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The Poetry of Robert Frost, The Power and Intrigue of Simile

Frost's line, 'I found a dimpled spider... holding up a moth like a white piece of rigid satin cloth' exploits simile... But how can a moth be like cloth? -This is one of a number of examples that will be explored with a view to refining our understanding of smilie.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge's 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner' and Poetic Technique

In the line, 'The Western wave was aflame', the 'Western wave' refers to the sea. But is it this simple? What do forms of substitution, synecdoche for example, lend to this magnificent and shadowy poem?

Shakespeare's Sonnets and the Use of Personification

'When well-appareled April on the heel / Of limping winter treads'. A calendar month cannot dress, nor can a season walk. This lecture will explore the magic of personification in Shakespeare's poetry.

Did Sir Walter Scott Invent Scotland?

This lecture will explain why Scott’s romanticised representations of Scotland were such a hit, and how his enduring legacy has helped or hindered Scotland as it seeks to define its place in Britain today.

Does Technology Have An Influence On The Way Labour Models Work?

A question from the lecture 'Employment and Unemployment' by Professor...

Charles Dickens, 'Hard Times' and Hyperbole

Dickens' use of exaggeration is key to his style. But its use has myriad effects from making a character's disposition unmissable, to adding whimsy and humour.

The Challenge of Big Data

Information plays a huge role in the modern world, with vast amounts of data literally at our finger tips. The Internet is leading to an ever-increasing amount of data, leading to the ‘challenge of Big Data’.