Haikus by Unknown
I have no idea who wrote this poem. It is simple, short, and funny, and I will quote it here...
"Haikus are easy
But sometimes they don't make sense
Refrigerator"
This haiku parodies itself, and I love it. The first time I read it, I spend most of the day laughing to myself. It simplifies poetry by poking fun at itself, as though it is saying that it understands poetry isn't the easiest to write. However, complex things aren't always the best poetry, and sometimes something that sounds empty and without form when written in prose can become something beautiful when written as poetry.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Time, Real and Imaginary
Time, Real and Imaginary by Samuel L. Coleridge
This poem speaks of two children racing, one girl and one boy. The "real" time belongs to the girl, who constantly looks over her shoulder, trying to figure out how far ahead of the boy she is. If she wins, she will know. The boy, on the other hand, is blind, and he cannot judge how far away the girl is. If he wins, he was no idea, and the time in which the race takes place, as well as how long it lasts, is his "imaginary" time.
This poem speaks of two children racing, one girl and one boy. The "real" time belongs to the girl, who constantly looks over her shoulder, trying to figure out how far ahead of the boy she is. If she wins, she will know. The boy, on the other hand, is blind, and he cannot judge how far away the girl is. If he wins, he was no idea, and the time in which the race takes place, as well as how long it lasts, is his "imaginary" time.
The Dying Christian to His Soul
The Dying Christian to His Soul by Alexander Pope
Pope's examination of a person with his religion here is very interesting. As he dies, he pleads to the heavens to come take him, to come show him the way to salvation. And, because he is a Christian, they do, and he feels no pain of death, only the ascension to Heaven. It is also an interesting take on karma, as someone is being rewarded for their faith.
Pope's examination of a person with his religion here is very interesting. As he dies, he pleads to the heavens to come take him, to come show him the way to salvation. And, because he is a Christian, they do, and he feels no pain of death, only the ascension to Heaven. It is also an interesting take on karma, as someone is being rewarded for their faith.
A Certain Lady At Court
A Certain Lady At Court by Alexander Pope
Here, Pope praises a woman who seems to be perfect. She is well-liked by all, but he says her only imperfection is that she is deaf. To take this literally would be to assume that is actually deaf, and that all of the praise heaped upon her is something she cannot even hear. To take it figuratively would be to assume that she either ignores or does not believe the praise, and that it falls upon deaf ears. Either way, it is incredibly sad, as she is one of two things: a wonderful lady who cannot hear how wonderful everybody thinks she is, or a wonderful lady who cannot hear how wonderful everybody thinks she is. They are one in the same, as somebody who cannot accept such praise is just as disabled in this case as the one who is deaf to such praise.
Here, Pope praises a woman who seems to be perfect. She is well-liked by all, but he says her only imperfection is that she is deaf. To take this literally would be to assume that is actually deaf, and that all of the praise heaped upon her is something she cannot even hear. To take it figuratively would be to assume that she either ignores or does not believe the praise, and that it falls upon deaf ears. Either way, it is incredibly sad, as she is one of two things: a wonderful lady who cannot hear how wonderful everybody thinks she is, or a wonderful lady who cannot hear how wonderful everybody thinks she is. They are one in the same, as somebody who cannot accept such praise is just as disabled in this case as the one who is deaf to such praise.
The Legacy
The Legacy by John Donne
Similar to Donne's The Expiration, he is focusing on the death of a loved one. This time, however, he is the loved one, and he is trying to get his love across to his partner. I think his closing lines are the most beautiful part of the poem. He says he wishes he could still send his heart, but it cannot be done. Nobody else can hold it but the one he is trying to send it to.
Similar to Donne's The Expiration, he is focusing on the death of a loved one. This time, however, he is the loved one, and he is trying to get his love across to his partner. I think his closing lines are the most beautiful part of the poem. He says he wishes he could still send his heart, but it cannot be done. Nobody else can hold it but the one he is trying to send it to.
The Expiration
The Expiration by John Donne
I believe this poem is about the death of a loved one. The title hints that something has expired (someone is dead), and in the poem the narrator says he has one last kiss. He is both going, and bidding the other to go; he is leaving the dead in the past, while at the same time hoping that they go on to a better place.
I believe this poem is about the death of a loved one. The title hints that something has expired (someone is dead), and in the poem the narrator says he has one last kiss. He is both going, and bidding the other to go; he is leaving the dead in the past, while at the same time hoping that they go on to a better place.
A Burnt Ship
A Burnt Ship by John Donne
This poem is similar to Complete Destruction, as it discusses the complete destruction of a ship and all its passengers. However, I think it goes deeper, and it examines both choosing between evils and the inevitability of death. The sailors must choose between burning with the ship, drowning in the water, or being shot by their enemies. This shows how death is inescapable; no sailor can escape it, and all perish. While we will not all die in a battle at sea, this can be expanded to the whole human race. Whether it is due to heart failure, cancer, or a car accident, death will eventually come.
This poem is similar to Complete Destruction, as it discusses the complete destruction of a ship and all its passengers. However, I think it goes deeper, and it examines both choosing between evils and the inevitability of death. The sailors must choose between burning with the ship, drowning in the water, or being shot by their enemies. This shows how death is inescapable; no sailor can escape it, and all perish. While we will not all die in a battle at sea, this can be expanded to the whole human race. Whether it is due to heart failure, cancer, or a car accident, death will eventually come.
Nantucket
Nantucket by William Carlos Williams
When I first saw this poem, I immediately thought, "There once was a man from Nantucket...." However, Williams's piece is very different. It exudes a sense of tranquility, and the picture he paints of his residence in Nantucket has no disturbances, no loud cars or rumbling jet engines. It is just him, silence, and the beauty of a world at peace.
When I first saw this poem, I immediately thought, "There once was a man from Nantucket...." However, Williams's piece is very different. It exudes a sense of tranquility, and the picture he paints of his residence in Nantucket has no disturbances, no loud cars or rumbling jet engines. It is just him, silence, and the beauty of a world at peace.
Landscape With The Fall of Icarus
Landscape With The Fall Of Icarus by William Carlos Williams
I like how Williams trivializes Icarus's flight in this landscape. There are no crowds watching him, nobody to weep when he falls. It is just a beautiful spring day, and a man whose reach exceeded his grasp died because he did not know his own limits.
I like how Williams trivializes Icarus's flight in this landscape. There are no crowds watching him, nobody to weep when he falls. It is just a beautiful spring day, and a man whose reach exceeded his grasp died because he did not know his own limits.
Approach of Winter
Approach of Winter by William Carlos Williams
Williams's poetry here is very succinct. He is remarking how winter makes its presence known, and he uses imagery to show how it seems to seep into autumn, as leaves gradually fall off of trees, the air grows a little bit colder each day, and the ground hardens as you get closer to winter.
Williams's poetry here is very succinct. He is remarking how winter makes its presence known, and he uses imagery to show how it seems to seep into autumn, as leaves gradually fall off of trees, the air grows a little bit colder each day, and the ground hardens as you get closer to winter.
Complete Destruction
Complete Destruction by William Carlos Williams
Williams's poem is very short, and his complete destruction references his cat. He destroys or gets rid of everything related to the cat, and even the fleas on the cat die off. It is the complete erasure of his memories of the cat, and it now only lives in his mind rather than in reality. Some things must be removed like this; otherwise, they linger, grow back, and only cause more problems.
Obviously, the cat can't physically grow back, but his love of it could.
Williams's poem is very short, and his complete destruction references his cat. He destroys or gets rid of everything related to the cat, and even the fleas on the cat die off. It is the complete erasure of his memories of the cat, and it now only lives in his mind rather than in reality. Some things must be removed like this; otherwise, they linger, grow back, and only cause more problems.
Obviously, the cat can't physically grow back, but his love of it could.
A Lament
A Lament by P.B. Shelley
Here, Shelley laments the loss of her youth and the prime years of her life. She says that a joy has left her now that she is too old, and that it can never be won back. While I would like to disagree with this and say that there are still good times to be had after your prime, I cannot say from experience. Her poem showcases a common fear of growing old.
Here, Shelley laments the loss of her youth and the prime years of her life. She says that a joy has left her now that she is too old, and that it can never be won back. While I would like to disagree with this and say that there are still good times to be had after your prime, I cannot say from experience. Her poem showcases a common fear of growing old.
Stillborn
Stillborn by Sylvia Plath
Plath claims that her poems are stillborn, and that they are without life and bear no sign of their mother. While she may be referencing whether or not the poems actually represent her, I think she is really talking about the struggle to give a poem life. Sure, a poet can use imagery and use metaphors and use stanzas and do all the right things. However, a poem is still empty if they cannot imbue it with meaning and emotion. Without these two things, a poem has nothing: it is just a pile of imagery, metaphors, and stanzas". With them, it has life, and it is no longer the stillborn piece of work that Plath mourns.
Plath claims that her poems are stillborn, and that they are without life and bear no sign of their mother. While she may be referencing whether or not the poems actually represent her, I think she is really talking about the struggle to give a poem life. Sure, a poet can use imagery and use metaphors and use stanzas and do all the right things. However, a poem is still empty if they cannot imbue it with meaning and emotion. Without these two things, a poem has nothing: it is just a pile of imagery, metaphors, and stanzas". With them, it has life, and it is no longer the stillborn piece of work that Plath mourns.
The Fist
The Fist by Derek Walcott
I recently heard about this poem on another blog, and I have decided that Walcott's title fits perfectly. The poem is about a struggle with one's love, and how no matter he tries to stop, the love persists. The fist around his heart does not let go, and give's little room to move. However, it is the way he loves, and it encompasses both the pain and joy that can come with love.
I recently heard about this poem on another blog, and I have decided that Walcott's title fits perfectly. The poem is about a struggle with one's love, and how no matter he tries to stop, the love persists. The fist around his heart does not let go, and give's little room to move. However, it is the way he loves, and it encompasses both the pain and joy that can come with love.
The Token
The Token by John Donne
Donne's point here is very simple. He is asking his lover to send him a token of some sorts. However, he is not asking her to send it so that he may have more possessions or be wealthier. Rather, he merely wants it as a sign of her love.
Donne's point here is very simple. He is asking his lover to send him a token of some sorts. However, he is not asking her to send it so that he may have more possessions or be wealthier. Rather, he merely wants it as a sign of her love.
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
A Hole In The Floor
A Hole In The Floor by Richard Wilbur
As Wilbur peers into the hole in his floor, his search for what lies beneath can be equated to his search for his own personality. Looking in the mirror is not enough; rather, one must look deeper, into the brain and into its thoughts in order to truly understand. This is similar to how looking at the floor does not give away all the secrets of a house. It merely gives a general impression, and it can sometimes even be a mask. A Hole In The Floor takes an unusual turn at the end. Veering from its previous content, he states that a sense of mystery, foreboding, and the unknown all rise out of the hole in the floor. These properties make that which we know seem more comforting, and the contrast of the unknown versus the known makes what we know even more important.
As Wilbur peers into the hole in his floor, his search for what lies beneath can be equated to his search for his own personality. Looking in the mirror is not enough; rather, one must look deeper, into the brain and into its thoughts in order to truly understand. This is similar to how looking at the floor does not give away all the secrets of a house. It merely gives a general impression, and it can sometimes even be a mask. A Hole In The Floor takes an unusual turn at the end. Veering from its previous content, he states that a sense of mystery, foreboding, and the unknown all rise out of the hole in the floor. These properties make that which we know seem more comforting, and the contrast of the unknown versus the known makes what we know even more important.
A Fire-Truck
A Fire-Truck by Richard Wilbur
The firetruck, in this poem, completely disrupts Wilbur's train of thought, just as it disrupts its surroundings. Cars pull over, people cover their ears to soften sirens, and red lights are run so that the firetruck may make sure a fire is put out. All of Wilbur's thoughts go right out the window upon hearing this truck. What interests me most, though, is how the firetruck takes over his mind at the end. Not only has it chased all other thoughts from his mind, but it has taken their place, and he finds himself pondering its unusual beauty, taking all the chaos that seems to follow it and crafting it into something far greater.
The firetruck, in this poem, completely disrupts Wilbur's train of thought, just as it disrupts its surroundings. Cars pull over, people cover their ears to soften sirens, and red lights are run so that the firetruck may make sure a fire is put out. All of Wilbur's thoughts go right out the window upon hearing this truck. What interests me most, though, is how the firetruck takes over his mind at the end. Not only has it chased all other thoughts from his mind, but it has taken their place, and he finds himself pondering its unusual beauty, taking all the chaos that seems to follow it and crafting it into something far greater.
Transit
Transit by Richard Wilbur
Transit is completely based around a metaphor. Wilbur compares a woman's beauty to transportation, and in every street she walks down, she leaves the memory of her beauty with those she passes. The beginning is interesting as well, as Wilbur says that the only way for her beauty to last is for time to cease its existence.
Transit is completely based around a metaphor. Wilbur compares a woman's beauty to transportation, and in every street she walks down, she leaves the memory of her beauty with those she passes. The beginning is interesting as well, as Wilbur says that the only way for her beauty to last is for time to cease its existence.
Worlds
Worlds by Richard Wilbur
Here, Wilbur examines how knowledge, and a view of the world can change over time. Things previously thought in the past, such as the thought that Asia ended at India, now seem narrow-minded and ignorant. As time progress, we will continue to think similar things, and surely in the future we will back on now and question why we viewed the world as we did. Everything is obvious once it's discovered. However, his insertion of religion into Einstein's views of science makes for an interesting paradox, though I cannot tell if he is supporting religion or being sarcastic about it.
Here, Wilbur examines how knowledge, and a view of the world can change over time. Things previously thought in the past, such as the thought that Asia ended at India, now seem narrow-minded and ignorant. As time progress, we will continue to think similar things, and surely in the future we will back on now and question why we viewed the world as we did. Everything is obvious once it's discovered. However, his insertion of religion into Einstein's views of science makes for an interesting paradox, though I cannot tell if he is supporting religion or being sarcastic about it.
Boy At The Window
Boy At The Window by Richard Wilbur
I find Wilbur's take on this simple interaction between a boy and his snowman incredibly interesting. In one sense, the boy fears for his snowman, as he is his creation, while the snowman fears for the boy, as he is his master. The contrasting points of view, one of from each side of the window, show that one's point of view and perspective can mean everything. More importantly, neither one is fearing for himself: all their thoughts are focused on the other.
I find Wilbur's take on this simple interaction between a boy and his snowman incredibly interesting. In one sense, the boy fears for his snowman, as he is his creation, while the snowman fears for the boy, as he is his master. The contrasting points of view, one of from each side of the window, show that one's point of view and perspective can mean everything. More importantly, neither one is fearing for himself: all their thoughts are focused on the other.
Uncle's First Rabbit
Uncle's First Rabbit by Lorna Dee Cervantes
Cervantes discusses the first (and possibly last) hunt of her uncle. After killing the rabbit, he becomes racked with guilt, and it's sounds and face follow him throughout his life. The way Cervantes lets time bleed together makes the impact of the rabbit's death more powerful. Her uncle goes from trying to get himself killed in war to beating his own wife. However, it all comes back from his desire to get away from his troubles in life, whether it is running away from his father after being forced to hunt a rabbit, or running from his wife after he beats her.
Cervantes discusses the first (and possibly last) hunt of her uncle. After killing the rabbit, he becomes racked with guilt, and it's sounds and face follow him throughout his life. The way Cervantes lets time bleed together makes the impact of the rabbit's death more powerful. Her uncle goes from trying to get himself killed in war to beating his own wife. However, it all comes back from his desire to get away from his troubles in life, whether it is running away from his father after being forced to hunt a rabbit, or running from his wife after he beats her.
To My Brother
To My Brother by Lorna Dee Cervantes
In this poem, Cervantes alludes to a possibly impoverished upbringing, talking about how it was difficult to her to get by. However, she shared all of this with her brother. Their dreams, as well as each other, were part of what sustained them, and the imagery she provides of both her dreams and reality creates an excellent contrast. She is reflecting upon the childhood she shared with her brother, and while I am fortunate I do not live in poverty as she possibly did, it reminds me of time spent with my brother, just sitting around and dreaming about what our lives might be.
In this poem, Cervantes alludes to a possibly impoverished upbringing, talking about how it was difficult to her to get by. However, she shared all of this with her brother. Their dreams, as well as each other, were part of what sustained them, and the imagery she provides of both her dreams and reality creates an excellent contrast. She is reflecting upon the childhood she shared with her brother, and while I am fortunate I do not live in poverty as she possibly did, it reminds me of time spent with my brother, just sitting around and dreaming about what our lives might be.
A un Desconocido
A un Desconocido by Lorna Dee Cervantes
I am not sure if I understand Cervantes's message completely. She seems to be lamenting a lack of love. At first, she talks about the effects her partner has on her, but then she is wondering where her partner is next, as though he does not truly exist. This, combined with the translation of the title as "To a Stranger", leads me to believe that she is writing about someone she hopes exists rather than someone she actually knows.
I am not sure if I understand Cervantes's message completely. She seems to be lamenting a lack of love. At first, she talks about the effects her partner has on her, but then she is wondering where her partner is next, as though he does not truly exist. This, combined with the translation of the title as "To a Stranger", leads me to believe that she is writing about someone she hopes exists rather than someone she actually knows.
On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year
On This Day I Complete My Thirty-Sixth Year by Lord Byron
Byron's poem, in keeping with On Time's themes of time and death, talks about what life means, and whether it ceases to have meaning as time goes on. I am not overly familiar with Byron's work, and, as a result, I cannot tell if he is sarcastic or serious in his statements that life is worthless as time goes on. It seems as though he is trying to justify his own life as he ages, yet all he can do is state the reasons why is life is not justified.
Byron's poem, in keeping with On Time's themes of time and death, talks about what life means, and whether it ceases to have meaning as time goes on. I am not overly familiar with Byron's work, and, as a result, I cannot tell if he is sarcastic or serious in his statements that life is worthless as time goes on. It seems as though he is trying to justify his own life as he ages, yet all he can do is state the reasons why is life is not justified.
On Time
On Time by John Milton
While I have difficulty understanding parts of this poem, I find it interesting how Milton gives time human qualities. This personification of something as intangible as time lends a unique type of imagery to the poem. I also like how he mixes in themes of death and the afterlife with time, as though he is wondering if time takes on a whole new meaning to us in death.
While I have difficulty understanding parts of this poem, I find it interesting how Milton gives time human qualities. This personification of something as intangible as time lends a unique type of imagery to the poem. I also like how he mixes in themes of death and the afterlife with time, as though he is wondering if time takes on a whole new meaning to us in death.
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