In John Donne’s The Computation, he talks about how his life has been ever since the person that he loved went away or perished. This poem can be taken in so many different ways, and another reader can take if he himself died and is looking back on his life. For this assignment, however, I will focus on my first interpretation, which is that the speaker is lamenting the departure of his lover. Donne uses end rhyme in order to create a tone for the reader to follow and be able to hear as they read the poem. This poem is also all two sentences, although there are ten lines, they are all connected with commas and semicolons. There is one period in the poem, but it ends as an overall question. Donne’s overall message in his poem, is how his life suddenly became longer and harder to deal with than when his lover was still around.
I thought that this poem had many comparisons to Paul Verlaine’s tear Fall in My Heart simply because both poems seem to be describing a pain that they have felt once something unexpected happened to their loved one. These poems, however, differ in the speaker’s situation. For example, in Verlaine’s poem, the speaker is not sure what it is that is making his heart be in so much pain. In Donne’s poem, the speaker knows why he is in so much pain, and why his life and days never seem to end. He has lost his loved one, and with that loss every single day seems like a century. Although Verlaine’s poem is much longer than Donne’s, they both use relatively short lines in order to convey their message. By using this technique they are excellently portraying the economy of words and language that exists in poetry. They take into consideration that poetry is different than writing an essay, and so, when they choose words and write their poems, they are carefully choosing which words to use or not use. These two poems are also different from what we are used to reading when talking about love. Readers mostly expect to find everything cheery and nice in love poems, but the reality is, that there are those who do get hurt by their significant other, and these two poets do an excellent job conveying their feelings.
Friday, February 23, 2007
Friday, February 16, 2007
it may not always be so; and i say, e.e. cummings
In e.e. cummings’ it may not always be so; and i say, he talks a lot about what would become of him if he were to lose his girlfriend and have to see her with some other guy in a short time period. Although it is unclear whether he is speaking and directing this poem to his girlfriend or to the man that she leaves him for, I believe that he is directing this poem to his girlfriend and just letting her know what would become of him if she were to leave him. He mentions that if his girlfriend were to do the things she does with him with some other guy he would just walk up to him and give him his happiness, because his happiness consists of having her in his life, and once that ends, he would much rather, or he might as well go and give his happiness away. This poem has a unique rhyme scheme because it has different rhyme schemes for each of the stanzas. For instance the first stanza has a rhyme scheme of ABBAABBA. I think that in comparison to the second stanza which has a rhyme scheme of CDECDE, the first stanza’s rhyme scheme becomes significant because in the first stanza he is talking about the things that he loves about his girlfriend, while in the second stanza is when he loses control and speaks about what he will do and what will happen to her if she were to leave her for someone else.
I think that this poem can relate to so many people in so many different ways. Personally, when I read this I thought about what would become of me if something were to happen to Noel and me. We have gone through so much together, he is my support system, one of the only people who knows things about me, and if that were to just fade away, I would not know what to do with myself. The poet, however, sounds really resigned about his girlfriend leaving, and in a way that makes sense because of she does not want to be with her then why fight? I, however would fight for my love, and I would do anything I could do in order to keep him. It may not be the smartest thing to do, but in a personal note, I would definitely fight in order to keep my love with Noel until the end, because the love I feel for him, does not come around everyday.
I think that this poem can relate to so many people in so many different ways. Personally, when I read this I thought about what would become of me if something were to happen to Noel and me. We have gone through so much together, he is my support system, one of the only people who knows things about me, and if that were to just fade away, I would not know what to do with myself. The poet, however, sounds really resigned about his girlfriend leaving, and in a way that makes sense because of she does not want to be with her then why fight? I, however would fight for my love, and I would do anything I could do in order to keep him. It may not be the smartest thing to do, but in a personal note, I would definitely fight in order to keep my love with Noel until the end, because the love I feel for him, does not come around everyday.
Tears Fall In My Heart, Paul Verlaine
ORIGINAL
Tears fall in my heart
Rain falls on the town;
what is this numb hurt
that enters my heart?
Ah, the soft sound of rain
on roofs, on the ground!
To a dulled heart they came,
ah, the song of the rain!
Tears without reason
in the disheartened heart.
What? no trace of treason?
This grief's without reason.
It's far the worst pain
to never know why
without love or disdain
my heart has such pain!
She’s in pain now!
Here I just lay
Rain falls on the field;
why not just play
instead of stopping to yield?
Ah, the soft sound of pain
she got what she deserved!
She shouldn’t of put strain
on my leg, so now she’s in pain!
Tears without reason
I know I feel hurt
What? no trace of bruising
I am so scared of losing
She shouldn’t of put strain
on my leg
so now we’re both in pain
during this, my last soccer game
I really enjoyed reading this poem when I was looking for a poem to present. I decided to present the other one, so I wanted to do a journal on this one. I did not know how I would analyze this poem to, or what I would compare it to, so I decided to instead write my own version of the poem. Although the speaker of the poem has no idea why he’s in pain, in my poem I do have the source to my pain, and it is that I got hurt in a soccer game, and I was laying down in the rain waiting for someone to help me off of the field. Although my poem and Verlaine’s do not focus on the same subject, I tried to write my poem in the same structure as he did, although it got lost in the last stanza because I couldn’t think of anything that rhymed with leg.
****interesting fact to the original poem: this poem was written by Paul Verlaine while he was in jail for killing his partner.
Tears fall in my heart
Rain falls on the town;
what is this numb hurt
that enters my heart?
Ah, the soft sound of rain
on roofs, on the ground!
To a dulled heart they came,
ah, the song of the rain!
Tears without reason
in the disheartened heart.
What? no trace of treason?
This grief's without reason.
It's far the worst pain
to never know why
without love or disdain
my heart has such pain!
She’s in pain now!
Here I just lay
Rain falls on the field;
why not just play
instead of stopping to yield?
Ah, the soft sound of pain
she got what she deserved!
She shouldn’t of put strain
on my leg, so now she’s in pain!
Tears without reason
I know I feel hurt
What? no trace of bruising
I am so scared of losing
She shouldn’t of put strain
on my leg
so now we’re both in pain
during this, my last soccer game
I really enjoyed reading this poem when I was looking for a poem to present. I decided to present the other one, so I wanted to do a journal on this one. I did not know how I would analyze this poem to, or what I would compare it to, so I decided to instead write my own version of the poem. Although the speaker of the poem has no idea why he’s in pain, in my poem I do have the source to my pain, and it is that I got hurt in a soccer game, and I was laying down in the rain waiting for someone to help me off of the field. Although my poem and Verlaine’s do not focus on the same subject, I tried to write my poem in the same structure as he did, although it got lost in the last stanza because I couldn’t think of anything that rhymed with leg.
****interesting fact to the original poem: this poem was written by Paul Verlaine while he was in jail for killing his partner.
Friday, February 9, 2007
"i am accused of tending to the past," Lucille Clifton
ORIGINAL:
i am accused of tending to the past
as if i made it,
as if i sculpted it
with my own hands. i did not.
this past was waiting for me
when i came,
a monstrous unnamed baby,
and i with my mother’s itch
took it to breast
and named it
History.
she is more human now,
learning languages everyday,
remembering faces, names and dates.
when she is strong enough to travel
on her own, beware, she will.
MY VERSION:
he has overcome many things
as if he wasn’t going to make it,
as if he was going to give up
with much struggle, he did not.
this success was waiting for him
when i came,
a beautiful unnamed baby,
that i just had to pick up
and couldn’t let go
until i finally named it
Noel.
he is more aware now,
learning new things everyday,
remembering formulas, vocab and dates.
when he is strong and through with college
and is on his own, beware, because he will
make a difference, and be successful.
I really liked this poem, but I had no idea how I would analyze this poem, so instead I took the same structure and decided to write my own poem in the same kind of style. I really liked how Clifton decided to personify history and through her poem kind of foreshadow what would happen if History decided to take her own course. In my poem however, I did not personify a certain object or idea, I instead talked about Noel and how he has overcome many obstacles in his life and will continue to do so until he goes to college and graduates so that his younger siblings are given a role model to follow and he can help out his parents. I really liked the end product and hope that others will feel the same way.
i am accused of tending to the past
as if i made it,
as if i sculpted it
with my own hands. i did not.
this past was waiting for me
when i came,
a monstrous unnamed baby,
and i with my mother’s itch
took it to breast
and named it
History.
she is more human now,
learning languages everyday,
remembering faces, names and dates.
when she is strong enough to travel
on her own, beware, she will.
MY VERSION:
he has overcome many things
as if he wasn’t going to make it,
as if he was going to give up
with much struggle, he did not.
this success was waiting for him
when i came,
a beautiful unnamed baby,
that i just had to pick up
and couldn’t let go
until i finally named it
Noel.
he is more aware now,
learning new things everyday,
remembering formulas, vocab and dates.
when he is strong and through with college
and is on his own, beware, because he will
make a difference, and be successful.
I really liked this poem, but I had no idea how I would analyze this poem, so instead I took the same structure and decided to write my own poem in the same kind of style. I really liked how Clifton decided to personify history and through her poem kind of foreshadow what would happen if History decided to take her own course. In my poem however, I did not personify a certain object or idea, I instead talked about Noel and how he has overcome many obstacles in his life and will continue to do so until he goes to college and graduates so that his younger siblings are given a role model to follow and he can help out his parents. I really liked the end product and hope that others will feel the same way.
Coming Up, Ani Difranco
In Ani Difranco’s Coming Up she talks about how the lower classes are coming up because they are tired of the life and the way they are treated. She is trying to convey the message of how unfair it is that only some people are able to enjoy the penthouses and luxuries in life and how it is those people who are taking advantage of everyone else. She starts the poem with the line “our father who art in a penthouse,” in order to begin to relay her message from the very beginning. By starting her poem in such manner, she is making it seem as if the man who is in the penthouse is like some kind of God. However, as the poem goes on, she begins to deconstruct this figure by showing the bad things that he has done and telling him that he had better open his eyes and watch out because the lower class is coming up. Difranco uses a mixture of short and long lines, in no particular order, to convey her massage. By using this strategy she is in effect conveying her message in a clear, and rhythmical way. Difranco also uses many different rhyming devices throughout her poem. She uses a mixture of end rhyme and internal rhyme. She also does not use a particular rhyme scheme; she alternates between rhyming every two lines to rhyming every other line, to not rhyming at all. This in effect makes the reader concentrate on the emphasized words.
This poem relates to the world today because of how society is unfair toward certain people and cultures. This poem reminded me of Noel’s SRI topic which has to do with environmental racism, and how many toxic waste factories are placed in low-income, minority filled communities instead of rich areas. The other day I was watching television and saw a clip about an actress fighting for a toxic factory to not be placed in her community. In a way I thought that it was good that she was doing good by trying to fight something bad, but then as I thought back to Noel and even East Palo Alto, I realized that by those rich people fighting against those factories being in their community, they are instead putting some other low-income, minority-filled community at risk of having to have a toxic waste factory in their community simply because they might not have the means to come together and fight against it. The simple fact is that, sadly, as things are going now, the rich will simply keep getting richer, and the poor will indeed keep getting poorer, until someone comes around and changes this fact. I just wish that that someone comes soon.
This poem relates to the world today because of how society is unfair toward certain people and cultures. This poem reminded me of Noel’s SRI topic which has to do with environmental racism, and how many toxic waste factories are placed in low-income, minority filled communities instead of rich areas. The other day I was watching television and saw a clip about an actress fighting for a toxic factory to not be placed in her community. In a way I thought that it was good that she was doing good by trying to fight something bad, but then as I thought back to Noel and even East Palo Alto, I realized that by those rich people fighting against those factories being in their community, they are instead putting some other low-income, minority-filled community at risk of having to have a toxic waste factory in their community simply because they might not have the means to come together and fight against it. The simple fact is that, sadly, as things are going now, the rich will simply keep getting richer, and the poor will indeed keep getting poorer, until someone comes around and changes this fact. I just wish that that someone comes soon.
Friday, February 2, 2007
We Wear the Mask, Paul Lawrence Dunbar
In Paul Lawrence Dunbar’s We Wear the Mask, he portrays the recurring theme of people lying about their true feelings, personalities and emotions. Dunbar uses the repetition of the line “we wear the mask” throughout the poem to symbolize people wearing their “masks” to shade their true emotions. Dunbar also uses end rhyme to add a certain rhythm to the poem as a whole. The poem seems to be taunting the reader as if to say that the reader is also wearing a mask or knows lots of people who are wearing a mask or façade to hide their true personalities.
This poem is very similar to Langston Hughes’ Minstrel Man in the way that they both are trying to convey the same message of fakeness, and how people try to hide everything from the world. They are also similar in the way that both Dunbar and Hughes use short lines in order to convey their message. It is also interesting and shows how much this idea of fakeness and facades is around because both authors decided to write about it in their poems. It is evident that something needs to be done about people putting up a fake personality or mask for the world to see. However the poets differ in their means of showing the wearing of the mask or façade. In Hughes’ poem, he does not make it seem like he is intentionally putting up a front, he makes it seem more as if people misunderstand his personality and emotions. In Dunbar’s poem, it seems as if they are intentionally putting up the front so that the world will not figure out what they are feeling. I think that this also connects to society because of how women of all ages, are really self-conscious about their bodies, and would rather throw up, take pills, or even have surgery just to look like the photoshop-ped models in the magazines they read. I believe that people should just learn to love themselves for who they are, and although it is not easy I believe that with time it can definitely happen.
This poem is very similar to Langston Hughes’ Minstrel Man in the way that they both are trying to convey the same message of fakeness, and how people try to hide everything from the world. They are also similar in the way that both Dunbar and Hughes use short lines in order to convey their message. It is also interesting and shows how much this idea of fakeness and facades is around because both authors decided to write about it in their poems. It is evident that something needs to be done about people putting up a fake personality or mask for the world to see. However the poets differ in their means of showing the wearing of the mask or façade. In Hughes’ poem, he does not make it seem like he is intentionally putting up a front, he makes it seem more as if people misunderstand his personality and emotions. In Dunbar’s poem, it seems as if they are intentionally putting up the front so that the world will not figure out what they are feeling. I think that this also connects to society because of how women of all ages, are really self-conscious about their bodies, and would rather throw up, take pills, or even have surgery just to look like the photoshop-ped models in the magazines they read. I believe that people should just learn to love themselves for who they are, and although it is not easy I believe that with time it can definitely happen.
Minstrel Man, Langston Hughes
In Langston Hughes’ Minstrel Man he talks about how because his actions are nonchalant it does not mean that he is not in pain. He is basically trying to convey the message that just because people do not show their true feelings in public it does not mean that they are okay. People are always trying to put up a façade in order to not show any weakness when things are going wrong. People are scared of showing any kind of emotion that might symbolize weakness in their appearance. Hughes uses short lines in order to convey his message, by using this strategy he is effectively portraying what he wants heard, in a clear concise manner. In order to further prove his message, Hughes also uses repetition of the phrase “because my mouth/Is wide with laughter,” to start each stanza in his two stanza poem. Hughes expertly proves how poetry is an economy of words, since he is great at using few words and a short poem to portray his message.
This poem greatly relates to present day because of how much people are putting up a fake portrayal of themselves every single day. Nowadays it seems like people are scared of just being them, and would rather hide their true selves in order to fit in with the rest of the crowd. In reality this is ridiculous people should be comfortable being themselves. It makes no sense when people try to be fake about their personalities, because if everyone tried to fit in, then what would be the point of even conversing with other people if everyone thought the same way. If people put up a fake front might be because they might be miserable inside, and no one would ever find out. This is also seen in society when people seem happy and okay, but are secretly cutting or hurting themselves. Although this is radical, people should just try to be themselves and stay true to whom they are. That is what makes things interesting, different, and classrooms useful.
This poem greatly relates to present day because of how much people are putting up a fake portrayal of themselves every single day. Nowadays it seems like people are scared of just being them, and would rather hide their true selves in order to fit in with the rest of the crowd. In reality this is ridiculous people should be comfortable being themselves. It makes no sense when people try to be fake about their personalities, because if everyone tried to fit in, then what would be the point of even conversing with other people if everyone thought the same way. If people put up a fake front might be because they might be miserable inside, and no one would ever find out. This is also seen in society when people seem happy and okay, but are secretly cutting or hurting themselves. Although this is radical, people should just try to be themselves and stay true to whom they are. That is what makes things interesting, different, and classrooms useful.
Sunday, January 28, 2007
poems i like
- Ah Love, Love, … Love, Love, Love, Love, Love.
What is it with Love
That makes me
then breaks me?
When in love
Do I truly love?
Is it really love
Or do I think that I love?
Maybe I just love being in love
Or love the idea of being in love?
I spent my whole life chasing love.
In the end the one thing I truly love
Could just be the meir pursuit of love.
Ronberge (anno primo)
____
Love, Love, Love, Love and You
WHEN DO I THINK OF YOU?
I think of you in the peace
solitude and stillness of the early a.m., for
you are tranquillity.
I think of you on an ocean's front,
for you are the roar of the waves,
the power of the sea, and the salt in the air.
I think of you amidst a crowd
and the chorus of city sounds
...for that is my song, and you are the music.
You are my first thought of each new day,
and the last image I glimpse, as my eyes are
closed upon a feathered pillow.
In that secret place called sleep, it is you that
I search for, through shades of darkness and
clouds of cotton.
When do I think of you? Every moment
of my life. And, when the final sleep does come
and if there is thought...
it will be of you.
© Joe Fazio
Joe Fazio (best of)
____
LOVE.. LOVE.. LOVE YOU...
LOVE.. LOVE.. LOVE YOU...
love you...
love you, a love never any heart hold before..
because i loved you with all my body and feelings..
love you....
love your speech, and your silence..
and your eyes look and your lashes...
love you.....
love you my beloved, and don`t ever ask why..
because i born, and inside my ribs carried your love..
become coupled and carry your love, where ever i am...
because we are as a moon and its stars...
because its is my visionary and my shadow...
together go any where, and we never afraid any thing..
because your love my sweetheart, gave me a power..
power of more that thousand person...
but...
in facing you, i am so weak..
and have no power..
and can broke me any breathe came from you...
love you...
yes, i say it with a full of my mouth..
not ashame nor scare..
because its run with my blood in my vein to my heart...
where to hide it...
where to put it...? ?
am i going to put it only in my notebook..? ?
no..
no, and no...
and i will say it...
to let all hear it..
to let all the world realize that, ,
i love you.....
love you...
and love you....
hazem al jaber
What is it with Love
That makes me
then breaks me?
When in love
Do I truly love?
Is it really love
Or do I think that I love?
Maybe I just love being in love
Or love the idea of being in love?
I spent my whole life chasing love.
In the end the one thing I truly love
Could just be the meir pursuit of love.
Ronberge (anno primo)
____
Love, Love, Love, Love and You
WHEN DO I THINK OF YOU?
I think of you in the peace
solitude and stillness of the early a.m., for
you are tranquillity.
I think of you on an ocean's front,
for you are the roar of the waves,
the power of the sea, and the salt in the air.
I think of you amidst a crowd
and the chorus of city sounds
...for that is my song, and you are the music.
You are my first thought of each new day,
and the last image I glimpse, as my eyes are
closed upon a feathered pillow.
In that secret place called sleep, it is you that
I search for, through shades of darkness and
clouds of cotton.
When do I think of you? Every moment
of my life. And, when the final sleep does come
and if there is thought...
it will be of you.
© Joe Fazio
Joe Fazio (best of)
____
LOVE.. LOVE.. LOVE YOU...
LOVE.. LOVE.. LOVE YOU...
love you...
love you, a love never any heart hold before..
because i loved you with all my body and feelings..
love you....
love your speech, and your silence..
and your eyes look and your lashes...
love you.....
love you my beloved, and don`t ever ask why..
because i born, and inside my ribs carried your love..
become coupled and carry your love, where ever i am...
because we are as a moon and its stars...
because its is my visionary and my shadow...
together go any where, and we never afraid any thing..
because your love my sweetheart, gave me a power..
power of more that thousand person...
but...
in facing you, i am so weak..
and have no power..
and can broke me any breathe came from you...
love you...
yes, i say it with a full of my mouth..
not ashame nor scare..
because its run with my blood in my vein to my heart...
where to hide it...
where to put it...? ?
am i going to put it only in my notebook..? ?
no..
no, and no...
and i will say it...
to let all hear it..
to let all the world realize that, ,
i love you.....
love you...
and love you....
hazem al jaber
Friday, January 26, 2007
What is poetic language? how is it different from poetry?
I think that poetic language is a type of language that you can use to describe things. i think that poetic language is mostly used in books and novels since the language is very descriptive and sentimental and it is language that can be used in poetry but it is not a poem, it is just very descriptive and gives sensory details in a novel. i think that poetic language comes from poetry, like, the kind of language used in poems is being used in other areas of literature.
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