Devers
    English 7

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  56. The poem describes a very lonely scenery.

    The lonely pine-tree blanketed in snow in the North creates an imagery of a mournfully silence palm tree near burning wall of rock in the east. This creates a very bright contrast, resulting in the reader's use of imagination to paint a vivid image within their minds without using a large quantity of words.

    Because of the poet's diction it is easy to see that in the poet's subconscious feelings are that he is very melancholy and lonely. The pine tree dreams of a palm tree just as miserable as it is. If I were the pine tree I would dream of something that would enlighten my day, wealth, happiness, etc. However, the poet even in a dream dreams of pain and suffering on the side where the grass should be greener.

    Kevin Ku's Mom
    period 6

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  57. "A Pine is Standing Lonely"
    Megan Wei 1st

    Heine incorporates Romanticism into his poem with the introduction of an isolated, lonely tree. His use of adjectives such as "lonely" and "bare" evokes feelings of sympathy. An element of Romanticism is feeling, and sympathy is the most prevalent, emotional theme throughout this poem. Heine's description of the tree "dreaming of a palm tree far away" illustrates the tree in a naive way. Heine's use of literary devices include personification when a "[tree] lonely and silently mourn[s]." Personification allows the audience to relate to the tree, as it now has the ability to mourn and have feelings. The tree also "sleeps" in the "North on a bare plateau," This use of personification further relates the tree to people. My emotional reaction to this poem was thought-provoking. Because this poem was significantly shorter in length compared to the other poems, I thought that it was concise, symbolic, and straightforward. The tree representing the human condition and Heine's descriptions of the settings caused me to ponder over the meaning of the poem.

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  58. "A Pine is Standing Lonely" exemplifies both the appreciation of nature and the focus on human emotion typical of the Romantic era. The tree in the poem, which "stand[s] lonely/ [...] on a bare plateau" seems to serve as a metaphor for the poet's own solitude. The tone Heine evokes with the tree's "enshroud[ing] [...] in ice and snow" while dreaming of "a palm tree/ [...] on a suburnt, rocky strand" is one of loneliness, but also of hope for a future that is at least a bit brighter (literally, in the pine's instance) than the present. While the poet's own admission to isolation might come across as overly sentimental, attributing these feelings to the tree evokes a poignant wistfulness, communicating Heine's meaning more effectively than he could have in first person. The juxtaposition in the poem of the pine tree surrounded by "a bright white blanket/ [of] ice and snow" and the imagined "sunburnt" palm tree "far away in an Eastern land" enhances the concept of solitude, even suggesting that an individual can be lonely in any situation, for loneliness comes from within (more of the emotional individualism common of Romanticism). Frequent alliteration and consonance in these brief verses helps to create a calm, stoic gait which adds to the solemn tone. Finally, the personification of the pine and palm trees, in addition to further evidencing Romanticism's love of nature, adds to the depth and veracity of the work, such that the reader can truly understand the Romantic melancholy that Heine seeks to communicate.

    Rebecca Pittel

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  59. "A Pint Tree Is Standing Lonely" is a beautiful, simple poem by Heinrich Heine that is clearly influenced by Romanticism through it's use of nature and the natural scene. The juxtaposition of the two trees in opposite conditions, frozen heights and burning desert, is meant to evoke emotion from the reader. The frozen tree dreams of another tree, both of which are sad. This to me seems to be a metaphor for how universal sorrow and grieving are. These two trees are nothing alike, yet they both feel the sting of pain. The strong images of the two trees and nothing more are powerful in their mental pictures and simplicity.

    Callie Slaughter Period 8

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