Poems to Accompany Crime and Punishment

Stars
How countlessly they congregate
O'er our tumultuous snow,
Which flows in shapes as tall as trees
When wintry winds do blow!--

As if with keenness for our fate,
Our faltering few steps on
To white rest, and a place of rest
Invisible at dawn,--

And yet with neither love nor hate,
Those stars like some snow-white
Minerva's snow-white marble eyes
Without the gift of sight.
Robert Frost


Help Lord
Help Lord, for godly men have took their flight,
And left the earth to be the wicked's den:
Not one that standeth fast to Truth and Right,
But fears, or seeks to please, the eyes of men.
When one with other fall's to take apart,
Their meaning goeth not with their words in
proof;
But fair they flatter, with a cloven heart,
By pleasing words, to work their own behoof.

But God cut off the lips, that are all set,
To trap the harmless soul, that peace hath
vow'd;
And pierce the tongues, that seek to counterfeit
The confidence of truth, by lying loud:
Yet so they think to reign, and work their will,
By subtle speech, which enters every where:
And say, our tongues are ours, to help us still,
What need we any higher power to fear?

Now for the bitter sighing of the poor,
The lord hath said, I will no more forbear,
The wicked's kingdom to invade and scour,
And set at large the men restrain'd in fear.
And sure, the word of God is pure, and fine.
And in the trial never loseth weight;
Like noble gold, which, since it left the mine,
Hath seven times passed through the fiery
straight.

And now thou wilt not first thy word forsake,
Nor yet the righteous man, that leans thereto;
But will't his safe protection undertake,
In spite of all, their force and wiles can do.
And time it is, O Lord, thou didst draw nigh,
The wicked daily do enlarge their bands;
And that, which makes them follow ill a vie,
Rule is betaken to unworthy hands.
Sir Francis Bacon

The Demon

In those days, when lifes displays
moved me with their freshness still
a young girls glance, the rustling glades,
the nightingales sweet midnight trill
when elevated feelings shone,
freedom, glory, purest love,
and the Muses inspiration,
stirred profoundly in my blood
my years of hope grew darker,
my joys were dimmed by longing,
for then some evil spirit started
to come to me in secret meeting.
The hours we spent were mournful:
his smile mysterious, and his gaze,
while his cold poison chilled my soul,
his caustic speech, his bitter ways.
With slanders endless stream,
he tempted Providence;
called all beauty but a dream;
inspiration: mind robbed of sense;
he scorned both love and liberty;
the whole of life he ridiculed
found not a single thing that he
might praise in all that Nature ruled.

Alexander Pushkin


Jello Work Poetry
Analyze one of the poems, first for its own meaning, then in how that meaning relates to Crime and
Punishment. Discuss at least one specific topic that they share, or how the overall theme of one is
discussed in the other.
Poetry Analysis A convenient approach to discovering the meaning in poetry is using the TPCASTT
method.
Title: What predictions can you make from the title? What are your initial thoughts about the
poem? What might be the theme of the poem?

Paraphrase: Summarize the poem in your own words.

Connotation: What is the connotative meaning of the poem? Find examples of imagery,
metaphors, similes, etc. and elaborate on their connotative meanings.

Attitude: What attitude does the poet have toward the subject of the poem? Find and list
examples that illustrate the tone and mood of the poem.

Shift: Is there a shift in the tone/attitude of the poem? Where is the shift? What does the tone
shift to?

Title: Revisit the title and explain any new insights it provides to the meaning of the poem.

Theme: Therefore, what is the overall theme of the poem?

Once youve analyzed the poem by looking at the various elements, address the commonalities that the
poems ideas have with the novel. Write at least three paragraphs: the first paragraph should discuss
the idea(s) that they share, and the implications of that idea to each of the pieces; the second paragraph
should look at where they share that idea (use quotes from each piece); and the third paragraph should
make some deductions about what you discovered.

Jello Work Thematic Analysis
Look through your literary journal (at both the Cultural Connections and the Literary Discussion
Presentations) and review your own literary presentation for Crime and Punishment, and discuss what
you deduce is a possible theme to the novel. Consider the author, his biography, his political and
philosophical positions, and most importantly, the narrative and character development.
Remember that the theme of a work of literature is a reflection of the authors purpose. What was the
author trying to say, prove, or reveal?
Using ample textual support, write a 1-2 page analysis of your conclusion of what the theme of Crime
and Punishment is.