Self-Awareness and Its Importance: Human Experience in "Wild Grapes," "Vesper Song," and "William Street" Anonymous 12th Grade

The process of storytelling is an intrinsic element of human society, which fosters the connections of individuals through our shared human experiences and emotions. In particular, the cumulative poetry of Kenneth Slessor during the 20th Century presents stories about memories and its effect on love in Wild Grapes, the devastation of abuse in Vesper Song and the inconsistency of shared and personal experiences in William Street. An interpretation of Slessor’s works and literary devices reveals the inevitable and undeniable varieties of human experiences, forcing individuals to engage in self-awareness and personal reflection about the presence of such human experiences in their own lives.

Memory serves as a reflection into the past, configured by fading emotions and dwindling thoughts. Wild Grapes uses the constitution of memory to capture the raw grief and reminiscence of love. The text explores a nostalgic depiction of a persona’s waning consciousness, portraying both a significant place and Slessor’s perspective to stimulate speculation about the authenticity of love and its presence in human memory. The degradation of the orchard “but kept no more” functions as an extended metaphor for the subsequently deep and “sour”...