Mutability. Percy Bysshe Shelley and the Insignificance of Humanity

Essay from the year 2014 in the subject English Language and Literature Studies - Literature, grade: 65.0, University of Sheffield, course: English Literature, language: English, abstract: 'Mutability' employs traditional conventions of the Lyric poem as it is "e;brief and discontinuous, emphasising sound and pictorial imagery rather than narrative"e;, in order to present the concept of life as ephemeral. Shelley is a poet shaped by the sense "e;that there are narrow limits to what human beings can know with certainty."e; 'Mutability' reflects this notion as Shelley undermines human importance within a world in which nothing is constant. In his 'A Defence of Poetry' he argues that for man to be "e;greatly good...the pains and pleasures of his species must become his own"e; and therefore this essay shall consider the way Shelley uses 'Mutability' in order to educate readers on humanities fleeting and irrelevant nature.