What is the theme of the poem "Richard Cory"?

Upon reflection of those who "glitter when they walk,"--the celebrities of contemporary society--one must note that, like Richard Cory, they inhabit rooms of which no one else has knowledge. (One fairly recent example is that of Philip  These rooms, some of which may be the proverbial "brown study" or the blackest despair of the soul, are apparently ones in which those above "the pavement" of ordinary lives wrestle with unconquerable torments, while the ordinary people "who cursed the bread" in their discontent and envy of the rich and famous live out their banal lives.

Edward Arlington Robinson's poem "Richard Cory" relates the truth that all persons are inscrutable to others; for no one can truly know all that dwells within another's mind. Thus, Robinson touches upon the theme of the existential aloneness of each human being. Paradoxically, this aloneness of Cory was exaberated by his celebrity. For, when he comes to town he is alienated from the citizens because of their perception of him as "imperially slim" and "schooled in every grace," and far above them in stature, so much so that no one really communicates with him.

What is the theme of the poem "Richard Cory"?

Two themes are developed through the poem's ironic ending. Although Richard Cory enjoyed wealth and social position and was much envied by the working poor, he is the one who commits suicide, as we learn in the poem's last surprising line. The public perception of Cory when contrasted with his suicide develops several themes. All of his wealth and privilege did not bring Cory happiness. Apparently more is required to lead a meaningful life. Also, appearances are deceiving. Those who watched Cory, a man who "glittered" in their eyes, assumed he enjoyed a perfect life. They had no idea that his life was so empty and unbearable. 

What is the theme of the poem "Richard Cory"?

"Richard Cory" by Edwin Arlington Robinson is a poem composed of four quatrains rhymed ABAB. It is a narrative poem, written in the first person plural, with the narrative "we" representing the voice of the poorer people in the town. The eponymous Richard Cory appears to be a wealthy gentleman living slightly outside town, probably on a large estate. The townspeople regard Richard Cory as an iconic figure, very different from themselves, and although he appears to be polite and not ostentatious, his manners and deportment seem quite alien, smooth, polished, graceful and unlike those common in town. The people of the town envy his wealth and his polish, and wish they were more like him. The final lines of the poem are: 

And Richard Cory, one calm summer night,

Went home and put a bullet through his head.

What moral lesson does the poem "Richard Cory" teach?

The previous post is quite strong.  I would only add that there could be a moral lesson about the nature of wealth and the perception it creates.  We live in a world where material wealth and monetary acquisition helps to define our consciousness and how individuals perceive one another and themselves.  When reading this poem, I am reminded of a line from the film, Jerry Maguire.  The female lead says, "First class- used to be a better meal, and now it's a better life."  Indeed, the idea that those who are wealthy are happier is something embedded in our social order.  Part of this might be the result of capitalism, where the acquisition of wealth is similar to a runaway train where there is no end in sight.  There will always be someone richer, more powerful, more endowed with the things that others envy.  The conception of Richard Cory as inherently better because of his wealth, his mannerisms, and his style is something that can be taught as proving true that "appearances can be deceiving."  If this is too cliched, perhaps another lesson is that all humans are trapped in their own state of incomplete consciousnesses.  The speaker is trapped in his, bound by a lack of wealth and poverty.  Richard Cory is bound in his, reason enough for him to put a bullet in his head.

What moral lesson does the poem "Richard Cory" teach?

One moral lesson that can be gleaned from Edward Arlington Robinson's poem "Richard Cory" is that we often envy people without knowing that they are not really enviable.  For, as Charles Dickens wrote in his A Tale of Two Cities,

A wonderful [meaning something causing wonder] fact to reflect upon, that every human creature is constituted to be that profound secret and mystery to every other.

In "Richard Cory," the townspeople perceive Cory as a king, "imperially slim" and a "gentleman from sole to crown."  Yet, he is isolated from people by the very wealth that they who "cursed the bread" in the depression of 1893 envy.  Because he is so rich, the people do not engage him in conversation as he may wish when he says "hello"; all that they notice is that "he glittered."  Because they are so poor, the "people on the pavement" can not imagine that anything can be wrong with Cory.  But, of course, he is desperately lonely, and it is his enviable money that creates this condition.  This is the "secret and mystery to every other."

What is the message of the poem "Richard Cory?"

One is that wealth and power have their attraction to the crowd but tend to alienate the individual. Ask any high profile celebrity, and he or she will tell you it is not that easy to protect one's private life (including maintaining meaningful relationships within a small circle of family and friends) when in the limelight.

Another is that things (or people) are often very different from the way they appear. In this case, a man whom everyone admired, emulated, or was even envious of was not "the success story" he was cracked up to be. Under all the glitter and hype, he was a very frustrated person who couldn't cope with the stress his image and lifestyle demanded of him. The reason he opted for suicide is not stated, but the reader could presume his "success" might have had something to do with it.

Related to the two first messages or themes is another question - what, after all, is really important in life? Complying to society's ideals of perfection and being gratified by that or seeking and finding personal fulfilment by one's own standards instead?

What are the themes in "Richard Cory"?

The primary theme of Edwin Arlington Robinson's poem “Richard Cory” is appearance versus reality, and it is accompanied by the theme of dissatisfaction with life. Let's look at these in more detail.

We will start with the idea of appearance versus reality. Richard Cory appears to have a perfect life—at least the people of the village think so. He is “richer than a king” and glitters. He is the perfect gentleman and “schooled in every grace,” slim and well-dressed, quiet and well-mannered. But beneath that surface, we find a man who is apparently very dissatisfied with his life.

The villagers are not pleased with their lives either. They are poor and work hard; they look at Richard Cory with a respect that borders on awe, and a desire to be in his place. But they do not realize at the appearance of Richard Cory does not match the reality of the man.

In fact, we are told that Richard Cory on “one calm summer night / Went home and put a bullet through his head.” All his money and nice clothing and graces and manners were only on the surface of his being. These failed to satisfy him. We wonder if, perhaps, he might not have been better off to be one of the hardworking, simple villagers because he clearly was miserable as he was.

What is the central theme throughout the poem Richard Cory by Edwin Arlington Robinson?

Theme No. 1: Spiritual Emptiness

Representing the wealthy class, Richard Cory stands apart from the townspeople:

Whenever Richard Cory went downtown,
We people on the pavement looked at him:
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean favored, and imperially slim.

They perceive Cory as one to be admired, one who has a perfection beyond their realm, but one, nevertheless, to make them "wish that we were in his place." Since the setting of this poem is after the Depression of the 1890s, it is a time in which the "people on the pavement" felt they had been ignored and left at the mercy of the trusts.

The setting of this poem is the Depression of the 1890s in which society's poor--"we people on the pavement"--felt they had been ignored during these difficult times and left at the mercy of the trusts and the people of the upper class, such as Robinson. Therefore, there is one theme of spiritual emptiness.

Theme No.2: Self-Deception

Although he "glitter[s] when he walks," and he is "always human when he talked," and Richard Cory is "everything /To make us wish that we were in his place, Cory turns out to not as be enviable as those on the pavement have thought him. While his clothes are more appropriate to his social class, Cory "one calm summer night/ Went home and put a bullet through his head." Another theme is that of self-deception.

How does the symbol of Richard Cory reveal the theme of the poem "Richard Cory"?

The image of Richard Cory, the symbolism of both who he was and how the town saw him, are of vital importance to the theme of the poem.  The idea of Richard Cory being someone of respect, and with almost an aura of regalia to him is essential to understanding what happened to him.  People regarded him in an almost point of view.  His amassing of wealth cut him off from people and this helped to feed the perception of him as being someone who "glittered" apart from others.  While this helped to intensify the way people looked at him, it might hint at the fundamental sadness that is apparent in his character, causing him to not be able to forge anything in way of social solidarity with others.  This isolation compelled him to end his life in the manner he did and cause a level of uncertainty in how he was viewed by others.  His being "richer than a king" was a symbol of how the town viewed him, but it was also representative of how alienated Cory was from himself and others.

What is the main message of the poem "Richard Cory"?

“Richard Cory” is about a man who appears fortunate in every way but who ends the poem by killing himself. Since his suicide occurs only in the last line, there is no commentary on it, and we have to look back in the poem for clues as to why he might have wanted to end his life.

When we read back over the poem in the light of Cory’s suicide, there is a clear sense of his isolation from the group of nameless “people on the pavement” who looked at him but apparently did not talk to him. The most revealing lines are in the penultimate stanza:

In fine, we thought that he was everything
To make us wish that we were in his place.

The tortured syntax here shows us that even the people on the pavement did not envy Richard Cory. They thought that he was everything that would make them envy someone. Even with all his wealth, taste, dignity, and humanity, Richard Cory lacks something. He is always alone.

Numerous messages are obviously applicable: money cannot buy happiness, loneliness and isolation can make even the most apparently perfect life unbearable, and the wealthy and privileged have the leisure to understand the true emptiness of life. It seems to me, however, that these messages are less powerful as something to take away from the poem than the image Robinson creates of a solitary gilded youth on a calm summer night, driven to despair.