Ok poetry haters out there--
read this poem and tell me what you think the message is. This is a very modern poem, no Old English to decipher.
Even if you don't like poetry, I think you will be able to "figure this one out." What is the poet trying to tell us? (Then tell me why this poem is/isn't easy to understand.)
Then--and here's the part that's most important--find a poem somewhere and copy and paste it here. It needs to be one you semi-like and understand. Tell why you picked it. It can be funny or serious, as long as it's a poem. Make sure it's at least four lines long, and be sure to list the poet if you can.
Notice
Steve Kowit
This evening, the sturdy Levi's
I wore every day for over a year
& which seemed to the end
in perfect condition,
suddenly tore.
How or why I don't know,
but there it was: a big rip at the crotch.
A month ago my friend Nick
walked off a racquetball court,
showered,
got into this street clothes,
& halfway home collapsed & died.
Take heed, you who read this,
& drop to your knees now & again
like the poet Christopher Smart,
& kiss the earth & be joyful,
& make much of your time,
& be kindly to everyone,
even to those who do not deserve it.
For although you may not believe
it will happen,
you too will one day be gone,
I, whose Levi's ripped at the crotch
for no reason,
assure you that such is the case.
Pass it on.
I think the point of the poem is to not take things for granted. I think it was very easy to understand because of the fact that everyone can relate. The jeans i think are supposed to be our lives, and how one day something can happen that will just rip them down the middle.
ReplyDeleteWhere the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
There is a place where the sidewalk ends
And before the street begins,
And there the grass grows soft and white,
And there the sun burns crimson bright,
And there the moon-bird rests from his flight
To cool in the peppermint wind.
Let us leave this place where the smoke blows black
And the dark street winds and bends.
Past the pits where the asphalt flowers grow
We shall walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And watch where the chalk-white arrows go
To the place where the sidewalk ends.
Yes we'll walk with a walk that is measured and slow,
And we'll go where the chalk-white arrows go,
For the children, they mark, and the children, they know
The place where the sidewalk ends.
I have always enjoyed this poem. The very first line makes me think how there always has to be an end to something. The end of the day. The end of high school. The end of your life.
I think that this poem is talking about making the most of your time here on earth and be a good person because you don't know when you're going to die. I think that he mentioned his jeans ripping as a comparison to his friend that died. He had no idea that his pants were going to rip because he thought they were in perfect condition. His friend appeared to be in perfect health but just dropped dead for no apparent reason.
ReplyDeleteOkay, so here's my poem because I forgot to put it in the last post. I like this poem just because it's silly. I couldn't find who it was written by.
ReplyDeleteThere was an old man from Peru
Who dreamt he was eating his shoe
He awoke in the night
In a terrible fright
And found it was perfectly true...
I think this poem is about live life to the fullest before its too late. The speaker is saying you never now when you'll be gone so spend your life how you should and not worry so much about the little things. The ripped jeans represented the speaker's friend dying because the jeans ripped for no reason just like how his friend collapsed and died for no reason.
ReplyDeleteA Failed Leadership
by Cynthia A. Buhain-Baello
True leadership takes more than brains and muscle, it takes character.
A path was drawn for his leadership,
No man had ever been more blessed,
Destined by God to loosen the grip
Of Philistine hold and grant Israel rest.
Born through the hand of the Almighty,
To a sterile woman and set apart for God,
A Nazirite from birth, strong physically,
He sadly grew up to be a stubborn lad.
He was weak with women and in character,
Devoid of respect and had a quick temper,
Prone to resolve all issues with anger
Through violent rage ending up with murder.
With all his physique, he failed to free
His land Israel from her captivity.
Revenge was his focus, his main agenda
Till he fell in love with sly Delilah.
Empty in the head and never had a plan,
Samson was a strong hunk but failed as a man.
Delilah had used him and with his sight gone,
He ended up a toy for the Philistine fun.
At the last minute, he prayed for God's mercy,
His strength was restored albeit in futility,
He died in his blindness physically
But then he saw Truth spiritually.
In the Book of Judges, he is remembered
As the man with potentials for great leadership,
Without God in his life, his purpose was hindered,
In death he lost that success from his grip.
There are Samsons today, in our times.
With all their knowledge, they engage in crime,
For strength and power, dollars and dimes,
Failed leadership is a generation's slime.
This poem was actually really easy to get. This is the type of poetry that I do like. This poet is basically telling the readers that you never know what is going to happen. Tomorrow is not for sure for anyone, so you need to make the most of life while you have it.
ReplyDeleteThe poem I chose is:
Friends 4-Life
by Doryan Hallicy
Friends 4- life is what we are
Through thick and thin you were my friend
Leaning on you, you gave me support
The strength to get up and go again
If my heart was shattered, you'd heal it
If my heart was happy, we both rejoiced in it
You are my best friend
always and forever
It's been good
the best friendship ever
Never end, now and forever
I picked this poem because I feel like most people have that one friend that this poem is true for.
This poem is about enjoying and being grateful for your time here on earth. Your life could end in a second. I think that he mentioned his ripped jeans to symbolize that your life can suddenly end just like getting a rip in your jeans. I think it's quite easy to understand because the author's diction is modern and easy to understand.
ReplyDelete“Do You Have Any Advice For Those of Us Just Starting Out?"
Ron Koertge
Give up sitting dutifully at your desk. Leave
your house or apartment. Go out into the world.
It's all right to carry a notebook but a cheap
one is best, with pages the color of weak tea
and on the front a kitten or a space ship.
Avoid any enclosed space where more than
three people are wearing turtlenecks. Beware
any snow-covered chalet with deer tracks
across the muffled tennis courts.
Not surprisingly, libraries are a good place to write.
And the perfect place in a library is near an aisle
where a child a year or two old is playing as his
mother browses the ranks of the dead.
Often he will pull books from the bottom shelf.
The title, the author's name, the brooding photo
on the flap mean nothing. Red book on black, gray
book on brown, he builds a tower. And the higher
it gets, the wider he grins.
You who asked for advice, listen: When the tower
falls, be like that child. Laugh so loud everybody
in the world frowns and says, "Shhhh."
Then start again.
What I love about this poem is that it says to just keep going, that everything is going to be okay.
I chose this poem because its for young adults and its easy to understand because its about leadership which is something we can all relate to.
ReplyDeleteThis poem is very simple to read. I believe it's telling us that everything can be the same everyday of your life, you can get used to the repetition but one little thing, that comes out of nowhere, can change it. It also tells us not to take it for granted.
ReplyDelete"The sturdy Levi's I wore every day for over a year and which seemed to the end in perfect condition, suddenly tore. How or why I don't know, but there it was: a big rip at the crotch." The Levi's are like the continuous pattern on ones life, and then one day for no reason what so ever they rip. The cycle is broken, and the life as you knew it was gone. You might go threw the same things everyday, but the Levis are now gone. Forever changed.
"A month ago my friend Nick walked off a racquetball court, showered, got into this street clothes, and halfway home collapsed and died." Nick is a symbol of life and that sudden change. He was going on as usual then bam, he died. That change and every thing was all over.
"Drop to your knees now and again like the poet Christopher Smart,
and kiss the earth and be joyful and make much of your time and be kindly to everyone, even to those who do not deserve it. For although you may not believe it will happen, you too will one day be gone" states that enjoy and celebrate what you have and treat everyone with respect, it and you might soon be gone.
"Natures Kiss"
There's no disappointment with the rain, it washes away the tears and hides the pain. As the wind lifts strands of my hair, I forget about every care.
The rush of the river soothes a sore soul, the scent of a freshly bloomed rose holds one whole.
The shimmering of the blanket of stars puts a worried mind to peace. Fresh grass between ten toes gives lost thoughts a release.
As the fog swarms me in moist velvet abyss, I slowly forget all those I miss. With nature's care your mind is in bliss.
If you open your eyes, you will see we are blessed with natures sweet kiss.
I picked this poem because it explains how when you have a lot on your mind the simplest things around you can help you slip away from the problems and focus on some good things..
This poem was very easy to understand. One reason is because I've read it before (and I can't think of what class I read it in), and also because it is put into language that we can understand very easily. I believe this poem was trying to get the point across that you don't need to take life for granted, because you never know when your life will suddenly change or even end. The poet gave the example of his friend, in perfectly good health, walking down the street and dropping dead. The poet is saying to live life to the fullest, as live as if today was your last day.
ReplyDeleteDaffodils by William Wordsworth
I wandered lonely as a cloud
That floats on high o'er vales and hills,
When all at once I saw a crowd,
A host, of golden daffodils;
Beside the lake, beneath the trees,
Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.
Continuous as the stars that shine
And twinkle on the milky way,
They stretched in never-ending line
Along the margin of a bay:
Ten thousand saw I at a glance,
Tossing their heads in sprightly dance.
The waves beside them danced, but they
Out-did the sparkling leaves in glee;
A poet could not be but gay,
In such a jocund company!
I gazed—and gazed—but little thought
What wealth the show to me had brought:
For oft, when on my couch I lie
In vacant or in pensive mood,
They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.
I couldn't think of a poem off the top of my head that I really liked, but I came across this one when I was searching the internet. I really liked it because it made me think of how much I like flowers and how peaceful they made me feel when I see them growing by the water, just like the poet said. This poem comes across to me as peaceful and the flowers by the water give the poet an escape as a sort of "happy place".
This poem was easy to understand and I think it means that you shouldn't take for granted what you have. You have such a wonderful life whether you really think you do or not if you were to stop and compare it to someone else's that truly is living a hard life you would realize that you probably have a very good life. Also I think its saying that you never know when you are going to die so be careful to make sure not to regret anything that you do or say, because you may not get the chance to make things right.
ReplyDeleteMaybe Not Forever
by Angell
There are so many stories I still want to tell
There are so many I love you's left unsaid
There are many tears left uncried
There are many dreams left to fall apart
I miss our long talks
I miss the nights when all was alright
I love you like a sister, you were my angel,
Yet I wonder why you left me here to die
We were forever best friends-
When one fell to the ground
The other one was there to help her back up.
We healed our broken hearts
With a hug and a gentle smile.
We stayed up every night looking at the stars,
Giggling like little girls and having midnight talks.
You said you had to go-
I wished it wasn't so.
You said we'd always write.
You said it would be like old times.
I looked in your eyes as you looked into mine,
With smiles like everything was fine.
Yet we both knew well that this was our last good-bye.
We knew that we would never again
Have those long talks and play like little girls again.
We knew all the pain we'd cause ourselves.
I also knew that my angel was being taken away,
Yet we promised no matter what we'd remain forever best friends
I've actually read this poem before. I got it the first time I read it, and actually understood it. I believe like Kalie said that it is about not taking life for granted, to be thankful for what you do have and no one can truly relate to someone unless they have been in their shoes. Don't judge. I also like Kalie believe that the jeans symbolize our lives.
ReplyDeleteThe End
by Dev
I turn the corner, and there you are,
While we both pretend not to see the other.
We keep walking, our eyes straight ahead,
And I'm grateful, as we pass one another.
We were best friends for one year,
A year of laughter, a year of tears.
In the short time of bliss,
We had promised to be friends for years.
But those �years' have now been altered,
And the friendship has lasted just one.
I know that it is the end,
This is a friendship that will not be won.
You don't understand why it ended,
Or that I didn't want it to.
But sometimes in life,
You have to do what you have to do.
This was one of those cases,
I could no longer call you my friend.
I now know it can never go back,
And I have to realize, this IS the end
Okay so I ran across this poem, and I really liked it. I liked it because I mean it shows how there are people you used to be friends with and like it tells how you you can and should just move on.
The poem was very easy to understand. Its obviously saying not to take things for granted. The jeans are compared to life and how you never know what could happen, even if somethings been going good for years, it could easily be taken away and don't take it for granted.
ReplyDeleteAll for the Future
by Bailey Goodman
Friday, December 29, 2006
Rated "G" by the Author.
we all live for the future
I am alone in the woods
dark, cold, lonely
don't want to feel this way
I am running in circles
wake-up, go to school, go to work
wasting away endless hours
only for the future
do this, do that
it will work out in the future
why not live for tody
be aware of the future
for it will creap up fast
be aware of today
it will be gone soon
I really like this poem because it easily relates to me, and a lot of people at our age. I feel like we are so confused about what college we want to go to, or what career, and I think this poem because it shows everyone what's going through our mind. Its a shared problem or even that people go through, is worrying about the future.
I think this poem is saying to expect the unexpected. I dont really ever get the message right from a poem so it probably isn't right. He was saying how his favorite Levi's, ones he had worn over and over, just suddenly ripped. That was definitely unexpected.
ReplyDeleteMy pig won't let me watch TV.
It's totally unfair.
He watches anything he wants
but doesn't ever share.
I never get to watch cartoons
or anything like that.
He's busy watching farming shows.
I should have got a cat.
I should have got a goldfish
or a guinea pig or goat.
Instead, I've got this pig
who's always hogging the remote.
--Kenn Nesbitt
I like this poem. What I got from it was that his pig was "hogging" his remote so it was kind of like a double entendre. He wish he would have gotten a different pet just like people don't like to be around "hogs"
I think what this poem is trying to get across is not to just take things for granted. Anything could happen at any time and just because you don't expect doesn't mean it can't happen. We should live life to fullest and make the most we can out of it.
ReplyDeleteThe Door
by Claire G Shaw
Sometimes I'm strong, Sometimes I'm weak,
Sometimes I'm aggresive, Sometimes I'm meek.
Why is it that my moods change from day to day?
I go up and down like a yoyo at play.
I can never seem to find what I'm looking for,
I never seem able to go back through that door,
The door holds the key to childhood, security and peace.
It doesn't have a handle and I seem to have lost the keys.
I remember as a child being happy and having fun.
Memories a tumble of icecream, snowflakes and playing in the summer sun.
Why can I not exist blissfully ignorant like I used to be?
Those sunny times are forever closed to me.
I like this poem because it shows the innocence and joy of our childhood. As we grow up we no longer have that content feeling throughout life. So when we look back to our past memories we can smile.
I think this poem is to make the best of every situation. Life is too short to be hateful and to dwell on things that don't matter. I also think it's saying, be a friend to everyone, because you never know when you, yourself will be in deep need for a friend.
ReplyDeleteA Special World
A special world for you and me
A special bond one cannot see
It wraps us up in its cocoon
And holds us fiercely in its womb.
Its fingers spread like fine spun gold
Gently nestling us to the fold
Like silken thread it holds us fast
Bonds like this are meant to last.
And though at times a thread may break
A new one forms in its wake
To bind us closer and keep us strong
In a special world, where we belong.
- Sheelagh Lennon -
Just like everybody else this poem is telling you don't take things for granted because they aren't always going to be there. Be grateful for what you have and make the most of it is a good them for this poem.
ReplyDeleteI chose the poem "The tide rises, the tide falls" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
The tide rises, the tide falls,
The twilight darkens, the curlew calls;
Along the sea-sands damp and brown
The traveler hastens toward the town,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
Darkness settles on roofs and walls,
But the sea, the sea in darkness calls;
The little waves, with their soft, white hands
Efface the footprints in the sands,
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
The morning breaks; the steeds in their stalls
Stamp and neigh, as the hostler calls;
The day returns, but nevermore
Returns the traveler to the shore.
And the tide rises, the tide falls.
I like this poem because its a big reality check for people who think they are the center of the universe. Nature doesn't care if you live or die, it will continue on like it always does. Its just a routine.
I still hate poetry. but this poem is saying that tomorrow might be the last day of your life so live today to the fullest. you never know what is going to happen tomorrow.
ReplyDeletei chose this poem because the site said it was about living life to the fullest and I like the title.
Be Drunk
by Charles Baudelaire
translated by Louis Simpson
You have to be always drunk. That's all there is to it—it's the only way. So as not to feel the horrible burden of time that breaks your back and bends you to the earth, you have to be continually drunk.
But on what? Wine, poetry or virtue, as you wish. But be drunk.
And if sometimes, on the steps of a palace or the green grass of a ditch, in the mournful solitude of your room, you wake again, drunkenness already diminishing or gone, ask the wind, the wave, the star, the bird, the clock, everything that is flying, everything that is groaning, everything that is rolling, everything that is singing, everything that is speaking. . .ask what time it is and wind, wave, star, bird, clock will answer you: "It is time to be drunk! So as not to be the martyred slaves of time, be drunk, be continually drunk! On wine, on poetry or on virtue as you wish."
I think the author is saying that you need to ejnoy and appreciate what you have while you have it, because you don't know how long it will last.
ReplyDeleteJust ran across this poem and it made me laugh. So...
Be Glad Your Nose is on Your Face
by Jack Prelutsky
Be glad your nose is on your face,
not pasted on some other place,
for if it were where it is not,
you might dislike your nose a lot.
Imagine if your precious nose
were sandwiched in between your toes,
that clearly would not be a treat,
for you'd be forced to smell your feet.
Your nose would be a source of dread
were it attached atop your head,
it soon would drive you to despair,
forever tickled by your hair.
Within your ear, your nose would be
an absolute catastrophe,
for when you were obliged to sneeze,
your brain would rattle from the breeze.
Your nose, instead, through thick and thin,
remains between your eyes and chin,
not pasted on some other place--
be glad your nose is on your face!
Be kind,
ReplyDeletefor everyone you meet
is fighting a hard battle.
-Plato
I don't know if that one is a poem or a quote, but I think of it as a poem.
The words sound like the stanza of a song.
It's one of my favorites.
...but I don't like the levi's one...
...Just don't...
I'm a poetry hater
Read this poem in AP, the one about the jeans. It's good I think. He's obviously talking about life, about how unpredictable it is, you never know when something is gonna happen and change your life. So tell your friends he says to be ready for those random life changing events.
ReplyDeleteThe Road not Taken
Robert Frost
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth.
Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same.
And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
This is real poetry to me, good poetry. I love this one, he's talking about life and how there are two paths you can take it just depends on which one you take. I think he meant for this poem to be different to everyone the two paths are not some common thing that everybody faces, it's an event personal to one person and they must take the path they think is right. I like to think that one leads to destruction and the other life.
This poem is easy to understand don't take life for granted, you never know when your time will be up. To answer kayla we did this poem in AP Literature.
ReplyDeleteMy poem is about friendship and what a true friend should be. I liked this poem- it was very easy to understand and it made me think.
A friend is a person whom you don't have to ask the question "are you my friend" you just know they are.
A friend will go anywhere to see you, near or far.
A friend will offer their shoulder to you when you cry.
They never let you down with a long dreadful sigh.
You can tell them anything and they understand
they reach out to you, take your hand.
They lead you down the path called life
stand with you through your pain and strife.
You know that friendship will never fade.
They are your sunshine and shade.