"Sunset and evening star,/ And one clear call for me!"
I skimmed "Crossing the Bar" quickly, the way I usually read poems for the first time. Before I went to read the questions that usually give away the meaning of the poem, I stopped to formulate my own cursory interpretation. What I came up with was an analogy between the horizon and death. I assumed the "bar" that was frequently mentioned was the horizon that is the the line -or bar- that can be seen where the sky meets the sea. The "call" the "farewell" of the poem was what I considered death. The crossing of the bar was the when the character passed over the horizon from death to life.
As I moved on to read the questions, I realized my interpretation was far more complicated than the actual meaning. The bar is literally the sandbar (a place where the sand at the bottom rises up, making it very shallow and dangerous for crossing ships) in an ocean. The only part I got right the first time was the death part. The author wants to die by drowning, or at least expects to. He will answer the call and return to his Pilot (God) with his death. My first attempt may have crossed the line, but it was eventually corrected upon further study of "Crossing the Bar".
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Progression of Love
"Ah, love, let us be true"
In "Dover Beach" I noticed a very distinct and marked progression from stanza to stanza. There are four stanzas in the poem and each of them have a distinct sentiment. This progression comes full circle from majestic, to human, to mournful, to wistful. The first stanza talks about the sea and uses it to describe how the author feels. The stanza uses words like: "full", "roar", "fling", "tremulous cadence", "eternal", "glimmering", and "vast".
The next stanza is very short, but very different from the rest. It uses people that actually lived and actual places such as Sophocles and the Aegean Sea to convey its message. These references give the stanza a very earthy, human feel. The next stanza is sad, and mournful. It recalls the "roar" of the ocean mentioned in the first stanza, but this time with a "naked", "melancholy", "withdrawing", twist. It suggests that something dearly loved is lost. The last stanza is optimistic. It realizes the loss of the previous stanza, but uses phrases like the one quoted above to turn the next corner. "So various, so beautiful, so new" is another phrase that shows the author is recuperating from the loss in the previous stanza.
Overall, I assumed the poem was about love gained, aged, lost, and renewed, corresponding with each of the progressive stanzas.
In "Dover Beach" I noticed a very distinct and marked progression from stanza to stanza. There are four stanzas in the poem and each of them have a distinct sentiment. This progression comes full circle from majestic, to human, to mournful, to wistful. The first stanza talks about the sea and uses it to describe how the author feels. The stanza uses words like: "full", "roar", "fling", "tremulous cadence", "eternal", "glimmering", and "vast".
The next stanza is very short, but very different from the rest. It uses people that actually lived and actual places such as Sophocles and the Aegean Sea to convey its message. These references give the stanza a very earthy, human feel. The next stanza is sad, and mournful. It recalls the "roar" of the ocean mentioned in the first stanza, but this time with a "naked", "melancholy", "withdrawing", twist. It suggests that something dearly loved is lost. The last stanza is optimistic. It realizes the loss of the previous stanza, but uses phrases like the one quoted above to turn the next corner. "So various, so beautiful, so new" is another phrase that shows the author is recuperating from the loss in the previous stanza.
Overall, I assumed the poem was about love gained, aged, lost, and renewed, corresponding with each of the progressive stanzas.
Sohelpmegod (Vernacular)
"so i goes to flushm / but sohelpmegod he starts talkin/ bout a golden ball/ an how i can be a princess"
Although totally foreign, I found the southern swing and drawl of "Hazel Tells LaVerne" to be refreshing. When I read it, I could literally hear the speaker in my head, so vivid was the vernacular used in this poem. The writer obviously took a strong hand on his/her poetic license when they wrote this one. Many grammatical rules were broken, even to the extent to combine up to four words, quoted above. This didn't confuse me, it only furthered they way the I interpreted the character in the story.
Obviously, the poem is a spin on the fairy tale about the princess and the frog. The writer's use of the vernacular of the southern states to not only create modern feel to the tale, but an unexpected main character. The main character is clearly a chatty caddy and is easily stereotyped with other southern belles. Through the use of vernacular language and a unique style, the writer recreates an old tale with a new twist.
Although totally foreign, I found the southern swing and drawl of "Hazel Tells LaVerne" to be refreshing. When I read it, I could literally hear the speaker in my head, so vivid was the vernacular used in this poem. The writer obviously took a strong hand on his/her poetic license when they wrote this one. Many grammatical rules were broken, even to the extent to combine up to four words, quoted above. This didn't confuse me, it only furthered they way the I interpreted the character in the story.
Obviously, the poem is a spin on the fairy tale about the princess and the frog. The writer's use of the vernacular of the southern states to not only create modern feel to the tale, but an unexpected main character. The main character is clearly a chatty caddy and is easily stereotyped with other southern belles. Through the use of vernacular language and a unique style, the writer recreates an old tale with a new twist.
Sweet Revenge So Bitter (Mood)
"And then, poor aspen wretch, neglected, thou, bathed in a cold quicksilver sweat, wilt lie"
I can't lie, I was a little captivated by this poem. It was so dark and bitter and evil (not at all like me). It is the story of a person- man presumably- wronged/murdered by a woman. This poem is the reflection of how his ghost will exact revenge on her. The ghost stands over her bed at night, terrifying her, but only her as the man in the bed with her doesn't notice. The woman is alone to repent her mistake in fear, constantly threatened by the ghost of her mistake.
Not only is the story itself foreboding and ominous, but the angry, bitter diction that fills the poems sets an unrelenting, threatening mood that is the poem's greatest asset. Words like: "scorn", "murderess", "ghost", "aspen wretch", "neglected", "sweat", "painfully repent", and "threatenings". The diction laced throughout the plot sets a scene of sweet revenge but with a bitter spin.
I can't lie, I was a little captivated by this poem. It was so dark and bitter and evil (not at all like me). It is the story of a person- man presumably- wronged/murdered by a woman. This poem is the reflection of how his ghost will exact revenge on her. The ghost stands over her bed at night, terrifying her, but only her as the man in the bed with her doesn't notice. The woman is alone to repent her mistake in fear, constantly threatened by the ghost of her mistake.
Not only is the story itself foreboding and ominous, but the angry, bitter diction that fills the poems sets an unrelenting, threatening mood that is the poem's greatest asset. Words like: "scorn", "murderess", "ghost", "aspen wretch", "neglected", "sweat", "painfully repent", and "threatenings". The diction laced throughout the plot sets a scene of sweet revenge but with a bitter spin.
Real Romance (tone)
"And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare/ As any she belied with false compare."
We've all heard the traditional love poems or sayings that compare certain aspects of a woman to ridiculously exaggerated qualities or objects. In fact, these phrases begin to become so cliched, that we rarely stop to critically inspect their validity. A lover's voice is often compared to music, her eyes to the sun, and her cheeks to roses. I, too, took this phrases for granted until reading them reversed in "My mistress' eyes" by William Shakespeare. Shakespeare is honest and truthful. His lover's voice is nothing like music, it's simply a voice of someone he loves. Her eyes are in fact not like the sun at all, but they are merely the eyes of someone he loves. And finally, her cheeks to not resemble roses at all, they are merely the cheeks of someone he loves.
Truthful and simple as the lines before line thirteen maybe, they come across with quite an insulting tone. His lover might not appreciate the bluntness that leaves her seemingly undervalued. The last two lines of the poem (13 and 14 quoted above) manage to turn the entire tone around. Now the speaker is humble, honest, realistic, loving, and perceptive. He sees his lover for exactly who she is and loves her anyway, a sentiment far more romantic than all the cliches in the world.
We've all heard the traditional love poems or sayings that compare certain aspects of a woman to ridiculously exaggerated qualities or objects. In fact, these phrases begin to become so cliched, that we rarely stop to critically inspect their validity. A lover's voice is often compared to music, her eyes to the sun, and her cheeks to roses. I, too, took this phrases for granted until reading them reversed in "My mistress' eyes" by William Shakespeare. Shakespeare is honest and truthful. His lover's voice is nothing like music, it's simply a voice of someone he loves. Her eyes are in fact not like the sun at all, but they are merely the eyes of someone he loves. And finally, her cheeks to not resemble roses at all, they are merely the cheeks of someone he loves.
Truthful and simple as the lines before line thirteen maybe, they come across with quite an insulting tone. His lover might not appreciate the bluntness that leaves her seemingly undervalued. The last two lines of the poem (13 and 14 quoted above) manage to turn the entire tone around. Now the speaker is humble, honest, realistic, loving, and perceptive. He sees his lover for exactly who she is and loves her anyway, a sentiment far more romantic than all the cliches in the world.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Then and Now
I'm not sure if this was the intended response, but reading Ozymandias was a somewhat humorous experience. The Pharaohs and dictators of the ancient world were austere, demi-gods. No one dared cross them. Now, the ancient runes of the cities these dictators built stand empty and unimportant in the desert.
I found this interesting that a statue that once commanded fear and respect are now mere exhibits for sweaty tourists and their cameras. This change in perspective may have been a process that took thousands of years, but the contrast is interesting to me still. The sculpture once commanded, and pointed, and stood watch over its humble citizens. Now, it is alone and ignored and of little importance beyond its mere historical significance.
I found this interesting that a statue that once commanded fear and respect are now mere exhibits for sweaty tourists and their cameras. This change in perspective may have been a process that took thousands of years, but the contrast is interesting to me still. The sculpture once commanded, and pointed, and stood watch over its humble citizens. Now, it is alone and ignored and of little importance beyond its mere historical significance.
Divine Paradox
"Batter my heart, three-personed God" is a poem that's title contains no illusions. The affections of the speaker are constantly being battered back and forth, back and forth, by what the reader can only assume is God, or the three-in-one Trinity.
Just like the Trinity, the verbs that describe the Trinity's actions come in threes. "Knock, breathe, shine", "break, blow, burn", and other combinations. The more interesting factor of these verb combinations, and all the other verbs in the poem, is that they often contradict each other. On one hand we have "batter", "knock", "break", "burn", "ravish", "untie", and "imprison". On the other hand we have "breathe", "shine", "enthrall", "defend", "rise", and "admit". My conclusion from these verbs, and the last few lines of the poetry that involved love, chastity, and captivation, is that the speaker is comparing their relationship to God with a love affair through their many paradoxes.
The speaker finds it difficult to love God sometimes. God is constantly laying burdens and challenges on the speaker (the negative verbs). Life and God have broken the speaker down. Yet the speaker still yearns for God. God has captivated, and enthralled the speaker. No matter how difficult loving God can be, the speaker still indulges in the divine paradox.
Just like the Trinity, the verbs that describe the Trinity's actions come in threes. "Knock, breathe, shine", "break, blow, burn", and other combinations. The more interesting factor of these verb combinations, and all the other verbs in the poem, is that they often contradict each other. On one hand we have "batter", "knock", "break", "burn", "ravish", "untie", and "imprison". On the other hand we have "breathe", "shine", "enthrall", "defend", "rise", and "admit". My conclusion from these verbs, and the last few lines of the poetry that involved love, chastity, and captivation, is that the speaker is comparing their relationship to God with a love affair through their many paradoxes.
The speaker finds it difficult to love God sometimes. God is constantly laying burdens and challenges on the speaker (the negative verbs). Life and God have broken the speaker down. Yet the speaker still yearns for God. God has captivated, and enthralled the speaker. No matter how difficult loving God can be, the speaker still indulges in the divine paradox.
Opposite Irony
I directly linked this poem to "Barbie Doll". It aligns the gender issue directly to the race issue. They both use the same progression and irony to relate the backwardness of the stories. The "Mr. Z" of the poem was informed at a very young age that his color, the way he looked and the culture that went along with it, were unacceptable. Mr. Z spends a large amount of the poem trying to become someone he is not. Here is where the irony takes a different and unexpected turn.
Upon his deathbed, Mr. Z., was referred to as the "one of the most distinguished members of his race". After all of his 'accomplishments' and adjustments to the white lifestyle, Mr. Z. was still viewed as just one of a multitude of black faces that cannot viewed as more than anything except their color. Here the irony is the exact opposite of "Barbie Doll"'s irony, but somehow, the effect is still the same.
Upon his deathbed, Mr. Z., was referred to as the "one of the most distinguished members of his race". After all of his 'accomplishments' and adjustments to the white lifestyle, Mr. Z. was still viewed as just one of a multitude of black faces that cannot viewed as more than anything except their color. Here the irony is the exact opposite of "Barbie Doll"'s irony, but somehow, the effect is still the same.
Puzzle Pieces (Irony and Imagery)
The toys and play things the girl in this poem have a great significance to the overall theme of the poem. In "Barbie Doll" the girl grew up with all the stifling stereotypical images of womanhood around her: "stoves", "irons", "dolls", and "lipstick". She grew up, primed for the mother/wife role she was conditioned for. When she was old enough to be affected by the words of others, she began to absorb hurtful comments like "big nose and fat legs". Continuing with the imagery of the childhood toys, she was like a puzzle piece that can't seem to find her correlating spot in her puzzle.
The irony created by the imagery was revealed at the very end of the poem. The girl "cut off her nose and her legs" after trying to change her appearance with smaller measures. This drastic actions resulted in her death. At the very end of the poem, the dead girl with her nose and legs finally according with what the modern style demanded, was considered pretty. She literally had to die in order to live the life she was told she had to want. She had to changer her shape to fit into a puzzle she already had a spot in.
The irony created by the imagery was revealed at the very end of the poem. The girl "cut off her nose and her legs" after trying to change her appearance with smaller measures. This drastic actions resulted in her death. At the very end of the poem, the dead girl with her nose and legs finally according with what the modern style demanded, was considered pretty. She literally had to die in order to live the life she was told she had to want. She had to changer her shape to fit into a puzzle she already had a spot in.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
Perspective (Dramatic Irony)
Dramatic irony is defined as when there is a separation between what the audience understands about a scene and what the characters understand about a scene. Most poems aren't viewed as stories, or scenes, but "APO 96225 does relate a series of events involving characters.
First of all, the poem is about Vietnam. The audience is immediately informed of this in the title: APO 96225. This is the mailing address of the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam (not common knowledge, I understand, but for this blog's purpose, it is now). Hindsight of the Vietnam War tells us a few things. The war was extremely unpopular among most Americans. The young soldiers who returned from horrific and traumatizing battles were treated with little respect, and sometimes disdain. The soldiers were indirectly blamed, or at least associated with this highly unpopular government decision. The hippies never had a real understanding of what the Vietnam War was like because they didn't want to know, because they didn't respect the decision to go to war at all. The Americans of today do understand the war. Therefore, we have a different understanding than the parents in the poem.
This misconception of the parents towards the son creates a bitter, resentful, yet resigned tone that challenges as well as offers a true perspective on the dramatic irony of the Vietnam War.
First of all, the poem is about Vietnam. The audience is immediately informed of this in the title: APO 96225. This is the mailing address of the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam (not common knowledge, I understand, but for this blog's purpose, it is now). Hindsight of the Vietnam War tells us a few things. The war was extremely unpopular among most Americans. The young soldiers who returned from horrific and traumatizing battles were treated with little respect, and sometimes disdain. The soldiers were indirectly blamed, or at least associated with this highly unpopular government decision. The hippies never had a real understanding of what the Vietnam War was like because they didn't want to know, because they didn't respect the decision to go to war at all. The Americans of today do understand the war. Therefore, we have a different understanding than the parents in the poem.
This misconception of the parents towards the son creates a bitter, resentful, yet resigned tone that challenges as well as offers a true perspective on the dramatic irony of the Vietnam War.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Drunk on Imagery
In "I taste a liquor never brewed", the line of imagery is easily followed. By this, I do not mean that I understood what the imagery was pointing to. What I mean is that, unlike some poems (cough "Pink Dog" cough) the images and comparisons made in this poem all clearly originate from the same source. All the words used to describe the way the speaker felt, the way the speaker got 'drunk' all originated from a spiritual, heavenly interpretation of nature.
Some of the nouns used in this poem that stand out (particularly because they are capitalized) are: Tankards, Rhine, Air, Dew, Molten Blue, Foxglove, Butterflies, Seraphs, Saints, and Sun. All these words have a reverent, worshipful connotation in the context of the poem. The way the speaker viewed the world around her was in almost faithfully religious love. In the second stanza, the comparison between alcohol and dew, alcohol and the molten blue of the sea, were especially effective. The unification and sweet reverence the speaker used in the imagery of her/his poem were effective in translating the intoxication message.
Some of the nouns used in this poem that stand out (particularly because they are capitalized) are: Tankards, Rhine, Air, Dew, Molten Blue, Foxglove, Butterflies, Seraphs, Saints, and Sun. All these words have a reverent, worshipful connotation in the context of the poem. The way the speaker viewed the world around her was in almost faithfully religious love. In the second stanza, the comparison between alcohol and dew, alcohol and the molten blue of the sea, were especially effective. The unification and sweet reverence the speaker used in the imagery of her/his poem were effective in translating the intoxication message.
What did I notice
Pink Dog. This is definitely one of those poems you have to read a few times to understand. So I read it twice. I still didn't get it. So I went with the ol' "what did I notice" standby. So here is a list of things that I noticed about this poem:
1)The dog thing is used in every stanza.
2)A Carnival pops up in the last three stanzas.....?
3)The dog is naked.
4) The speaker pities but also dislikes the dog at the same time.
5)The dog's life is endanger because of its nakedness...?
Okay, I'll stop there. The real list was longer, but they revolved around these items (except the Carnival, I can't fit that in anywhere). In the end, here is my take on what the poem could mean:
The naked dog is a person who wears their heart on their sleeve. Their openness makes them an embarrassment, then a target to others. Their brazenness with their feelings and emotions makes them needy and desperate for attention.
Now, here is why I thought this was the meaning of the poem. The part at the end about Lent and Ash Wednesday was what got me on this track. The Pharisees in the Bible stood on street corners, tearing their garments and proclaiming how long they have fasted that week. The naked dog is similar to these Pharisees; "Naked and pink, without a single hair... Startled, the passerby draw back and stare." The are hairless, barren, vulnerable by their own account, begging for attention; "If they do this to anyone who begs, drugged, drunk, or sober, with or without legs, what would they do to sick, four-legged dogs?". According to the speaker, pedestrians of the poem "take and throw them in the tidal rivers", the same way God will on judgement day.
Again, this interpretation may not be correct. This is simple the conclusion drawn from "what I noticed."
1)The dog thing is used in every stanza.
2)A Carnival pops up in the last three stanzas.....?
3)The dog is naked.
4) The speaker pities but also dislikes the dog at the same time.
5)The dog's life is endanger because of its nakedness...?
Okay, I'll stop there. The real list was longer, but they revolved around these items (except the Carnival, I can't fit that in anywhere). In the end, here is my take on what the poem could mean:
The naked dog is a person who wears their heart on their sleeve. Their openness makes them an embarrassment, then a target to others. Their brazenness with their feelings and emotions makes them needy and desperate for attention.
Now, here is why I thought this was the meaning of the poem. The part at the end about Lent and Ash Wednesday was what got me on this track. The Pharisees in the Bible stood on street corners, tearing their garments and proclaiming how long they have fasted that week. The naked dog is similar to these Pharisees; "Naked and pink, without a single hair... Startled, the passerby draw back and stare." The are hairless, barren, vulnerable by their own account, begging for attention; "If they do this to anyone who begs, drugged, drunk, or sober, with or without legs, what would they do to sick, four-legged dogs?". According to the speaker, pedestrians of the poem "take and throw them in the tidal rivers", the same way God will on judgement day.
Again, this interpretation may not be correct. This is simple the conclusion drawn from "what I noticed."
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
February's Fickle Feline
I need to say a few words about cats. I don't really care for them. I have to admit that kittens are sort of adorable, but that only lasts so long. I have a cat whom I hate. I bit me all the time when I was little and used to chase me around the house. Sometimes he would rub up on my legs and purr and then sit on my foot and sink his teeth into my leg. He even used to hide under my bed, and wait until I got up in the morning to grab my feet. Cats are just fickle, frustrating little animals. You can never really tell whether they like you or not. Sometimes you think they are grateful that you feed them, water them, pay for shots and checkups and heartworm pills. Other times they pee on your stuff and mew insistently until you throw them outside. Then they stand outside and mew until you let them back in. I don't like cats. But I love this poem.
February has the sort of cynical, bitter humor that I love. It's witty, sarcastic, and altogether a very accurate portrait of the fickleness of February. February is usually the month that people start to hate winter. The cold is getting old, the snow is now all black, slushy, and forming nasty brown icicles on the back of my car. February is basically the backlash from all the fun excitement of New Years and Christmas. Sure, Valentines Day is in February, but I feel the same way about Valentines Day as I do cats. The love referred to in the poem may be an acknowledgement to Valentines Day: "But its love that does us in. Over and over again, He shoots, he scores! and famine crouches in the bedsheets, ambushing the pulsing eiderdown,". Love is paradoxically compared to a hockey game. Hockey is violent, bloody, and competitive. Love is usually considered pleasant and lovely. Again, the author is implying how fickle the month of February can be.
The comparisons between hockey, February, and cats is cleverly wound around the bitterness the speaker holds feels for the whiplash of the holiday fun and the stupid decision to buy that cute kitten.
February has the sort of cynical, bitter humor that I love. It's witty, sarcastic, and altogether a very accurate portrait of the fickleness of February. February is usually the month that people start to hate winter. The cold is getting old, the snow is now all black, slushy, and forming nasty brown icicles on the back of my car. February is basically the backlash from all the fun excitement of New Years and Christmas. Sure, Valentines Day is in February, but I feel the same way about Valentines Day as I do cats. The love referred to in the poem may be an acknowledgement to Valentines Day: "But its love that does us in. Over and over again, He shoots, he scores! and famine crouches in the bedsheets, ambushing the pulsing eiderdown,". Love is paradoxically compared to a hockey game. Hockey is violent, bloody, and competitive. Love is usually considered pleasant and lovely. Again, the author is implying how fickle the month of February can be.
The comparisons between hockey, February, and cats is cleverly wound around the bitterness the speaker holds feels for the whiplash of the holiday fun and the stupid decision to buy that cute kitten.
Looking Up (Apostrophe)
The speaker in this poem is a devout stargazer. When I first read it, I though of the movie "The Princess and the Frog" where the funny lightning bug falls in love with a star that he thinks is another lightning bug. He calls her Evangeline and sings to her. The speaker in this poem may not be in love with the star he is talking to, but he certainly admires it.
An apostrophe is when a speaker talks to an inanimate or nonhuman object. In "Bright Star" the speaker is asking for some of the star's qualities. He admires how steadfast, and unchangeable the star is. This is true, but the speaker also concedes that the "life" of a star is not perfect.
The speaker uses phrases like "sweet unrest", "eternal lids", "sleepless Eremite", "priestlike task", and "awake forever". These all have good and bad connotations. They are a mix of something desirable and something undesirable. The effect give the audience a very bittersweet taste of the "task" of a star, the lonely vigil a star holds over the world. The speaker admires the hardship, and the steadfast qualities of the star in his loving apostrophe to the heavens.
An apostrophe is when a speaker talks to an inanimate or nonhuman object. In "Bright Star" the speaker is asking for some of the star's qualities. He admires how steadfast, and unchangeable the star is. This is true, but the speaker also concedes that the "life" of a star is not perfect.
The speaker uses phrases like "sweet unrest", "eternal lids", "sleepless Eremite", "priestlike task", and "awake forever". These all have good and bad connotations. They are a mix of something desirable and something undesirable. The effect give the audience a very bittersweet taste of the "task" of a star, the lonely vigil a star holds over the world. The speaker admires the hardship, and the steadfast qualities of the star in his loving apostrophe to the heavens.
EXPLOSION (comparison language and rhetoric question)
When I wrote the blog about Perrine and his assumptions about the way poetry is interpreted, I made a few claims of my own. I said the best part of poetry is the mystery. I love the feeling that I will never truly know exactly what the author intended for his/her audience to understand or learn. This is still true; however, I might have to make a little addition. Being baffled is sometimes enjoyable, and suspenseful, but understanding a poem and feeling certain you have grasped the author's meaning is also satisfying, however more rare.
I enjoyed "Dream Deferred" because I knew what the speaker was trying to tell me*. Not only was it short and to the point, the point was clear. My first thoughts upon reading this poem was that the last line was of the greatest importance. The last line: "Or does it explode?" is a metaphor, while the preceding eight lines contain five consecutive similes. The last line sticks out because of this difference. The similes all seem to be speculation, or musings about what happens to a dream (in this case, the dream is not the sleepy kind but the goal/wish/hope kind). The metaphor, however, seems more like a rhetorical question. The speaker seems certain, although he is technically still asking a question, that this is the right answer and that the audience will agree with his assumption. The speaker is hinting that dreams cannot truly be deferred. The cannot be dried up, or grow old, or whither away. When dreams are oppressed, they EXPLODE. They push their boundaries and overcome whatever has been holding them back, or deferring them.
My thoughts seemed confirmed when I read the last question following the poem. The author was an African American. This fact has extreme relevance to my interpretation of the similes and stand-out metaphor. African American history is one, long deferred dream that eventually exploded into reality. The comparison language and rhetoric of this concise, simple poem made it not only enjoyable, but a pleasure to understand.
*DISCLAIMER: I can't actually claim that I know EXACTLY what this poem is about. But I think I'm right. I felt the need to put this because I am often wrong.
I enjoyed "Dream Deferred" because I knew what the speaker was trying to tell me*. Not only was it short and to the point, the point was clear. My first thoughts upon reading this poem was that the last line was of the greatest importance. The last line: "Or does it explode?" is a metaphor, while the preceding eight lines contain five consecutive similes. The last line sticks out because of this difference. The similes all seem to be speculation, or musings about what happens to a dream (in this case, the dream is not the sleepy kind but the goal/wish/hope kind). The metaphor, however, seems more like a rhetorical question. The speaker seems certain, although he is technically still asking a question, that this is the right answer and that the audience will agree with his assumption. The speaker is hinting that dreams cannot truly be deferred. The cannot be dried up, or grow old, or whither away. When dreams are oppressed, they EXPLODE. They push their boundaries and overcome whatever has been holding them back, or deferring them.
My thoughts seemed confirmed when I read the last question following the poem. The author was an African American. This fact has extreme relevance to my interpretation of the similes and stand-out metaphor. African American history is one, long deferred dream that eventually exploded into reality. The comparison language and rhetoric of this concise, simple poem made it not only enjoyable, but a pleasure to understand.
*DISCLAIMER: I can't actually claim that I know EXACTLY what this poem is about. But I think I'm right. I felt the need to put this because I am often wrong.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Inanimate Characters (Personification)
Emily Dickinson capitalizes A LOT of random words in this poem. At first, I thought they were just that, random. Then I started looking at which were capitalized and which were not. All the capitalized words, such as: Funeral, Brain, Bell, Drum, Box, Soul, Boots of Lead, and Space. These are all not necessarily objects, but they are all nouns that are used as events of objects that do something in or to the speaker's brain. In this sense, they are all characters, which is odd, considering none of them are people.
This is a use of personification. For example: "Service, like a Drum- kept beating-beating". The service in the brain of the speaker is beating the inside of his/her head. This is an action that a service, technically, cannot perform. Again: "Then Space- began to toll,". Space cannot 'toll'. Dickinson uses many words that are typically not subjects as subjects that commit actions that have sensory effects on the speaker. The personification lends an odd, impersonal tone to the speaker's own funeral. The fact that no people are involved in the funeral only make it more mournful.
This is a use of personification. For example: "Service, like a Drum- kept beating-beating". The service in the brain of the speaker is beating the inside of his/her head. This is an action that a service, technically, cannot perform. Again: "Then Space- began to toll,". Space cannot 'toll'. Dickinson uses many words that are typically not subjects as subjects that commit actions that have sensory effects on the speaker. The personification lends an odd, impersonal tone to the speaker's own funeral. The fact that no people are involved in the funeral only make it more mournful.
Sensory Overload
"I felt a Funeral, in my Brain" is poem with a WHOLE LOT going on. The most obvious of the plethora is the overload on the sensory side.
There are five senses of the human body. There are five stanzas in this poem. The senses feeling and hearing are the only ones used, however. I feel this extremely effective since, if a funeral is being held inside your brain (in the literal sense), you cannot see or taste it (in the literal sense). This is extremely effective because I can literally picture a person (with a transparent frontal lobe) sitting and listening into the attic of their cranium as a funeral is held inside. Things that can only be seen or heard are described.
The effectiveness of the sensory descriptions of the mournful actions of the objects inside the speakers head all derive from the use of sensory language.
There are five senses of the human body. There are five stanzas in this poem. The senses feeling and hearing are the only ones used, however. I feel this extremely effective since, if a funeral is being held inside your brain (in the literal sense), you cannot see or taste it (in the literal sense). This is extremely effective because I can literally picture a person (with a transparent frontal lobe) sitting and listening into the attic of their cranium as a funeral is held inside. Things that can only be seen or heard are described.
The effectiveness of the sensory descriptions of the mournful actions of the objects inside the speakers head all derive from the use of sensory language.
Those Cold Comparisons (Metaphor)
Of all the poems in this unit, "Those Winter Days" is the poem that has the most clear progression, or plot line of all the other ones we studied. Most of the poems had progression, but few had a clear line of events that led to one conclusion. I appreciated the simplicity that wasn't dumbed-down, but was still understandable.
The poem first begins, and continues, with an extended metaphor comparing cold to the relationship between the son and his father. This metaphor is instrumental and defining the relationship, and demonstrating what the son learned about the way he has treated and should treat his father. The metaphor is developed through each of the three stanzas that also each have a separate and individual purpose.
The first stanza portrays the father. The diction about his "cracked hands" and "blueback cold" and "No one ever thanked him," all contribute to his self-sacrificing, hard-working man. The cold metaphor places the father outside to face the cold by himself.
The second stanza introduces the speaker, what I assume is the son. At this point the father has already risen and started a fire. The boy most cross the cold distance between them to reach the fire. Again, the metaphor about wintry cold between the father and his son, invading the house between them and giving it "chronic angers" (creaks?), defines how the relationship stands and why it is disfunctional.
The third stanza brings the son to realization to why the way he has treated his father is wrong. The last two lines, "What did I know, what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?" show the son has truly learned a lesson from the examination he pursued during the first two stanzas with the help of his wintry metaphor.
The poem first begins, and continues, with an extended metaphor comparing cold to the relationship between the son and his father. This metaphor is instrumental and defining the relationship, and demonstrating what the son learned about the way he has treated and should treat his father. The metaphor is developed through each of the three stanzas that also each have a separate and individual purpose.
The first stanza portrays the father. The diction about his "cracked hands" and "blueback cold" and "No one ever thanked him," all contribute to his self-sacrificing, hard-working man. The cold metaphor places the father outside to face the cold by himself.
The second stanza introduces the speaker, what I assume is the son. At this point the father has already risen and started a fire. The boy most cross the cold distance between them to reach the fire. Again, the metaphor about wintry cold between the father and his son, invading the house between them and giving it "chronic angers" (creaks?), defines how the relationship stands and why it is disfunctional.
The third stanza brings the son to realization to why the way he has treated his father is wrong. The last two lines, "What did I know, what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?" show the son has truly learned a lesson from the examination he pursued during the first two stanzas with the help of his wintry metaphor.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Seasons of Life (Symbols)
The point made implicit in this poems was how different the same part of a year can be when experience has soured it. Viewing the bright blossoms and heavy bows of spring can be renewing and lovely one May, and oppressive and gaudy the next. The widow of "The Widows Lament in Springtime" experiences this difference bitterly in the loss of her husband. All the natural features usually used to characterize spring are used as symbols to explain the contrast the widow experiences over her loss.
First, the new grass apparently inflames the widow. But not the flame of passion. The cold flame of passion dead, love gone.
"The" plum tree is heavy with "masses with flowers". The usage of the word 'the' indicates that there is only one tree in the yard. One tree that has been through many springs, springs were around when the widows husband was. The flowers, light, bright blossoms, are heavy. Oppressively heavy.
The meadows and woods that held attractions in an earlier time are the happiness of years previous. But around every meadow is a marsh to sink into.
The copious symbols in the poem about the new widow and the new year blooms comparisons between the seasons of the year and seasons of life.
Prison City
The "mind-forged manacles" of William Blake's depict a slightly macabre city with a certainly depressing unity.
The first stanza puts London on the map, while similarly mapping the faces of its citizens with landmarks of "weakness, marks of woe."
Second stanza enslaves the citizens. Moreover, it claims they enslave themselves. This refers back the the weakness in the first stanza. They cry as a unit against the manacles that they -apparently- they have put on themselves.
Third stanza unifies three very different characters. Church people, lowly chimney sweepers, and palace soldiers all despise their lot in life. The Church blackens despite its efforts, and the soldier gives his life to protect a palace he doesn't feel loyalty to.
The fourth stanza juxtaposes the natural order of life. The harlot, the baby, and the marriage all mix around in order. They curse, and cry, and die of plague.
The omniscient character who walks the street unifies these woeful characters with the use of the sense of hearing. The unity, but separate despairs of the citizens of London serve as almost a warning to tourists. London is a prison, not a city.
The first stanza puts London on the map, while similarly mapping the faces of its citizens with landmarks of "weakness, marks of woe."
Second stanza enslaves the citizens. Moreover, it claims they enslave themselves. This refers back the the weakness in the first stanza. They cry as a unit against the manacles that they -apparently- they have put on themselves.
Third stanza unifies three very different characters. Church people, lowly chimney sweepers, and palace soldiers all despise their lot in life. The Church blackens despite its efforts, and the soldier gives his life to protect a palace he doesn't feel loyalty to.
The fourth stanza juxtaposes the natural order of life. The harlot, the baby, and the marriage all mix around in order. They curse, and cry, and die of plague.
The omniscient character who walks the street unifies these woeful characters with the use of the sense of hearing. The unity, but separate despairs of the citizens of London serve as almost a warning to tourists. London is a prison, not a city.
Metaphor+Symbol=Interpretation (With limits)
"There are no correct or incorrect readings: there are only readings which differ more or less widely from a statistical norm."- Laurence Perrine
While reading this essay on the validity of poetry's interpretation, I couldn't help thinking that Perrine would be a lot more suited to analyzing some sort experiment with chemicals and test tubes than poetry about roses and stars. The first paragraph started out with some discouraging assessments. Perrine started out with some rough news: poetry can be interpreted incorrectly. He did admit that since the chance to squeeze the true meaning out of the respected authors is rare one, and therefore there is no sure fire way to ensure one interpretation of a poem is true while another is not. However, this fact doesn't stop him from taking three different poems apart sentence by sentence to reveal their true meanings.
A point Perrine brought up in the second paragraph was perhaps the part I enjoyed the most. While quoting Yeats and Elliot about the meanings of their poetry, Perrine stated that defining a poem in fact decreases its value. I heartily agreed with this statement. The mystery of poetry is what I like most about it. I can speculate, evaluate, and contemplate poetry in effort to find its meaning, but the thought that I will never actually know the meaning is oddly titillating (sorry odd word choice).
Moving on. Perrine makes surprising and very solid points as he breaks down the four different poems included in this essay and why two simply rules satisfy his equation for interpretation. His two rules are: 1) and explanation MUST cover all of the details in a poem, or as many as possible and 2) the explanation that does this without stretching itself is the true interpretation. These two rules are extremely effective when used to analyze the Dickens poem and the two comparative poems by Whitman and Melville. I felt I had no choice but to agree with his scientific equation, a concession on my part that didn't feel to good.
Thankfully, Perrine must have been feeling my discomfort because he returned my concession with one of his own. He recognized that interpretations may vary, WITHIN LIMITS (Perrine was very adamant about this point). Using the poem about the sick rose by William Blake, Perrine explained why metaphors like in the earlier poems have one intended meaning while symbols could have several (all within similar agreement of course).
Stuffy and scientific as he may have been, Perrine made some extremely valid points about interpretation, whether I liked them or not.
While reading this essay on the validity of poetry's interpretation, I couldn't help thinking that Perrine would be a lot more suited to analyzing some sort experiment with chemicals and test tubes than poetry about roses and stars. The first paragraph started out with some discouraging assessments. Perrine started out with some rough news: poetry can be interpreted incorrectly. He did admit that since the chance to squeeze the true meaning out of the respected authors is rare one, and therefore there is no sure fire way to ensure one interpretation of a poem is true while another is not. However, this fact doesn't stop him from taking three different poems apart sentence by sentence to reveal their true meanings.
A point Perrine brought up in the second paragraph was perhaps the part I enjoyed the most. While quoting Yeats and Elliot about the meanings of their poetry, Perrine stated that defining a poem in fact decreases its value. I heartily agreed with this statement. The mystery of poetry is what I like most about it. I can speculate, evaluate, and contemplate poetry in effort to find its meaning, but the thought that I will never actually know the meaning is oddly titillating (sorry odd word choice).
Moving on. Perrine makes surprising and very solid points as he breaks down the four different poems included in this essay and why two simply rules satisfy his equation for interpretation. His two rules are: 1) and explanation MUST cover all of the details in a poem, or as many as possible and 2) the explanation that does this without stretching itself is the true interpretation. These two rules are extremely effective when used to analyze the Dickens poem and the two comparative poems by Whitman and Melville. I felt I had no choice but to agree with his scientific equation, a concession on my part that didn't feel to good.
Thankfully, Perrine must have been feeling my discomfort because he returned my concession with one of his own. He recognized that interpretations may vary, WITHIN LIMITS (Perrine was very adamant about this point). Using the poem about the sick rose by William Blake, Perrine explained why metaphors like in the earlier poems have one intended meaning while symbols could have several (all within similar agreement of course).
Stuffy and scientific as he may have been, Perrine made some extremely valid points about interpretation, whether I liked them or not.
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