Poem 8: Poetry Response

Pass/Fail - Linda Pastan

You will never graduate

from this dream

of blue books.

No matter how

you succeed awake,

asleep there is a test

waiting to be failed.

The dream beckons

with two dull pencils,

but you haven't even

taken the course;

when you reach for a book - 

it closes its door 

in your face; when

you conjugate a verb - 

it is in the wrong 

language.

Now the pillow becomes

a blank page. Turn it 

to the cool side;

you will still smother

in all of the feathers

that have to be learned

by heart.

I really enjoyed this poem and felt that in someway everyone can connect and get a meaning that they need in currently in life. When coming into the poem I thought it was going to be about high school and more like the poem 'We Real Cool' but I was obviously wrong about that. In the poem Pastan automatically starts off by saying You will never "graduate

from this dream of blue books" from that I knew it had to do with college and higher education. The poem goes on to talk about a nightmare that a student is having about a test, which this literal meaning is something that everyone can connect to during some point in their life. But as I looked for a deeper meaning the part that really stood out to me was "The dream beckons

with two dull pencils, but you haven't even taken the course". This just showed me that life is always going to give us different paths to take (in reference to the two dull pencils) and the roads we choose will never be perfect; they'll have their ups and downs dull and exciting moments but it's apart of life, life won't wait for you until your ready. 

This poems seems as though it has a negative connotation connected to it but it honestly has encouraged me. It was a bad year for me and I felt as though no college would accept me and i'm so wishy washy about things that I was nervous that I would be constantly be changing my major, but it took for me to fail two classes to finally wake up and realize that I need to not worry about the future and instead of worrying about what was going on around me to focus on myself. And after doing that and working towards what I want, I got into a  college, have a major I know I will love, and i'm going to be studying in a country that I've only dreamt about going and have a job waiting for me over there. This poem just confirmed what this year has taught me and encouraged me to keep pushing for what I want and never settle no matter how hard the obstacles that come my way seem.

Poem 7: Poetry Response

An Iraqi Evening 
By Yousif al-Sa'igh 

Clips from the battlefield 
on an Iraqi evening: 
a peacable home 
two boys preparing their homework 
a little girl 
absentmindedly drawing on scrap paper 
funny pictures. 
--breaking news coming shortly. 
The entire house becomes ears 
ten Iraqi eyes glued to the screen in frightened silence. 
Smells mingle: 
the smell of war 
and the smell of just baked bread. 
The mother raises her eyes to a photo on the wall 
whispering 
--May God protect you 
and begins preparing their supper 
quietly 
while in her mind 
clips of the battlefield flicker by 
carefully selected for hope.

It's ironic that I randomly picked this poem to analyze when i've been focussing on rereading A Thousand Splendid Suns. While reading this poem I couldn't help but constantly connect it to points made in the book. In the novel we see how the war going on in Afghanistan effects each of the characters individually and get to see different side of what is going on. In the novel we see what some of the characters (Laila,Mariam,Tariq, Aziza and Zalmai) went through as a child and how this effected them overall. They lose their innocence much too soon and it is unfortunate to see that this is a common occurrence to these kids who are exposed to war.
Which in this poem it shows that these children are still holding on to their innocence and trying to keep some form of normalcy in their lives. While the mother is terrified not just for her but mainly for her children and what will happen to them, which in A Thousand Splendid Suns we also saw how the women went out of the way to do what was best for the children even if it would harshly effect them (such as when Laila decided to marry Rasheed when she found out she was pregnant and had nowhere else to go).
This poem can also show how people have no voice in what their government says or does. These innocent civilians are getting caught up in the crossfire of war (We actually can see this even with what has been going on over here in America with the riots).

Poem 6: Poetry Response

This Is Just To Say

William Carlos Williams, 1883 - 1963

I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold

It's honestly amazing how popular this poem is! Whenever I read it again I wonder if Williams ever thought people would pay attention to such a poem, let alone have it known till this day. I found this poem to be incredibly humorous and the whole piece to be laced with sarcasm, from the title all the way to the end. 
To me it feels as though the title seems to be the person who ate the plums is saying "Just letting you know I ate your shit again, sorry not sorry but at least I'm telling you". At first the narrator is telling the person he ate the plums where the person had left them. After that the narrator lets the owner of the plum's know that he ate the plums even though he knew that the owner was obviously saving them for some reason. The the narrator has the audacity to let the owner of the plums know who amazing those plums tasted. Ending the poem like that really makes me wonder how the owner of the plums reacted not even towards the news that their food got eaten, but to the attitude of the narrator.
This poem reminds me of how it was growing up with my brothers and cousins. Being the youngest (they are all 4-12 years older) and the only girl was pretty hard. When they were all here during the summer we would constantly be out of food, so I had to start hiding food to eat during the day. If my parents would take my brothers and I out to eat they would fight and try and call dibs of my food before I even touched it. 
So because of this I felt for the owner of the plums, since I know how it is to get your things eaten constantly and for the person who does it not to care one bit which just makes it worse.

Poem 5: Poetry Response

Ozymandias

BY PERCY BYSSHE SHELLEY

I met a traveller from an antique land,

Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,

Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;

And on the pedestal, these words appear:

My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;

Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

This poem was interesting and very unique, even though I felt as though it ended quite abruptly I still enjoyed it. Once the traveller spoke of the "two vast and trunkless legs of stone Stand inn the desert" I knew he was most likely referring to a Sphinx. When I first read this I understood that the poem is talking about a king that ruled before and that this Sphinx is there to represent him; he treated the people of his land badly and felt as though he was one of the best rulers of all time and that his kingdom will not fall even long after he is gone. And yet I just couldn't connect this and find that deeper meaning. After that I began to read the story multiple ways to see what connects I could make (Which worked!).
When analyzing each line again I noticed the strong imagery and how and these different perceptions of the king could come into play with one another (How he is described to us, how the artist who made this Sphinx perceived him and how the king perceived himself). After making this connection I knew I was still missing something important, that's when I began reading more into the pride of the king and how he treated the citizens. After I did this that's when I really became conflicted. When reading it that last time I realized it was say that if something is built on negativity and corruption it will surely parish, but at the same time if this was the true meaning then why is the Sphinx still standing? (It's all messed up but still standing!)
I don't know maybe i'm looking to much into this and just trying to find a connection, but I feel as though I'm just missing that last piece that will connect all of the bigger points that I talked about together.

Poem 4: Poetry Response

The World Is Too Much With Us

BY WILLIAM WORDSWORTH

The world is too much with us; late and soon,

Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers;—

Little we see in Nature that is ours;

We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!

This Sea that bares her bosom to the moon;

The winds that will be howling at all hours,

And are up-gathered now like sleeping flowers;

For this, for everything, we are out of tune;

It moves us not. Great God! I’d rather be

A Pagan suckled in a creed outworn;

So might I, standing on this pleasant lea,

Have glimpses that would make me less forlorn;

Have sight of Proteus rising from the sea;

Or hear old Triton blow his wreathèd horn.

I really enjoyed this poem it's crazy to see a poet from that time to write about how we need to stop being sucked in to technology an appreciate the natural beauty around us.(Boy would Wordsworth be pissed about how the world is just a bunch of consumers now!)
It honestly gave me the vibe of that time eras hippie or more modern definition of a tree hugger, these are the ones going against the social norms and have a greater appreciation for things than us consumers. To me I read this more as Wordsworth's message to society to wake up and stop taking our planet for granted before it's too late. In line three to four Wordsworth is saying we no longer have that deeper connection with nature or are planet and because of this we won't have an emotional connection to it as we destroy it. He is also saying that we are selling our souls to these objects and praising them as though they are gods, and he wants no part in this. Our generation now most young adults can't even interact with one another or even put down their phones for more than a few minutes, so since we see the consciences praising this technology does we have a much easier time understanding Wordsworth's point of view. But in those times I feel as though he was probably made fun of for his views or thought to be ridiculous or crazy (Probably going to look that up after I finish this). 
In a weird way this poem also reminded me of Korea. In Korea their economy is skyrocketing and they are beginning to become global leaders in such a short amount of time. Since they went from being a rather poor country to now a high class society, they crave more power. Instead of wanting more power of more land or things that other countries usually want power over they started to become huge on plastic surgery. Now they are number one in the word for plastic surgery and just shows since they finally made it on top and couldn't find anything else to take control of why not change something we all have no control over. 

Poem 3: Poetry Response

The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner

From my mother's sleep I fell into the State, 

And I hunched in its belly till my wet fur froze. 

Six miles from earth, loosed from its dream of life, 

I woke to black flak and the nightmare fighters. 

When I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose. 

Just like most of the short poems on the list this poem is straight to the point but at the same time has a deep impact. After reading I assumed this poem is taking place during World War 2 since Jarrell was alive during the time, as well as the line that spoke about the dead gunners 'wet fur froze' which made me think that the battle that he was fighting in took place in Germany or in one of those European countries. It was interesting that Jarrell decided to use mother in a poem about death, when mothers represent life and fertility. To me that line showed me two things. First that it showed how he has lost his innocents and second that he went from life to death. But then in the second line he says "I was hunched in its belly" I knew he was talking about the turret.

I was actually having a really hard time writing about this poem and decided to talk about talk to Eva to spark some ideas. As I was going through each line with her and explaining the ways that I was viewing it, as I spoke about the mother part she began explaining how the gun turret is a womb and as we started connecting this idea of the turret being a womb he finally clicked. The Gunner could be seen as an aborted baby *mindblown*
So first when they spoke about how cold and dark it was made me think of the baby starting to die in the womb. Then they spoke about being six miles from Earth meaning that the child was going to be born in 6 months OR THAT CHILD WAS GOING TO BE SIX FEET UNDER * mind blown even more*
The nightmare fighters can be seen as the doctors that are doing this procedure and when it says "I died they washed me out of the turret with a hose" THAT'S THEM TAKING THE BABY OUT OF THE WOMB **EXPLOSION**

Poem 2: Poetry Response

I really enjoyed this poem, it was warm yet sad. It was ironic that the title is The Youngest Daughter when it's about how the daughter is getting older with her mother. Since I'm into asian culture and Song said what the mother and daughter were eating I knew the story takes place in North Korea. What gave away that is was North and not South was when it said "She knows I am not to be trust, even now planning my escape." The beginning of the poem really intrigued me. "The sky has been dark for many years. My skin has become as damp and pale as rice paper and feels the way mother’s used to before the drying sun parched it out there in the fields. Lately, when I touch my eyelids, my hands react as if I had just touched something hot enough to burn. My skin, aspirin colored, tingles with migraine." This showed that the daughter has been kept inside where there is no sunlight while her mother goes and works out in the fields. In Korea the paler your skin the more attractive you are, since that means you have money and don't do labor out in the fields, as tanned skinned makes you unattractive since that shows you are a peasant. Knowing this made me wonder between the difference of the two women. Is the mother sacrificing and working long in the fields so her daughter did not or is her daughter forced to be cooped up like that and that's why she is planning on fleeing.

Poem 1: Poetry Response

Surprisingly I liked this poem, it was short, sweet and to the point. I like how even though it was written years ago that it is still relevant today. It reminded me of that group of kids in high school who think they're all cool because they smoke weed all the time and get drunk. Ironically those are the same type of people that think that they're better than everybody else and feel the need to show off as though the rest of will really care. When I see these teens brag about doing any of these things I so get annoyed at the stupidity and ignorance of these people. I never understood the need to feel popular and do these things, where are these people going to be later on in life? When you surround yourself with these things you only end up lonely and lost. Or you end up ruining your life since you worried so much about those things that were never really important.

One of the 21 Poems

Mending Wall by Robert Frost



I had sort of a hard time understanding this poem. I got that the wall separates the two neighbors and that the one neighbor is being sketchy since he doesn't want his neighbor to tear down the wall or even see what he has on his side of the wall, but the big idea just wasn't clicking for some reason. The one part that I was really trying to analyze was when the man's neighbor kept repeating the phrase "good fences make good neighbors." It seems as though the man's neighbor is isolating himself from society and finds a comfort in nature. I found the wall to be very ironic, the neighbor uses it to separate himself but that's the only thing keeping the two men from never speaking to one another.  After reading I looked up what good fences make good neighbors really meant, to me it was only the neighbor's excuse to not have the man come over or to have the wall knocked down.

Diagnostic Exam: Othello Reflection

Out of all three readings I felt the most confident reading this one. When I read it the first time I focused on repeated words and tried to get the literal mean out of each line. After that I read it the second time, this time I focused on detail, the relationship between Othello and the other characters as well as Othello since he's the one speaking to us. After I did both of these readings and wrote down what I got from each way, I read through the TP-CASTT paper and then read through it a third time will filling the chart out. Once I finished filling out the TP-CASTT I compared my notes of my first two readings to what I had written in the TP-CASST. I realized that after doing the TP-CASST I understood the play so much better and found it easier to answer the questions.
The questions that I found that I need to study more are the ones that have to do with rhythm, vocabulary and the paraphrased lines (question 37). When checking my answers I noticed that the answers that I got wrong for this section were always that one answer that's there to F you up. The right answer was always the one I marked as my second choice, only one of them was marked as my third. Seeing this made me feel a lot better about this poem/play unit we're doing now. I felt I was going to do the worst this unit and that I wasn't going to be able to understand the poems/plays, but when seeing what I got right and wrong it showed that I'm looking for the right things, that I just need to brush up on my terms so that one answer that seems right will stop tripping me up.

Spring and Fall Reaction

Picking apart a poem and analyze it line by line like that was pretty hard for me. When reading we are always asked to read the whole story and just get to the main points or a sort of summary. When looking at the big picture it's okay if you didn't understand a sentence or two here and there, more than likely as you read on it will become to make more sense to you. When you reading something line by line like that, it makes it harder to go off as a whole. But I can also see how reading a poem like this can help, especially when trying to find parts to talk about in your writing or just the multiple ways you can analyze something when all the pieces you broke down are put together. I'm not very good when it comes to poems, but going through different poems and alternating between this method of reading or doing the TP-CASTT a few times a week I know I will become a lot more confident in poems in no time.

Getting into The Nitty Gritty

After watching the two videos and reading the packet I realized how much I really need to refresh on just the basic terms before the test. Most of the elements that they went over I knew, but when it comes to me having to point the parts out and explaining them in detail or even using them intentionally in my work, I can't do or haven't consciously tried and had them in my work.

There we're a few things that really stood out to me in the packet and videos, one was connotation and denotation. I know the words and I remember constantly going over them in middle school but if you ask me to explain them, I wouldn't be able to. So having this refresher that connotation is what a word suggest or implies while denotation is what a word literally means and seeing the different examples really helped me see how to use them in literature. Seeing them also used in these different informative videos and packet helped me take proper notes on them so that I won't forget them. Another thing that I brushed up on was pace; I know about pace and can see how writers use it, even though I don't know it's pace I just can see the differences in the sentences and speed. But it was never a thought when I'm writing, and I didn't know how to intentionally use it in my writings. When it comes to mood and tone I still get them mixed up a lot, so I was glad to be able to look at examples of those as well. As I was going over the mood and tone section and taking notes I noticed an easier way to distinctuate the two. When some comes off rude you say 'watch your tone' while when you are speaking out how you feel you refer to your mood. This helped those two meanings finally click, that tone is from the author while mood is what you get from the reading. 

I always tend to have a very hard time when it comes to thesis statements, i'm able to break a story down into detail but when asked to do a thesis statement i'm lost; Even with my own work. From this I had the question of How do I begin to come up with a thesis in such a short amount of time while still making sure it's strong and impactful? 

When reading syntax I never really knew what it was but after reading I realized how it's similar to pace. Honestly I'm still not really there with syntax I definitely need to study in on my own to fully understand it, but seeing the similarities made me wonder what's the main difference between pace and syntax?

When watching the part in the video that had the steps for language analysis I noticed that I naturally do this when reading. Since I have always had an interest in language and now I want to pursue a career in the language field it defiantly stands out to me more than before. I tend to highlight parts in a story that I'm reading where I sense there is more to what is going on, I try re-read and come up with my own interpretation, then I would go and break down the words or names used in the writing to try and get a better understand of the symbolic representations going on. After this I begin to research meanings and try and see how to better my interpretations. When it comes to symbols and language analysis I feel as though I am confident enough to help someone out in those areas.