<p> Hannah R. Meekins AP. Literature B. Vogt 20 September 2010 “I Will Put Chaos into Fourteen Lines” by Edna St. Vincent Millay</p><p>S U S U S U S U S U I/ will/ put/ Cha/os/ in/to/ four/teen/ lines A And/ keep/ him/ there;/ and/ let/ him/ thence/ es/cape B If/ he/ be/ luck/y;/ let/ him/ twist/, and/ ape B Flood,/ fire,/ and/ de/mon /— his/ ad/roit/ de/signs A Will/ strain/ to/ no/thing/ in/ the/ strict/ con/fines A Of/ this/ sweet/ or/der,/ where,/ in/ pi/ous/ rape, B I/ hold/ his/ es/sence/ and/ a/mor/phous/ shape, B Till/ he/ with/ Or/der/ min/gles/ and/ com/bines. A Past/ are/ the/ hours,/ the/ years/ of/ our/ dur/ess, D His/ ar/ro/gance,/ our/ aw/ful/ serv/i/tude: E I/ have/ him./ He/ is/ no/thing/ more/ nor/ less D Than/ some/thing/ sim/ple/ not/ yet/ un/der/stood; E I/ shall/ not/ e/ven/ force/ him/ to /con/fess; Or/ an/swer./ I/ will/ on/ly /make/ him/ good. / Title The words of the title suggest that the author will try to contain Chaos. Chaos is capitalized suggesting it is a person or being, not a concept or idea. The use of the word will creates a strong attitude that displays a possible bold tone. Paraphrase The author will trap Chaos in the fourteen lines of the Italian sonnet. The structure of the sonnet will contain the beast. Chaos can twist and attempt to wreak havoc, but he will not succeed in escaping. The only thing he can do is give to the sweet order and movement of the poem. Connotation The author uses the Greek mythology character Chaos, the father of Zeus, which stands for lack of order, mayhem, and confusion to be a representation of the disorder in the world. By caging Chaos within the fourteen lines of the structured sonnet she is limiting the chaos in her life and attempting to bring structure to the world. The author uses imagery to create a vivid image of the caged Chaos, “let him twist, ape, flood fire, and demon” as well as describing his “amorphous shape” to emphasize the symbolic nature of the sonnet. Attitude The author’s attitude is very strong and bold. She will not give into the all of the attempts of Chaos to escape. The author conveys an attitude that she will not back down to Chaos but that Chaos will have to be tamed, or made good. The author feels strongly against Chaos, hence her caging him and forcing him to succumb and mingle with Order. Shifts The sonnet begins with a very firm tone, centered on structure and order. The tone feels very forceful and unmoving, focusing on the containment of Chaos and not letting him free. The tone shifts towards a lighter, but still structured, tone towards the end when the author talks of “sweet order” and how she “shall not even force him to confess”. The tone becomes less forceful. Title The title of the poem completely sums up the overall theme of the sonnet. The Hannah R. Meekins AP. Literature B. Vogt 20 September 2010 title reveals that Chaos is personified and depicted as a monstrous being. By the author saying she will put Chaos in fourteen lines she is speaking in an assertive, unfaltering voice. The title reveals that chaos is going to be trapped with the Italian sonnet’s structured fourteen lines, creating a prison for the unstructured being. Theme The theme of the poem is the author’s attempts to limit chaos in her life and bring structure to the world. </p>