The Role of Unfulfilled Expectations in E. A. Robinsons Richard Cory E

The Role of Unfulfilled Expectations in E. A. Robinsons Richard CoryIn E. A. Robinsons Richard Cory, Cory commits suicide be sustain he could not live up to every 1s expectations of him. In the very first stanza of the poem Cory is described by the author He was a gentleman from sole to crown, Clean favored, and imperially slim (Robinson l. 3 & 4), suggesting and canvass him to royalty. Surely, living up to such a hierarchy is the most taxing task one can be appointed. The poem makes reference to his material possessions, suggesting this is one of the key qualities people admire him for. Cory possibly facing bankruptcy feels he will be nothing and thought of as nothing once these gifts be gone. Such high expectations and admiration of Cory have backed him into a corner where he feels the only escape is a suicidal death. It has been believed by many that royalty is directly appointed by God, such a position carries an immense amount of expectations. At times, these expectatio ns are not even ascertainable due to the occurrence that royalty is looked at as flawless and all-knowing individuals. For a single human to cope with this is assuming a great amount of strength is possess by the man. As stated by Robinson In fine we thought he was everything (l. 11), expresses how immeasurably high the expectations were for Cory. To be held to such a high measuring rod is difficult for any average human to manage and cope with. Fear of making the slightest mistake as the man is being watched under a microscope causes a permanent stress within ones soul. Living life knowing others are admirable of your status and position makes every day decisions just as of import as a Kings decisiveness. As an average member of societ... ...ost literal and logical sense, a self-inflicted death is a more supported idea, especially when Robinson writes Went home and set up a bullet through his head (l. 16). I talked of the death being made to look like an accident, but t hat is purely an outside spin that a reader has to put on the verse. Taking the literal meaning of what the author states is more convincing. The stresses that Cory endures due to the high pedestal he is held on is a stronger cause for an individual to snap than that of the envious and jealous nature humans are use to dealing with. Cory committing suicide is a much more believable approaching than that of a murder. Work CitedRobinson, Edwin Arlington. Richard Cory. Literature-Reading, Reacting, Writing, 4th ed. Laurie Kirszner & Stephen Mandell, eds. Fort Worth Harcourt College Publishers, 2001. 986.