Snow White and the Seven Deadly Sins - Literature review Example

The author sets up the backdrop for the poem in the first two stanzas. The author has chosen the object of the poem to be a "Good Catholic girl". This description brings with it the social implications of the sexually conservative views of Catholicism and alerts the reader to the girl's religious culture. Within the first four lines, the author associates the girl with cleaning, chores, labor, and duty. The author has painted a picture of a naive girl, duty bound to her master.In stanza number two, Gwynn continues to point out the commitment to religion felt by the girl.

She has "doubts", but "once confessed them". The Father continues to try to keep her on the path of religion by referring her to "Peter's First Epistle, Chapter III", which speaks of spousal duty and respect for your mate. The girl's imagination was moving outside the marriage and into darker corners.Religion could not heal the girl as the poem suddenly contrasts her duty and chaste with the temptation of the seven deadly sins. In the third stanza, the poem says simply, "Years passed. More sinful every day,".

The poem has shifted from the innocent child to the sinful woman. The author illustrates this by the use of language that refers to evil in a religious context with "pitchforks, horns, tares, and thorns". The girl is living with an evil mate and co-opting his sins.The sins are introduced in stanza four. The woman's pride is revealed and the lust is openly displayed. The words have gotten harder and have an edgier sound. The author introduces "smeared with prints of lips, .bare-T's and asses,.

devices - chains cuffs whips". During this portion of the poem, it is easy to forget that this was a "Good Catholic girl" that has succumbed to these sins.In stanza five, the reader is presented with an increasing array of sin. Gluttony, Avarice, and Envy are the backdrop for what has now become disorder and disarray. The duty and cleaning that began the poem have been replaced by "empties covered half the table" that is "Mingling with Avarice's cards and chips". Even the reference to the "Bill Blass label" is a symbol of ostentatious pride.

Stanza six is a turning point in the poem. Here her religious roots again confront her. She kneels as she cleans the bathroom as "If a petitioner before the Pope,". Here she is confronted by her tormentor, the "Sloth's dirty drawers". The girl had come full circle through a range of despicable behaviors. Now, once again cleaning as a Catholic girl, she is confronted by the doubts about her mate.In stanza seven, the woman looks into the mirror and does some self-introspection. She sees the toll that the years have taken and the abuse of the "bruise of Wrath beneath her eye".

This was the final straw for the lady. She had aged, been abused, and subjected to an environment of sin. In stanzas eight and nine, the woman is brought to remember her mate and the reader can feel the tension as the car pulls into the drive. "A car door slammed, bringing her to her senses". The car door is loud and angry; the occupant is described as "It" and not 'he'.