The end of this class is near but looking back on this semester I couldn't of asked for a better creative writing class. Fun assignments, expressive classmates, class discussions, everything was there and I got more than what I was asking for from this class. However, there were two readings that really stood out or challenged my writing skills in a new way that would help me in future writing. Those readings were "Tocqueville" by Khaled Mattawa and "Writing Down the Bones" by Natalie Goldberg. Each reading expressed its own form of uniqueness and played a role in changing how I thought about my own writing.
"Tocqueville" was a personal favorite that I enjoyed reading because of the feeling I got when reading it. I felt as though it wasn't just poetry about abstract feelings or depression, but real life events and emotions. "Imagine not asking the questions. That's the trust you must begin to afford." I enjoyed this line more and more as I thought about it because to me it means that when you put all your trust into something you have to give up free thinking and not question any aspect of what you are trusting. As I read, I had a very strong sense of attachment and felt as this was real life poetry. By that I mean the writing here seemed to be simply experiences and thoughts that were written down for the reader to extract all the emotions and deeper meaning from on their own. Nothing was sugar coated which gave an even greater sense of connection. The events and thoughts were given and nothing was censored to remove the realness aspect of the writing. This affected my own writing because it showed me that your real experiences and emotions are the most powerful words you can put on paper.
"Writing Down the Bones" gave me a very strong sense of, maybe not breaking the rules, but making the rules what you want them to be. For the majority of our lives we are told how to write, how not to write, what is good, what is bad. However, at the same exact time we told that all the great writers of their time were the ones that did not write "by the rules" and chose to create their own. So as students we are told to stay confined within the box of rules if we want to be good, but to think outside the box and fail our classes if we want to be great. I enjoyed the chapter "Syntax" and the writing assignment that came along with it. This really got me to think about how I structured my writing and gave me a lighting on how to break down the box I was given, and create my own.
The combination of these two readings really did a number on me. When I reflect on these two writings I have a desire to write my own true experiences in a way that isn't so self centered and breaks the rules while inspiring whoever so reads it. After all, when it is all said and done the reader is truly the mastermind behind the whole operation. As a writer, there would be no point to my passion for writing without someone else to do the most important part of reading. These two readings gave a me a truly new perspective of what is to come of my future writing and I'm glad that they were chosen for the class to read.
Thursday, April 16, 2015
Thursday, April 9, 2015
The House of the Future - Bernard Cooper
To grasp an emotional yet intellectual stimulating essence in writing is not your average day occurrence. In the essay "The House of the Future" by Bernard Cooper, the reader is filled with excitement and imagination for the mind to feed off of. However, at the same time you are also compelled to worry about the present and hold on to what you have. This can be seen from the narrators brother Gary, who is currently dying and we have no clue as to why. You are almost forced to open your imagery of the future and get excited for the mystery that is to come, but this does not always me new is better.
"I prefer items with preservatives like polysorbate and BHT; they had a shelf life of several years, stayed fragrant and moist against all odds and offered a taste of eternity." This line really caught my attention in the reading. To me this means the narrator loves things that last a long time or things that are "forever" in a sense. This is extremely ironic that at the same time we are being reminded that his brother is dying and will not be around very soon. It also meant to me that we put so much time and technology into trying to preserve materialistic items and goods, but not as much into what really matters to us.
"It could be said that hardly a natural material occurs in it's original state anywhere in your new home!" This line was another big one to stand out for me. This however, was for a reason to rebel the future. You can not stop the future from coming, but we can most certainly change it. To me this came from the narrator's decision to actually try to run from the future even though he claims he is excited for it. As if he wants the future to come so quick but he wont be exactly pleased with what comes with it.
"I prefer items with preservatives like polysorbate and BHT; they had a shelf life of several years, stayed fragrant and moist against all odds and offered a taste of eternity." This line really caught my attention in the reading. To me this means the narrator loves things that last a long time or things that are "forever" in a sense. This is extremely ironic that at the same time we are being reminded that his brother is dying and will not be around very soon. It also meant to me that we put so much time and technology into trying to preserve materialistic items and goods, but not as much into what really matters to us.
"It could be said that hardly a natural material occurs in it's original state anywhere in your new home!" This line was another big one to stand out for me. This however, was for a reason to rebel the future. You can not stop the future from coming, but we can most certainly change it. To me this came from the narrator's decision to actually try to run from the future even though he claims he is excited for it. As if he wants the future to come so quick but he wont be exactly pleased with what comes with it.
Thursday, April 2, 2015
Maps to Anywhere - Potato Spirit
Choosing a single food item and writing an essay about it that holds the reader's attention throughout is not an easy task to accomplish. However, "Potato Spirit" from the novel "Maps to Anywhere" by Bernard Cooper did just that. As a reader you would go into this reading a bit skeptical because there isn't much to say about just an ordinary potato right? Well that is where Cooper outdid himself. The narrator begins with their almost insane obsession with potatoes and tells the reader about the different views of the potato throughout history and how the potato can represent the worst of times but also the best of times.
"If I were to paint a portrait of my friends each would be posed before a fresh hot potato." To me this goes along with the narrators insane obsession or craving for a potato. All the narrator can think about is potatoes and can't even imagine painting their friends without the presence of a potato.The strange and obsessive passion for a potato caught my attention from the beginning and got me hooked for the rest of the essay. I found myself extremely curious as to my the narrator had such a great liking for potatoes and I needed to find out why.
The essay then goes into the dark essence of the potato and depicts Van Gogh's painting "The Potato Eaters" to give a better image to the reader. The painting shows peasants eating from a bowl with potatoes in a dark area and the narrators claims that the potato "could never appease the growl of human hunger." However, despite going into such dark imagery, the narrator switches to an uplifting mood that claims the potato to be a almost a hero. This is because the potato has been through so much and still finds a way to fill the belly's of the hungry and always thrives on. There is a Potato Spirit in all of us and we must keep moving forward even when times are dark.
"If I were to paint a portrait of my friends each would be posed before a fresh hot potato." To me this goes along with the narrators insane obsession or craving for a potato. All the narrator can think about is potatoes and can't even imagine painting their friends without the presence of a potato.The strange and obsessive passion for a potato caught my attention from the beginning and got me hooked for the rest of the essay. I found myself extremely curious as to my the narrator had such a great liking for potatoes and I needed to find out why.
The essay then goes into the dark essence of the potato and depicts Van Gogh's painting "The Potato Eaters" to give a better image to the reader. The painting shows peasants eating from a bowl with potatoes in a dark area and the narrators claims that the potato "could never appease the growl of human hunger." However, despite going into such dark imagery, the narrator switches to an uplifting mood that claims the potato to be a almost a hero. This is because the potato has been through so much and still finds a way to fill the belly's of the hungry and always thrives on. There is a Potato Spirit in all of us and we must keep moving forward even when times are dark.
Thursday, March 26, 2015
Farder to Reache
I have always been a big fan of studying astronomy and anything outer space related. I have found myself on countless occasions wondering about to ends of the universe and trying to wrap my head around abstract concepts. This can go one of two ways, either you are amazed by what you are thinking about and want to continue, or you are terrified by the thought of uncertainty and the unknown. The writing "Farder to Rache" by Albert Goldbarth touches this very subject and puts this subject into a very approachable manner.
"Then the fog disappears - which is, of course, the day clearing its throat for clear speech." This was a very interesting and catching way to compare the matter of time and life as a whole, to a human or living organism of clearing their throat. My interpretation of this was that it would make much more sense to humans if time was to be more like a living organism. A beginning and a end. A place to start and a place to finish. The unknown of the universe and time is what keeps us thinking for eternity.
I also enjoyed the fact that the writer used historical figures in their writing. This caught my attention because it portrayed the idea that they were looking at the same picture we are looking at when we stare up at the night sky, so it was not unrealistic to think how they did back then. It's amazing that we have learned so much more than we ever thought was possible, and we are still nowhere near close to anything truly, and I mean truly significant. As humans we will always be chasing our minds, but who knows, maybe one day we will get our answer.
"Then the fog disappears - which is, of course, the day clearing its throat for clear speech." This was a very interesting and catching way to compare the matter of time and life as a whole, to a human or living organism of clearing their throat. My interpretation of this was that it would make much more sense to humans if time was to be more like a living organism. A beginning and a end. A place to start and a place to finish. The unknown of the universe and time is what keeps us thinking for eternity.
I also enjoyed the fact that the writer used historical figures in their writing. This caught my attention because it portrayed the idea that they were looking at the same picture we are looking at when we stare up at the night sky, so it was not unrealistic to think how they did back then. It's amazing that we have learned so much more than we ever thought was possible, and we are still nowhere near close to anything truly, and I mean truly significant. As humans we will always be chasing our minds, but who knows, maybe one day we will get our answer.
Wednesday, March 18, 2015
Violent Rooms
For many of the big moments in one's life we remember more about where we were rather than what actually happened. This can be seen in the writing of "Violent Rooms" by Dawn Martin. My interpretation of this writing is a dark one that depicts a women being, or about to be raped. The reason I linked "location" and "moments in one's life" together is because when an event as traumatic as being raped occurs then the victim will forever associate that moment with that location. This is extremely popular among many people, not just rape victims, and the events do not need to be bad in any way but most are positive events. Much like when you were a kid and you learned how to ride a bike. Most people will remember where they learned and associate that location with that event.
My interpretation of this piece was of a woman being raped for a few reasons. "As in yard rake pressed to roof of mouth. A fragrant rod. Suh-ssuh-ssuck. Insistence." To me this seemed to be someone forcibly putting their hand in the girl's mouth and holding it open with the fingers being compared to the fingers of a rake. The attacker seems to be the one telling the victim to perform oral sex and is very persistent. "The contours of the girl blue. She is both becoming and fact." This shows that in those life changing moments we don't always quite remember every detail or we may of been so caught up in the moment that our imagery is blurred. She is "becoming and fact" because she is now a statistic of rape victims and this moment can not be erased and is now true forever.
"Having not ever been whole. Or simple. Or young. Just split and open." This may refer to the victim talking about how after the event occurred she never felt the same or life was just never easy anymore. This leads me to infer that she was young when this took place because she says she has never been young, so she may feel she never had a real childhood due to this event taking place. Also she may feel used because she is nothing more than just a "sex object" and is not important. Everything tying back to the title that she will always remember the room she was in where this horrible event took place.
My interpretation of this piece was of a woman being raped for a few reasons. "As in yard rake pressed to roof of mouth. A fragrant rod. Suh-ssuh-ssuck. Insistence." To me this seemed to be someone forcibly putting their hand in the girl's mouth and holding it open with the fingers being compared to the fingers of a rake. The attacker seems to be the one telling the victim to perform oral sex and is very persistent. "The contours of the girl blue. She is both becoming and fact." This shows that in those life changing moments we don't always quite remember every detail or we may of been so caught up in the moment that our imagery is blurred. She is "becoming and fact" because she is now a statistic of rape victims and this moment can not be erased and is now true forever.
"Having not ever been whole. Or simple. Or young. Just split and open." This may refer to the victim talking about how after the event occurred she never felt the same or life was just never easy anymore. This leads me to infer that she was young when this took place because she says she has never been young, so she may feel she never had a real childhood due to this event taking place. Also she may feel used because she is nothing more than just a "sex object" and is not important. Everything tying back to the title that she will always remember the room she was in where this horrible event took place.
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Night Women
At some point in all our lives we are put into a situation where we must decide what we are willing to do in order to protect our family. That situation can be seen in this fiction story that we discussed in class called "Night Women" by Edwidge Danticat. This story in about a women with an internal battle about her own morality in her line of "work" and an external battle to support and raise her son in the right way. Throughout the story we are given clues that the husband is either an ex client of the women that has ran off, or he had died along time ago when the son was young. The "work" that the women does is not one that is seen in a positive way by the community. We are not told if the women is being paid for her actions, but it can be inferred that she is some form of a prostitute and sleeps with married men.
"The night is the time I dread most in my life. Yet if I am to live, I must depend on it." This is suggesting that she internally despises what her line of work is and knows that what she is doing is not morally right. However, she knows that the night is when she makes her needs to survive so she must bare through it every single day. She tries to hide her work from her son and uses this old radio that was given to him to play at night so he does not hear what is happening on the other side of the room. The women tries to keep her son as far away from her lifestyle as possible to make sure he does not end up on the same path.
"There is a place in Ville Rose where ghost women ride the crests of waves while brushing the stars out of their hair." I took this line as the "ghost women" being street hookers and that the stars in their hair is some form of glitter that is being brushed out. The women in the story does not seem to find herself in the same category at these "ghost women". It is almost inferred that she is some sort of "higher class" prostitute because she has clients that come to her on a regular basis, and does not need to walk the streets looking for some. Also her clients are typically wealthy men who are doctors and musicians.
"The night is the time I dread most in my life. Yet if I am to live, I must depend on it." This is suggesting that she internally despises what her line of work is and knows that what she is doing is not morally right. However, she knows that the night is when she makes her needs to survive so she must bare through it every single day. She tries to hide her work from her son and uses this old radio that was given to him to play at night so he does not hear what is happening on the other side of the room. The women tries to keep her son as far away from her lifestyle as possible to make sure he does not end up on the same path.
"There is a place in Ville Rose where ghost women ride the crests of waves while brushing the stars out of their hair." I took this line as the "ghost women" being street hookers and that the stars in their hair is some form of glitter that is being brushed out. The women in the story does not seem to find herself in the same category at these "ghost women". It is almost inferred that she is some sort of "higher class" prostitute because she has clients that come to her on a regular basis, and does not need to walk the streets looking for some. Also her clients are typically wealthy men who are doctors and musicians.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
The Falling Girl
All poems and short stories raise questions among its readers, but I have never seen so many possibilities with this one. The story "The Falling Girl" by Dino Ruzzati is one about a young girl who seems to of jumped off the top of a skyscraper and by the time she gets to the bottom she is an elderly women. I love that idea by the author and really enjoyed reading this story. As the girl is falling off this rooftop to her death, the author actually gives you a few hints that the fall is taking a lot longer than we might think. I feel this is a way for the author to symbolize how some people want to "live the fast life" and never stop to really enjoy it.
With reference to time the author gives the reader clues about how this plays a factor. When the girl initially jumps off the rooftop the sun is out and there is light. However, by the time she gets to the bottom the sun is set and nowhere to be seen. So it seems that this fall is stretched out over an entire day, but actually it is over her entire life time. By the time the girl gets close to the ground, and we never find out if she hits, she is an old women and has gone through her life. As she is falling she also mentions past lovers, friends, parties, and aspects of her life as she is going through them. The "falling" concept can be seen in this way as the girl going through her life in a way of no control or slowing down because when you are falling you can't control your falling or chose what speed to fall at.
When the girl also initially jumps she sees a party at the bottom that she wants to go to. I liked this idea because to me it shows that a lot of people will do anything just to be partying or trying to always have fun and do anything to get there. This raises the question of why didn't she just take the elevator down? Or even the stairs if you needed to, why jump off the building when you know what price you have to pay that comes with it. Also at the end of the story a man named Roberto mentions an advantage to jumping from the bottom when you are already old, "...you can hear the thud when they hit the ground." This to me was saying that when you are old you can see your death coming and it's not as much of a shock, but when you are young and take the leap, you have no idea what will happen.
With reference to time the author gives the reader clues about how this plays a factor. When the girl initially jumps off the rooftop the sun is out and there is light. However, by the time she gets to the bottom the sun is set and nowhere to be seen. So it seems that this fall is stretched out over an entire day, but actually it is over her entire life time. By the time the girl gets close to the ground, and we never find out if she hits, she is an old women and has gone through her life. As she is falling she also mentions past lovers, friends, parties, and aspects of her life as she is going through them. The "falling" concept can be seen in this way as the girl going through her life in a way of no control or slowing down because when you are falling you can't control your falling or chose what speed to fall at.
When the girl also initially jumps she sees a party at the bottom that she wants to go to. I liked this idea because to me it shows that a lot of people will do anything just to be partying or trying to always have fun and do anything to get there. This raises the question of why didn't she just take the elevator down? Or even the stairs if you needed to, why jump off the building when you know what price you have to pay that comes with it. Also at the end of the story a man named Roberto mentions an advantage to jumping from the bottom when you are already old, "...you can hear the thud when they hit the ground." This to me was saying that when you are old you can see your death coming and it's not as much of a shock, but when you are young and take the leap, you have no idea what will happen.
Thursday, February 19, 2015
Fiction Packet - But What Was Her Name?
Giving such a large amount of information in such a small amount of time is not an easy task for anybody, but these short stories in the poetry packet proved otherwise. I chose to read the story "But What Was Her Name?" by Dawn Raffel which is a prime example of that. This story is about a women that we are not given much detail about, only that she was lucky to of been born by "some trick of oxygen." Throughout the story you do not receive much more information about the women, only what she goes through in her life. This story was very life-like in the aspect that this story could be very similar to that of many women in the world. This was also a very sad and dark story which really got you to think deeper about the women and her life.
The story tells us the women is married late in her life, and "bore live descendants" which is a very uncommon way to say she had kids. It almost portrays the idea that either she doesn't have a connection with her kids or doesn't think of them as her children. The women is also a house wife and is said to be in the kitchen cooking for most of the story. She does her cooking and over time she grows old and fat and the years just fly past her. This is the life of many women in the world and not a very happy storyline that usually comes with a fiction story.
The ending of the story does not seem to get much better as all the others stories do in this packet. The women's husband is now dead and she will not take off her wedding ring. I feel like this is because the majority of her life was dedicated to serving him and now she is lost without him. It can also be inferred that she is a religious women as she calls out loud "Father?" which could be seen as her referring to asking help from God. Then the final line of the poem is basically her dying so there was an entire life of this women described in about 20 lines of writing, and after you know this women's life story you still don't know her name, as if she was forgotten rather than not mentioned.
The story tells us the women is married late in her life, and "bore live descendants" which is a very uncommon way to say she had kids. It almost portrays the idea that either she doesn't have a connection with her kids or doesn't think of them as her children. The women is also a house wife and is said to be in the kitchen cooking for most of the story. She does her cooking and over time she grows old and fat and the years just fly past her. This is the life of many women in the world and not a very happy storyline that usually comes with a fiction story.
The ending of the story does not seem to get much better as all the others stories do in this packet. The women's husband is now dead and she will not take off her wedding ring. I feel like this is because the majority of her life was dedicated to serving him and now she is lost without him. It can also be inferred that she is a religious women as she calls out loud "Father?" which could be seen as her referring to asking help from God. Then the final line of the poem is basically her dying so there was an entire life of this women described in about 20 lines of writing, and after you know this women's life story you still don't know her name, as if she was forgotten rather than not mentioned.
Thursday, February 12, 2015
Writing Down the Bones - Baking a Cake
This section really stood out to me among the rest. I really liked the analogy the author used to compare one's writing or product to a cake, and the ingredients are the details of the writing. Without the correct amount of ingredients then your "cake" will not come out right, or the reader will not understand what you are trying to say. Also, having all the right ingredients plays a big role in the process as well. If certain details are left out then you wont have the "cake" you wanted and everything will not come out right.
I also liked how the author talked about having a connection with your "cake". This is because it's not just any old cake, it's YOUR cake. It's a part of you whether you like it or not. You put time and effort into it and it will represent your thoughts and ideas. I am someone who really likes to put a piece of myself into my writing and call it my own. When I put my name on a piece of paper it represents me and I stand by it. Maybe it doesn't represent everything about me, but I wrote it for a reason and want it to reflect a piece of me.
I think the reason I liked this analogy so much is because I could relate it to anything I do in my life. Sure it worked well with writing, but to me it was more than that. When you bake a cake you make a goal, prepare your steps, and work hard to get there. The ingredients are the steps along the way that you want to put into your goal to help you reach it. Nothing good comes easy and you have to keep working on it to perfect your "cake".
I also liked how the author talked about having a connection with your "cake". This is because it's not just any old cake, it's YOUR cake. It's a part of you whether you like it or not. You put time and effort into it and it will represent your thoughts and ideas. I am someone who really likes to put a piece of myself into my writing and call it my own. When I put my name on a piece of paper it represents me and I stand by it. Maybe it doesn't represent everything about me, but I wrote it for a reason and want it to reflect a piece of me.
I think the reason I liked this analogy so much is because I could relate it to anything I do in my life. Sure it worked well with writing, but to me it was more than that. When you bake a cake you make a goal, prepare your steps, and work hard to get there. The ingredients are the steps along the way that you want to put into your goal to help you reach it. Nothing good comes easy and you have to keep working on it to perfect your "cake".
Thursday, February 5, 2015
Tocqueville
Tocqueville is not like any other poem I have ever read before. I've read poems in the past with multiple meanings, different narrators, and hidden messages, but this one takes the cake. The endless possibilities are mind blowing after reading this poem because you are never quite sure which road to take. Everything seems to be so interconnected in one way or another that it almost sets you up to pick up all these different points of view and different meanings. This seems to be multiple poems hidden within each other, that also connect to a bigger idea while also having their own smaller picture.
One aspect that I questioned while reading this poem was how many different narrators had input throughout the reading. "I am 18, married with 3 children" (Pg 38) "I am 22 years old" (Pg 40) " I am 24 and have four children" (Pg 28) The reason these three passages stood out to me was because they almost seemed to be new introductions of narrators. Two of the three introductions mentioned some type of children or marriage with the speaker. However, one of them did not and it was odd to me that the one that didn't was the middle age and not either the first or last introduction. I also tried to compare the different introductions for any contradicting information that would lead the reader to believe that someone else was speaking but all three did not conflict with each other in any way. Another aspect I thought was very interesting was that the ages revealed in the introductions did not come in chronological order. In fact the ages revealed was in the order of oldest, youngest, and then middle.
Another clue that lead me to believe that there are multiple speakers was the fact that the poem contained multiple re-occurring themes spread out through the poem. This included war, a murdered child, the speakers wife, and the idea of portraying impressions of a certain people or idea. The speaker would almost jump back and forth from these different themes and switch his voice when speaking about them. This could be a result of different time frames in the speakers life or represent some kind of aspect the narrator is trying to get across to the reader. This was discussed in class that the poems were placed in this order to get the reader to see how ideas are portrayed to us in the news or to give the wrong impression to people about a certain topic.
One aspect that I questioned while reading this poem was how many different narrators had input throughout the reading. "I am 18, married with 3 children" (Pg 38) "I am 22 years old" (Pg 40) " I am 24 and have four children" (Pg 28) The reason these three passages stood out to me was because they almost seemed to be new introductions of narrators. Two of the three introductions mentioned some type of children or marriage with the speaker. However, one of them did not and it was odd to me that the one that didn't was the middle age and not either the first or last introduction. I also tried to compare the different introductions for any contradicting information that would lead the reader to believe that someone else was speaking but all three did not conflict with each other in any way. Another aspect I thought was very interesting was that the ages revealed in the introductions did not come in chronological order. In fact the ages revealed was in the order of oldest, youngest, and then middle.
Another clue that lead me to believe that there are multiple speakers was the fact that the poem contained multiple re-occurring themes spread out through the poem. This included war, a murdered child, the speakers wife, and the idea of portraying impressions of a certain people or idea. The speaker would almost jump back and forth from these different themes and switch his voice when speaking about them. This could be a result of different time frames in the speakers life or represent some kind of aspect the narrator is trying to get across to the reader. This was discussed in class that the poems were placed in this order to get the reader to see how ideas are portrayed to us in the news or to give the wrong impression to people about a certain topic.
Thursday, January 29, 2015
Tocqueville - Ecclesiastes
Tocqueville was not the kind of book I was expecting it to be. I was expecting a more novel type book than these poems, but I was still mind struck once again. The poem "Ecclesiastes" was the one that stuck out to me the most. I really enjoyed the set up of this writing and I noticed I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through. The double lined writing set up was very appealing to me, and the simple yet clear writing style painted a solid image in my head.
The words "trick" and "rule" played a very big role throughout this writing. This led me to begin to think of my own personal definition of the words to try and better understand the writing. I perceived "trick" as something deceiving, or a way of not abiding by the rules, and I saw "rule" and this sort of set way of doing something or expected routine to follow. "The rule is to make them feel they've come too late. The trick is that you're willing to make exceptions." So if I used my own person understandings of these words than to me this would mean that no matter what happens you need to make them feel this certain way. At the same time, I need to sort of deceive that rule and regardless make an exception for them anyway.
Even after reading this over a few times, I am still not sure what to make of it. My mind wants to put a stamp on this poem and declare that I know what point they are trying to make but I'm stuck in this cluster of different meanings. One meaning I will get is that the author is a therapist and trying to help someone, but at the same time is also tricking them behind their back. They are portraying the illusion of helping but in reality they do not care about the other person at all. I really get this feeling from the lines "The rule is to create a commission system. The trick is to get their number." I find this to be a very greedy and not caring description of the author. The bigger hint to me was to pair this line up next to "The trick is to make it personal: No one in the world suffers like you." I feel that these two were placed next to each other on purpose to display this idea of false rescue.
The words "trick" and "rule" played a very big role throughout this writing. This led me to begin to think of my own personal definition of the words to try and better understand the writing. I perceived "trick" as something deceiving, or a way of not abiding by the rules, and I saw "rule" and this sort of set way of doing something or expected routine to follow. "The rule is to make them feel they've come too late. The trick is that you're willing to make exceptions." So if I used my own person understandings of these words than to me this would mean that no matter what happens you need to make them feel this certain way. At the same time, I need to sort of deceive that rule and regardless make an exception for them anyway.
Even after reading this over a few times, I am still not sure what to make of it. My mind wants to put a stamp on this poem and declare that I know what point they are trying to make but I'm stuck in this cluster of different meanings. One meaning I will get is that the author is a therapist and trying to help someone, but at the same time is also tricking them behind their back. They are portraying the illusion of helping but in reality they do not care about the other person at all. I really get this feeling from the lines "The rule is to create a commission system. The trick is to get their number." I find this to be a very greedy and not caring description of the author. The bigger hint to me was to pair this line up next to "The trick is to make it personal: No one in the world suffers like you." I feel that these two were placed next to each other on purpose to display this idea of false rescue.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
Langston Hughes - Children's Rhymes
Langston Hughes was a very respected poet and he was mentioned in just about every literature class I have ever taken since high school. After looking at some of his poems in class, his poem "Children's Rhymes" caught my attention the most. The reason this poem stuck out to me was the fact that it involved children. The racial discrimination of the of the early 1900's had a huge impact on all children and imprinted certain ideas in their heads at the time. "By what sends the white kids I ain't sent: I know I can't be President." this was in the minds of many young teens that they were inferior to white children and could not achieve the same dreams.
Hughes also portrays the idea that the worries of different races would also be very different from one another. "What don't bug them white kids sure bugs me: We knows everybody ain't free" This was to me the most powerful line in the poem. I think he is trying to say that the law will protect white people and black people know that there will always be discrimination, and they wont get the same treatment as white people. This is why they have more things to be worried about than white people because they don't have the same rights. I also found it very interesting that Hughes added the extra "s" to the end of "know" even though he was very educated in writing, but makes this error to possibly portray some kind connection to his community of people and culture.
However, despite how much I liked this poem, there was also a few aspects I did not. Hughes says "When I was a chile we used to play, "One-two-buckle my shoe!" and things like that. But now, Lord, listen at them little varmints!" and he goes on to state the other two quotes in this post. I was obviously not in his shoes and did not experience the same events as he did in his life, but I have experienced a high amount of racial discrimination where people have been killed, and the kids did not act the way he is portraying them to act. To me, kids are kids no matter the circumstance they are in and find ways to have fun. They don't fully understand the situation and are not singing the blues day and night about racial discrimination. This is a very powerful and sometimes truthful image, but I feel Hughes overplayed the depression of the children to create a better image for the reader.
Hughes also portrays the idea that the worries of different races would also be very different from one another. "What don't bug them white kids sure bugs me: We knows everybody ain't free" This was to me the most powerful line in the poem. I think he is trying to say that the law will protect white people and black people know that there will always be discrimination, and they wont get the same treatment as white people. This is why they have more things to be worried about than white people because they don't have the same rights. I also found it very interesting that Hughes added the extra "s" to the end of "know" even though he was very educated in writing, but makes this error to possibly portray some kind connection to his community of people and culture.
However, despite how much I liked this poem, there was also a few aspects I did not. Hughes says "When I was a chile we used to play, "One-two-buckle my shoe!" and things like that. But now, Lord, listen at them little varmints!" and he goes on to state the other two quotes in this post. I was obviously not in his shoes and did not experience the same events as he did in his life, but I have experienced a high amount of racial discrimination where people have been killed, and the kids did not act the way he is portraying them to act. To me, kids are kids no matter the circumstance they are in and find ways to have fun. They don't fully understand the situation and are not singing the blues day and night about racial discrimination. This is a very powerful and sometimes truthful image, but I feel Hughes overplayed the depression of the children to create a better image for the reader.
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Ted Berrigan's Sonnets
A collage is a mixture of various pictures, objects, or words put together to express either some type of emotion, idea, or tell a story. I chose to read Sonnet XV by Ted Berrigan and not only do you get a poem but a collage as well. This poem has easily become my favorite I've read thus far in class and will be for a long time. The way this poem is set up was mind blowing to me. I had always heard about poets talking about "breaking the rules of writing" and having your own style, but this took the cake for me.
After reading this sonnet for the first time I did not have the same feelings toward it that I do now. I was very confused and didn't see what was so great about it at all. I didn't understand the pop culture references, the sentences did not flow, the ideas were jumping around and I couldn't get a grasp of the poem as a whole. I assumed it must of been special in some way or I would not be reading it in my class right now, but I thought it was just out of my time and I had nothing to gain from it... And thankfully I was incredibly wrong.
After another student mentioned that if you read the sonnet in a certain way it would make much more sense, I had to see for myself. I began matching up certain lines with their counterparts or continuations and it started making some sense and I felt as if I was solving a puzzle. I thought it was just for about four lines of the poem but then soon after I realized that the entire poem was setup in a certain order to where the first line would match up with the last line and second with second from last and so on. I truly got excited because I had never seen something like this in poetry before. Once I had read the entire poem the "correct way" everything had made sense! (except for the pop culture references haha) This was the first time I had ever seen a poet really step out of the box and I was happy we got to read this in class.
After reading this sonnet for the first time I did not have the same feelings toward it that I do now. I was very confused and didn't see what was so great about it at all. I didn't understand the pop culture references, the sentences did not flow, the ideas were jumping around and I couldn't get a grasp of the poem as a whole. I assumed it must of been special in some way or I would not be reading it in my class right now, but I thought it was just out of my time and I had nothing to gain from it... And thankfully I was incredibly wrong.
After another student mentioned that if you read the sonnet in a certain way it would make much more sense, I had to see for myself. I began matching up certain lines with their counterparts or continuations and it started making some sense and I felt as if I was solving a puzzle. I thought it was just for about four lines of the poem but then soon after I realized that the entire poem was setup in a certain order to where the first line would match up with the last line and second with second from last and so on. I truly got excited because I had never seen something like this in poetry before. Once I had read the entire poem the "correct way" everything had made sense! (except for the pop culture references haha) This was the first time I had ever seen a poet really step out of the box and I was happy we got to read this in class.
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
First Poem Reading - Geology of Water
Water is a common symbol used by many writers to grasp the imagination of their readers. The poem I chose to write about is "Geology of Water" by Marianne Moore (Not sure if this is the correct author, the paper did not print well). This was the first poem read by the class and it grabbed my attention from the beginning. The vivid images and use of detail had me hooked and really gave me a good vision of what the author was attempting to describe. Out of the first couple poems assigned to the class this was my favorite one.
"If I bend closer I can hear him drown, a man made out of water whose words arise like bubbles to the surface: something survives in every carbonaceous molecule" (Lines 14-18). This means to me that when we are dying, we make the most of our last breathes and the meaning behind our words will survive even after we are gone. This also sparked a question to myself as I was reading this poem because how can a man drown if he is made out of water? I loved this small passage and really enjoyed thinking about the meaning behind it.
"Evolution croons its single song, come out of the sea, my love, to me, and never adds, and drown knee-deep in air." (Lines 24-27). This was by far my favorite line in the entire poem because it has so many meanings and just sounds awesome at the same time. One interpretation was that humans in a way evolved to get out of the water, but still drown and die in the air. It also has a darker feeling to the way it is portrayed. As if "Evolution" is tricking the human race to come to this glorious place and evolve, but when they get there they see it is not what they expected.
"If I bend closer I can hear him drown, a man made out of water whose words arise like bubbles to the surface: something survives in every carbonaceous molecule" (Lines 14-18). This means to me that when we are dying, we make the most of our last breathes and the meaning behind our words will survive even after we are gone. This also sparked a question to myself as I was reading this poem because how can a man drown if he is made out of water? I loved this small passage and really enjoyed thinking about the meaning behind it.
"Evolution croons its single song, come out of the sea, my love, to me, and never adds, and drown knee-deep in air." (Lines 24-27). This was by far my favorite line in the entire poem because it has so many meanings and just sounds awesome at the same time. One interpretation was that humans in a way evolved to get out of the water, but still drown and die in the air. It also has a darker feeling to the way it is portrayed. As if "Evolution" is tricking the human race to come to this glorious place and evolve, but when they get there they see it is not what they expected.
Wednesday, January 7, 2015
Introduction Blog
Hi everyone, my name is Anwar Alqurneh. I am 19 years old and a sophomore here at Eastern Michigan University. I am a transfer student from Michigan State University and was also apart of the football team here at EMU. I live in Farmington Hills, MI which is about 30 minutes north of here, but I am originally from Westland, MI. I am also a proud brother of the Fraternity Phi Gamma Delta at Michigan State, but I am enjoying my time here at Eastern Michigan.
I am not a big reader but I love to write my thoughts on topics and just express myself through writing. I was still not sure about signing up for this class but that changed last semester. My Literature professor Tony Spicer had opened me up to dig deeper into my writing and reading abilities so I decided this class would be a good fit for me. I am looking forward to getting feedback from my peers and hopefully developing as a reader and writer in the next few months.
I am not sure what to expect from this class just yet. I am hoping to meet some of the other students and build some friendships, but at the same time I am interested to see if the class will react well together, or this will be a class where everybody just sticks to themselves. I am a big fan of open discussions of readings during class so that will be an interesting part of the course for me and others too. I'm sure I'll look back at this first post at the end of the semester and it will put a smile on my face because this is my first blog post ever.
I am not a big reader but I love to write my thoughts on topics and just express myself through writing. I was still not sure about signing up for this class but that changed last semester. My Literature professor Tony Spicer had opened me up to dig deeper into my writing and reading abilities so I decided this class would be a good fit for me. I am looking forward to getting feedback from my peers and hopefully developing as a reader and writer in the next few months.
I am not sure what to expect from this class just yet. I am hoping to meet some of the other students and build some friendships, but at the same time I am interested to see if the class will react well together, or this will be a class where everybody just sticks to themselves. I am a big fan of open discussions of readings during class so that will be an interesting part of the course for me and others too. I'm sure I'll look back at this first post at the end of the semester and it will put a smile on my face because this is my first blog post ever.
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