The title, Barbie doll, brings a strong implication of the figurines that have earned a large reputation. Barbie is known for her strikingly long legs, tiny waist and a full chest. Ironically, she is promoted as a young girl's toy. What body image does this give these growing girls? One that is physically impossible but at the same time so desirable. Thus, before the poem is even read, these themes and ideas exist within the reader's mind.
The poem consists of four stanzas with unequal numbers of verses each. There is also no rhyme scheme.
It is the diction, imagery and themes present in the poem, which make it interesting and engaging.
The first stanza has an interesting first line; "this girlchild was born as usual", which sets the tone of the poem and engages the average person (i.e. a large portion of the population). We next read about serious female stereotyping and the distinction of female roles instilled within a child from a young age. She is receiving minature stoves, dolls and lipstick; all things which suggest that she must be a pretty, perfect, doting little girl. The "magic of puberty' creates some irony, as clearly the poet is suggesting the miserable years of puberty, especially when other girls can be so harsh and particular about outward appearances. This usual girl suddenly is told that she has a big nose and fat legs.
The next stanza begins with the beautiful features of the girl; she is healthy, smart, strong and capable. However none of this matters to her. Her confidence is blown by the one comment. She is thus forever apologizing, bowing down, because she felt all that everyone say were the large nose and fat legs. This is especially true and applicable it today's day and age, with low self esteem becoming a growing problem. It is all too easy to get caught up in the flaws, and all so difficult to overlook these to see true inner beauty. Furthermore, this problem is resulting in terrible things... anorexia.... bulimia.... suicide.
The girl was manipulated, told to be somebody else - to "play coy" and at the same time "come on hearty". She was influenced to "excercise, diet, smile and wheedle" and not surprisingly she became worn down. It happens all the times, girls loose who they are. This emotional stress and constantly trying to change to become the perfect person takes a toll until finally its gone too far. With that, the girl in the poem kills herself.
The final stanza takes place at her funeral. She is laid to peace in satin, looking all dolled up with make-up and dressed up in a darling pink and white night gown. The seen is ironic; a funeral being described completely with the beauty of the child in the casket. The stanza becomes increasingly ironic as the funeral's audience decided that the girl looked prettier than ever before. While this could be interpreted as the sadness the people felt for this being the last time they would ever see the girl was causing them to speak of her beauty in a sentimental way, it most likely was meant in the cruel idea that the girl looked beautiful for the first time, having been beautified by the undertaker. In the final words, females are born to find success in looking beautiful and this girl had found this in her casket.
This poem makes strong statements about societies pressure for women to fall into specific roles and backs it up with imagery of pinks, dolls and make-up, while portraying women roles through the idea of the average girlchild and their need to act a certain way and be a certain size. I enjoyed the poem very much and enjoyed analyzing it.
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Love and Friendship
Poem by Emily Bronte.
I recognized the name Emily Bronte since I am currently halfway through her only novel, Wuthering Heights. When I researched her, I interestingly saw that she used a male pen name (Ellis Bell).
The title, when I read it the first time, could be interpreted different ways. It could be discussing the love that friendship creates, to could be discussing love vs. friendship or the connection between love and friendship. However, reading through the poem, we clearly see it is the second option; that we are comparing love to friendship.
The poem is about comparing friendship to a holly tree and love to a rose bush. It describes the rose bush as of course having beautiful buds and a sweet smell, but in the end it is the holly tree that blooms more often, is more all year round and will always be there in the dead of winter.
Basically, the poem's beautiful message is that love may seem or even be, beautiful and so sweet - a real pick-me-up which makes you feel good, however it is a friend that will be the constant in your life, who will continue to support you and be there for you in tough times.
Structurally, the poem consists of 3 stanzas with four verses each. Rhyme scheme is ABCB, DEFE, GHIH.
There is of course A LOT of nature imagery, since it is being described by flowers.
"wild rose", "summer", "blossoms", "garland". The use of rhetorical question allows the reader to become engaged and for the poet to really push the message onto the reader. The language is also quite formal and sophisticated, airing wisdom and knowledge.
Overall, I really enjoyed the poem. I think its message was extremely valuable and perfectly spoken. The metaphor was beautiful as was the imagery. I hope many of my friends will read that poem and learn something true about friendship.
I recognized the name Emily Bronte since I am currently halfway through her only novel, Wuthering Heights. When I researched her, I interestingly saw that she used a male pen name (Ellis Bell).
The title, when I read it the first time, could be interpreted different ways. It could be discussing the love that friendship creates, to could be discussing love vs. friendship or the connection between love and friendship. However, reading through the poem, we clearly see it is the second option; that we are comparing love to friendship.
The poem is about comparing friendship to a holly tree and love to a rose bush. It describes the rose bush as of course having beautiful buds and a sweet smell, but in the end it is the holly tree that blooms more often, is more all year round and will always be there in the dead of winter.
Basically, the poem's beautiful message is that love may seem or even be, beautiful and so sweet - a real pick-me-up which makes you feel good, however it is a friend that will be the constant in your life, who will continue to support you and be there for you in tough times.
Structurally, the poem consists of 3 stanzas with four verses each. Rhyme scheme is ABCB, DEFE, GHIH.
There is of course A LOT of nature imagery, since it is being described by flowers.
"wild rose", "summer", "blossoms", "garland". The use of rhetorical question allows the reader to become engaged and for the poet to really push the message onto the reader. The language is also quite formal and sophisticated, airing wisdom and knowledge.
Overall, I really enjoyed the poem. I think its message was extremely valuable and perfectly spoken. The metaphor was beautiful as was the imagery. I hope many of my friends will read that poem and learn something true about friendship.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Africa by Maya Angelou
This is the second poem of Maya Angelou that we have studied, and I must say that I am intrigued to look for more of her poetry and other writing.
The title is simple, one word, a continent: Africa. There are of course images naturally associated with Africa, definitely, such as poverty, savannah, safari, violence, child solider, etc. Although, these are terms more likely associated in today's day and age rather then when this poem was written; nonetheless they effect the way that I understand the poem as the reader.
Structurally, the poem contains 3 stanzas. The first stanza contains 8 verses, the second contains 9 verses and the third contains 8 verses. It is interesting to note the oddity of the incongruent stanza lengths. The rhyme scheme is ABCB DEFE GHIH JKLK MNON PQRQ SQ. While the poem has a nice rhythm, there is no specific characteristic which continues throughout the poem.
The poem is about a Africa, and the hardships it went through, especially with the pressure and violence of Europeans and the slave trade. In the first stanza, Africa is being described as a beautiful woman with the "mountains her breats" and "deserts her hair", but Africa is also described as a sad woman, with the line "two niles her tears". It also specifically mentions the color of her skin; black and and states that she has been black throughout the years. Interesting to note, considering the colonizaiton of parts Africa by the British, since we know at this time many white people were moving to this area and to this day, South Africa and other parts remain prodominately white. The second stanzas describes the domination of the European over Africa and all the things that were forced upon them; such as religion, the slave trade, the violence, etc. The third stanza changes the tone, and becomes much more strong and full of courage. It describes Africa sticking up for itself and finally screaming out about the injustices.
I would say repetition and personification are the most interesting aspects of this poem to analyse:
Repetion is noted in the fact that "she has lain" is used four times throughout the poem, touching each stanza. Clearly the point of the poem is to communicate that throughout history, throughout the terrible violence and oppression, Africa has never retaliated. By repeting this line four times, the poet is emphasizing this concept. The poem is also structured as to provide proof of violence and then counter it with that line. In the last stanza of the poem, we see the contrast of what she now is. Africa is rising, is striding. This repetition, yet contrasting repetition, provides an empowered end to the poem.
Notably, the poem consists on one large metaphor, or the personification of the continent Africa. The entire poem appears to be describing a woman at first glance, but then the imagery and the descriptions kick in and the reader understands that literally Africa's breats are mountains and literally Africa's tears are rivers - so the poet must be describing the continent as a whole. It is extremely effective as it allows the reader to feel empathy towards this woman, much more easily then a person could feel empathy for something as large as an entire continent. The metaphors speak beautifully to the power of not only one person but to a nation, especially in the last stanza when she is screaming out.
Overall, I loved the poem. I found it a little bit hard to understand in parts (especially the second stanza), but I loved the imagery and the personification!
The title is simple, one word, a continent: Africa. There are of course images naturally associated with Africa, definitely, such as poverty, savannah, safari, violence, child solider, etc. Although, these are terms more likely associated in today's day and age rather then when this poem was written; nonetheless they effect the way that I understand the poem as the reader.
Structurally, the poem contains 3 stanzas. The first stanza contains 8 verses, the second contains 9 verses and the third contains 8 verses. It is interesting to note the oddity of the incongruent stanza lengths. The rhyme scheme is ABCB DEFE GHIH JKLK MNON PQRQ SQ. While the poem has a nice rhythm, there is no specific characteristic which continues throughout the poem.
The poem is about a Africa, and the hardships it went through, especially with the pressure and violence of Europeans and the slave trade. In the first stanza, Africa is being described as a beautiful woman with the "mountains her breats" and "deserts her hair", but Africa is also described as a sad woman, with the line "two niles her tears". It also specifically mentions the color of her skin; black and and states that she has been black throughout the years. Interesting to note, considering the colonizaiton of parts Africa by the British, since we know at this time many white people were moving to this area and to this day, South Africa and other parts remain prodominately white. The second stanzas describes the domination of the European over Africa and all the things that were forced upon them; such as religion, the slave trade, the violence, etc. The third stanza changes the tone, and becomes much more strong and full of courage. It describes Africa sticking up for itself and finally screaming out about the injustices.
I would say repetition and personification are the most interesting aspects of this poem to analyse:
Repetion is noted in the fact that "she has lain" is used four times throughout the poem, touching each stanza. Clearly the point of the poem is to communicate that throughout history, throughout the terrible violence and oppression, Africa has never retaliated. By repeting this line four times, the poet is emphasizing this concept. The poem is also structured as to provide proof of violence and then counter it with that line. In the last stanza of the poem, we see the contrast of what she now is. Africa is rising, is striding. This repetition, yet contrasting repetition, provides an empowered end to the poem.
Notably, the poem consists on one large metaphor, or the personification of the continent Africa. The entire poem appears to be describing a woman at first glance, but then the imagery and the descriptions kick in and the reader understands that literally Africa's breats are mountains and literally Africa's tears are rivers - so the poet must be describing the continent as a whole. It is extremely effective as it allows the reader to feel empathy towards this woman, much more easily then a person could feel empathy for something as large as an entire continent. The metaphors speak beautifully to the power of not only one person but to a nation, especially in the last stanza when she is screaming out.
Overall, I loved the poem. I found it a little bit hard to understand in parts (especially the second stanza), but I loved the imagery and the personification!
Thursday, January 22, 2009
A Beautiful Young Nymph Going To Bed
Wow! This is a seriously long poem! Not to mention how difficult it must have been to make it rhyme all the way through!
The title is very straightfoward, not really pointing to any further meaning or symbolism. Quite simply, the title tells that the poem is about a beautiful young woman going to bed.
The poem is broken into three stanzas.
The first stanza describes this woman, but is mainly about her getting ready for bed, going to sleep and then having a dream. Her name is Corinna, she is a prostitute and she is quite unhappy with her life. Clues like "pride of Drury-Lane" (which is described as a popular park in London, home of many prostitutes) and "drunken Rake to pick her up" and basically all the descriptions found below which describe sexual references and facts and names. She is back home for the night and is slowly undoing her long dressing process by taking off her artificial hair, pulling out her fake teeth, unlacing her bodice and etc. It serves to describe her job as a prostitute as an "out of body" experience, because she is so fake and put together for her job. Perhaps she is so unhappy because she has lost herself beneath the fake nipples, fake eyebrows and fake hair. Finally, she is ready for bed and manages to fall asleep. Her dreams are about her life experiences which just reinforce her unhappiness.
The second and third stanza are about her waking up to her terrible life once more. Seeing her fake hair covered in fleas and rats had eaten away at her stuff. It then shifts tone and creates a nice conclusion, saying that nonetheless everyday she gets up and hide the anguish and pain to put herself and her costume back together.
Admittedly, although I understand the basic storyline of this poem, it is a lot more difficult for me to annotate is and understand broader meaning. Certainly, the piece has many references to other concepts, places or ideas which are explained beneath the poem. The language is older english and much more formal. There is consistent punctuation. The rhyme scheme is AABBCCDD.... etc.
The title is very straightfoward, not really pointing to any further meaning or symbolism. Quite simply, the title tells that the poem is about a beautiful young woman going to bed.
The poem is broken into three stanzas.
The first stanza describes this woman, but is mainly about her getting ready for bed, going to sleep and then having a dream. Her name is Corinna, she is a prostitute and she is quite unhappy with her life. Clues like "pride of Drury-Lane" (which is described as a popular park in London, home of many prostitutes) and "drunken Rake to pick her up" and basically all the descriptions found below which describe sexual references and facts and names. She is back home for the night and is slowly undoing her long dressing process by taking off her artificial hair, pulling out her fake teeth, unlacing her bodice and etc. It serves to describe her job as a prostitute as an "out of body" experience, because she is so fake and put together for her job. Perhaps she is so unhappy because she has lost herself beneath the fake nipples, fake eyebrows and fake hair. Finally, she is ready for bed and manages to fall asleep. Her dreams are about her life experiences which just reinforce her unhappiness.
The second and third stanza are about her waking up to her terrible life once more. Seeing her fake hair covered in fleas and rats had eaten away at her stuff. It then shifts tone and creates a nice conclusion, saying that nonetheless everyday she gets up and hide the anguish and pain to put herself and her costume back together.
Admittedly, although I understand the basic storyline of this poem, it is a lot more difficult for me to annotate is and understand broader meaning. Certainly, the piece has many references to other concepts, places or ideas which are explained beneath the poem. The language is older english and much more formal. There is consistent punctuation. The rhyme scheme is AABBCCDD.... etc.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Obama Poem
O-ba-ma the people chant
their words ring out so loud and clear
Finally the day has come
that this fine man's named president
Calendars will mark today
as the coloured man's sworn in
People cry and people cheer
each full of patriotism
God bless the land of the free
and may each man feel dignity
their words ring out so loud and clear
Finally the day has come
that this fine man's named president
Calendars will mark today
as the coloured man's sworn in
People cry and people cheer
each full of patriotism
God bless the land of the free
and may each man feel dignity
Sunday, January 18, 2009
When We Two Parted
Poem by George Gordon (Lord) Byron
Of the three poems, I was most drawn to this poem. I think it is because the emotions are really well displayed such that the reader can empathize with the author. After some research, I discovered George Gordon Byron was a British poet who was prodominant in the Romantic Period, thus I was already assuming that this poem would be a romantic poem.
The title was clear and stated what the poem would be about. This poem would be about two people parting, and more particularly the author parting with another, shown by the use of "we". The past tense of "parted" means that this poem is written in the past tense; the author reflecting back on when he and the other person parted.
Looking at the obvious, each stanza has eight lines and there are four stanzas. A clear (and true)rhyming scheme is apparent: ABABCDCD, EFEFGHGH, IJIJKLKL, MNMNOPOP.
The first stanza describes the sad parting of these two people who were "half broken-hearted" that were to "sever for years". It also gives the reader a warning; "truly that hour foretold sorrow to this", so the reader can suspect that this parting will not end happily. The second stanza flashes to the day which the author hears the bad news and describes how already the chill of the dew that morning felt like a warning of something bad to come that day. Perhaps this insight shows that the author deep down knew that it was unlikely these two people would keep their commitment to each other over the distance and time. In this stanza "vows" are mentioned which could be interpreted either as wedding vows or just a word promise to each other. The third stanza describes how he found out, through other's gossip who didn't even know that he knew the other at all. He describes how the truth hurts his ears and how deep the hurt towards her is. In the fourth stanza he admits how he kept their relationship a secret to this third party and decides to grieve silently the fact that the other's heart was able to forget him when his heart could not. Finally, he considers what it would be like to meet this other person in the future and decides it would be similarly; just silence and tears.
From the piece I feel that the speaker is a male most likely speaking of his female lover. This is likely due to the fact that the author is a man; however I could also understand if the poem was meant to depict a woman speaking of a man. The attitude of the poem is of broken-heartedness and deep hurt, as the author recalls a situation where a vow of some sort was disregarding when the lover is unfaithful. It is even arguable that the tone is a little desperate because it feels as if the author is almost saying "why? why did you do this to me?" sort of thing.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
A Valediction Forbidding Mourning
This poem by John Donne was a bit of a tough read at first, given its length and old style english; however once I read it through a couple times and began to understand what was being said it was actually a gorgeous poem! I mean this man clearly is a romantic at heart, and although on most occassions I would find this wording likely a little too "mushy" for my likings, for some reason I find myself truly compassionate towards his message. The part about his feet draw a circle around her counterpoint foot is truly touching.
I personally like poems with a rhyming scheme, so I like that this one has the ABAB pattern throughout. Although it is a bit lengthy it is well broken up which I like. Also, despite the language is a little tougher for me to understand I do like the sound of the words - they certainly making it sound all the more romantic.
I personally like poems with a rhyming scheme, so I like that this one has the ABAB pattern throughout. Although it is a bit lengthy it is well broken up which I like. Also, despite the language is a little tougher for me to understand I do like the sound of the words - they certainly making it sound all the more romantic.
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