"Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night" by Dylan Thomas
"Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night" was written by Dylan Thomas in 1947. Dylan Thomas was a Welsh poet and writer who was popular among the public during the time he lived and even after his death in 1953. He has been called one of the most important Welsh poets of the 20th century. He is known for his rhythmic and ingenious use of words and imagery. "Do Not Go Gentle into that Night" was written during the final illness of Thomas's father. The speaker of the poem is Thomas because he is addressing his father and telling him not to leave him in this world. The structure of this poem is in the form of a villanelle. A villanelle is a nineteen line poem that consists of six stanzas, five tercets followed by a quatrain. It also consists of two refrains and two repeating rhymes. The two refrains Thomas uses are "Do not go gentle into that good night" and "Rage, rage against the dying of the light". In the first stanza, these two refrains are in the first and third lines and after that, they are repeatedly alternated in the last line of each stanza, until the last stanza where they are the last two lines of the poem. The diction and the rhyme Thomas uses represents the fear the speaker has of losing his father. The use of a villanelle for the structure of this poem is ironic because it is organized, but the speaker is emotionally unstable and he is going through a rough time in his life.
Monday, November 23, 2015
Thursday, November 19, 2015
"Marks"
"Marks" by Linda Pastan
Linda Pastan was born in 1932. She is an American poet known for writing short poems about family life, domesticity, motherhood, and the female experience. She was Poet Laureate of Maryland from 1991 to 1995. Pastan's poem "Marks", written in 1978, represents the unappreciated role of wife and mother in a household. The speaker of the poem is a wife and mother of two who feels judged and somewhat oppressed by her family. Throughout the poem, Pastan uses the metaphor of school grades, or "marks" to show how her husband and children are judging her on her performance of her roles as mother and wife. She says her husband uses letter grades to evaluate her cooking, cleaning, and performance in bed. Her son calls her "average" and her daughter evaluates her using a pass/fail system. The speaker's worn-out tone helps to portray her negative attitude towards the grading system her family uses to evaluate her. The way that she speaks throughout the poem shows that she is sick and tired of how her family judges her and she feels that they don't appreciate everything she does for them. At the end of the poem, Pastan links back to the metaphor of grades when she writes, "Wait 'til they learn I'm dropping out". This links back to the metaphor because the speaker says that she is no longer going to put up with being graded by her family, she is "dropping out" just as a student would drop out of school.
Linda Pastan was born in 1932. She is an American poet known for writing short poems about family life, domesticity, motherhood, and the female experience. She was Poet Laureate of Maryland from 1991 to 1995. Pastan's poem "Marks", written in 1978, represents the unappreciated role of wife and mother in a household. The speaker of the poem is a wife and mother of two who feels judged and somewhat oppressed by her family. Throughout the poem, Pastan uses the metaphor of school grades, or "marks" to show how her husband and children are judging her on her performance of her roles as mother and wife. She says her husband uses letter grades to evaluate her cooking, cleaning, and performance in bed. Her son calls her "average" and her daughter evaluates her using a pass/fail system. The speaker's worn-out tone helps to portray her negative attitude towards the grading system her family uses to evaluate her. The way that she speaks throughout the poem shows that she is sick and tired of how her family judges her and she feels that they don't appreciate everything she does for them. At the end of the poem, Pastan links back to the metaphor of grades when she writes, "Wait 'til they learn I'm dropping out". This links back to the metaphor because the speaker says that she is no longer going to put up with being graded by her family, she is "dropping out" just as a student would drop out of school.
Monday, November 16, 2015
[The golf links lie so near the mill]
[The golf links lie so near the mill] by Sarah Cleghorn
Sarah Cleghorn was born in 1876 in Norfolk, Virginia. She was a poet associated with the American Naturalist literary movement. Many of her poems portray Christian Socialist Values and progressive political and social principles. [The golf links lie so near the mill] is Cleghorn's most widely known poem. It is a short poem with one stanza consisting of four lines. Even though the poem is short, Cleghorn clearly gets the purpose of the poem across. The purpose of this poem is to address the issue of child labor. There is not much description throughout the poem, so the reader should not have a problem figuring out the point the author is trying to make. The author uses irony through the use of diction to portray her message about child labor. This poem is ironic because Cleghorn describes the children working and the men playing. Usually, children are playing and men are working. The use of diction helps convey the irony. The author describes the children as "laboring" which automatically makes the reader think of child labor. The author ends the poem with the word "play" because it is powerful. She is making the point that adults should not be playing while children are stuck inside a mill working. The author's use of irony and diction in this poem clearly portrays the message that child labor should not be tolerated under any circumstances
Sarah Cleghorn was born in 1876 in Norfolk, Virginia. She was a poet associated with the American Naturalist literary movement. Many of her poems portray Christian Socialist Values and progressive political and social principles. [The golf links lie so near the mill] is Cleghorn's most widely known poem. It is a short poem with one stanza consisting of four lines. Even though the poem is short, Cleghorn clearly gets the purpose of the poem across. The purpose of this poem is to address the issue of child labor. There is not much description throughout the poem, so the reader should not have a problem figuring out the point the author is trying to make. The author uses irony through the use of diction to portray her message about child labor. This poem is ironic because Cleghorn describes the children working and the men playing. Usually, children are playing and men are working. The use of diction helps convey the irony. The author describes the children as "laboring" which automatically makes the reader think of child labor. The author ends the poem with the word "play" because it is powerful. She is making the point that adults should not be playing while children are stuck inside a mill working. The author's use of irony and diction in this poem clearly portrays the message that child labor should not be tolerated under any circumstances
Wednesday, November 11, 2015
"To a Daughter Leaving Home"
"To a Daughter Leaving Home" by Linda Pastan
Linda Pastan was born in New York in 1932. She is an American poet of Jewish background. She is a mother of three, one of her children being a novelist. Pastan was the Poet Laureate of Maryland from 1991 to 1995 and has won several other awards throughout her career. Most of her poems are based on family life and motherhood. "To a Daughter Leaving Home" is about a mother watching her child learn how to ride a bike. The setting of this poem is not clearly defined other than it being in the past which is portrayed by the speaker's nostalgic tone. The situation is the most important part of the poem. The speaker of this poem is the mother. She is recalling the event of teaching her daughter how to ride a bike. The mother is looking back on this memory because according to the title of this poem, her daughter is grown and is leaving home. The story of her daughter learning how to ride a bike is significant to the mother because at that moment, she experienced a small taste of what it would really be like when her daughter grows up and leaves home. Now that it is actually time for her daughter to leave home, she is looking back at this memory and trying to remember what it felt like to see her go. The last line of the poem contains only one word and this word is "goodbye". Ending with this word adds to the significance of the poem's situation because it portrays that the mother now has to say goodbye to her daughter and let her move on to adult life.
Linda Pastan was born in New York in 1932. She is an American poet of Jewish background. She is a mother of three, one of her children being a novelist. Pastan was the Poet Laureate of Maryland from 1991 to 1995 and has won several other awards throughout her career. Most of her poems are based on family life and motherhood. "To a Daughter Leaving Home" is about a mother watching her child learn how to ride a bike. The setting of this poem is not clearly defined other than it being in the past which is portrayed by the speaker's nostalgic tone. The situation is the most important part of the poem. The speaker of this poem is the mother. She is recalling the event of teaching her daughter how to ride a bike. The mother is looking back on this memory because according to the title of this poem, her daughter is grown and is leaving home. The story of her daughter learning how to ride a bike is significant to the mother because at that moment, she experienced a small taste of what it would really be like when her daughter grows up and leaves home. Now that it is actually time for her daughter to leave home, she is looking back at this memory and trying to remember what it felt like to see her go. The last line of the poem contains only one word and this word is "goodbye". Ending with this word adds to the significance of the poem's situation because it portrays that the mother now has to say goodbye to her daughter and let her move on to adult life.
Monday, November 9, 2015
"Hanging Fire"
"Hanging Fire" by Audre Lorde
"Hanging Fire" was written by Audre Lorde in 1978. Audre Lorde was born in 1934 to Caribbean immigrants. She was a Caribbean-American writer whose works focus on civil rights issues and feminism. "Hanging Fire" is a poem that focuses on the struggles of life as a teenager. The speaker of this poem is a fourteen year old girl. She talks about the struggles of being a teenager through first hand experience. She is worried about all the typical things teenagers worry about, acne, boys, parties, but she is also worried about death. Her concern about dying shows up several times throughout the poem. In line 8 she says, "what if I die", in line 15 "suppose I die before graduation", and in lines 32-33 "will I live long enough to grow up". This fear of death is very prominent throughout the poem and it is abnormal for a teenager to be worried about. The speaker also portrays a feeling of loneliness throughout the poem. At the end of each stanza she says, "and momma's in the bedroom with the door closed". The placement and repetition of this line are significant because in each stanza the speaker talks about everything she is worried about and after she states all of her fears she says this line about her mother which shows that she just wants to talk to her about it. The speaker feels lonely because she has no one to talk about her fears with, not even her own mother.
"Hanging Fire" was written by Audre Lorde in 1978. Audre Lorde was born in 1934 to Caribbean immigrants. She was a Caribbean-American writer whose works focus on civil rights issues and feminism. "Hanging Fire" is a poem that focuses on the struggles of life as a teenager. The speaker of this poem is a fourteen year old girl. She talks about the struggles of being a teenager through first hand experience. She is worried about all the typical things teenagers worry about, acne, boys, parties, but she is also worried about death. Her concern about dying shows up several times throughout the poem. In line 8 she says, "what if I die", in line 15 "suppose I die before graduation", and in lines 32-33 "will I live long enough to grow up". This fear of death is very prominent throughout the poem and it is abnormal for a teenager to be worried about. The speaker also portrays a feeling of loneliness throughout the poem. At the end of each stanza she says, "and momma's in the bedroom with the door closed". The placement and repetition of this line are significant because in each stanza the speaker talks about everything she is worried about and after she states all of her fears she says this line about her mother which shows that she just wants to talk to her about it. The speaker feels lonely because she has no one to talk about her fears with, not even her own mother.
Thursday, November 5, 2015
"Barbie Doll"
"Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy
"Barbie Doll" is a short 4 stanza poem written by Marge Piercy. Marge Piercy was born in 1936 in Detroit, Michigan. She is a poet, novelist, and social activist for women. Many of her novels and poems focus on feminist concerns, just as "Barbie Doll" does. The theme of this poem is the objectification of girls' bodies and the crushing of their self confidence. The tone the author uses to represent this theme is disapproving with a hint of sarcasm. Piercy begins the poem talking about this young girl who is perfectly content with herself. Then all of a sudden puberty comes along and people begin to judge her because of her body. The young girl is portrayed as innocent playing with her dolls, who then becomes a victim of puberty. Piercy uses irony in line five when she writes, "the magic of puberty". This is ironic because usually when something is described with the word magic it is a good thing. Piercy uses a positive word to describe a word that has a negative meaning in this poem. The disapproving tone of this poem is portrayed through the description of how society expects a young, vulnerable girl to act when her body is being objectified. Piercy is making the point that society truly believes that girls should do everything they can to look like the models on covers of magazines. Piercy is criticizing this belief. At the end of the poem when the girl is dead, Piercy portrays her looking like a doll. This is ironic because she used to be happy playing with her dolls and now she is dead because the pressure of society made her believe she had to be one of those dolls. The poem closes with, "To every woman a happy ending". Piercy uses sarcasm here to portray how she disapproves of the way society mistreats and objectifies young girls.
"Barbie Doll" is a short 4 stanza poem written by Marge Piercy. Marge Piercy was born in 1936 in Detroit, Michigan. She is a poet, novelist, and social activist for women. Many of her novels and poems focus on feminist concerns, just as "Barbie Doll" does. The theme of this poem is the objectification of girls' bodies and the crushing of their self confidence. The tone the author uses to represent this theme is disapproving with a hint of sarcasm. Piercy begins the poem talking about this young girl who is perfectly content with herself. Then all of a sudden puberty comes along and people begin to judge her because of her body. The young girl is portrayed as innocent playing with her dolls, who then becomes a victim of puberty. Piercy uses irony in line five when she writes, "the magic of puberty". This is ironic because usually when something is described with the word magic it is a good thing. Piercy uses a positive word to describe a word that has a negative meaning in this poem. The disapproving tone of this poem is portrayed through the description of how society expects a young, vulnerable girl to act when her body is being objectified. Piercy is making the point that society truly believes that girls should do everything they can to look like the models on covers of magazines. Piercy is criticizing this belief. At the end of the poem when the girl is dead, Piercy portrays her looking like a doll. This is ironic because she used to be happy playing with her dolls and now she is dead because the pressure of society made her believe she had to be one of those dolls. The poem closes with, "To every woman a happy ending". Piercy uses sarcasm here to portray how she disapproves of the way society mistreats and objectifies young girls.
Monday, November 2, 2015
"The Aim Was Song"
"The Aim Was Song" by Robert Frost
"The Aim Was Song" is a short poem written by Robert Frost. Robert Frost was a well-known poet who lived from 1874-1963. He is still widely known today for his many famous poems. By the 1920s he was on the rise as a poet and throughout his career he won four Pulitzer Prizes.
This is a short poem, only four stanzas. Structurally, this poem has 4 lines in each of the four stanzas. There is also a rhyme scheme. Throughout the poem, Frost portrays an interaction between a man and the wind. The title of the song links back to the poem as a whole because the aim of the wind is for it to sound like a song when it blows, and that is what the man is trying to teach the wind the whole time. Frost personifies the wind in this poem. The last line of the poem says," The aim was song-the wind could see". This line shows the personification of the wind because it gives the wind human characteristics by saying that the wind has sight. The personification creates a bond between the man and the wind. The literal meaning of this poem is the man trying to teach the wind how to blow so it sounds like a song. Frost most likely wrote this poem to portray a deeper meaning. The deeper meaning of the poem has to do with poetry as a whole. Frost is trying to show the reader that poetry is spontaneous just like the wind, but even though it is spontaneous, the poem always has a purpose.
"The Aim Was Song" is a short poem written by Robert Frost. Robert Frost was a well-known poet who lived from 1874-1963. He is still widely known today for his many famous poems. By the 1920s he was on the rise as a poet and throughout his career he won four Pulitzer Prizes.
This is a short poem, only four stanzas. Structurally, this poem has 4 lines in each of the four stanzas. There is also a rhyme scheme. Throughout the poem, Frost portrays an interaction between a man and the wind. The title of the song links back to the poem as a whole because the aim of the wind is for it to sound like a song when it blows, and that is what the man is trying to teach the wind the whole time. Frost personifies the wind in this poem. The last line of the poem says," The aim was song-the wind could see". This line shows the personification of the wind because it gives the wind human characteristics by saying that the wind has sight. The personification creates a bond between the man and the wind. The literal meaning of this poem is the man trying to teach the wind how to blow so it sounds like a song. Frost most likely wrote this poem to portray a deeper meaning. The deeper meaning of the poem has to do with poetry as a whole. Frost is trying to show the reader that poetry is spontaneous just like the wind, but even though it is spontaneous, the poem always has a purpose.
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