"I see myself on deck, convinced his ship's gone down."
This is a quote from the poem "Elegy for My Father, Who Is Not Dead" by Andrew Hudgins. This poem has an overall tone of pessimistic annoyance. The poem is pessimistic because the speaker is envisioning the worst. He thinks that when his father dies, he is gone forever. He even tries to negate his father who tells them they will meet again like the first time they met on this earth. The speaker is annoyed that his father is welcoming death so openly because he thinks that will be it. The speaker is not ready for this father to leave him. The poem can be regarded as an elegy because the speaker is mourning the loss of his father because he knows it is inevitable and he is losing his father. The speaker is also reflecting on both possibilities of the future. I cannot tell if he is hoping for one way or the other, but he sure seems convinced that he is right and his father is about to be gone forever.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Poetry Ch. 14 Pattern (4)
"I see a wild civility" (979).
This quote is one of many oxymorons from the poem "Delight in Disorder" by Robert Herrick. The poem consists of many oxymorons. The oxymorons include: "wild civility," "sweet disorder," and "flow confusedly." These oxymorons contribute to the meaning of the poem as a whole. The whole poem is one big contradiction of our normal frame of thought. Usually delight is found in things that are perfect, beautiful, and orderly. However, this poem describes a delight in chaos. It states that things that are off slightly are much better. The structure of the poem is one sentence with the main idea of the poem followed by an example in which this is true. The example it uses is the wardrobe of a person. Everything is just a bit off, and that is what makes it beautiful and delightful. The poem is telling readers that it is better to be a little off because no one can be or should be in perfect order all of the time. It is much better for people to show their individuality. This same message is conveyed in "Much Madness is divinest Sense." Both poems state that to be normal and delightful, you have to be a bit off and individualistic. People usually see conforming as the right thing, but in fact it is sane and delightful to be different and yourself.
This quote is one of many oxymorons from the poem "Delight in Disorder" by Robert Herrick. The poem consists of many oxymorons. The oxymorons include: "wild civility," "sweet disorder," and "flow confusedly." These oxymorons contribute to the meaning of the poem as a whole. The whole poem is one big contradiction of our normal frame of thought. Usually delight is found in things that are perfect, beautiful, and orderly. However, this poem describes a delight in chaos. It states that things that are off slightly are much better. The structure of the poem is one sentence with the main idea of the poem followed by an example in which this is true. The example it uses is the wardrobe of a person. Everything is just a bit off, and that is what makes it beautiful and delightful. The poem is telling readers that it is better to be a little off because no one can be or should be in perfect order all of the time. It is much better for people to show their individuality. This same message is conveyed in "Much Madness is divinest Sense." Both poems state that to be normal and delightful, you have to be a bit off and individualistic. People usually see conforming as the right thing, but in fact it is sane and delightful to be different and yourself.
Poetry Ch. 14 Pattern (3)
"And what will ye leave to your own mother dear, Edward, Edward."
The quote above is from "Edward" by an anonymous author. The quote has a unique structure that contributes to the overall message of the poem. The structure in all 7 stanzas is four lines where the speaker is the mother and four lines where the speaker is Edward. The word "O" is repeated at the end of every set of four lines as well as at the beginning of all of Edward's parts. This connects the two parts of the stanzas as well as differentiates wh othe speaker is. It is apparent that the mother knows the answers to all of the questions she asks, but she wants Edward to tell her the truth and own up to his actions. She does not feel sorry for him and does not condone what he has done. The killing of the hawk and the steed are not literal, but rather they are figurative and show that Edward viewed his father as good, fair, and free. Edward does not like his mother, or he is mad at her for some reason. He curses her and does not appreciate her.
The quote above is from "Edward" by an anonymous author. The quote has a unique structure that contributes to the overall message of the poem. The structure in all 7 stanzas is four lines where the speaker is the mother and four lines where the speaker is Edward. The word "O" is repeated at the end of every set of four lines as well as at the beginning of all of Edward's parts. This connects the two parts of the stanzas as well as differentiates wh othe speaker is. It is apparent that the mother knows the answers to all of the questions she asks, but she wants Edward to tell her the truth and own up to his actions. She does not feel sorry for him and does not condone what he has done. The killing of the hawk and the steed are not literal, but rather they are figurative and show that Edward viewed his father as good, fair, and free. Edward does not like his mother, or he is mad at her for some reason. He curses her and does not appreciate her.
Poetry Ch. 14 Pattern (2)
"Can someone make my simple wish come true?" (973)
This quote comes from "Lonely Hearts" by Wendy Cope. The speaker is looking for a specific type of person to meet and hopefully fall in love with. The first tercet is looking for a male biker who wants to ride with a female companion. The second one is looking for a gay guy who is into Shakespeare and the sun. The third is looking for a young, bisexual executive looking to spice up their life. The fouth one is looking for someone successful and straight, attractive, and Jewish with a son. The fifth is looking for a slim, non-smoker, who is under the age of 21. I think that although each of these are looking for a specific type of person; they all have somehting in common. The repetition of specific lines makes it seem like they are all looking for the same thing. I also think that the short lines in the poem show an urgency and desperation because this shows that they are not too specific on who they want to meet. This is all taking the poem very literally so it may not be the most accurate interpretation.
This quote comes from "Lonely Hearts" by Wendy Cope. The speaker is looking for a specific type of person to meet and hopefully fall in love with. The first tercet is looking for a male biker who wants to ride with a female companion. The second one is looking for a gay guy who is into Shakespeare and the sun. The third is looking for a young, bisexual executive looking to spice up their life. The fouth one is looking for someone successful and straight, attractive, and Jewish with a son. The fifth is looking for a slim, non-smoker, who is under the age of 21. I think that although each of these are looking for a specific type of person; they all have somehting in common. The repetition of specific lines makes it seem like they are all looking for the same thing. I also think that the short lines in the poem show an urgency and desperation because this shows that they are not too specific on who they want to meet. This is all taking the poem very literally so it may not be the most accurate interpretation.
Poetry Ch. 14 Pattern (1)
"Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men, and dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell." (972)
This quote comes from the poem, "Death, be not proud" by John Donne. The poem is an example of apostrophe. The speaker is addressing death and explaining to death that it should not be proud of what it does. The speaker addressing death in an apostrophe is effective because it shows that the speaker is addressing and confronting his fear. In addition to addressing death, the speaker is trying to convince himself that death is nothing to be afraid of. Death affects every single person, whether they are a king or desperate man. Death cannot be proud because it accompanies poison, war, and sickness, things that are sad and that we try to avoid. I think that the speaker is trying to convince himself that even though he is eventually going to die, but that does not mean that death got the best of them. Eventually everyone will wake up eternally after a short break from our current life. Therefore, we will have triumphed over death unlike what we are currently experiencing with death being the victor.
This quote comes from the poem, "Death, be not proud" by John Donne. The poem is an example of apostrophe. The speaker is addressing death and explaining to death that it should not be proud of what it does. The speaker addressing death in an apostrophe is effective because it shows that the speaker is addressing and confronting his fear. In addition to addressing death, the speaker is trying to convince himself that death is nothing to be afraid of. Death affects every single person, whether they are a king or desperate man. Death cannot be proud because it accompanies poison, war, and sickness, things that are sad and that we try to avoid. I think that the speaker is trying to convince himself that even though he is eventually going to die, but that does not mean that death got the best of them. Eventually everyone will wake up eternally after a short break from our current life. Therefore, we will have triumphed over death unlike what we are currently experiencing with death being the victor.
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