Poetry Essay

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codenumber: larry0002

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Larry Bowen English 112W4 Mrs. Gross October 6, 2002 First Draft-Poetry

     #Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone by W. H. Auden is a poem about death, particularly the death of love. Auden writes: “I thought that love would last for ever” (11).      #The poem is a short poem of sixteen lines and features a rhyme message. It is a sad poem. Death of any kind to any person, place or thing should not be a happy occasion. I must point out that the poem was used in the 1994 movie “Four Weddings and a Funeral” (541).
    #The opening line of the poem “Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone” (1) speaks to the stoppage of time and cessation of conversation as a result of death.
     #The poem continues with more evidence of death: “Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come”(4). This may refer to the traditional visitation of the deceased by friends and loved ones and the body lies in state prior to the funeral. It is at the visitation that love is expressed of the deceased.
    #The message of death comes in many ways. In the poem, the message is written by skywriters: “Let aeroplanes circle moaning overhead Scribbling on the sky the message He is Dead” (5/6). # An idiosyncrasy appears in the poem: “Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves” (8). My experience is that police officers in uniform have traditionally worn white cotton gloves for funerals or other ceremonies. However, it is believed that the color of black is more reflecting of death.
    # Love comes from all around in the poem: “he was my North, my South, my East and West” (9). Love is also everlasting: “My working week and my Sunday rest” (10) and “my noon, my midnight” (11) indicate that love lives twenty- four hours a day, seven days a week.
    #I am in disagreement with the author final statement: “For nothing now can ever come to any good” (18). For the religious believer and for those that have accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, love is everlasting. “The Lord hath appeared of old unto me, saying, Yea, I have loved these with an everlasting love: therefore with loving kindness have I drawn thee” (Jer 31:3).

Works Cited:

Auden, W.H.,”Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone”, Literature: Reading, Reacting,
Writing. Compact 4th Edition, Laurie G Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Harcourt Publishers,541.

codenumber: Amy0001

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W. H. Auden’s poem "Stop All the Clocks, Cut off the Telephone" is about coping with death. Throughout the entire poem he uses metaphors to express his pain and sorrow over the loss of someone close. For me, the pain and sense of despair expressed in the poem is almost overwhelming. Auden takes everyday occurrences that are of no importance in everyday life, but would be noticeable if missing or changed. For example, "Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone,"(2) and "Let the traffic policemen wear black cotton gloves."(8) The reader begins to realize how important this person was to him and now that he/she is gone for good, Auden does not care to take notice of the daily actions that are taking place in his surroundings. Auden is oblivious to the world, which is continuing on with or without him. Auden does not seem to be able to think about anything but the absence of someone special. The poem doesn’t give clues as to whom Aden is morning, but it is understandable someone who he has built his world around. “He was my North, my South, my East and West”(9) and “My working week and my Sunday rest” (10). Through this poem, Auden is able to release all of his pinned up emotions. Auden does and excellent job of using images to help the reader relate to his feelings. This poem has become a famous eulogy used at many funerals and also in the movie “Four Weddings and a Funeral.”

Auden, W.H. "Stop All the Clocks, Cut off the Telephone". Literature: Reading, Reacting,
Writing. Compact 4th Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth:
Harcourt, 2000. 541.

codenumber: Theresa0001

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Theresa falemalama0001/First Draft/poetry The Grieving of A Loss.

"Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone" (W. H. Auden),is powerful and moving. This poem depicts the many emotions that one will deal with, after a death of a loved one. There are numerous moods of love, loyalty, compassion, and even grief. A sad but beautiful way to say Goodbye to a loved one. Starting with, "Stop all the clocks"(1)as if time should stand still.

#Silence, there must be silence: anything that hums must be silent! This is the feeling the poet portrays as the poems starts off, with a steady beat. A musical beat that yearns to be heard. This moving poem speaks of feelings, that display sorrow and peace. While a quite and peaceful moment is in demand: "bring out the coffin."(4). Creating an even more dramatic mood.

#Have you ever lost someone speacial? Ever felt feelings of dismay and mixed emotion? It is all here in this piece of work. With exspressions of sentiment and a show great respect; this poem can touch the heart of almost anyone who reads it. A very unselfish work of art! Demanding that "traffic police wear black cotton gloves"(8); shows the degree of love and importance that people feel over this tragic loss. Then it goes on to exspressions, that will make you grab for the nearest tissue. While reading of this love so tender; a "love that would last for ever."(10),you can almost feel the agony of death. Then the work winds down to depict feelings of deep dark dispare. "The stars are not wanted now: put out every one"(13), what a tremendously sad and depressed statement. #Unlike most writings, this author expresses feelings that are shared. It is not hard to understand what he is saying: for most of us have experienced the same feelings of loss. This poem was definately written with someone in mind, but is was also written to be shared. The many feelings, that ripple down the page in rhyme, will find a peice of all of us in it. Like a song it has a beat and a story. Yet it is a tribute,but to who? A grandfather,a father,a son or even a best friend,whom ever it is, his tribute will live on in millions around the world. Because we can al relate to the feeling of loss,we can understand the hurt. Then the end comes with anguish, with pain, and with hate; make it all go away, "for nothing now can ever come to any good."(16).

Include work cited listing.

codenumber: Teresa0020

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Teresa C. Bryant English 112-W4 October 3, 2002

There’s Loneliness in Getting “Acquainted With the Night”!

        #Robert Frost creates a vivid picture of loneliness in his poem “Acquainted With the Night”. Though Frost does not describe the speaker who walks through this night, the reader immediately get the picture of a raincoated man walking with his head bowed and his hands in his pockets, “I have walked out in the rain --- and back in the rain (line 2).         #There is no fear in the speaker at being alone in the night as he “outwalked the furthest city light” (line 3). Rather, there is a feeling of overwhelming sadness as he looks “down the saddest city lane” (line 4). One can almost hear the lonesome “sound of feet” (line 7) echo and then become silent when the walker stands still.
        #This reader gets the feeling there is heartache in this night and the sadness comes from an unmet need to be wanted: When far away an interrupted cry Came over houses from another street, But not to call me back or say good-by;(lines 8-10).
       #Most people tell us that talking about our problems is helpful, a fact that must be true since there are so many counselors in the world. In reality, talking about what has hurt us frequently makes the pain more acute; therefore the speaker walks by the night watchman and drops his eyes, ”unwilling to explain”(line 6).
        #As he walks the speaker appears very aware of his surroundings. He notes it is raining and makes observations about what he sees and hears: the sad city lane, the night watchman he doesn’t want to talk to and a cry in the night from a distant street. There is one solitary clock that proclaims an hour that does not matter, “the time was neither wrong nor right” (line 13). All of these observations seem to make the speakers loneliness more acute. They give the reader a sense of shared feeling and oneness with the speaker.
        #Frost has delivered a poem that comes straight from the heart and in turn, goes straight to the readers heart. His delivery is so believable and real that it makes the reader think he must have come straight in from that long dark night and poured out his feelings on paper. He creates those same strong feelings in his reader. In the end, Frost describes not just a long timeless night, but the kind of night most of us have been acquainted with at one time or another. Frost, Robert. “Acquainted with the Night.” Literature: Reading Reacting, Writing, Laurie G Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth,: Harcourt College, 2000. 799

codenumber: Laurey0001

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Laurey Stinnette English 112 Mrs. Gross 10-2-02

     #I chose to write about “How Did They Kill My Grandmother” by Boris Slutsky. I enjoyed reading this poem and it struck really close to home because I just visited the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC for the first time this summer. Two months later, I am still absorbing all that I learned there.
     #This poem is written by a man whose Grandmother is killed during Hitler and the Nazi’s reign over Germany. The grandmother is Jewish and is being held captive in a city that was taken over by Hitler that he used to keep the Jews in before they were sent to concentration camps. There is really no symbolism in this poem, but rather a man telling a horrible story of how his grandmother stood up for what she believed in and was murdered for this.
     #The poem tells of the grandmother’s fight to the end to prove that she was not going to submit to them and she was not going down without a fight. Slutsky starts out by stating that the Nazi’s have taken 150 Jews from his hometown, starved them for a year, and have told them all their fate (551).
     #He then tells that his 70 year old grandmother is standing up to the soldiers and “cursing and screaming”, and doing everything she can to defend herself and her fellow Jewish prisoners (551). I admire this 70 year old woman'’ strength and determination in fighting the Nazi's. In this time period women were “seen and not heard”. She took a very bold stand to protest the treatment of the Jewish community by the Nazi’s. I enjoyed the fact that while the grandmother is protesting the Nazi takeover “from every window then Ivonovnas and Andreyevnas, Sidorvnan and Petrovnas sobbed: You tell them, Polina Matveyevna, keep it up!” (552). It did not matter that she was a woman; what mattered was that she was taking a stand for all Jewish people.
     #Finally, at the end of the poem the Nazi’s were apparently frustrated by her display of anger and they choose to make an example of the grandmother. “A bullet struck her hair” and the Nazi’s murdered her (552). This is how the Nazi’s killed the grandmother. #I really liked this poem and feel bad that Slutsky lost his grandmother in such a horrible mass murder we call the Holocaust. I feel that Slutsky wrote this poem to give more people insight into what it was like losing someone that you love in such a horrible way.

Works Cited:

Slutsky, Boris. “How Did They Kill My Grandmother”. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Compact 4th edition. Laurie G Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth:. Harcourt, 2000. 551.

codenumber: rscott0061

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Regina C. Scott 9/26/02 ENG 112 W4 Gross, E. ESSAY ON POETRY

     #The two poems “The Ballad of Chocolate Mabbie” and “People Who Have No Children Can Be Hard” written by Gwendolyn Brooks are very different in many ways. However, when you look at her message, you can see that they have a common thread. The themes, characters, figures of speech, shape and rhyme are different, but her message is evident in both poems. Her poems tell that she loves children very much “the inconditions of love” (13) and she enjoys writing about their hopes and dreams.
     #In “The Ballad of Chocolate Mabbie”, she speaks of a seven-year-old black girl that is in love “Oh, warm is the waiting for joys, my dears!” (13). It makes references throughout the poem suggesting that this is during some type of segregation when whites and blacks were not allowed to socialize together. “Mabbie without the grammar school gates” (1) and “The grammar school gates were the pearly gates, / For Willie Boone went to school. / When she sat by him in history class / Was only her eyes were cool” (5-8). The poem tells me that Mabbie yearned to enter through the grammar school gates but probably had to enter another way. Despite the racial differences, Mabbie appears to be happy “And Mabbie thought life was heaven” (4), “Yet chocolate companions had she” (22). Several words referring to food and cooking are made throughout the poem “chocolate bar” (3), “bubble” (16), “saucily bold” (17), “lemon-hued” (19). This is intentionally done. Food is often viewed as comforting, especially to people who are under stress or in situations that they are not able to change, as would a black child growing up in a segregated society. Despite Mabbie’s lot in life, she could still have hopes and dreams.
      #“People Who Have No Children Can Be Hard” is very descriptive of some childless adults that one can meet in life. They are often very self centered and unforgiving. The adjectives used in this poem depict an unyielding, cold blooded, hot headed, violent, and desolate person. “People who have no children can be hard: / Attain a mail of ice and insolence: / Need not pause in the fire, and in no sense / Hesitate in the hurricane to guard” (1–4) reveal the visceral feelings of the writer. We are warned of their future “And when wide world is bitten and bewared / They perish purely, waving their spirits hence / Without a trace of grace or of offense / To laugh or fail, diffident, wonder-starred” (5–8). The plights of these people become worse as time and the poem progress. Words like: “dark” (10), helplessness” (10), “lost” (11), “trap” (11), “curse” (12), “malocclusions, the inconditions of love” (13) foretell of a bleak future. This shows that Brooks sees these people as doomed. They go through life without unconditional love so they will not receive it in the end. #Brooks’ message is clear. We need children in our lives. Their hopes and dreams are the things that make THINGS happen. Things such as change. With their innocent hopes and dreams, they provide promise for the future. A promise that things can and will get better. Without children, we become doomed in our self-centered, cursed and miserable lives. Without a promise for the future, we are doomed.

Works Cited:

“The Ballad of Chocolate Mabbie”. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Fort Worth TX: Harcourt College, 2000 856. “People Who Have No Children Can Be Hard”. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Fort Worth:: Harcourt, College, 2000. 857.

codenumber: Sarah0007

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Sarah Coffey English 112 W4 E. Gross September 30, 2002

     #“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke is a heartwarming poem about family time between a young boy and his father. In the poem, the little boy is telling how he enjoys spending time dancing with his father in the kitchen. He also tells of his mother’s dissatisfaction of the two carrying on. Although the father is rough with the boy in his drunken state, it appears that the father also enjoys the time with his son as well.
     #Roethke uses the reference to the father’s drinking “The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy” (1-2) to demonstrate the release from the stress of a hard day’s work that Papa may have chosen. “With a palm caked hard by dirt” (14) and “The hand that held my wrist Was battered on one knuckle” (9-10) suggests that the father’s work was manual and may also be difficult. It seems that the whiskey also uninhibits him and allows him to dance about the kitchen whimsically with his son.
   #Mother seems somewhat unhappy with the shenanigans; “My mother's countenance could not unfrown itself.”(7-8) You can almost envision her standing with her arms folded in frustration as her dinner preparations “We romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf”(5-6) are interrupted by the dancing.
    #Although the young boy is enjoying his dancing with his father, he is having a hard time keeping up. “But I hung on like death Such waltzing was not easy” (3-4) shows how difficult his task is. He also was at a disadvantage because his father’s whisky is “dizzying for a small boy”:(2) It is possible that the youngster is dancing on top of his dad’s feet because the author states “At every step you missed my right ear scraped a buckle.” (11-12) Despite the fun they are having, all things must end though. The little boy’s disappointment is made evident by the statement “Then waltzed me off to bed Still clinging to your shirt.” (15-16)
    #The narrator is a small child and shares the poem with his mother and father. The poem feels happy and warm, with the exception of the mother’s frustration of the boy and his father dancing. You can almost see the boy and his father laughing and singing as they dance and “romped”:(5) The theme of the poem is the time that is spent with family, having fun and throwing away the stress of the day.
    #It is my opinion that the author of “My Papa’s Waltz” uses short and somewhat choppy phrases to simulate the quickness of a fleeting moment. It is also my guess that although the mother seems somewhat dismayed at the horseplay that disrupts her kitchen, she probably could change her attitude with only a teensy bit of persuasion. The boy and his dad seem to be so happy that it could easily rub off on the mother too and she will enjoy the fun as well.

Work Cited:

“My Papa’s Waltz” by Roethke, Theodore. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing, 4th ed by Kirszner & Mandell,2000 Harcourt College Publishers, Fort Worth:
[See top of 1505 for correct work cited listing.]

codenumber: jlyons0005

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     "What happens to a dream deferred?"(line 1) Langston Hughes asks a very provoking question in his 1951 poem "Harlem." Hughes' hanging question is further illuminated by the fact that he describes an idea as a concrete thing. He makes the question all the more thought provoking by answering the original question with a question, which shows the readers that he doesn't know the answer or perhaps knows that the answer hasn't been discovered.
     # Hughes lived in a time of racial unrest and his dream is actually his vision of racial equity. His first analysts of his original question "Does it dry up/like a raisin in the sun?" (2,3), points to the fact that some Americans just hoped that the idea of racial equity would just go away. His second speculation is that if a dream isn't fulfilled, it becomes infected and unhealthy "Or fester like a sore/ and then run? (4,5) This could be his way of explaining the segregation that was going during this period and the violence that was inflicted by the blacks and the whites. His third analysis of a dream is the most vivid comparison "Does it stink like rotten meat? (6) which is his way of telling the reader that if racial equity isn't reached then the whole concept is going to get even more foul.
     # Hughes cleverly follows this imagery of rotting meat with a happier possibility "Or crust and sugar over/like a syrupy sweet." (7,8). Even though this possibility is more pleasing to the senses. Hughes is still able to give it a negative feeling by inferring the fact that it will crust over which shows the audience that the idea will never go away and it will just be hidden under a sweet shell. The next possibility leaves the reader with a sense of hopelessness "Maybe it just sags/like a heavy load." (9,10) This imagery makes the audience feel like racial equity is just going to sit around and get debated back and forth between the whites and the blacks until it is a burden on both sides.
      # In the end Hughes has an uncanny way of almost predicting the future of American history. "Or does it explode?" (11). However, by ending the last scenario with a question mark he quietly tells the reader that really the answer is for us to decide. He is able to predict the fact that by the end of the 1960's the idea of racial equity exploded so much that eventually enough readers took it to heart and a his dream was not deferred.

Hughes, Langston "Harlem". Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Compact 4th Ed. Laurie
G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000. 663-664.

codenumber: Tia0001

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#A Child’s Allusion

      #“My Papa’s Waltz” is a disturbing recollection told from the viewpoint of a young boy to his father. The poem is laden with a child’s delusion of his father’s dance. In reality, the father was violently beating his wife with his fist and whipping her with his belt as the child struggled against him to prevent the abuse.
     #The father’s abundant consumption of alcohol is apparent when the child begins with “The whiskey on your breath / Could make a small boy dizzy” (1-2). Even with the father’s intoxicated state, the child had “hung on like death” (3). It was difficult for the boy to hang on as he says, “Such waltzing was not easy” (4). This showed the apparent drunken and erratic movements his father was making.
     #The first mention of a struggle is in the beginning of the second stanza: “We romped until the pans / Slid from the kitchen shelf” (5-6). The pans were knocked from the kitchen shelf as the boy and his father fought each other. The mother was visibly shaken as her “…countenance / Could not unfrown itself” (7-8). She was probably horrified that her child was trying to keep the father from hurting her.
     #The signs of physical abuse come into play when “The hand that held my wrist / Was battered on one knuckle” (9-10). The father’s knuckle was battered from beating his wife. The boy goes on to say, “At every step you missed / My right ear scraped a buckle” (11-12). This means that every time the father drunkenly missed the mother with his belt, the belt swung around, and the buckle hit the boy in the side of the head.
     #The use of “beat time on my head” (13) shows how rapidly the father hit the child upon the head. In other words, the father beat time itself in the speed he used to hit the child. The father’s “palm caked hard by dirt” (14) most likely shows the type of low wage, long hour job he has, which would be an adding factor in his aggression toward his family. The child was dragged to his room when he says “Then waltzed me off to bed / Still clinging to your shirt” (15-16). The child was still “clinging” in that he was confused and traumatized but still felt he could protect his mother by holding on to his father.
     #This poem is a saddening account given by a child showing the psychological trauma inflicted by domestic abuse. The young boy told the story as if it were just a dance among family members, trying to remove the violence and replace it with innocent fun. Unfortunately, it was far from fun and probably something that would leave a permanent scar in the child’s memory.

Work Cited?

codenumber: Kara0013

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Kara Renee Carr ENG112-WR September 30, 2002

Self Esteem

       #In Marge Piercy’s “Barbie Doll” we read of the life of a normal little girl. There is nothing out of the ordinary about her birth or her childhood. She is given the stereotypical toys given to young girls. Baby dolls and appliances to play house and make up to make her beautiful. This young girl will never be more than a wife and mother so why let her expect more? Give the young boys the good toys. The ones that will teach them to be brave and strong so they may conquer the world! Become President and lead our Country. #What a wonderful childhood! And yet, how cruel children can sometimes be. “You have a great big nose and fat legs.”(6) A healthy, intelligent woman, yet lacking in some aspect. Pecking away in her brain, telling her she doesn’t quite measure up. “She went to and from apologizing.”(10) She had done nothing wrong yet she felt that her very being was a problem, that she must feel sorry for and try to correct all the mistakes her life had caused. All anyone ever saw was “a fat nose on thick legs.”(11) How could she ever be more?
     #She did everything that was suggested of her to be the perfect woman, the “Barbie Doll”. “Play coy...come on hearty...exercise, diet, smile and wheedle.”(12/14) But soon she tired of this behavior. “She cut off her nose and her legs and offered them up.”(17-18) Suicide seems to be her only way out. But even in death she must be perfect. “The undertaker’s cosmetics painted on, a turned up putty nose.”(20-21) Finally, in death, she has reached perfection. “Doesn’t she look pretty? everyone said.”(23) How sad the measure of a woman must be her outer beauty. The actions she must take to please a man, “play coy.” (12)
     #The author, I believe, is trying to assert to women that we do not have to be Barbie dolls, a person should not be judged on looks alone. The measure of a person goes deeper than her skin; intelligence, strength and good health is what a person should hope for. The inner beauty of a person can not be measured. A warm heart, a caring personality, a giving nature, all things a real person should strive to attain. And yet women are still treated as objects. Trophies on the arms of men. Beauty but no brains, nice figures at the cost of starvation. How far have we come since 1973? We still give our daughters baby dolls and appliances, makeup to paint on beauty. Dieting tips to keep nice figures. And in the end we have again created a generation of anorexic young woman with no self-esteem. “To every woman a happy ending.”(25)

Works Cited:

Piercy, Marge. “Barbie Doll.” Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Compact 4th Edition. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace 2000. 821

codenumber: Lorie0001

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Lorie H. Beneke ENG112-W4 September 28, 2002

     #Christopher Marlowe writes a dreamy, idealistic poem entitled “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love.” The shepherd writes a proposal to his love full of seemingly wonderful offerings. Sir Walter Raleigh then writes a poetic response to Marlowe’s poem. “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd” focuses on the idyllic nature of the shepherd’s offer as well as its shortcomings. The two poems are symbolic of dream versus reality and nature versus nurture.
     #“The Passionate Shepherd to His Love” is written in simple stanza form with rhyming couplets. A beckoning to the shepherd’s love is repeated several times as he asks her to “Come live with me and be my love” (1). The shepherd offers his love the pleasures of living in nature by embellishing the natural riches found in the countryside. The enjoyment of nature includes rivers, singing birds, and waterfalls (7-8). He makes the material offerings of “beds of roses” (9), a “gown of the finest wool” (13), and slippers with “buckles of the purest gold” (16).
     #A reply is written to the shepherd in the same form; however, it points to the rhetorical syllogism of the shepherd’s offerings. “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd” focuses on the changeability of love as well as nature. The woman views love not as an uncomplicated and idyllic undertaking. She identifies the impracticalities of an existence such as the one the shepherd has offered. “When rivers rage and rocks grow cold” (6) alludes to the reality that nature is transitory. Material things, even those made from nature, fade and become withered and even useless over time (15). If nature and love were timeless, she might consider the shepherd’s offer “to live with thee and be thy love” (24). The wisdom of the nymph appears far greater than that of the shepherd.
     #The poems are closely related in form and style, although it is clear that the shepherd and the nymph have very different views of love. The fact that nature changes and the material offerings hold no charm for the nymph is perceptible in her statement “All these in me no means can move” (19). It seems almost insulting to the nymph that the shepherd has made offerings to her that in no way reflect the her view of reality in love or nature. The conviction of the shepherd that love is simple and dreamy is symbolic of his idealistic personality and his naivete concerning the meaning of true love.

Works Cited:

Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell, eds. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Compact 4th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000.
Marlowe, Christopher.“The Passionate Shepherd to His Love.” Kirszner and Mandell. 536- 537.
Raleigh, Sir Walter. “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd.” Kirszner and Mandell. 537-538.

codenumber: Gail0001

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Analysis of Theme for English B

     #Langston Hughes’s “Theme for English B” is a poem that portrays the commonality between a young black student and his older white teacher. Although the student is black and the teacher white, they have in common the fact that they are Americans. There are many different races and family backgrounds in America, but we are all alike in many ways.       #The student in the poem is the only black student in his class but he feels that he and the others have many things in common regardless of their races. Other people would feel awkward being the only person of a certain race in a class, but he does not. He likes to “work, read, learn, and understand life”(21) the same as the others in his class. Being a different race than the others does not make him “not like the same things other folks like who are other races”(25-26). Their backgrounds are not the same but they are all getting a higher education. At the time this poem was written, attending college was a great accomplishment for someone of color. In this way, he was a lot like the white students.         #The music he listens to, “Bessie, bop, or Bach”(24), people of other races like to listen to also. It is a preconceived notion that black people listen to rap and rhythm & blues music while white people listen to county and rock music. These references are not correct. Your race does not determine the type of music you like. Even your current mood would dictate what type of music you would want to listen to.
        #The everyday life of the different races have an impact on the other races. The speaker says that the white instructor is “a part of me, as I am a part of you (33). The things that “I learn from you”(37) bind us together. The instructor has taught the student things that have become part of him and the instructor has learned things about the student. The interactions with others in your life make you the person that you are.
        #The prejudices faced by black people of this time period were extensive. White people had more opportunities than those of color. It is only in the last few decades that black people have been given equal opportunities as white people. There is still discrimination that goes in both directions. Equal opportunity to the different races in many ways has become a way to discriminate against one race or another. In an attempt to not discriminate against the minority races, you now see discrimination against the majority race. When applying for a job, the best candidate should be chosen, not who happens to be the best candidate of the right color. Choosing the minority person for that reason only is the cause for resentment by others. This has placed a wedge between the races, which has made things worse. Regardless of your race, you want to be chosen because you are the best candidate.
        #As diverse as we are, we are Americans as a whole. “Sometimes perhaps you don’t want to be a part of me. Nor do I often want to be a part of you”(34/35) but we co-exist as Americans. No two people are totally alike. Even though we are all different, we live together for the good of this great country. We work together toward a common goal of remaining a free country for all.

Hughes, Langston. “Theme for English B.” Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing,
Compact 4th edition. Laurie G Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000. 809-810

codenumber: CPershinsky0001

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Chantal Pershinsky Ellen Gross Eng 112 W4 First Draft of Poetry

In Silence I Mourn

     “Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone”, by W.H. Auden is a lyric poem in the form of an elegy. An elegy is a poem that mourns the death of a specific person. This is a sad and serious poem that is describing and relating to an event. That event being the death of the speaker’s husband and preparing for his funeral.
     # The speaker is mourning the death of her beloved husband, her everything. “He was my North, my South, my East and West. My moon, my midnight, my talk, and my song.” (9,12) Her love has been silenced and now she wants the world silenced so she can mourn. “Stop all the clocks, cut off the telephone / Prevent the dog from barking with a juicy bone…..let the mourners come.” (1,2,4) She wants the world to know “He is Dead”. (6)
     # She thought “love would last forever. I was wrong.” (12) She lost her husband and lover, but if she truly loved him as depicted in the lines above, her love should continue. You can still love someone after they have died. In that sense love is forever.
     # She is shutting the world out, isolating herself. Her life and happiness relied on being together with her husband. Now she isn’t happy, she doesn’t want the world to be happy either. She wants the stars, moon, sun, ocean and woods to go away. Anything that can be tied to romanticism or love she wants gone. For she feels “nothing now can ever come to any good.” (16) She has given up.

Works Cited:

“Stop the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone”, W.H. Auden. Literature: Reading, Reacting,
Writing. Compact 4th ed. Ed. Laurie G Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000. 541. [Begin with author's name.]

codenumber: Elizabeth0002

Assign3

“Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone” by W. H. Auden

     #“Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone” is an homage to the loss of the speaker’s loved one. I think it represents the loss of romantic love and not familial love.
     #The first stanza of the poem addresses the necessity of details that require immediate attention before one has time to absorb a loss emotionally. “Stop All the Clocks” (1) creates an image in the mind’s eye that time should stand still. The dog being silenced with a “juicy bone” draws a comparison of the speaker’s suffering to that of the dog’s joy. This stanza ends, “Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come” (4), invoking the finality of death. The events in this stanza represent the loss in terms of the everyday world of clocks and barking dogs.
     #The second stanza broadens the scope of the loss in terms of the public being aware. The speaker directs, “Let aeorplanes circle moaning overhead Scribbling on the sky the message, He is Dead” (6), as a celestial banner of bad news. The last two lines of this stanza, “Put the crepe bows round the white necks of the public doves” (7) and, “Let the traffic policeman wear black cotton gloves”. (8), reflects the speaker’s wish to see images draped in traditional sackcloth and ashes.
     #The third stanza becomes personal with the use of first person, “I” and “my”, and informs us of the speaker’s personal loss. “He was my North, my South, my East, and West” (9), tells us this person was his sense of direction in the world. We conclude from, “My noon, my midnight, my talk, my song” (11), that this person was his entire reason for living. The last line, “I thought that love would last forever, I was wrong”. (12), shows the hurt the speaker feels because love for him was fleeting and impermanent. #The fourth stanza expects the loss to be felt globally. The speaker tells us that the beauty in life, “The stars are not wanted now: put out every one” (13), and the light of the world, “Pack up the moon and dismantle the sun” (14) are gone from his life and should be extinguished from everyone’s life.
     #The poem concludes with the line, “For nothing now can ever come to any good.” (16), reflects the speaker’s apparent loss of hope in anything. #The use of formal diction translates careful reflection. By using precise words with no slang or colloquialism the speaker speaks with deliberateness. The sound of such forceful words “Stop” and “Prevent” begin each line with muted anger but slowly fade to resigned finality at its ending. The use of “muffled drum” speaks of quiet solemnity and reverence and “moaning” and “cut” symbolizes his physical response to his pain.
     #The tone is defined by two phrases which are emphasized, “He is Dead”(6) and “I was wrong”(12). They indicate emphasis due to their capitalization and the deliberate pause that precede them. They are emphasized so that they might yield insight into the speaker’s suffering. Adding to its tone the falling meter, “Bring out the coffin, let the mourners come.”(4) Sets the rhythm of the poem.
     #The overall message of this poem is the gut-wrenching sorrow the speaker feels from the loss of his loved one. It is a sorrow that we either have or will experience in our life and this poem exemplifies those feelings of loss.

Auden, W.H. “Stop All the Clocks, Cut Off the Telephone”. Literature: Reading, Reacting,
      Writing. Compact 4th Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Fort Worth:
     Harcourt, 2000. 541.

codenumber: Pam 0009

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Pam Reynolds ENG 112-W4 September 27, 2002

The Shepherd’s Love
     #In Christopher Marlowe’s poem, “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love,” the shepherd asks his true love to come and live with him “come live with me and be my love” (1). In Sir Walter Raleigh’s poem, “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd,” the shepherd’s true love replies to her shepherd. Although they know they both love each other, there are reasons why this cannot happen.
     #In “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love,” Marlowe speaks of all the good times “and we will sit upon the rocks” (5) they will have and all the beautiful things “a cap of flowers and a kirtle” (11) that he will make for his love. There will be clothes made from the finest wool. There will be slippers, buckles, belts, and all the finer things of life. Each May morning “the shepherd’s swains shall dance and sing” (21), they will enjoy the shepherd’s helpers as they rejoice in their work. All those pleasures his true love may have “then live with me and be my love” (24), if she will only come and live with him.
     #In “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd,” Raleigh speaks of how time “time drives the flock from field to fold” (5) will change all things. All the beautiful flowers “the flowers do fade, and wanton fields / to wayward winter reckoning yields” (9-10) will die as the winter comes. All the beautiful things “thy cap, thy kirtle, and thy poises / soon break, soon wither, soon forgotten” (14-15) will grow old with age. The beautiful maiden isn’t quite sure “and truth in every shepherd’s tongue” (2) if the shepherd is speaking of true love.
    #The nymph believes “if all the world and love were young” (1) the two could come and live together as one, but time makes everything different. They are young and all the material things seem wonderful to them. When one is young “these pretty pleasures might me move / to live with thee and be thy love” (3-4), they see material items like clothes, caps, and shoes a reason to be happy.
     #The maiden knows, as time passes, all the beautiful things and sights will be gone. She realizes they can’t stay young forever “but could youth last, and love still breed (21), so it is not possible for her “to live with thee and be thy love.” (24)
     #In these two poems, Marlowe and Raleigh are talking about the same two people. Marlowe’s poem was written before Raleigh’s since his is an actually reply to Marlowe’s desires. Both poems use the same ideas and wording because both writers lived in the late 1500s. In that era, the English language is a lot different than it is today; however, some things change and some things stay the same. Will they still be happy with what they have “had joys no date, nor age no need” (22) when they grow old together? The main thing is we all see things different when we are young.

Works Cited :

Kirszner, Laurie G., and Stephen R. Mandell, eds. Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing.
Compact 4th ed. Fort Worth: Harcourt, 2000.

Marlowe, Christopher. “The Passionate Shepherd to His Love.” Kirszner and Mandell. 536-
537.

Raleigh, Sir Walter. “The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd.” Kirszner and Mandell. 537-538.

codenumber: Esther0001

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Dede (Esther) Hudson ENG112 9/26/02

An Analysis of “My Papa’s Waltz

     #Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz” is a poem motivated by the special yet stormy recollections of the author’s father. The now-adult speaker thinks back to his happy, stable, loving childhood and pleasant bedtime memories overshadowed by his father’s drinking problem.
     #Roethke focuses on part of his early years as a young boy. It is evident from the “palm caked hard by dirt”(14) and the signs of a battered knuckle (10) that his father performed physical labor.
     #Perhaps to ease stress of his taxing job the speakers father would drink spirits, to the extent it was obvious from the odor of his breath (1). After this self-indulgent behavior changed his state of mind he would suddenly grab his young son and would “waltz” the room. His father’s strength and movements were unsteady and the boy would embrace him firmly, not to chance slipping from his arms but young Roethke loved this bedtime ritual. The speakers’ mother’s expression was one of irritation, perhaps because the kitchen pans were falling, but more than likely it was Father’s daily consumption that caused the disgust.      #The tone of “My Papa’s Waltz” is to a certain extent full of fun and caring but depicts a weakness on the behalf of the speakers father. Roethke’s speaker seems to show through the Mother’s actions that she finds drinking despicable.
     #The reader cannot go away from the poem without the impression that the speaker learned an important lesson from his Father. The speaker’s father was hard working, loving and devoted to his son but the alcohol consumption impacted the speaker’s adult life as well as his mother’s life. Whereas when the speaker was a young boy he did not realize it was the alcohol that was performing the waltz. The speaker depicts verbally the psychological weakness that controlled his Father’s actions. In the speakers adult life he comprehends the affect the alcohol had over his Father.

Roethke, Theodore. "My Papa’s Waltz." Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. Compact 4th
ed. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Forth Worth: Harcourt, 2000. 531.

codenumber: rscott0061

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Regina C. Scott 9/26/02 ENG 112 W4 Gross, E. ESSAY ON POETRY
The two poems “The Ballad of Chocolate Mabbie” and “People Who Have No Children Can Be Hard” written by Gwendolyn Brooks are very different in many ways. However, when you look at her message, you can see that they have a common thread. The themes, characters, figures of speech, shape and rhyme are different, but her message is evident in both poems. Her poems tell that she loves children very much “the inconditions of love” (13) and she enjoys writing about their hopes and dreams. “In The Ballad of Chocolate Mabbie”, she speaks of a seven-year-old black girl that is in love “Oh, warm is the waiting for joys, my dears!” (13). It makes references throughout the poem suggesting that this is during some type of segregation when whites and blacks were not allowed to socialize together. “Mabbie without the grammar school gates” (1) and “The grammar school gates were the pearly gates, / For Willie Boone went to school. / When she sat by him in history class / Was only her eyes were cool” (5-8). The poem tells me that Mabbie yearned to enter through the grammar school gates but probably had to enter another way. Despite the racial differences, Mabbie appears to be happy “And Mabbie thought life was heaven” (4), “Yet chocolate companions had she” (22). Several words referring to food and cooking are made throughout the poem “chocolate bar” (3), “bubble” (16), “saucily bold” (17), “lemon-hued” (19). This is intentionally done. Food is often viewed as comforting, especially to people who are under stress or in situations that they are not able to change, as would a black child growing up in a segregated society. Despite Mabbie’s lot in life, she could still have hopes and dreams. “People Who Have No Children Can Be Hard” is very descriptive of some childless adults that one can meet in life. They are often very self centered and unforgiving. The adjectives used in this poem depict an unyielding, cold blooded, hot headed, violent, and desolate person. “People who have no children can be hard: / Attain a mail of ice and insolence: / Need not pause in the fire, and in no sense / Hesitate in the hurricane to guard” (1–4) reveal the visceral feelings of the writer. We are warned of their future “And when wide world is bitten and bewared / They perish purely, waving their spirits hence / Without a trace of grace or of offense / To laugh or fail, diffident, wonder-starred” (5–8). The plights of these people become worse as time and the poem progress. Words like: “dark” (10), helplessness” (10), “lost” (11), “trap” (11), “curse” (12), “malocclusions, the inconditions of love” (13) foretell of a bleak future. This shows that Brooks sees these people as doomed. They go through life without unconditional love so they will not receive it in the end. Brooks’ message is clear. We need children in our lives. Their hopes and dreams are the things that make THINGS happen. Things such as change. With their innocent hopes and dreams, they provide promise for the future. A promise that things can and will get better. Without children, we become doomed in our self-centered, cursed and miserable lives. Without a promise for the future, we are doomed.

Works Cited

codenumber: Teresa0003

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Teresa Wells Via ENG112W4 Mrs. E. Gross September 26, 2002

Is Love Worth It?

       Dorothy Parker’s “General Review of the Sex Situation” presents a somewhat cynical view of love as it relates to relationships between men and women. By showing that men and women are emotional opposites and have different expectations from love and commitment, the poem boldly points out that no “earthly good can come of it” (8) and that relationships between them are destined to fail.
      #In the first verse of the poem, the speaker states that “woman wants monogamy” (1) in a relationship. Woman, by nature, is more in touch with her emotions than her counterpart. From childhood, young girls are conditioned to believe that when they grow up they need to find Mr. Right, fall in love, get married, start a family, and then live happily ever after. This concept is further proliferated by movies and books. Baby dolls are still one of the most popular toy choices for young girls. Although the feminist movement has done much to change the traditional view of male and female roles, the basic concept of love and marriage remain the same. Traditionally, young boys are raised to hide their emotions and not to talk about their feelings. As young men, they are encouraged to go out into the world, have fun, and experience life before settling down to a wife and family. Excitement and adventure are part of their heritage. The speaker suggests that man's need for new experiences and excitement carries over into his relationships with women. Whereas woman is satisfied with one loving relationship, "man delights in novelty" (2) or something new and fresh to keep his interest.
       #Love is shown as woman’s main focus and reason for living. Just as the sun and the moon are necessary for survival, the poem suggests that woman cannot survive without love. The speaker further points out that “woman lives but in her lord” (5) and that she is totally devoted to her mate. Man is portrayed as being easily “bored” (6) and unable to be satisfied in a loving relationship. His thirst for adventure keeps him searching for new and exciting experiences.
        #The speaker concludes that given the differences between the way men and women approach love, relationships between them cannot possibly work out. Although the poem ends on a rather jaunty note, the message seems much more pungent. Given the high rate of divorce and failed relationships, the reader is left to ponder whether the speaker is indeed making a valid assertion.
       #This poem takes a very matter-of-fact approach to love and relationships between men and women, and although it is witty and somewhat humorous, it is harsh in its criticism of a male's ability to commit and be satisfied with a "monogamous" (1) relationship. Woman is criticized for putting too much emphasis on love and making it and her mate the focal points of her life.

Parker, Dorothy. "General Review of the Sex Situation." Literature: Reading, Reacting,
Writing. Compact 4th ed. Ed. Laurie G. Kirszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Forth Worth:
Harcourt, 2000. 541.