Part one of term paper
Evaluate the effectiveness of diction as an adjunct to meaning in John Updike's "Player Piano". In "Player Piano", John Updike uses personification to give life to a ‘unhuman' piano. By using diction to communicate his ideas, he effectively allows the reader to explore the psyche of a "Player Piano". In the first couple lines of the poem, ...

Part two of term paper
... the second line in "chuckling", "knuckle", and "key" suggest the abrupt sound of air passing through the paper roll of a player piano. In the next line, the word flicker is a phonetic intensive, closely associated with word ‘flame'. Since the ‘flame' is a symbol of life and light, it gives the reader a feeling that the piano is alive, further adding to the effect of personification in this poem. In the last line of the first stanza, there is consonance in "these", "keys", and "melodies". The ...