War is hell
but that's not the half of it,
because war is also mystery and terror and adventure and courage
war is nasty;
war is thrilling;
war is drudgery;
you're never more alive than when you're almost dead
they carried all they could bear,
and then some,
including a silent awe for the terrible power
of the things they carried
Together we understood what terror was:
you're not human anymore
You don't know
In any war story, but especially a true one
it's difficult to separate what happened from what seemed to happen
What sticks to memory,often,
are those odd little fragments that have
no beginning and no end..
I survived..
but it's not a happy ending
Monday, May 20, 2013
Friday, February 22, 2013
Harlem Renaissance poem analysis
The poem that I decided to analyze was Incident By Countee Cullen.
Once riding in old Baltimore,
Heart-filled, head-filled with glee,
I saw a Baltimorean
Keep looking straight at me.
Now I was eight and very small,
And he was no whit bigger,
And so I smiled, but he poked out
His tongue, and called me, 'Nigger.'
I saw the whole of Baltimore
From May until December;
Of all the things that happened there
That's all that I remember.
This poem stood out to me right away. It's great imagery tells the story very well, and shows what the poet was trying to tell. The imagery that really stood out to me was in the second stanza. " And so I smiled, but he poked out His tongue, and called me, "Nigger". I feel like this is the heart of the poem. When I first read this poem, that line stood out to me. I really imagined the boy sticking his tongue out and then I just thought how that little boy must have felt. Reading the rest of the poem you realize how this incident really affected him and stuck with him for life. He was just a small helpless boy trying to have a nice ride in Baltimore.
In this poem there are a few sound devices. In all of the three stanzas the second and fourth lines have end rhymes. For example, December and remember in the last stanza. I can figure, that there was racism going on, it didn't matter if it were summer or winter, you're someone else, in somebody's eyes. Another sound device that I found was a consonance. In the second line when they mentioned " Heart-filled, head-filled". These two words, in my opinion, got together well and make a harmony of sounds.
The sound devices I found throughout this poem were an exaggeration and a metaphor. The exaggeration I found was " I saw the whole of Baltimore from May until December. This is an exaggeration because did he really see all of Baltimore and was he really there from May to December? We honestly don't know what was actually true. The metaphor that I found was " Now I was eight and very small and he was no whit bigger". I thought this was a great example because he was giving a comparison of himself and the other boy in a comical way almost. He was trying to prove that the one that was " no whit bigger" was the just like him, even though the other boy thought he was better then him anyways.
Once riding in old Baltimore,
Heart-filled, head-filled with glee,
I saw a Baltimorean
Keep looking straight at me.
Now I was eight and very small,
And he was no whit bigger,
And so I smiled, but he poked out
His tongue, and called me, 'Nigger.'
I saw the whole of Baltimore
From May until December;
Of all the things that happened there
That's all that I remember.
This poem stood out to me right away. It's great imagery tells the story very well, and shows what the poet was trying to tell. The imagery that really stood out to me was in the second stanza. " And so I smiled, but he poked out His tongue, and called me, "Nigger". I feel like this is the heart of the poem. When I first read this poem, that line stood out to me. I really imagined the boy sticking his tongue out and then I just thought how that little boy must have felt. Reading the rest of the poem you realize how this incident really affected him and stuck with him for life. He was just a small helpless boy trying to have a nice ride in Baltimore.
In this poem there are a few sound devices. In all of the three stanzas the second and fourth lines have end rhymes. For example, December and remember in the last stanza. I can figure, that there was racism going on, it didn't matter if it were summer or winter, you're someone else, in somebody's eyes. Another sound device that I found was a consonance. In the second line when they mentioned " Heart-filled, head-filled". These two words, in my opinion, got together well and make a harmony of sounds.
The sound devices I found throughout this poem were an exaggeration and a metaphor. The exaggeration I found was " I saw the whole of Baltimore from May until December. This is an exaggeration because did he really see all of Baltimore and was he really there from May to December? We honestly don't know what was actually true. The metaphor that I found was " Now I was eight and very small and he was no whit bigger". I thought this was a great example because he was giving a comparison of himself and the other boy in a comical way almost. He was trying to prove that the one that was " no whit bigger" was the just like him, even though the other boy thought he was better then him anyways.
Sunday, December 16, 2012
Transcendentalists
The transcendentalist that I have choosen is Ralph Waldo Emerson. I choose him because he was the leader of the transcendentalists movement in the mid-19th century. Then also Ralph had a strong belief in individualism and very much appreciated Nature. When he was younger and married he was apart of Bostons Second Church and was even a junior minister. After his wife past though, he decided to leave and disagreed with the churched methods. That was in 1832.
Throughtout the next few years he traveled and experienced a lot which led to who he would become later. In 1936 Emerson met with a few people, that included, Frederick Henry Hedge and George Putman, to plan a gathering for intellictual minds. Then the transcendentalists group was started about a week later. At this time also he started writing more often and publishing his essays.
The transcendentalists had several key aspects in their group and he believed many. Ralph believed that all things were connected to God, which makes everything divine. He also had a strong belief in individualism and non-conformity. For example he didn't believe in salvery and wanted it to end. Many people did not share the same view on that matter.Also he had feelings for men and during that time it wasn't something people really discussed. He even wrote poetry about his feelings to the men he had in interest in. Ralph Waldo Emerson was an active transcendentalists and proud of it.
Throughtout the next few years he traveled and experienced a lot which led to who he would become later. In 1936 Emerson met with a few people, that included, Frederick Henry Hedge and George Putman, to plan a gathering for intellictual minds. Then the transcendentalists group was started about a week later. At this time also he started writing more often and publishing his essays.
The transcendentalists had several key aspects in their group and he believed many. Ralph believed that all things were connected to God, which makes everything divine. He also had a strong belief in individualism and non-conformity. For example he didn't believe in salvery and wanted it to end. Many people did not share the same view on that matter.Also he had feelings for men and during that time it wasn't something people really discussed. He even wrote poetry about his feelings to the men he had in interest in. Ralph Waldo Emerson was an active transcendentalists and proud of it.
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Monday, September 24, 2012
Poetry thoughts
Since a young age I just thought of poetry as one of those things you had to learn in English every year. You have to find the tone and messages they give to you...etc. Now, this year though poetry has actually stood out to me in a way that it hasn't any of the other years. There were some poems that I actually began to like, for example ,"The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost. Maybe it's just because im getting older but i feel like I can realate to it. Everyone has hard choices they have to make in life, and this poem shows that. I've actually began to appreciate poetry more,and all the meaning behind it all. These poets are sharing personal experiences with us and we should all keep an open mind to reading poetry.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
The American Dream
The American Dream is portrayed in many different ways. How I personally define it is having a well rounded education.That would later on get you to the college that you dreamed of going to. Then countinuing to get the job that you always wanted and sometime during that get married, have children, and provide for them. Also live in a beautiful and safe community with a nice home. In a way this is similar to the "usual" American Dream. Wanting that little home with the white pickit fence and having a stable job.Then also the American Dream to me entails just being happy. That is what I believe the dream is.
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