No Second Troy Rhetorical Analysis Essay

In the poem “No Second Troy” by W.B. Yeats he employs the literary elements of rhetorical questions and diction to convey his strong emotions and opinions towards the subject of the piece to enhance the theme. Yeats compares his love interest Maud Gonne to the infamous Helen of Troy. Gonne was a very passionate political activist while Yeats was not and they both had opposing views. Throughout the poem the diction is harsh, negative, and dark. He writes lines such as, “...she filled my days with misery,” (Yeats lines 1-2) and “...taught to ignorant men most violent ways” (Yeats line 3). He expresses his feelings for Maud by implementing this mostly negative diction, proclaiming that she is devastatingly beautiful and tragically a part of a …show more content…
This first question displays his attitude towards her and the activities she takes part in, showing Yeats’ opinion and giving the audience a clue on his opinions. The second question he wonders whether it is even a possibility for Maud to be peaceful. He adds that she doesn’t belong to the era she was born into, comparing her to the ancient Helen of Troy, who he thinks better fits her personality. In the third question Yeats thinks about another reality in which Maud wasn’t the way she is and realizes that this truly isn’t likely. The last rhetorical question discusses how because there is no other “Troy” to destroy Maud has to destroy things such as his happiness. As he asks these rhetorical questions he is not actually expecting an answer. By applying this technique he is able to emphasize his point and force the audience to think, almost like a cliffhanger of a story. Both the rhetorical questions and the use of specific diction assist in enhancing the theme of the poem by reveals Yeats’

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