An actual quote from Sylvia Plath that isn't made up

I analyzed "Daddy" by Sylvia Plath with the SIFT method. Here's the poem, by the way (it's too long to paste): http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/15291

Symbolism – Daddy is filled to the brim with symbolism. Plath describes her father with a number of symbols and metaphors to demonstrate just how jaded she is with him. One of the symbols she uses is the German language. She has come to loathe the language because she associates it with her father. The many adjectives she describes German with can be extenuated to apply to her father: it is “chuffing” and “obscene,” and she says it hurts her to even try to speak it. The decimated Polish town stands for how she sees her father. He does nothing but make war, both literally and physically, and in his wake he has left both a decimated daughter and a number of decimated villages from fighting in WWII as a Nazi. The swastika stands for what her father has become: she sees only the swastika, a symbol of Nazi hatred, when she sees him, rather than seeing him as a god-like figure like she used to.

Imagery – a lot of imagery in this. Her father is a “black shoe,” something dark she has been stuck wearing for thirty years, but like a shoe she shakes off her feet, she has shaken off her black-hearted father for good. Again, we get the imagery of the Polish town, flattened by “wars, wars, wars,” and this image we associate with her father, both a physical and emotional destroyer of people. She describes her father as a “ghastly statue” that extends from the West to the East coast of the United States, demonstrating what a large and horrific figure her father is to her. She speaks briefly of the concentration camps “Dachau, Auschwitz, and Belsen;” their images demonstrate how stifling it is to be with her father. She feels like a Jew being sent to one of these camps while she is with him, which is particularly disturbing as her father is actually a Nazi, meaning she feels so intimidated by her father that she feels he is going to kill her.

Figurative language – Plath says her dead father is a “marble-heavy bag full of God.” In other words, her father laying within his body bag is like a compaction of God himself. She describes German as like “an engine, an engine/chuffing me off like a Jew.” The repetition of “engine” is meant to portray the sound of a train going by, most likely taking a Jew to a concentration camp. That’s what she feels like when she hears her father speak. She says her father is like the devil, but with “a cleft in your chin instead of your foot.”

Tone– the tone is harsh, bitter, and melancholy. “I have always been scared of you, with your Luftwaffe, with your gobbeldygoo.” Her resentment toward her father is clear (you is even italicized). She is talking to her father directly after many years of being emotionally trapped from what he did to her. “Every woman adores a Fascist/The boot in the face, the brute/Brute heart of a brute like you.” Plath is being sarcastic here. Her father was a controlling Fascist and a brute, as is her husband; it must mean, then, that a woman craves such a Fascist brute. This is probably the first time, we can divulge from what she writes, Plath has ever addressed her father in this way, so her nigh-aggression and anger come through very clearly. She compares her father to a “vampire” who has been sucking her blood for many years. “If I’ve killed one man, I’ve killed two,” she says, referring to her husband; she has “killed” the both of them mentally, and she is just plain done. She ends with “Daddy, daddy, you bastard, I’m through.” Ouch. Calling him “daddy” is reminiscent of what a child would call his or her father, so in this last line she’s being sort of mocking, pretending to be the child who always looks up to his/her father, but then she shows she’s totally done with all that by calling him a bastard. Damn, Sylvia. You cold.

Wild Geese--Mary Oliver

The tone of Oliver's "Wild Geese" is reassuring and warm; the speaker tells the audience that they will be welcomed no matter what they do and that they will be welcomed. Although there is little mention of relation between the audience and the speaker, it seems to be a comforting, motherly tone.

The word choice helps the tone; she uses encouraging phrases such as "the world offers itself to your imagination" and "…your place in the family of things" to explain to the audience that their importance is undeniable and that it comes merely from being who they are. This, too supports the idea that the speaker feels a motherly connection (whether biologically or only in nature) to the person to whom she is speaking.

Oliver's use of imagery in describing the beauty of the world emphasizes the fact that the audience belongs in it; she highlights the loveliness of nature in discussing "the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain…moving across the landscapes" and implies that it all calls to the audience, accepting them. Indeed, even in the moments of weakness for the reader, the world turns on and is still ready to take them in.

The most notable part of Oliver's syntax is her repetition  of "You" and "Meanwhile" at the beginning of several lines; three times she emphasizes that "you" don't have to push to be perfect to have a place in the world, and three times she tells that "meanwhile" the world goes on. In this, she implies that even if one doesn't put forth all of their effort to be good and to be humble, the world goes on and there will still be beauty.

The theme is that the reader is important and valued in the world, especially equipped with their flaws. This is a similar attitude to that of a mother; even if Oliver refers to someone in "the family of things" as opposed to an actual family, her intentions to be accepting and welcoming could not be more clear.

I primarily picked this poem because I appreciated the encouragement of it and it reminded me of the constant support of my own family. Additionally, the bumps in the road--in which I've not always been good and in which I've not always walked on my knees for a hundred miles to repent--are definitely present, but the world spins on, just as my family remains my family. We as a unit may be a little painful and screwed up sometimes--or, rather, fairly frequently--but the complications don't mean that I have ever lost the support of my brother or my mother or my father. I loved that this poem reminded the audience of undeniable importance; this seems to be a reminder that most would think would come from family, but often does not. I know that I'm lucky to have a family that is supportive as it is; unfortunately, it's frequent that people aren't reminded of their importance by their family.

Wild Geese

The Wild Geese by The Chieftains:  

Ok so I may have let my love for the Chieftains influence this pick but oh well.

The poem Wild Geese by Mary Oliver is as follows:

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body                5
       love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,                                        10
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,                             15
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting-
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

The poem takes on a soothing, understanding tone. The reader is encouraged not to spend their whole life asking for forgiveness. The speaker seems to understand that people are most certainly not perfect and doesn't judge them for that fault. Mary Oliver's word choice supports this tone. In the second line, "walk on your knees" gives the reader the sense that the subject of the poem is beating themselves up over their faults. It puts an image in the reader's mind of unbearable pain, dragging your knees through the desert sand. But the speaker is telling us that we don't have to put ourselves through that just because we are not perfect. 
Mary Oliver uses imagery and figurative language with the personification of the world, calling to you like the wild geese (little simile thrown in there as well). She makes the world seem as though it is comforting us, making us feel included in the "family of things" despite our faults and bouts of begging forgiveness. She also uses descriptive imagery in the ninth line, describing the world moving on slowly around us. The world that we should appreciate instead of asking for constant forgiveness.
Oliver's style facilitates this soothing tone as well. The poem, for the most part,  is pretty straightforward and relaxed, as if she is speaking directly to us, telling us to lose our worries and feel the weight lifted from us like the wild geese. 
These elements all culminate in Oliver's theme, in which she advises us to live our lives not with the thought of repentance ever-present.

I will admit that this poem first stuck out to me because of the title it shares with a particularly great song by the Chieftains (embedded above). But after reading through it, it also coincidentally seemed to "connect" with me. It almost did seem to calm me as I read it, seeing as I'm such a constant worrier. It's a nice reminder that not everything has to be absolutely perfect. I don't have to constantly be fretting over something. I can feel the weight lifted sometimes. And the song by the Chieftains just seems to fit almost perfectly with the poem as well, no? So much so that its enough to make me wonder if Mary Oliver wrote it with this song in mind or vice versa. 

The Myth of Persephone

The Pomegranate by Eavan Boland 

This shows Persephone in the Underworld and Demeter reaching for her. It is not perfect for this poem because the poem is about letting go and the picture does not look like they want to be separated. Or it could look like Demeter is like "whatever I don't care if you are abducted by Hades" that does not fit either because Demeter is supposed to care. The options from google image search were disappointing.

 

 

 

This is a goodish one of Persephone super into her pomegranates. I guess it is more accurate than the previous one.

Title: The Pomegranate. This will most likely have something to do with the myth of Persephone and the Underworld. (I already knew this because I have already read the poem. But I doubt I would have said this was about a tasty salad or something. I mean this is like the only thing pomegranates are known for.)

Paraphrase: The poem is written from the perspective of a woman who considers the myth of Persephone and the Pomegranate from both the perspective of Persephone and her mother, Demeter (or Ceres in Roman mythology).

Connotation: She struggles, just as Demeter did, with letting her daughter grow up and experience the harshness of the world. While discovering “the underworld” could be interpreted as maturing sexually, I think the poem deals more with coping with the harshness of the real world. She does not want her daughter to experience pain as she did, but she knows that she must let her daughter grow up on her own as she was able to do.

Attitude: The narrator is contemplative and slightly heavy hearted because she is aware that she is letting her daughter enter a world where she will experience pain, yet she knows she must stay silent and allow her daughter to go on her won journey. While dejected that she can no longer protect her daughter, she is satisfied knowing this is the journey that all parents must send their children on.

Shift: The major shit in the poem is on line 19 “But I was Ceres then…” This indicates when the narrator shifts from thinking of herself as a young girl (Persephone) and a mother (Ceres).  The second shift occurs at the second “but” on line 46 when the mother shifts from thinking of shielding her daughter, to knowing that she must let her daughter experience life for herself.

Title: I was right. The pomegranate indicates the myth, but also symbolizes her daughter’s step into the “real world”.

Theme: The poet ponders over the point at which a mother must let her daughter go on her own into the “real world” where she can no longer shield her from pain—something that mothers and daughters have been facing since ancient times.

I knew I was going to analyze this poem after reading the first two lines “The only legend I have ever loved//is a story of a daughter lost in hell.” Persephone is my favorite myth so at least the author and I have that in common. And then the rest of the essay is about a mother sending her daughter out into the real world, which seems coincidental because I am a daughter and I’m pretty sure I'm about to go out in the real world. Mostly though I was drawn to how the mother was determined to let her daughter experience the world on her own. It sounds eerily similar to my parents—I mean they did allow me to go off to Germany my sophomore year. Plus they have told me before that that is their philosophy on life, and because my father is a philosopher I am sure he has spent a good deal of time contemplating that. I don’t know if they tell me “nothing” but I think they intend for me to experience things for myself. However, if I misinterpreted this poem and it was about sexual exploits I’m pretty sure I should have picked a different poem. Except after rereading the poem to make sure, I think I’m ok.

The Hammock

I chose the poem "The Hammock" by Li-Young Lee.

The Tone in the poem seems to be calm and soothing, almost like a hammock is calm and soothing, but also a little tentative. The tone of the poem not only sets the moods, but also helps prove the imagery and theme throughout the poem.

Lee uses a calming and flowy Word choice, which helps show the tone. She uses words like lay, waiting, singing carried,thinking, kisses, etc. All of these words are calming in a way and helps to relax the reader as they read the poem. There is also a hence of nervousness with the words "almost comforted" and the initialization of amen and dear god.

With the word choice, Lee creates a soothing imagery. I was confused at first as to why it was called the hammock, but as I read in to the poem, I began to understand. Lee creates a powerfully calming image, with sentences such as "when I lay my head in my mothers lap" and "how she carried me on her back." This creates a calming image, I pictured the mother daughter and later in the poem the speaker and son on a hammock.

All of the length of lines of the poems and stanzas are different, but they all flow. It almost reminds me of the waves of an ocean, which is considered very calming, or the swing of a hammock, which again, is considered calming. The Style Lee uses again helps prove the tone, calming. The style could also symbolize problems and uncertainty in everyday life, symbolizing them being washed away.

Theme- Love can both be a moment of awe and a moment of uncertainty.

The first stanza is about the connection of the daughter (the speaker) and her mother. It is then focused on the speaker and her son. This shift shows how the love of a child transfers through generations and is always there, and how uncertainty is always present but must be avoided "between two unknowns" because that's how "I live my life." The theme is shown throughout the poem, at first the speaker seems to be in awe with the love of her mother but as the poem progresses, you find that there are many moments of uncertainty, but love will always prevail.

I chose this poem because within the first line of the poem, I saw it was talking about a mother. My mother is my best friend, my rock. I don't know where or what I would be without her. We have moments like that, moments of uncertainty where I have no idea what to think, but know she's loves me and figuratively, of course since I'm a fully grown human being, carries me on her back. Although I don't have a son of my own, like the speaker, so I cant relate to that feeling of uncertainty quite yet, I know I will feel it at some point in my life.

Snapping Beans Grandmother

The poem “Snapping Beans” by Lisa Parker reminds me of the relationship I had with my grandmother. Although I lost her at a fairly young age I still had a very close relationship to her and could image this conversation between us. The author is from Appalachia, same as my parents and grandparents. The beliefs that this grandmother seems to have, old-fashioned, conservative, very religious, are the same that me grandmother had. 

In this poem the author uses a comforting tone. Since she knows that her grandmother wouldn’t believe what she would hear if the granddaughter told her the truth, she babies her answer. The author also uses a lot of farm words such as “cornstalks”, “evening star”, and “porchfront” to paint a very clear countryside picture. She also uses slang to show the way her grandmother would have talked as seen in “a-goin”. The imagery is painted in the description of the backdrop. However, there aren’t many devices used. There is no rhyme scheme and doesn’t seem to be much reason between her division of the lines except for in special cases like “I wanted to tell her” and “ I said, School is fine.” on lines of their own to draw attention to them. I think the theme of this paper is that things that make you happy don’t necessarily make help others. Since this college experience has made her happy and awoken her eyes but it would kill her grandmother to hear about it. 

"wild geese" - mary oliver

You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting- over and over announcing your place in the family of things. tone: I thought the tone of this poem was calming and understanding. the first two lines start with "you do not have to.." this takes some weight off the readers' shoulders by reassuring them that they have nothing to live up to, they need not spend their whole life apologizing for who they are and what they do, as long as they are doing what they love. the rest of the poem encourages the reader by saying that we all have struggles that we endure and burdens that we carry with us but life goes on. word choice: words such as "meanwhile" add to the idea that life goes on no matter what you are going through or what you do. this adds some comfort that each day is a new day and our yesterdays don't matter in the grand scheme of things. when oliver says "You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting." it emphasizes how people are often much harder on themselves than they need to be. imagery: throughout the poem oliver uses the image of wild geese to express her idea of how we, as humans should live. geese do not apologize for what they do or try to impress anyone. oliver also uses imagery when she says "meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers." this expresses how the world is moving around us. style: the style of the poem contributes to the tone because it is very relazed and straight forward. oliver uses short lines to mirror how our thoughts and worries should be, short and straight forward. theme: i think the theme of this poem is that we should not sweat the small stuff but rather move on and enjoy life. i picked this poem because i liked the encouraging and comforting nature of it. i am often hard on myself when i make mistakes or when i do not live up to my own expectations that i have for myself. i have a lot of people in my life that lift me up during these times, like oliver is lifting the reader up in this poem. it reminds me of things that people in my life tell me when i am being too hard on myself or really struggling with something.

Cousins, by Kevin Young

The beginning of the poem can be seen as nostalgic, as it seems as though the author is looking back on past experiences and the relationships that he had with his various cousins; it's overall very friendly/loving in its tone, and it certainly seems like he is affectionate towards these cousins, as his descriptions for his cousins is especially nice, even the one where his cousin Jarvis broke his toys. This does seem to take on a tinge of resignation later in the poem, or possibly is simply a more begrudging affection than before, as he talks about how "the steady hum/of cuz...gathers/like the wasps who left returning," which to me seems begrudging at best, as comparing anything to wasps would not generally be a good thing.

The tone seems shift through the use of the scene of his cousin Keith's suicide. "This is for Keith/in that unsunned room he hanged/himself like the paintings he masterpieced,"; this is a change from the nostalgic but definitely happy reminiscing throughout the beginning of the poem. The use of the term "unsunned" gives the feeling of having no windows and therefore being much darker and more closed off than the rest of the scenes in the poem, and equating his suicide to the paintings that he had done makes it seem tragically beautiful, in a way, almost as if he was a martyr (the scene definitely paints him as a victim in this case), and the inclusion of the phrase "& my grandmother's wood-paneled/walls still keep up," can be extended to not just be referring to the walls of the house, but also to the family and how they still manage to go on after Keith's death.

The splits between the stanzas also serve to be transitions, whether from scene to scene or as transitions in meaning. This is used when Keith commits suicide; one stanza simply says "he hanged" and then there is the space between the the stanzas - at this point there is no reason to see this as a negative change - but the next stanza starts with "himself" and goes into talking about his suicide and continues to do so until it moves on to talking about Keith's sister Jamie, and with the talk about Jamie it shifts into a another stanza, this one generally happier and no longer dwelling on Keith. This cycle could mirror the ups and downs that the family encounters, but could also be another way of showing how the family moves on even after Keith's death - they begin to focus on other things, happy and everything starts to move again.

Young makes sure to refer to all of his cousins by name, the repetition of the names actually making it seem more personal, as he refers to "Tonia," "Angela," "Big Red," "Keith," "Jamie," and many others, all of whom are more humanized through the mentions of a name, and make it seem more realistic to the readers. When reading these descriptions with the names attached to them they seem more like real people.

I chose this poem not because I have a ton of cousins with whom I am really good friends, or even because I have cousins I talk to. My family (on my mom's mom's side) has a family reunion once a year, and I pretty much never see anyone from my dad's family. My knowledge of the cousins I do have comes from facebook and family stories - and even then, both of my parents are only children, so I don't have any first cousins. That said, this does seem similar to how my parents' families would have been. They were much closer to each other, in the way that only small town kids can be, and have more stories of this sort than I could ever have. I kind of miss it, even though I'm not a big fan of most of my extended family, because I wish I knew what that bond was like. As it is, this poem depicts the type of extended family I kind of wish I had and yet don't at the same time (not with my family, anyway) because the affection is something that I miss, even never really had it myself.

The Bistro Styx by Rita Dove

This poem alludes to the Greek mythology and the story of Persephone and Demeter in order to depict a troubled relationship between a mother and a daughter. However, in this modern version Demeter (the mother) has found Persephone (the daughter) enamored by the Underworld (the city of Paris and all it has to offer.)

In the first stanza, the mother is waiting for her daughter to arrive and when she does she notices differences in her daughter's appearance - "thinner...mannered gauntness...silvery cape." The stanza ends with an italicized "What's this" as if to imply the mother doesn't even recognize her own daughter anymore.

Second stanza, the daughter makes her way to the mother crossing the parquet and the mother notices she is "dressed in all gray..." The color of the daughter's clothes here could symbolize the death of emotion, or the 'death' of the daughter the mother once knew.

Third stanza, the daughter apologizes for being late and throws her cape off and slides off into the chair. The mother makes an internal comment that "she [the daughter] wasn't [sorry]" and here the diction could imply that the mother feels hesitant towards her daughter.

Fourth stanza, they kiss and the mother "peruse[s] [her] blighted child, this wary aristocratic mole." By describing her daughter in this manner, 'wary' implies hesitant of danger, 'aristocratic' that her daughter is know seen as/perceives herself to be/dresses as if she is of a higher stature, and 'mole' could mean a duplicitous nature.

Fifth stanza, the mother asks how the daughter is, hazardly mind you, but restrains herself form what she actually wants to say which is why her daughter would ever choose to live her life as a model for an artist. She internally calls her life a cliche. The diction here is important the mother "hazarded a motherly smile" with the implication that the conversation is uncomfortable and she is not content wit hher daughter's life. She does not approve.

Sixth stanza, the mother describes where her daughter lives and works now which is the daughter's boyfriend's/artist's studio/shop. She speaks as if it is a lowly place unworthy of her daughter (or at least the daughter she used to know or thought she knew.)

Seventh stanza, the daughter brushes her mother off and tries to imbue the importance and value of the city by saying how tourists and Parisians love them (daughter and the boyfriend) but it can be inferred that this means nothing to the mother who views the city and inhabitants as transitory and incapable of love.

Eight stanza, the food arrives and it is lavish and French. Direct allusion to Greek mythology in which Persephone eats the six seeds of Pomegranate and mud remain in Hades. In turn, the daughter eats the Parisian food and will remain in the city and continue pursuing art.

Ninth stanza, the mother asks what the Parisians admire about the shop and the daughter responds it is the way they have kept their art business afloat.

Tenth stanza, the mother is not pleased with the daughter's response form the previous stanza because she takes that to mean that her daughter is now posing nude for 'appalling canvases'.

Eleventh stanza, the mother "ventures" to come by and see the studio and the daughter says "Yes, if you wish..." but hen delicately rebuffs her mothers wish.

Twelfth stanza, the daughter talks about how her boyfriend now dresses in all black (which is assumed the mother again finds cliche) and dresses the daughter in blues and carmine. However, she states how she prefers more muted shades. This stanza is another reference to the power of color in this poem in portraying mood and tone. The daughter's desire to wear muted grays reflects the mother's believe that she has lost her daughter even though she is sitting in front of her. It is as if they live in two different worlds.

Thirteenth stanza, the mother acknowledges, somewhat hesitantly, her daughter's beauty even if it in a "spookily insubstantial" manner.

Fourteenth stanza, the setting of Paris beyond the cafe in which they sit is described. It is raining, sooty, and skyward - a city which no doubt the mother finds drab and overwhelming.

Fifteenth stanza, he daughter talks of how she wishes her boyfriend artist would eat just as more food arrives at the table.

Sixteenth stanza, the mother keeps her food simple but notes how fully her daughter eats and all of the 'fancy' food she orders, no doubt a reflection on her life in Paris versus the mother's simple life and meal. The mother notes how the daughter is never satiated and this again alludes to Persephone. In eating the pomegranate seeds, Persephone lost any possibility of ever being fully restored and thus became half living and half dead. In the poem, the daughter eats plentifully and without hesitation, thus losing (willing almost) any chance of restoring herself to her mother.

Seventeenth stanza, the mother asks "But are you happy?" but she is fearful and whispers it quickly. The daughter replies "What?" although it is most likely she heard the mother. She then quickly changes the subject back to food. This further drives home the theme of the poem and how the daughter is lost. It seems as if the daughter is more interested in the meal and in her lavish Parisian life than in he conversation with her mother.

Eighteenth stanza, the mother thinks to herself "I've lost her." and it is important to note that it is italicized thus drawing a parallel between the first stanza in which there was also one italicized sentence and this last stanza. By now it seems as if the mother has given up hope. She will not regain her daughter. She calls for the bill.

The story told in this poem is one in which a mother looking for and losing her daughter, a direct allusion to Greek mythology. The River Styx is referenced to note the daughters crossover into what the mother considers darkness. The bright setting of the bistro they are in is the only glimmer of light in the poem and offsets what would otherwise be a dark poem. The tone of this piece is uneasy - the mother is hesitant and uncomfortable around her daughter, while the daughter feels much to highly of herself and does not treat her mother with the respect she deserves. The fact that the mother disproves of the daughter's boyfriend and their life together only further adds to the tense tone of the poem. The word choice supports the tone by using words such as "hazarded" "ventured" and "blighted" to describe the mother's hesitant nature and sad attitude towards her daughter.  For imagery, as mentioned before the setting of the bistro is the only bright point in the poem. Otherwise, strong imagery paints the city from the mother's viewpoint as oppressive and overall negative. The main syntax present in the piece is the author's use two italicized sentence fragments, one in the first stanza and one in the last. This juxtaposition first is to imply the mother's inability to recognize her daughter and then at the end, after their conversation, she realizes she was right in thinking she did not recognize her daughter because she had become lost to her, lost in the city. The overarching theme of this poem is one of sadness, one in which a mother realizes there is no hope in salvaging her daughter and their relationship. It is painful for the mother, but it is too late to do anything.

I felt a personal connection with this poem because even though we read the poem through the mother's eyes and sympathize for her and feel her sadness, I am also able to understand the daughter's viewpoint. Especially now as we are all gearing off for college, I myself am feeling the lure of the big city, the call of the bright lights. I can understand the daughter in her choice to live her life in a way that makes her happy, even if that means alienating her mother. However, while I can recognize both sides of the situation, I should hope that my relationship with my mother never escalates to this point. I've had many the conversation with my own mother about my future - how pursuing a degree in liberal arts isn't secure, about how I should double major in something more tangible like business or law, how it would be so much easier on me, on the family, if I didn't go to New York and just stayed in Lexington. Those are only a few of the many topics we've come to discuss on a regular basis as of late. And as time passes, I feel more and more like the daughter in this poem. I try to explain the allure of the arts and of the city to my parents and I truly do think that they understand, but I also know that no matter how much they may nod and say "uh-huh we understand, yes." there will always be a part of them that cannot comprehend why I chose to live my life. I suppose it's a generational thing, I  can't be certain. And I'm also not certain of the future, the choices I'll make, and what path I'll eventually go down. But one thing I am certain of is that even if I can relate to the daughter in this poem, I will never allow myself to get lost just as she did, nor will I let my relationship with my mother reach the point there's did.

The Pomegrante

Title: The Pomegranate. I immediately think of the myth of Persephone and the Underworld because 1) I LOVE Greek and Roman mythology and 2) I already read the poem.

Paraphrase: The poem is written from the perspective of a woman, probably a mother judging by the rest of the poem, who reflects on the myth of Persephone and the Pomegranate from both Persephone's perspective and that of her mother, Demeter/Ceres.

Connotation: The speaker's struggles with letting her daughter grow up and experience the harshness of the world is reflected through the perspective of Demeter. I saw discovering “the underworld” the encountering of brutal reality. Of course, she does not want her daughter to be hurt as she once was, but she knows that she must let her daughter make her own mistakes.

Attitude: The narrator is deeply reflective because she is aware that she is letting her daughter enter real / underworld world, yet she knows she must stay silent because it's her daughter's turn to learn. She can no longer protect her daughter, which pains her, but she understands that it is part of life and parenting in general.

Shift: The major shit in the poem is on line 19 “But I was Ceres then…” where the speaker shifts from a young girl (i.e. Persephone) and a mother (i.e. Demeter/Ceres).  The second shift occurs on line 46 when the mother shifts from thinking of shielding to understanding that she must let her daughter make her own mistakes.

Title: Yepp, definitely about the Greek/Roman myth.

Theme: At some point, mothers (and parents in general) must let their daughters(children)make their own way in life, even if that means allowing them to get hurt. 

This poem struck me from the beginning since, as I'd mentioned before, I love mythology. Reading through it, it also struck me that this was similar to my life. My parents used to constantly explain to me what should be done to avoid trouble and have the best outcomes. Lately, they haven't been so involved. They've stepped back to let me make my own mistakes and learn from them. Of course, they're there if I ask for help of need guidance,  but in general, they've become less of a safety protector to a supper system when I need it, much like what happens in this poem. 

http://mythologian.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/persephone.jpg

SOME POST ABOUT POETRY

My husband gives me an A
for last nigh't supper,
an incomplete for my ironing,
a B plus in bed.
My son says I am average, an average mother, but if
I put my mind to it
I could improve.
My daughter believes
in Pass/Fail and tells me
I pass. Wait 'til they learn
I'm dropping out.

T- The tone of this poem was filled with annoyance. The mom was clearly agitated by the way her family has been treating her this whole time. Why should she have to put up with all their crap, she has no motivation to help them out, which is why she ends it with the clever remark "wait 'til they learn I'm dropping out".
W- The word choice was very simple and straight forward. It was as if she was having a normal day conversation with a friend or family member so there was no need for sophisticated language, which was nice because it helped me understand what she was actually saying.
I- There wasn't much imagery in th poem itself, but as I connected the poem to my life I got thousands of scenarios in my head that were similar to the ones in the poem. Like me telling my mom that her cooking needs some work, but I do give her credit when credit is due.
S-Synatx was also very simple, there was some enjambment in the poem to break it up, kind of like what is happening to this poor family if the kids and husband son't step up their game and help lil ol' mama around the house.
T- I thought the theme of the poem was just to not think about yourself, and put the feelings of others before your own because you never know what pet peeve will send someone over the edge.

I can relate to this poem becausee my brother and I always make fun of my mom for her cooking abilities which just makes her so mad, and my sister is always there to kiss up to her and tell her everything is fine and she just ruins the fun. And finally because my mom probably threatens me everyday to take me down to Florida early if I keep behaving like e three year old child.

Wild Geese

I read "Wild Geese" by Mary Oliver, which I found to be quite tasteful. I liked it because it has this calming effect. I've always felt that people, especially students, have too much stress in their lives, and so the airiness of this poem struck me. It reminded me that in the long run, that one missing homework assignment or that lower standardized test score isn't going to mean anything. Anyway, here's the poem:

You do not have to be good.
You do not have to walk on your knees
for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting.
You only have to let the soft animal of your body
       love what it loves.
Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine.
Meanwhile the world goes on.
Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain
are moving across the landscapes,
over the prairies and the deep trees,
the mountains and the rivers.
Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air,
are heading home again.
Whoever you are, no matter how lonely,
the world offers itself to your imagination,
calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting-
over and over announcing your place
in the family of things.

I thought the tone of the poem was calming. Oliver's initial two lines start off with "You do not have to", which I felt takes pressure off the reader; there are no expectations to live up to, no bar to reach. She also describes "clear pebbles of the rain" and "deep trees" and "mountains and the rivers", which create a calming tone. Not to mention Oliver says "no matter how lonely, / the world offers itself to your imagination", which takes a lot of internal worry out of me, at least, adding to the calming nature of the poem.

The word choice was definitely indicative of the calming tone. Words like "clear" and "clean blue air" create images of purity and peace. There are no dark images either, and it mentions the "sun" as a light image.

Again, there is imagery with the description of the landscapes, the "mountains and the rivers" and such, which kind of puts the reader closer to nature, in a way. There is also a comparison of the wild geese to us humans. It says that the imagination that is offered to us by the world "calls to you like the wild geese", which means that these geese that are "high in the clean blue air" are what we should be. We should leave behind trivial worries and fly high and free in the massive world like the wild geese.

The style of "Wild Geese" is also important. Oliver chooses to write in short lines to show that our concerns should be short as well. She wants us to understand that we should not sweat the small stuff, and that we should be free, just as her lines are.

The theme of this poem is: One should not dwell on mistakes, and should move on in life rather than beg for forgiveness.

I would also like to add that it is interesting how Oliver writes "Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. / Meanwhile the world goes on." As if to say that even if we fret over our troubles, the world around us is so much bigger that our small internal worries our inconsequential. So maybe my new theme would be "One should not dwell on mistakes, and should move on in life rather than beg for forgiveness for trivial worries that do not affect the big picture".

Is "big picture" figurative language? I'm gonna go with it, anyway.

Wild Geese by Mary Oliver

You do not have to be good. You do not have to walk on your knees for a hundred miles through the desert, repenting. You only have to let the soft animal of your body 5 love what it loves. Tell me about despair, yours, and I will tell you mine. Meanwhile the world goes on. Meanwhile the sun and the clear pebbles of the rain are moving across the landscapes, 10 over the prairies and the deep trees, the mountains and the rivers. Meanwhile the wild geese, high in the clean blue air, are heading home again. Whoever you are, no matter how lonely, 15 the world offers itself to your imagination, calls to you like the wild geese, harsh and exciting- over and over announcing your place in the family of things. I chose this poem because I am frequently comparing myself to other people, and am constantly holding myself to a higher standard than I need to. This poem basically says life goes on and you do not need to be perfect, which I feel I can really relate to. The tone of this poem is comforting and kind, using long, drawn out sentences to convey a soft and informal tone to better relate and feel comforted by. The word choice of this poem uses comforting and repeating important words that help create a personable tone. Oliver repeats "you do not have to" to make the tone soft and soothing, and Oliver does not use extravegant, difficult words that many poems do. By using words that everyone knows, it creates a comforting and understanding tone. Imagery and figurative language in this include bright and happy metaphors and imagery, such as imagery of a lush prairy and personifying geese in the "clean blue air" which is a bright and peaceful figuartive language. The style is comfortable as well. Like I said earlier, it is not difficult to understand and does not use complex figurative language or diction to convey what it means. Also, it uses long sentences to seem informal. The theme of the poem is that Ultimately life goes on, so do not worry if you are not perfect.

Liberation

The lord commanded that on the tenth day of the present month, every man was to sacrifice a lamb for God. He also went into a long explanation of how to prepare the lamb and eat it. ("This is how you are to eat it; with your cloak tucked into your belt.") The lord also said that he will pass through Egypt and kill every firstborn. The lord advised all his followers to spread blood on their door so he will not bring the plague among them. Moses spread God's message to the elders of Israel. Later that day God killed every first born including the Pharaoh's son. The Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and told them to take the Israelites and leave Egypt to worship their Lord. "Give us, us free." This quote is from Amistad (1997). One slave stands up and yells this as he sits on trial, in chains. The white man demands that he sit down and be quiet, but the other black Americans in the court admire his bravery. It's difficult to discuss liberation without immediately thinking of slavery in America. slaves were treated like savages, tamed under the power of the white man and surpressed, their basic needs barely being fulfilled. In modern day, liberation is the ability to control and direct your life without having to yield the majority of your respect to a central power figure. This left over respect you can use for personal growth and innovation. The industrial revolution occured primarily due to the liberation of the American people from Great Britain. Without having to channel their energy into respecting a government that restrained them, they were able to flourish and create technology that created an easier lifestyle for them. Personal growth is the product of liberation. The railroad, the cotton gin, airplanes: examples of the growth of humans. As long as we are not chained to authority, the growth we see out of humans may know no bounds. Unimaginable to us right now, and so close for us to create. Without liberation the only thing we have to look forward to is satisfying our biolgical needs and desires. A slave's only reward is the food he eats, water he drinks, and wife he sleeps with. We have the freedom to grow.

Marks

Out of all the poems I read, I enjoyed this one much more. I thought it was very funny and it kind of relates to my family life.

T The tone in this poem is kind of depressed and sardonic. It is depressed because she seems a little upset that her family gives her arbitrary rankings to measure her value. Instead of mentioning her love and kindness, the husband and kids mention her dinner, how she was in bed, and laundry. They say she is passing the class of being a mother and wife, but there is still room to improve. It is sardonic because she jokes that she is dropping out of being a mother/wife. She is irritated and tired of her family taking her for granted, but is sarcastic and comical about it.

W The word choice is very effective in relating her performance to school work. A, B plus, incomplete, average, improve, Pass/Fail, and dropping out all relate to grades and school. Pastan shows that she does some things well and others not so much, just like students do in real life.

I There is not very much imagery in this poem. Although I can picture her family acting like teachers giving her grades on being a mother and wife, there are no vivid scenes crafted with details. The details just show what her husband, son, and daughter think of her performance.

S As for style, there is little rhyme scheme or patterns that I can pick out. Every four lines it switches perspectives. It goes from husband to son to daughter and each of these sections are ended with a period. These are the only periods in the poem and separate it into 3 obvious sections. The only commas in the poem are for lists and appositives. They help the poem flow better and make it grammatically correct.

T The theme of this poem is the unfair judging of mothers in family life. Mothers and wives are expected to be the cooks, maids, and sexual partners of the husbands. They must help their kids with everything and aim to please their husband. This poem perfectly captures that because the family is giving the mother grades on how she is doing her duties. She is valued on what skills she brings to the table as a mother and wife, not who she is as a person.

I can kind of relate to this poem because my mom is similar to this one. She gave up her career after my brother and I were born to focus on being a mother. Although she is doing more things now, for a long time her job was to take care of my 2 brothers and myself. She drove us to school, practices, and games and she cooks and cleans just like many mothers. Besides that I don't really relate to this poem. I often help out with the cooking and cleaning in my house, but my mother still takes the main role. I kind of grade her on her performance by telling her when I don't like the food she makes, but that is the extent of it. I just really enjoyed this poem, so I picked it.

B plus in Blog

T- The tone of the piece is matter of fact and sarcastic. She views the idea of being graded as a mother and a wife as ridiculous and not worth her time or effort. This is clear by her matter of fact method of stating her grades as well as her assertion that she's "dropping out".

W- She uses very loaded words in depicting the grading system. Words like "average" and "pass/fail" emphasize the emotional detachment of a grading system inside the family. Also her word choices continue the extended metaphor of school.

I- The only detail in this poem is the specification of certain activities. It refers specifically to her ironing, cooking, and bedroom activities.

S- Pastan repeatedly uses enjambment. She also uses caesura in the line before last. Both emphasize the matter of fact nature with which she portrays her marks. Caesura is used when she states that she passed. The statement isn't qualified it is just stated. In addition the enjambment makes the poem more fluid.

T- This poem depicts household inequality and the objectification of the maternal figure. The mother's value lays not in whom she is or her membership in the family, but rather in a direct correlation to her performance in the household.

This poem exposes the unfair gender roles of the household. Mothers are valued because of how they work and the things they do. My connection to this poem comes in a few ways. I could relate because my mom much like this mother is responsible for most of the cooking and cleaning in our household. That being said we don't grade her on her performance and we often put in a helping hand. In addition I'm currently going through a leadership program that required me to conduct a deficiency interview in which I sat down and someone made me aware of some of my personal character flaws. My main flaw was pride, something I've always struggled with. This often manifests itself in how I establish personal value. I link my value as a person to my performance as an athlete, student, son, and friend.

 

Red and Black

So after quite a lot of deliberation, I've finally settled on one of my favorite songs from Les Miserables, Red and Black, which is sung by the "barricade boys." Along with all the other songs from Les Mis, it was written by Alain Boubil, and Claude-Michel Schönberg. 

The time is near...
So near.. it's stirring the blood in their veins!
And yet beware...
Don't let the wine go to your brains!
For the army we fight is a dangerous foe
With the men and the arms that we never can match
Oh, it's easy to sit here and swat 'em like flies
But the national guard will be harder to catch.
We need a sign
To rally the people
To call them to arms
To bring them in line!

Marius, you're late.

What's wrong today?
You look as if you've seen a ghost.

Some wine and say what's going on!

A ghost you say... a ghost maybe
She was just like a ghost to me
One minute there, then she was gone!

I am agog!
I am aghast!
Is Marius in love at last?
I have never heard him `ooh' and `aah'
You talk of battles to be won
But here he comes like Don Ju-an
It's better than an opera!

It is time for us all
To decide who we are...
Do we fight for the right
To a night at the opera now?
Have you asked of yourselves
What's the price you might pay?
Is it simply a game
For rich young boys to play?
The colors of the world
Are changing

Day by day...

Red - the blood of angry men!
Black - the dark of ages past!
Red - a world about to dawn!
Black - the night that ends at last!

Marius:
Had you been there tonight
You might know how it feels
To be struck to the bone
In a moment of breathless delight!
Had you been there tonight
You might also have known
How the world may be changed
In just one burst of light!
And what was right
Seems wrong
And what was wrong
Seems right...

Grantaire: [mocking...]
Red...

Marius:
I feel my soul on fire!

Grantaire:
Black...

Marius:
My world if she's not there...

All:
Red...

Marius:
The color of desire!

All:
Black...

Marius:
The color of despair!

Enjolras:
Marius, you're no longer a child
I do not doubt you mean it well
But now there is a higher call
Who cares about your lonely soul
We strive toward a larger goal
Our little lives don't count at all!

All:
Red - the blood of angry men!
Black - the dark of ages past!
Red - a world about to dawn!
Black - the night that ends at last!

Enjolras:
Well, Courfeyrac, do we have all the guns?
Feuilly, Combeferre, our time is running short.

Gavroche:
Listen!

Enjolras:
Grantaire, put the bottle down!
Do we have the guns we need?

Gavroche:
Listen to me!

Grantaire:
Give me brandy on my breath
And I'll breath 'em all to death!

Gavroche:
Listen everybody!
Listen up!

Gavroche:
General Lamarque
Is dead!

Enjolras:
Lamarque is dead...
Lamarque! His death is the hour of fate.
The people's man...
His death is the sign we await!
On his funeral day they will honor his name.
With the light of rebellion, a blaze in their eyes.
From the candles of grief we will kindle our flame!
On the tomb of Lamarque shall the barricade rise!
The time is here!
Let us welcome it gladly with courage and cheer
Let us take to the streets with no doubt in our hearts
But a jubilant shout
They will come one and all
They will come when we call!

So this song occurs at a point in the musical when we are just getting acquainted with the barricade boys, and we see them planning their student revolution. We see the contrast of opinions between Marius and Enjolras in this song. Enjolras is overwhelmingly focused on the revolution, getting irked that not everyone else (namely Marius) is as completely invested in it as he is. 

The chorus that Enjolras sings has imagery about fighting in the revolution while Marius sings about all this love crap. Enjolras talks about the "blood of angry men" as well as "a world about to dawn/ the night that ends at last." With these lines, he is anticipating the coming revolution and how they hope it will change France for the better.

Meanwhile Marius is being a  blockhead and using a different meaning of the color red. While Enjolras used it to represent blood, Marius uses it to mean looove. Namely his love for Cosette. He's a bit of a drama queen as well. Case and point: "Black: my world if she's not there." Come on Marius, you met the girl a couple hours ago and just stared at each other. There's more important things to be thinking about, like I don't know, a revolution! Enjolras sums it up well with "who cares about your lonely soul."

The song has some obvious light/dark themes running through it, with the constance of the word black representing the dark times in which the people of France have been living. Enjolras uses the contrasting brightness of the color red to signify a hopeful future for France. Marius also borrows some of this light imagery for his description of Cosette. He calls her a "burst of light." That sums up the characters pretty well. Enjolras' light is a new and better France, while Marius' is a lousy girl.

Here's the movie version of the song because in my opinion, you can just feel the annoyance radiating off of Enjolras.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=me7DMpMaKI0

Does this mean the blog is done?

The Airborne Toxic Event "Does This Mean You're Moving On?" And the funny thing is, it has no end I try to call you up, at 2am In a crowded bar, your ringer tones Grab my mind I can see you through the phone, The phone, the phone And I'm wide awake at home At home, at home So I think I'll see my coquette And hope you don't catch The bourbon on my breath My breath, my breath Catch a cab outside on Seventh Street And the cars fly through the Bowery I come to your door and I hear a moan Then another voice, so Christ, she's not alone Alone, alone And my heart sinks like a stone A stone, a stone And the tears won't even come I feel so numb So swept aside, so dumb So dumb, so dumb When the words are wrong And my patience gone Will you tell me Does this mean you're moving on? From the balcony, you call my name I see you standing in the rain Your words so dry, your face so wet Said I broke your heart, But it hasn't happened yet I'll bet, your friends all hate me now I get the strangest looks, From that bitchy crowd And though, they must think They have every reason to I guess I'm still not quite yet over you When the words are wrong And you're hanging on Another guy's arm Does this mean you're moving on? www.youtube.com/watch?v=ch1deS_6J18 In the song the speaker uses the contrast of dry words wet face to impress the pain he feels in the song. The loss of the girl is etremely painful which can also be seen through his imagery of the girl standing on the balcony and the word choice of dark words such as numb to describe the lack of feeling he has without her. The large amount of enjambment helps the speaker to demonstate how all these things are happening gquickly and his mind feels disconnected without the girl.

"Let Her Go" - Passenger

"Let Her Go"

Well you only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you’re missin' home

Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

Staring at the bottom of your glass

Hoping one day you'll make a dream last

But dreams come slow and they go so fast

You see her when you close your eyes

Maybe one day you'll understand why

Everything you touch surely dies

But you only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you're missin' home

Only know you love her when you let her go

Staring at the ceiling in the dark

Same old empty feeling in your heart

'Cause love comes slow and it goes so fast

Well you see her when you fall asleep

But never to touch and never to keep

'Cause you loved her too much

And you dived too deep

Well you only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you're missin' home

Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go (oh, oh, ooh, oh no)

And you let her go (oh, oh, ooh, oh no)

Will you let her go?

'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you're missin' home

Only know you love her when you let her go

'Cause you only need the light when it's burning low

Only miss the sun when it starts to snow

Only know you love her when you let her go

Only know you've been high when you're feeling low

Only hate the road when you're missin' home

Only know you love her when you let her go

And you let her go

"Let Her Go" by Passenger is a song about love and not knowing what you've got till it's gone. He starts out with the chorus in which he lists things that you don't realize how much you love/need something until it is absent. Throughout the whole song Passenger uses end rhyme to keep the song flowing, unlike in poems, if songs do not have some rhyme scheme, they do not sound or flow as well. Passenger uses passive voice by using the pronoun "you" throughout the entire song but the situations he describes in each verse seem to be very personal leading the reader to assume that these are things he has personaly gone through in the past. this assumption is further proved when he uses rhetorical question in the end of the song asking "Will you let her go?" he does this to say that this has already happened to him but you do not have to let go of the one you love. 

Apple Blossom

http://youtu.be/J8N739hJHu0

hey little apple blossom
what seems to be the problem
all the ones you tell your troubles to
they don't really care for you

come and tell me what you're thinking
cause just when the boat is sinking
a little light is blinking
and i will come and rescue you

lots of girls walk around in tears
but that's not for you
you've been looking all around for years
for someone to tell your troubles to

come and sit with me and talk awhile
let me see your pretty little smile
put your troubles in a little pile
and i will sort them out for you
i'll fall in love with you
i think i'll marry you

This song by the White Stripes depicts a man attempting to, as simply put as possible, woo a girl. The tone of the song seems almost playful as he calls her names such as "Apple Blossom" and uses rhyme to give the song an upbeat and attractive melody. The rhyme scheme is altered constantly throughout the song, changing after every stanza: AABB-AAAB-ABAB-AAABBB. As I said before, the rhyming makes the song sound playful to the girl as if he's trying to lure her in. He also manages to tell the girl multiple times that she is all he needs and that he can solve all of her problems, so she doesn't need anyone else. At one point he uses a metaphor to make this clear: "cause just when the boat is sinking/ a little light is blinking/ and i will come and rescue you". This metaphor is saying that when she is starting to break down (sinking), that there is hope (blinking light) because he solve her problems (rescue her). 

Though I don't think it is intended to be, the more I listen to this song the more I envision a middle aged man trying to attract an underaged girl by saying all the same things an internet predator might. I hope this is not the case, but telling her others don't understand her... he is the only person she needs... and constantly luring her in with sweet talk sounds like something out of the internet safety videos we've had to watch every year for the past 4 years.

However, if you don't look at the song as an act of internet predation, it does just sound like a sweet song that a guy is singing to a girl as she's going through a rough time.