Reflections on Poetry

Okay, I’ll say it. I hated poetry. I really did. Until this year. Before, I thought that poetry was really just mushy nonsense. But it’s not. To me, good poetry is like music: it has layers of subtle meaning that you don’t quite get at first. It fits together. Creating it is an art. I enjoy writing nature poetry and nonsense poems because it’s a way to put down my thoughts beautifully or hilariously. I found writing nonsense poetry very challenging, but fun. Writing about nature is almost mindless for me, recreating scenes of the beauty that I am lucky enough to see every day. I often write thematic poems about sadness. It helps me to get my feelings out in writing. I wanted to say that being sad is normal and okay.

Poetry fills the air

Music

An art

Sadness 

Beauty

Natural

Perfect

Bittersweet

A Poem I Have Written # 5

Cold Showers

Oh, showers of the frigid cold

I loathe you so

Your waters feel like ice

Rushing over paper-delicate skin

You, icy Arctic showers

You and you alone

Leave me shivering

When I could be toasty warm

Why can’t you be

 At least a little warmer

Stemming from the hot water tank

Even lukewarm would be an improvement

No other freezing waters

Are nearly quite so-- cold

As you

And you alone

A Poem I Have Written #4

Wrinkles of an Elephant

an unnatural line

of heavy gray stones

craggy rock

sprouting from the cold cement

firm and unmoving

enormous

yet friendly

those gentle, gentle giants

the elephants of landscaping

solid in their entirety

worn smoother

by countless raindrops

pounding and weathering

into bulky curves

yet still with miniscule wrinkles

the wrinkles of an elephant

Image credits: http://goafrica.about.com/od/africanwildlife/ss/The-Big-5-Images-Facts-And-Information-About-Africas-Big-Five_2.htm

Definitions of Poetic Devices

Metaphor: A sentence or fragment in which something is compared to something else figuratively, not literally without using "like" or "as". Example: The path was a prison with freezing branches blocking my way after dark.

Simile: A sentence or fragment in which something is compared to something else using "like" or "as". Example: The butterfly's wing was as soft against fingers as rose petals after a spring rain.

Personification: A sentence or fragment in which an inanimate object is given characteristics of a person or animal. Example: The wind whispered its secrets to the listening trees.

Alliteration: A sentence or fragment in which all or most of the words start with the same consonant sound. Example: The shining sands shimmered under the shy spring sun.

Rhyme Scheme: The way in which lines rhyme (or do not rhyme) with each other. Example: (ABAB) Everyone knows that with anything/ There's bound to be something wrong/ Something that beeps or even goes "ding!"/ Instead of going "dong".

Imagery: A technique where strong descriptive words are carefully chosen to "show" the reader an image. Example: The pink blush of dawn spreads like paint over the horizon.

Pun: A sentence or fragment in which homonyms or words that sound alike are played off of to create humor. Example: The last event in the Olympics was a bye-athlon.

Hyperbole: A wild, extreme exaggeration. Example: Third-period Personal Development, right before lunch, spread itself over a thousand years on my Wednesday schedule.

Poem Analysis #3

The Road Not Taken

By Robert Frost

Two roads diverged in  a yellow wood,

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-

I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

My analysis:

I like Robert Frost's The Road Not Taken because of the rhyme and other techniques such as personification and imagery. The rhyme scheme is similar to that of a limerick: the first, third and fourth lines rhyme, and the second and fifth lines rhyme. Example (commas for line breaks): I shall be telling this with a sigh, Somewhere ages and ages hence, Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-, I took the one less traveled by, And that had made all the difference. Frost also uses some strong imagery, bringing to mind a forking path in an isolated wood. Example: In leaves no step had trodden black. This reminds me of fall, when some of the leaves are black and decomposing from footprints, and others are as vibrant as ever. Another technique he uses is personification. Example (commas for line breaks): And having perhaps the better claim,   Because it was grassy and wanted wear. Robert Frost depicts the paths as lonely and clamoring for visitors. This is but one of the combination of his powerful literary techniques.

Another reason that I like The Road Not Taken is the fact that it is fully applicable to nearly everything and everyone. There are many choices in life, and we often have to choose which is the right path. This creates a deeper level on which the poem can be understood. It also reminds me of exploring hidden paths along the water at Magnuson Park. You have to choose which path to take, where to stop, where to sit on the beach. Life is all about choices, which Robert Frost expresses elegantly and fully in this poem. The combination of strong poetic devices and deeper meaning is touching and effective.

Image credits: http://blogs.forrester.com/category/enablement

A Poem I Have Written #3

Waiting

Fourteen family members

Aged from 1 to 88

Sweating

In the sweltering Michigan weather

Nibbling

Greasy leftover fried chicken

For breakfast,

All other food gone

Waiting

For a short trip to the Detroit airport

Or a long drive down to Ohio

More family visits

Snapping

Pictures of the baby

Memories to keep in their pockets

Watching

Cheesy children’s movies

Crammed together on an ancient leather couch

Saturated with the sweat

Of countless unkempt children

Chattering away

Aimlessly

Voices merging with the noise of a solitary fan

The baby

Rolling around with the small, floppy-haired dog

Wandering

And waiting

Poem Analysis #2

Annabel Lee
By Edgar Allen Poe


It was many and many a year ago,
    In a kingdom by the sea,
That a maiden there lived whom you may know
    By the name of Annabel Lee;
And this maiden she lived with no other thought
    Than to love and be loved by me.

I was a child and she was a child,
    In this kingdom by the sea;
But we loved with a love that was more than love-
    I and my Annabel Lee;
With a love that the winged seraphs of heaven
    Coveted her and me.

And this was the reason that, long ago,
    In this kingdom by the sea,
A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling
    My beautiful Annabel Lee;
So that her highborn kinsman came
    And bore her away from me,
To shut her up in a sepulchre
    In this kingdom by the sea.

The angels, not half so happy in heaven,
    Went envying her and me-
Yes!- that was the reason (as all men know,
    In this kingdom by the sea)
That the wind came out of the cloud by night,
    Chilling and killing my Annabel Lee.

But our love it was stronger by far than the love
    Of those who were older than we-
    Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
    Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
    Of the beautiful Annabel Lee.

For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
    Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
    Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
    In the sepulchre there by the sea,
    In her tomb by the side of the sea.



My Analysis:
I like Annabel Lee because of the rhyme and somber theme. The rhyme is inconsistent, but all of the indented lines rhyme. There is also some internal rhyme. Example: The moon never beams without bringing me dreams. I find it very interesting that Edgar Allen Poe chose to indent all of the lines ending in a word rhyming with "ee". It's very subtle and almost unnoticeable. The rhythm and stanzas are also inconsistent, which is also fascinating. It makes the poem almost come off as a short story. He also always refers to Annabel Lee as "my Annabel Lee" or "the beautiful Annabel Lee". Homer also always refers to a person with an adjective before them (i.e. gray-eyed Athena). Poe could possibly be imitating Homer, but I think it's rather unlikely. He also uses some strong imagery. Example: Nor the demons down under the sea. This brings to mind a sea serpent rearing its ugly head. There may also be some hyperbole in this poem. Example (commas for line breaks) : But our love was stronger by far than the love, of those who were older than we. This line is exaggerated, but filled with wild, raw emotion. Poe used many poetic devices subtly and carefully in this poem.

This poem personally appeals to me because of the bitterness and heartbreak. There's just something very touching about reading about another human's sorrows. It makes me feel empathy towards Poe (and his beautiful Annabel Lee). Annabel Lee is something that almost everyone can relate to, having felt sorrow about something at some point. The pure emotion poured into this poem is something special, something that grabs the readers attention, holds them, and shakes them. Really, the techniques in this poem are very subtle, and mixed with the emotional theme, they are a devastating combination.

Image credits: http://www.free-extras.com/search/1/broken+heart.htm

Poem Analysis #1

Bleezer's Ice Cream

By Jack Prelutsky

I am Ebenezer Bleezer,

I run BLEEZER'S ICE CREAM STORE,

there are flavors in my freezer

you have never seen before,

twenty-eight divine creations

too delicious to resist,

why not do yourself a favor,

try the flavors on my list:

COCOA MOCHA MACARONI

TAPIOCA SMOKED BALONEY

CHECKERBERRY CHEDDAR CHEW

CHICKEN CHERRY HONEYDEW

TUTTI-FRUTTI STEWED TOMATO

TUNA TACO BAKED POTATO

LOBSTER LITCHI LIMA BEAN

MOZZARELLA MANGOSTEEN

ALMOND HAM MERINGUE SALAMI

YAM ANCHOVY PRUNE PASTRAMI

SASSAFRAS SOUVLAKI HASH

SUKIYAKI SUCCOTASH

BUTTER BRICKLE PEPPER PICKLE

POMEGRANATE PUMPERNICKEL

PEACH PIMENTO PIZZA PLUM

PEANUT PUMPKIN BUBBLEGUM

BROCCOLI BANANA BLUSTER

CHOCOLATE CHOP SUEY CLUSTER

AVOCADO BRUSSELS SPROUT

PERIWINKLE SAUERKRAUT

COTTON CANDY CARROT CUSTARD
CAULIFLOWER COLA MUSTARD
ONION DUMPLING DOUBLE DIP
TURNIP TRUFFLE TRIPLE FLIP
GARLIC GUMBO GRAVY GUAVA
LENTIL LEMON LIVER LAVA
ORANGE OLIVE BAGEL BEET
WATERMELON WAFFLE WHEAT

I am Ebenezer Bleezer,
I run BLEEZER'S ICE CREAM STORE,
taste a flavor from my freezer,
you will surely ask for more.

My analysis:

I like the poem Bleezer's Ice Cream Store because of its rhyme scheme and rhythm. I also like the use of alliteration. Another cool thing is that in the first line of the first and third stanzas, there is internal rhyme (Ebenezer Bleezer). In the first and third stanzas, the odd-numbered lines have eight syllables, but the even-numbered lines have seven. The first and third lines rhyme, the second and fourth lines rhyme, etc. Example (commas for line breaks): I am Ebenezer Bleezer, I run Bleezer's Ice Cream Store, there are flavors in my freezer, you have never seen before. In the second stanza (ice cream flavors), lines one and two are both eight syllables and rhyme, lines three and four are only seven syllables but still rhyme, etc. Example (commas for line breaks): BUTTER BRICKLE PEPPER PICKLE, POMEGRANATE PUMPERNICKEL, PEACH PIMENTO PIZZA PLUM, PEANUT PUMPKIN BUBBLEGUM. There is also internal rhyme in the line "BUTTER BRICKLE PEPPER PICKLE". The alliteration is in the second stanza; some lines are alliterated but others aren't. Example: COTTON CANDY CARROT CUSTARD. The overall pattern of eight-syllable lines alternating seven-syllable lines is an effective rhythmic pattern.

The poem Bleezer's Ice Cream Store also has a personal appeal to me. It reminds me of going into one of those ice cream places where they have many ridiculous flavors that you've never even heard of before. I also have fond childhood memories of going to Baskin-Robbins. There are many poems by Jack Prelutsky that are very similar in some way to this one, which reminds me of a book of Jack Prelutsky poems that I used to read over and over. I would recommend this poem to anyone looking for lighthearted writing and a good laugh. Overall, this poem uses some good literary techniques as well as a personal touch.

Image credits: http://icecreamsuppliers.com/ice-cream-facts

A Poem I Have Written #2

I Am From

I am from tall evergreen trees

Reaching for the sky

Littering their branches on the cement

I am from the “normal houses”

That border the elaborate hedges

And sculpted birdbaths

Of Inverness

I am from winding roads

Hidden bike trails

A forest inside North Seattle

I am from the gentle waves

Of Lake Washington

Lapping at shell-stained shores

I am from the great outdoors

I am from crystals

Snowflakes covering a hillside

I’d rather be skiing

I am from water

Sprays of bubbles

And laughter

Jewels of color

Moments caught in time

Flattened into photographs

Memories of me

I am from eyes the color of the ocean

Blond hair waving in the wind

Waves crashing on rocks

Dancing

Image credits:  http://myretirementchronicles.blogspot.com/2010/11/big-splashes.html

A Poem I Have Written #1

Longing

the pond

shimmering with the colors of the rainbow

  rimmed with cushioned grass

that shines wet and green with dew

a skipping rock

a splash

 parts the waters

crystal clear

down to the sculptured sand beneath

perfection in itself

a ripple escapes

whispering into the wind

longing

for something more

Image credits: http://twowomenblogging.blogspot.com/2011/11/ripples-by-jay.html