Ceilie's Essay #17

Ceilie Moore

Mr. Salsich 

English 9 

April 26th, 2009 

A Sentimental Feeling: 

An Essay on Two Poems and a Short Story 

Sentiment is displayed in many ways. It can be shown out of the act of kindness, such as giving a friend a shoulder to cry on, or it can be displayed through tears and be the one in need of a listening ear and a tissue. Being sentimental is feeling sincere emotion about something or someone, but it can also be excessive to the point where your life revolves around only your feelings of deep compassion and sympathy for others. In Katherine Mansifield’s short story, “The Garden Party,” Naomi Shihab Nye’s poem, “The Traveling Onion” and Emily Dickinson’s poem, “I’m Nobody,” there is a common theme of sentiment.


TS In “The Garden Party,” Laura, a young girl who is hosting a garden party, has a natural tendency to be sentimental. (Appositive) SD Before her party starts, she finds out a man was killed outside her house, which gives her second thoughts about continuing her event. CM “If you’re going to stop a [party] every time someone has an accident, you’ll lead a very strenuous life,” her sister, Jose, informed Laura, after she announced her intentions to cancel the soiree. CM Both Laura’s deep concern for the dead man and Jose’s reaction to the situation indicate that Laura was acting irrationally sentimental over the death of someone she didn’t even know. SD In the end of the story, Laura visits the dead man’s family and this time acts accordingly to the situations she is in, as opposed to the way she initially overreacted when she was given the news about the dead man. CM The man’s wife leads Laura in to see his resting body, “sleeping so soundly, so deeply.” CM Laura, reacting as anyone who is as unexposed to the idea of death as she is, and is put into a state of sentimental shock as she leaves the house, “sob[bing].” (Participle Phrase) CS Laura’s sentiment is out of pure compassion for everything and everyone, but there are times when it is almost too extreme and affects her, as well as those around her, negatively.


TS In the poem, “The Traveling Onion,” the author, Naomi Shihab Nye, shows sentiment over something as simple as a vegetable, in a way that really makes you think before you eat. (Appositive) SD Nye describes the effortless action of cutting an onion as a sad moment, and even recognizes something that even the most wary (SAT Word) chefs wouldn’t. CM “The way my knife enters the onion /… and [it] falls apart on the chopping block” she says, giving a somber connotation to what she’s doing, almost as though she is committing murder to such a beautiful, natural source of satisfaction. CM She adds, “A history revealed,” reminding us that each layer of an onion represents each year it has been alive, like the height of a tree or wrinkles on a human. SD Nye also feels sentiment for the onion as it is being eaten, not because it will no longer be seen, but because it is “small and forgotten” as it is mixed in with all the other foods. CM “[While eating] [we] comment on the texture of meat or herbal aroma /… but never on the translucence of onion,” she writes. CM She feels this raw, sorrowful emotion for the onion, as it spends its life growing with such potential, only to be picked and thrown into a “stew”, adding a sublime zest to the meal without any adulation. (SAT Word) CS Nye writes in a sentimental way that recognizes the little things in life, such as an onion, and gives it credit for everything it has given us, and apologizes for the fact that we have given nothing in return.

TS In Emily Dickinson’s, “I’m Nobody,” she recognizes and feels sentiment towards someone who is so little, that they are “nobody,” much like herself. SD “I’m nobody,” Dickinson writes, “Are you nobody too? /… Then there’s a pair of us.” CM Dickinson feels compassion towards this “nobody” because they are similar to her in the way that they feel nonexistent. CM She understands how the person feels being “nobody” and decides to befriend them, due to their likeness. SD Dickinson also expresses sentiment towards the “somebody[s] of the world.” CM Talking to the other “nobody”, Dickinson says, “How dreary [it is] to be somebody.” (Participle phrase) CM Dickinson’s comment is quite contradictory to society’s perception that being “somebody” is something to strive for, and to be known is something everyone wants. CM3 Instead of feeling envy towards the “somebody[s],” Dickinson actually feels sentiment and sympathy for those who are so “public” and known by everyone. CS Dickinson interestingly vocalizes her liking for being “nobody” and pity for those who are “somebody,” in a way that convinces readers to change their minds about the fame and fortune “somebody[s]” supposedly have.

Sentiment is an ambiguous concept that has a certain time and place. Sometimes, it is seen as the simple feeling of compassion towards another. Other times, it can be felt so excessively, it is unnecessary and overdramatic. In “The Garden Party,” the main character acts as though the sky is falling because of the unfortunate death of an unknown man, while in “The Traveling Onion,” the author feels this slight, subtle sentiment for a vegetable that doesn’t get enough recognition for its worth. Being sentimental can be depicted in many different ways, but it is always definite that if you feel even an ounce of sentiment, it is only because you have a heart.