The poem “Sea Rose,” by H.D., uses an allegory of the sea rose to represent the idea of inner beauty. This idea of inner beauty is portrayed through the comparison of the sea rose with the wet rose and the spiced rose; however, the overall lesson that we learn from comparing the 3 roses can also be carried over to human society—which is what we truly care about. By utilizing a short, free-verse style and by sprinkling in vivid adjectives that paint a sense of descriptive imagery, H.D. compares the 3 roses and teaches the reader a dont-judge-a-book-by-its-cover message.
H.D. begins the free-verse style in the first stanza by outlining the blemishes of the sea rose in a list like form. Line 2 in particular, “marred and with stint of petals,” as well as line 3, “meager flower, thin,” tell the reader that the sea rose is not the typical romantic rose that one gives to another on Valentine’s Day. The sea rose is lacking the pizzazz and the allure that is visualized when one thinks about a rose because the sea rose’s thinness and imperfect petals make it seem worthless. Despite the sea rose’s flaws, H.D. shifts the tone in the second and forth stanza and places the sea rose in a pedestal above the picturesque wet rose and the smell-pleasing spiced rose. In lines 4 and 5, “more precious than a wet rose,” and lines 14 and 15 “can the spiced-rose drip such acrid fragrance,” H.D. expresses favoritism towards the sea rose. In the third stanza, “Stunted, with small leaf, you are flung on the sand, you are lifted, in the crisp sand, that drives in the wind,” H.D explains that the sea rose is more beautiful then the other two roses because the sea rose has the ability to flow in the wind by itself. The broader meaning of the poem is that the so called on-the-surface beauty is not beautiful, but, rather, the beauty that comes with being independent and loving oneself is what is truly beautiful in this world (somewhat paradoxical if I must say).
Introduction to Poetry 
Oct 02, 2014 @ 16:22:38
The most original idea in your post is your paradoxical conclusion statement, “on-the-surface beauty is not beautiful, but, rather, the beauty that comes with being independent and loving oneself is what is truly beautiful in this world,” great job of analyzing the text and breaking it down systematically to form your own working interpretation of it all. As a whole, your post could have been stronger if you moved this intriguing statement into the thesis of your post and you came up with a new, complimentary idea in your conclusion statement.
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Oct 02, 2014 @ 16:28:06
I did not originally believe this poem to be referring to inner beauty, so I really appreciated your stance on the meaning of “Sea Rose.” Moreover, I feel like you really evaluated the tonal qualities as well as the diction in order to form this greater meaning. However, I believe you could go deeper into the concept of an allegory since that was the assignment. You did find a deeper meaning with a unique slant that you supported well with evidence but you did not depict a deeper story.
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Oct 04, 2014 @ 20:11:42
I really like the last sentence of this blog post and wish this idea was mentioned earlier in the post. This idea of beauty being something that comes from loving oneself and being independent connects with what you have been saying throughout the blog post, but if mentioned earlier, could have rounded out what you were trying to say. Additionally, it would have hooked the reader and lead them on a journey of analysis with you. As is, I find myself at the last line wanting to hear more about this idea, because it is so interesting and original.
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Oct 04, 2014 @ 20:58:33
I didn’t think that this poem was about “don’t judge a book by its cover” but your post not only made that claim but found textual evidence and literary devices to back it up which I really appreciated. It was such a new idea to me regarding the different roses and I really enjoyed seeing the connections with that idea and the text. I have to agree with Charlotte that I loved the last sentence and wanting to hear more about that idea. We all struggle with leaving a profound ending sentence but maybe in your next post you could expand on an idea as great as that and really improve the post as a whole.
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