Poetry Analysis Rough Draft: "Richard Corey" by, Edwin Arlington Robinson

Poetry Analysis Rough Draft

February 5, 2014

            

           The poem, “Richard Corey” by Edwin Arlington Robinson illustrates the notion of faulty perceptions and judgments based on appearance. On the surface, the poem is about a wealthy man named Richard Corey who is highly admired by those around him; however, despite his envious lifestyle and likable character, he ends up killing himself. This drastic contradiction between Corey’s outward appearance and his inward struggles illustrate the notion that judgments based on an individual’s appearance and materialistic possessions are fruitless.

 The poem is a narrative and told from third person perspective which parallels the relationship between the speaker and Richard Corey himself. The speaker observes a man named Richard Corey who is perceived as “having it all”. For example, in the second stanza the speaker states:

          

            “And he was rich - yes, richer than a king -

And admirably schooled in every grace:

In fine, we thought that he was everything

To make us wish that we were in his place (Lines 9-12)”.

Here, Richard Corey is described as rich, educated, and admirable. Those who watched and knew him wanted to be “in his place” However, in the third line within this stanza the speaker states “we thought that he was everything (line 11). This word choice foreshadows the notion that they were wrong because, they didn't know he was everything, they only  thought he was everything.  The latter supports the idea that their positive perception of Corey, based on his wealth and education, wasn't worthy of envy at all.