The Explosion

When I first read this poem, I thought it was Apocalyptic. The diction in the poem creates and image of Armageddon. Larkin's use of the words "explosion," "shadows," "tremor," "heat-dazed," and "dimmed" illustrate what the Apocalypse might look like and what I imagine it to be. However, when I learned that the word "pithead" meant the entrance to a mine and the word "pitboots" were miners boots and the Larkin wrote this poem after watching a documentary about miners and being fascinated by it, my paradigm of the poem shifted. The poem is not about the Apocalypse but rather mining, and each stanza discusses different aspects of mining. For example, the first stanza illustrates an explosion in the mine, the second stanza the miners after a day of work, and so on. What struck me the most was the stanza that was italicized, however, after reading the poem again I understood that this stanza represented the funeral of a miner and the italicized words are the words spoken by the priest. The last three stanzas had the most impact on me because the focus of the poem shifts from the miners to their wives which makes the poem relatable to many people, especially when Larkin says, "It was said, for a second Wives saw men of the explosion," because many people have been in a situation oh where it could have been their loved one that was hurt or had died and think of the horror of it.

Many red devils...

This poem could be understood many different ways. Each time I read it, it had a different impact. At first I thought that Crane had harsh feelings toward him self and the ideas that came from his heart were cruel and devilish and it was strange to him to write of these deep thoughts of his heart. Then, I thought that maybe Crane is just like many other people and there are some ideas that are disturbing that come from the heart and it is strange to realize that such a thing could come from your heart. Finally, I thought of this poem in a literal writing sense. First, that Crane felt power from writing and how the pen could "mash them." Then that the struggling devils in the ink were the ideas from his heart that he had trouble writing, and it was strange for him to put such deep thoughts on paper.

the lesson of the leaves

the lesson of the leaves

Lucille Clifton

the leaves believe

such letting go is love

such love is faith

such faith is grace

such grace is god

i agree with the leaves

I really liked this poem. It was actually slightly cheerful unless you looked at it in terms of death. I think the structure and diction of the poem can make the poem appear to be multiple things. At first, I saw the poem as a circle poem because Clifton repeats the words in each line, and the words from line to line have different meanings. Then, I thought of the visual effect the repetions of the words had: they create the image of an actual leave fluttering to the ground and the repeated movement they make. I also saw the structure as Clifton's line of thought and her reasoning to why she agress with the leaves, and hopw she goes from letting go to God. When I think of this poem in terms of death I see this poem as Clifton's acceptance of death because she had cancer, and how letting go is having grace in God.

The Golf Links

The Golf Links

Sarah N. Cleghorn

The golf links lie so near the mill

That almost everyday

The laboring children can look

And see the men at play.

This poem is very short. It's only one stanza with four lines. At first I thought writing this response would be easy because the poem is easy, but it turns out it's hard to write a response about a four line poem. I am inferring that Cleghorn is meaning a golf course when she says golf links. I find it curious that she would say link instead of course. This poem reminds me of going to my Grandpas house in Iowa. He lived on the 18th hole of the course, so everyday my sister and I would watch the golfers play. I also find it interesting that in the poem Cleghorn only says watch the men play, but not women as well. It's even more odd that a women would write this poem about the course when she said only men play. It makes me wonder if Cleghorn was one of the children watching the men play golf or if she was envious of the men who had the privilege of playing golf. I think part of the reason Cleghorn said only men were playing golf was because it was set during the time when golf was only a male sport. When Cleghorn mentions that the course was near the mill and the children can watch I think of the early 20th century when children worked in mills.

you fit into me

you fit into me

Margaret Atwood

you fit into me

like a hook in an eye

a fish hook

an open eye

The first thing that struck me about this poem was its length. It is two stanzas that consist of a couplet. I find the simile Atwood uses to illustrate how she fits with another to be curious: a fish hook and an eye don't really fit well together at all. I think Atwood could have used this simile to show that the person she is addressing and herself don't fit well together, whether its personality, relationship, etc. The next thing that caught my eye was how the hook changes from just a hook in the first stanza to a fish hook in the second stanza, and how the eye goes from just an eye to an open eye. The use of the fish hook and the open eye creates a more gruesome image for me than the first stanza illustrated ti begin with. I think her tone in this poem is slightly ironic because she is comparing two very different things and poking fun at how they appear to fit well together, then in the second stanza, she emphasizes the eye and the hook and makes them less alike and more gruesome.

So Long to Colorado

So long to Colorado
to the deep purple
of the Rockie Mountains
and the crystal snow capped peaks.

Farewell to the bipolar seasons.
Snow rain, sunshine, sleet,
wind, and hail all
in the same day.

Good bye Colorado fashion.
Ugg boots and shorts
in the middle of winter.
Snow pants and ski
jackets in May.

Farewell to the
"Sweetheart City"
that sometimes
wasn't so sweet.

So long to my blue
house on the corner.
How your paradigm
has shifted.

Fifteen years has
transformed you from
a monument in the
eyes of a three year old
to a home. My home.

Questions we have about compassion?

Is compassion universal?
Is compassion seen or heard?
Is it a feeling or an action?

Do we choose who we show compassion to?
How can we be compassionate to some but not to others?
Is compassion done for all or just those in dire need?

Why can you be so fake?
Why are some people unable to receive compassion?
Why are some people unable to show compassion?
Why aren't you natural?

"Compassion is not religious business, it is human business, it is not luxury, it is essential for our own peace and mental stability, it is essential for human survival."
Dalai Lama

*the quote wasn't apart of the poem originally but I thought it went really well with it and answered some of the questions.

The Day Millicent Found the World

The Day Millicent Found the World
William Stafford

Every morning Millicent ventured farther
into the woods. At first she stayed
near light, the edge where bushes grew, where
her way back appeared in glimpses among
dark trunks behind her. Then by farther paths
or openings where giant pines had fallen
she explored ever deeper into
the interior, till one day she stood under a great
dome among columns, the heart of the forest, and knew:
Lost. She had achieved a mysterious world
where any direction would yield only surprise.

And now not only the giant trees were strange
but the ground at her feet had a velvet nearness;
intricate lines on bark wove messages all
around her. Long strokes of golden sunlight
shifted over her feet and hands. She felt
caught up and breathing in a great powerful embrace.
A birdcall wandered forth at leisurely intervals
from an opening on her right: “Come away, Come away.”
Never before had she let herself realize
that she was part of the world and that it would follow
Wherever she went. She was part of its breath.

Aunt Dolbee called her back that time, a high
voice tapering faintly among the farthest trees,
Milli-cent! Milli-cent! And that time she returned,
but slowly, her dress fluttering along pressing
back branches, her feet stirring up the dark smell
of moss, and her face floating forward, a stranger’s
face now, with a new depth in it, into the light.

*I tried to incorporate a lot of poetry words, so I apologize if this doesn't sound very deep because I was focusing on using fancy words. :)

"The Day Millicent Found the World" by William Stafford consists of three stanzas. Each stanza depicts different parts of the story. One of the things I noticed when I read the poem is the lines are end stopped because each line is not a complete thought and runs to the next line. I found this technique difficult to read the first time but as I continued to read and read it a second time, I noticed it became less challenging. The author's syntax varies, from incredibly long and descriptive sentences to short, one lines sentences. I also noticed that the poem has no rhyme scheme because it feels like the author is telling a story, so the thoughts just flow rather than have the traditional sound of rhyming poetry. Throughout the poem, Stafford uses a few literary devices. The most noticeable device was personification. He personifies the forest in every stanza to give it human like qualities and make it appear more friendly rather than an eerie forest.

Desert Places

Desert Places by Robert Frost contains four stanzas, all quatrains. In this poem, Robert Frost is telling the story of his feelings upon observing a field covered with snow. As the poem flows, the reader discovers that Frost's feelings towards the emptiness of the field are a reflection of his own isolation and depression. In the second stanza, Frost uses personification to exemplify the loneliness of the field. "The woods have it-it is theirs." In this phrase, Frost is acknowledging that the surrounding woods are all that possess the field which shows the extent of the loneliness of the snow covered field. Frost also utilizes the color of the snow to emphasize his isolation. "A blanker whiteness of benighted snow With no expression of, nothing to express." In this passage, Frost is referring to how blank and empty the color of snow is and it has no expression which he then reflects on himself by saying "nothing to express." The last stanza is when Frost outwardly states his depression. "They cannot scare me with their empty spaces Between stars-on stars where no human race is. I have it in me so much nearer to home To scare myself with my own desert places." Here, he is saying that the desert places of the universe do not frighten him because he has empty space inside him.

Sort of a Song

The initial thing I noticed about this poem was the structure and the length of the lines. The lines vary from long to short and are very end stopped so it makes the reader pause in thought. The variance in structure is what ties the title into the poem, Sort if a Song. The poem is structured like a song and flows somewhat like a song, and in historic times, poetry was used to tell stories through songs. In the second stanza, Williams uses very odd syntax. Instead of beginning the second stanza with a capital letter and a sentence, he placed a dash to create a tie between the two stanzas so the reader would understand their connection. He also has two single word sentences which provide big emphasis on those two ideas, and he put parenthesis around another idea to show a more passive emphasis that idea.

In the first stanza, Williams uses the snake as a symbol of poets. "Let the snake live under his weed and the writing be of words, slow and quick, sharp to strike, quiet to wait sleepless." In this stanza, Williams is describing poets as snakes. They wait and watch the world. Then when an idea comes to them they are "sharp to strike" their words to paper, and after they recede back to their "weed" “quiet and sleeplessly” waiting for another epiphany. The second stanza then talks about how poets connect with others and the world. "-through metaphor to reconcile the people and the stones. Compose. (No ideas but in things) Invent! Saxifrage is my flower that splits my rocks. Williams talks of how poets connect "the people" together through metaphor because "reconcile" means to bring into agreement or harmony. In that sentence, the dash shows the connection to the first stanza, and, therefore, makes the reader realize that Williams is meaning to show that poets are the ones reconciling with out having to directly say it. Then Williams makes the assertion that there are no new ideas except in tangible things and challenges people to "compose" and "invent." The last sentence was the most striking to me and ties the two stanzas together. Saxifrage is a flower that grows in between rocks and cracks them. In this sentence, Williams is saying that even the smallest ideas can change the world just like how something so fragile like a flower can split a strong, sturdy rock in half.

*Oh and I commented on Natillie's and Correy's blog.

It was a dream

I think this poem has to be taken for its literal meaning. There are no similes or metaphors no hidden meaning. I do not think we have to beat this poem with a stick to discover its true meaning. I think the fact that we don't have to do this and that the author, Lucille Clifton, being so straight forward and honest makes the poem so much deeper and leaves a stringer mark on the reader. The first thing I noticed was that there capitalized letters except in the last line, "This. This. This.", when the "greater self" is telling the dreamer the things he or she could have done differently. I think capitalizing these letters was important because it puts emphasis on the last line and really makes the poem stick in your mind and thing about the things you could have done differently. This poem was definitely easy to relate to. I sometimes look back at my almost eighteen years of existence and wonder how things would be or if I would be a different person if I had done things differently. However, I felt like this poem dwelled in the past and looked at the things the dreamer had done as all pessimistic. I think we should look at our past and not always think "what if" in a negative way because our choices define who we are and whatever mistakes we made can always be atoned for as long as we learn from them.

Alone

Alone by Edgar Allan Poe talks about Poe's tragedies and sorrows. This poem shapes Poe's life because his father abandoned them, his mother died of consumption, and his wife died of tuberculosis. So it's only natural for Poe to write these depressing types of poems. The last few lines of this poem are the lines that stood out the most to me. "From the thunder, and the storm- And the cloud that took form (When the rest of Heaven was blue) Of a demon in my view-" Here, I thought Poe was saying that everyone else saw angels not demons and their Heaven was good and blue while Poe only saw a demon. In this section from the poem, it was the diction that conveyed the sense of Heaven and Hell to me. The words "thunder" and "storm" give images of darkness and gloom. "And the cloud that took form" this part reminded me of those days where you always feel like you have a "cloud" hanging over your head which is most likely how Poe felt with all that death surrounding him. The next part (When the rest of Heaven was blue) stood out to me because its the only part in parenthesis. This structure makes it seem like Poe's Heaven is different than everyone else. Finally, Poe's use of the word "demon" even further sets apart Poe's idea of Heaven. because it refers to Hell.

The Book

The Book by Miller Williams

I held it in my hands while he told the story.

He had foound it in a fallen bunker,
a book for notes with all the pages blank.
He took it to keep for a sketchbook and diary.

He learned years later, when he shpwed the book
to an old bookbinder, who paled, and stepped back
a long step and told him what he held,
what he had laid the days of his life in.
It's bound, the binder said, in human skin.

I stood turning it over in my hands,
turning it inmy head. Human skin.

What child did this skin fit? What man, what
woman?
Dragged still full of its flesh from what dream?

Who took it iff the meat? Some other one
who stayed alive by knowing how to do this?
I starred at the changing book and a horror grew,
I starred and a horror grew, which was, which is,
how beautiful it was until I knew.

This poem really struck me. It left more of a mark on me than any other poem we have read in this class. It begins with someone telling a person the story of his discovery of a mysterious book with blank pages. Then the author, Miller Williams, tells the true nature of the book. That it is bound by human skin. Finally, the person holding the book is struck with horror as he or she finally realizes the book's real meaning. The first stanza stood out to me because it is only one line. "I held it in my hands while he told me the story." I think the one lined stanza is a symbol for the book because it is one of a kind and different from any other book because it is made of "human skin." I'm not sure if the author means for the book to be literally made out of human skin though or if the book is even a book. I think the book is a symbol for the lies that people unkowningly build their lifes on, when people turn the other way and do not understand what people have done and do to other people. "An old book keeper... told him what he held, what he had laid the days of his life in. It's bound... in human skin." This part was when I first thought the book was a symbol rather than an actual book. "What child did this skin fit? What man, what woman? Dragged still full of its flesh from what dream? Who took it off the meat? Some other one who stayed alive by knowing how to do this?" This part is reffering to the people who stole dreams from other people, who robbed them of their chance. This part was also where I saw the significance of the blank pages. The blank pages are a symbol of the people who were "dragged" still full of life from their dreams and never got to lay their life down in a book. The last stanza is what realy hit home for me. "I starred at the changing book and a horror grew, I starred and a horror grew, which was, which is, how beautiful it was until I knew." This really hit me because I could relate this to so many situations past and present. When I was reading this poem, I kept relating it to slavery. I kept thinking of the thousands of men, women, and children who were dragged from their dreams so other people could build a life for themselves. "The book" is horrific because you think something so very horrible is incredibly beautiful until you understood its true nature.

Of Mere Being

I really enjoyed the discussion we had in class about this poem because it was interpreted so many different ways, and everyone had somewhat different meanings or images from the poem. Of Mere Being by Wallace Stevens talks about a bird in a palm and the feelings involved with it. Several people take this poem for its literal meaning. There is just a bird in a palm. It is just there. This thought does go along with the title, Of Mere Being, but, to me Stevens conveys a different meaning through his diction. The first two lines of the poem were initial indicators that this poem wasn't just about a bird in a palm. "The palm at the end of the mind, Beyond the last thought," These two lines seem like the author is referring to a dream or something not conceivable in the mind with "at the end of the mind," and "Beyond the last thought." Then the author goes on to describe the bird and the palm. He uses words such as "gold-feathered," "bronze decor," and "fire-fangled feathers" these words make me think of a phoenix which is a mythical creature which makes me think even more that this poem is not just about a bird and a palm because a phoenix is not a real bird.
I remember in class people were debating the idea if whether or not this poem is about faith or not. There were two parts of this poem that make me believe this poem was, indeed, about faith. The first is in the second stanza, "A gold feathered bird Sings in the palm, without human meaning, Without human feeling, a foreign song." I think this part is talking about faith because humans cannot describe the meaning of faith or the feeling of it, because of this, I believe the author is using the bird as a symbol for faith. The second part is in the last stanza, "The palm stands on the edge of space." Heaven is typically referred to as above the earth, so when Stevens says "on the edge of space" I think he is referring to the palm as a symbol of Heaven.

Introduction to Poetry

I remember this was the first poem we read in class. I thought it was ironic how the poem talks about not over analyzing a poem and then we over analyzed it. My favorite stanza from the poem was "walk inside the poem's room and feel the walls for a light switch" because it brought the familiar feeling of that fear of the unknown and the unsteadiness when you're sliding your hand along the cold wall in search for the light switch. This poem is divided into seven stanzas. The second stanza is the one that sticks out the most to me because it is only one line but still part of the same sentence in the first stanza. "or press an ear against its hive." Some writers use shortened sentences to provide emphasis on an idea or phrase. I think in this case, the author, Billy Collins, separated this one lined stanza from the first but kept it the same sentence because it relates to the first stanza but is a different idea. I really love this poem because it makes me laugh because it shows how much we over analyze especially AP students.