Crossing the Bar

"I hope to see my Pilot face to face when I have crossed the bar."


I think this poem is about dying and going to heaven. I think "crossed the bar" is a metaphor for going to heaven. The Pilot is God, one because it is capitalized and two because you see God when you go to heaven. I feel like the speaker may be wanting death so almost suicide. The phrase "And may there be no moaning of the bar when I put out to sea" makes it sound like the speaker is willingly dying. I'm not exactly sure why the speaker does not want people to mourn over his/her death. People who commit suicide usually feel like people don't care about them but the speaker makes it sounds like he/she knows people care so he/she doesn't want them to mourn. Maybe the speaker is going off to war or something? That could make sense, because maybe then he knows he is dying for a good cause so there is no reason to mourn the death. Now I feel like I might be just making up things that may or may not be true. I'm confused on why "Time and Place" are capitalized. There seems to be a destination of this "Time and Place". Is it heaven? At the end of time? 

My mistress' eyes

"And yet..."


I found this poem humorous and I think that was it's intent? It seemed to be a satire of the typical love poems. The poem begins with a simile "my mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun" basically saying that his mistress' eyes are dull not bright like the sun. The fact that this poem was written by Shakespeare is funny to me since he wrote Romeo and Juliet which is a complete love story. The speaker's tone for most of the poem seems to be critical. He is pretty much bashing his girl saying that she has nice traits but not as good as they could be. The speaker "loves to hear her speak, yet well I know that music hath a far more pleasing sound" saying that his mistress doesn't quite measure up to his standards. The tone then shifts with the phrase "And yet". The speaker states that "my love as rare as any she belied with false compare". I'm not sure exactly what this means. I think he is saying that although he sees all these flaws in his mistress, his love for her is still genuine. But then again, I feel like this entire poem is making fun of poems that declare their love for their significant other with similes and metaphors to things of beauty.

Hazel Tells LaVerne

"well i screams
ya little green pervert
and i hitsm with my mop"


I really liked this poem because it was easy to follow and funny. I visualized the speaker of this poem as being an uneducated woman judging by her language of "hitsm" "ta flush" and "musta". I'm thinking maybe a black woman who is a housekeeper because she is cleaning toilets in a "howard johnson" or hotel room. This poem seems like a satire of the "Princess and the Frog". In the original story, there is a pretty girl who is dying to be a princess. However, in this poem the woman can never see herself as a princess and sees the frog as some sick joke or a "little green pervert". I think the humor in this poem conveys a theme of everything is not what it seems. When first reading this poem, I thought the woman would love to kiss the frog and be a princess and live a better lifestyle. It's surprising and funny that the woman wants nothing to do with being a princess. I think she already had a sense of who she was and her place in society and wasn't really searching for anything more. 

Getting Out

"Taking hands, we walked apart, until our arms stretched between us. We held on tight, and let go."


Begging with the simile "that year we hardly slept, waking like inmates", the poem immediately establishes the relationship of the couple. I think the inmates is referring to inmates of a mental hospital because of it describes them as those "who beat the walls" and the poem gives off a feeling of confinement. I think the author's tone at first is bitter. She is describing how annoyed the two were at each other with "we gave up" and "you tried to pack up and go". I think the speaker is blaming both of them for messing up the marriage. The last line of the second stanza states, "Finally locked into blame, we paced that short hall, heaving words like furniture." They both knew that their marriage wasn't working out and the simile "heaving words like furniture" gives off a sense that the couple was starting to develop a strong dislike for each other. The tone then shifts to a more distressed tone. The line "I'm startled by mean who look like you" means to me that the speaker is sad about the breakup and still gets anxious when she sees men who look like her ex-husband. The last line of the poem which is written above kind of summarizes the whole poem to me. It seems that the couple was naive and not emotionally mature enough for a serious relationship. When they were with each other, they were unhappy and annoyed at their confinement. However, once they gave up on their relationship, they couldn't seem to let go. 

Dover Beach

"The Sea of Faith
Was once, too, at the full, and round earth's shore
Lay like the folds of a girdle furled"


I think this poem is all bout the loss of faith and trying to get it back. The simile above is comparing how faith used to be present in the world to the folds of a girdle furled. I didn't know what girdle or furled was but I looked them up and a girdle is a light corset and furled is rolled tightly. I think this means that faith used to be extremely present in the world and was held tightly and regarded as important by people. However, now faith is lost. The speaker says "I only hear its melancholy, long, withdrawing roar, retreating to the breath of the night-wind". The departing diction of "withdrawing" and "retreating" show how the faith of the people is slowly declining. I feel like the speaker may be addressing a group or people or making a speech of some kind. The last three lines of the poem talk about the "struggle and flight where innocent armies clash by night". I think the speaker is using the armies as a metaphor for what will happen to the people the speaker is addressing if they don't regain their faith. Another simile is used to compare the world to a "land of dreams". It's like the people have these big dreams and they look promising, but they can't fulfill them because of their lack of faith. 

Mr. Z

I think this poem is a complete satire of society. The society is extremely judgmental of race, ethnicity and religion. The fact that Mr. Z isn't given an official name only clarifies to me that this poem is a satire of society and not an individual person. Mr. Z could represent any person who is discriminated against. This character was "taught early that his mother's skin was a sign of error" basically forcing him to disown his heritage and conform to what society thinks is acceptable. The man had to be "careful whom he chose to kiss" and "choosing the right address" which means society contolled every aspect of his life.
The last line of the poem was also satirical. He was classified as "One of the most distinguished members of his race" yet the man did everything possible to disown his race. I think this poem is saying that it's hard to live in a society that doesn't accept your race/ethnicity/religion. People often feel like their only option and opportunity for success is to go along with society and try not to call too much attention upon themselves.

APO 96225

I found this poem very sad and disheartening. I think situational irony is taking place here. The mother knows her son is holding back information, but once she gets the information it's too much for her to handle. I think the irony is effective because it's very understandable. Most mothers worry about everything especially their children, and they can't stand to hear bad things happening to them. I think this poem really relates to America and it's past.
The questions after the poem stated that APO 96225 was the mailing address for the 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam. I know that during the Vietnam War and just wars in general, the people at home really have no idea what's taking place overseas. They act like they want to know what's going on but they really don't want anything to do with the horrific scenes taking place. At first the mother wanted to know everything telling her son "don't hold back" and "tell us what it's really like". However, once she learned the truth, the father had to respond to the son telling him that his story was "upsetting" his mother. I think this is true for many people. We want to hide problems and act like they don't exist so that we don't have to deal with them.

Sorting Laundry

The entire poem "Sorting Laundry" seems to be a metaphor. The opening line "Folding clothes, I think of folding you into my life" sets the tone for the entire poem. The speaker compares her household chores to her life with her love. The speaker states that "towels patterned orange and green...reserved, we said, for the beach" and "pillowcases, despite so many washings, seams still holding our dreams". The comparison of her goals and dreams with this person to household objects reflects how her job as a housekeeper has influenced her life.
There is also an overstatement in the poem. The last stanza states, "a mountain of unsorted wash could not fill the empty side of the bed". The overstatement is in the "mountain of unsorted wash". Obviously there is not a mountain of clothes, but it shows the speaker's huge desire and need for this man in her life.
I thought that maybe this guy cheated on the speaker judging by the lines, "the strangely tailored shirt left by a former lover". I thought that maybe the speaker was saying that she was willing to look past that because of all the history the two have together and because she can't have a void in her life.

Barbie Doll

This poem was kind of amusing and kind of serious at the same time. I felt bad for laughing but I couldn't help it at the lines, "Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said: You have a great big nose and fat legs." Although I thought that line was funny, it is actually very true especially in today's society. I think this poem is all about the pressue to be perfect. There was absolutely nothing wrong with the girl in this poem, "she was healthy, tested intelligent, possessed strong arms and back". However, "she went to and fro apologizing. Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs." It is so sad that all anyone cares about is looks and the girl couldn't get passed her insecurities about her looks. Society was telling her to "play coy" and "exercise, diet, smile and wheedle" instead of promoting her strong features.
One simile in the poem really represented the theme for me. It says, "Her good nature wore out like a fan belt". I wasn't sure what a fan belt was but I looked it up and it is in a car or vacuum and wears out after being used. I think this simile is extremely effective because it really puts this girl's life into perspective. She was being advised to be fake like a barbie doll and she was pretending to be something that she wasn't. It wore her down until she was gone completely.

Much Madness is divinest Sense

This poem begins with a paradox, "Much Madness is divinest Sense" basically saying that those who are mad actually have the most sense. I think this paradox is effective because to me, it really is an opposite statement that contains truth. Sometimes, people who go off on their own ideas and don't follow the path set by society, often achieve the most success.
The speaker states later in the poem that "assent-and you are sane-demur-you're straightway dangerous-and handled with a chain". I think this is saying that society often wants people to conform. If people agree with the rules set by society and go along with what society says is right then they are considered normal. Those who stray away from society and strive to be different are considered "weird" or "strange" or "insane". They are treated badly just for being different. I think the speaker is saying that it's okay to be different and those who are different are actually the wisest of everyone.
This poem makes me think of the movie Legally Blonde. Elle Woods is a typical sorority girl living in a society that classifies her as a dumb blonde whose only good trait is her looks. However, she breaks out of the sterotypes and decides to enroll in Harvard Law School. Everyone thinks she is insane and crazy, but she proves them all wrong and solves a murder case.

Toads- Philip Larkin

This poem kind of confused me. I got the fact that there were two toads and each represented something different. The first toad was called "work". The speaker begins the poem by stating that he works hard six days a week only to "pay a few bills". The speaker is saying that he is working too much and too hard and is not able to enjoy life. The "lecturers, lispers, losels" work at a minimum and still survive and lead happy lives. The speaker is envious of these people even though they are very poor. However, the phrase "to should stuff your pension!" states that the reader is too scared to take a chance and leave his money behind. The second toad is introduced after this. I'm not sure exactly what the second toad represents. The phrase "and will never allow me to blarney my way to getting the fame and the girl and the money all at one sitting" make me think that the second toad is the voice of reason within the speaker. The speaker wants to step away from his high-profile job so that he can enjoy the simple things in life and indulge in some pleasures. However, the voice of reason is telling him that he can't abandon his job because that will mean no income which will lead to difficulties down the road. I feel like I may be completely wrong on this but that was my initial interpretation.

Pink Dog- Elizabeth Bishop

I felt like I understood parts of this poem but not all of it. I think the poem as a whole was a satire. The speaker almost has a teasing tone throughout the poem. The speaker is telling the dog what the town does to "idiots, paralytics, parasites" and asks "what would they do to sick, four-legged dogs?" I feel like this poem is a satire because it is using a helpless, ugly dog to represent the poor and beggars of Rio de Janeiro. The speaker tells the dog to "dress up and dance at the Carnival". The dog has to dress up and hide his true identity in order to be accepted. The dog will be ridiculed unless he conforms to society. I think the speaker is showing how poorly treated the beggars of Rio de Janeiro are if they are being compared to a "naked" dog. Some figurative language is also used in the phrase "you simply can't afford to be an eyesore". The speaker is implying that people will not want to look at the dog because it is so ugly. People look down on the poor and beggars; therefore, they don't want anything to do with them.

Bright Star- John Keats

This entire poem is an apostrophe. The speaker is addressing the bright star and wondering what it would be like to be the star. First, the speaker envies the star and wishes it could be "steadfast" like the star. I think what the speaker means is that stars remain in one place and are unchangeable. The speaker wants his love to remain unchangeable. However, then the speaker moves into some doubts about being a star. "Lone splendor" is something that the speaker does not want because he wants to remain with his love, not be alone. The phrases "my fair love's ripening breast" and "her tender-taken breath" imply that the speaker is male and longs to be with his woman. The phrase "and so live ever-or else swoon to death" implies that the speaker would rather die than be without his love. One of the questions asked what the meaning of repeating the word "still" was. I think the speaker was trying to emphasis how a star remains still and how his love remains faithful. The apostrophe was effective because it's almost like the speaker was having a conversation with the star and was discussing the positives and negatives of being a star.

I Taste a Liquor Never Brewed- Emily Dickinson

This poem was very interesting. I think it is comparing the intoxication of alcohol to the intoxication of nature. The speaker discusses flowers, air, butterflies, bees and the sun which imply a theme of nature. The speaker uses a lot of figurative language and symbols. "Tankards scooped in Pearl" and "Debauchee of Dew" connect the pleasure and addiction of alcohol to the pleasure of nature. "Out of the Foxglove's door" symbolizes a drunk being kicked out of a bar, and a bee leaving a flower. The last stanza talks about "seraphs" and "saints" which implies that the speaker will not stop indulging in nature until the day she dies. I think the figurative language in this poem is effective because the speaker is more implying what she means instead of straight out saying it. She is using symbols like "tankards", "vats", and "mountain dew" to portray her thoughts about alcohol and nature.

Dreams Deferred- Langston Hughes

There are many literary techniques in this poem. I found it interesting that almost the entire poem contained rhetorical questions. The speaker is asking the reader what happens to dreams or goals that they don't go after. Although rhetorical questions don't require an answer, I think they are effective because they allow for reader involvement. While reading this poem, I found myself seeking an answer to each of the questions posed. Do my dreams "dry up like raisins in the sun?" Do my dreams "stink like rotten meat?" I suppose they do. Rhetorical questions get the reader thinking.


Another literary technique used in this poem was a metaphor. The entire poem contained five similes and was only eleven lines long. That impressed me. The last line however contained a metaphor. The metaphor was "or does it explode?". I think this metaphor that compares giving up dreams to explosions is effective because it creates a lasting image. I think the writer used five similes and then one metaphor to contrast his final idea and show how it was different from the others. The word explosion brings up images of destruction and doom which is what the speaker says will happen if we don't go after our dreams. 

London

I found this poem extremely depressing but also interesting. The poem starts out with pretty much everyone being miserable. It makes me think that some sort of tragedy or disaster occurred. The last line of the first stanza contains alliteration, "weakness and woe". I feel like this is effective because it is emphasizing the pain of the people in London. The third stanza moves into the specific classes of people. It pushes the blame to the upper class/royalty. It makes me think that something big must have happened because usually the government gets blamed when a huge disaster occurs.


The last stanza I think contains the most meaning. It offers two paradoxes: "youthful Harlot" and "Marriage hearse". The paradox of youthful harlot shows that the prostitutes are to be sympathized with not blamed. The speaker is claiming that they are still innocent and the destruction in London have left them with no other choice but to turn to prostitution. The second paradox of marriage hearse is kind of reiterating the destruction. It's basically saying that the prostitutes are ruining marriages and bringing children into an unhealthy environment. However, again the speaker is not blaming the prostitutes, just stating what the world has come to. 

The Panther

This was another poem where I was unsure of the overall meaning, but I did notice things. The main thing I want to point out is the simile the author uses. He states, "the movement of his powerful soft strides is like a ritual dance around a center". When I think of a ritual dance, I think of a tribe of Native Americans dancing around a fire. That may be a stereotype but that is what comes to my mind. I think this simile is effective because it clarifies that fact that this panther cannot escape. A ritual dance is a routine of some sort and the movements have to be done just right. I think this poem contains a tone of panic. The line "a thousand bars; and behind the bars, no world" seem to me like the panther is trapped and can't escape. But escape from what? That is the question. Another phrase "the curtain of the pupils lifts, quietly" symbolize the panther's eyes opening. This means that the whole first stanzas could be existing inside of a dream or within the mind. The poem also makes me think that the setting is a prison, with the "passing bars" and "no world" behind them. But then why would a panther be at a prison?

Those Winter Sundays

There were parts of this poem that confused me and I really want to uncover the meaning of it. So beginning with the first stanza, the speaker describes with very good diction his father's work ethic. The "blueblack cold" and "cracked hands" really make the reader feel bad for this poor father who gets up tired every day to support his family and keep them warm. The last line of the stanza is "No one ever thanked him". After reading that stanza, I really felt sorry for this guy, and I was angry that no one every thanked him. Then the second stanza goes on to state that the child never wanted to get out of bad and even when the father called, he "slowly would rise and dress". At this point, I was really thinking that this kid was a brat. However, then the next line really stuck me, "fearing the chronic angers of that house". 

Why does the speaker fear the house? When we discussed this topic in our small groups today, most of the people brought up the point that the father could be abusive. This would make sense, especially with the first line of the third stanza which says, "Speaking indifferently to him". Nevertheless, I'm not so sure that the father was abusive. Why would the speaker regret how he treated his father if the father beat him? The line "angers of that house" make me think that the animosity has more to do with the house itself. Maybe it contained many unhappy memories of loneliness for the boy. There is no mention of a mother so that could be the root of it. I guess what I'm saying is that I'm not exactly sure what the angers of the house are, but I have a few ideas.


This poem kind of makes me think of the song Haunted by Taylor Swift. One because I still feel like there is something scary or secretive about the house and the song's title relates to that. Also, the poem makes me think that maybe the boy had a falling out with his father and this song is about losing someone and regretting letting them go. The first line of the song "you and I walk a fragile line, I have known it all this time but I'd never thought I'd live to see it break" could be relevant to the relationship between the father and son saying that he always knew they didn't get along but now he regrets not saying enough to his father. 

The Widow's Lament in Springtime

I felt a lot of sympathy for the speaker of this poem. She's looking at the nature around her and all of it reminds her of her deceased husband. I found a  paradox in the poem, "cold fire". She is explaining how she sees things differently now that her husband is gone and pain is now overcoming her life. I think the paradox is effective because it shows how drastically the speaker's emotions have changed. She feels like she is being engulfed by darkness and despair. The vibrant "fire" or zest for life she once had has been transformed to "cold". However, it's not the nature's beauty that has changed, but the woman's attitude. The line "some bushes yellow and some red but the grief in my heart is stronger than they" states that the woman has given up hope and feels like her only option is suicide. 

I felt a Funeral, in my Brain

I found myself excited to read this poem. After looking at the title, for some reason it interested me.


While studying this poem, I found a lot of imagery. However, after reading the poem a second time, I realized that all of the imagery had to do with hearing and there was no sight involved. With sight usually being the most prevalent sense expressed in imagery in poems, I knew the author had to have a specific purpose for excluding it. The lines of imagery "like a Drum-kept beating" and "mourners to and fro kept treading" allowed me to visualize what was taking place: a funeral. I think the author excluded the sense of sight because the speaker is the participant in the funeral. He or she is being buried, hence "and then I heard them lift a Box". Also, the funeral is taking place inside of her/his brain; therefore, she/he can't see what is taking place. The speaker is going insane, "and then a Plank in Reason, broke" and feels like a part of her/his soul is dying. The author's use of the imagery of sound allows the reader to understand where the speaker is coming from. 

So this is poetry

I was really dreading having to read The Nature of Proof in the Interpretation of Poetry by Laurence Perrine. However, I actually  learned a lot from it and found it very interesting. For my two paragraphs I am going to answer these two questions: What idea/strategy/concept do you agree with? and What can you use from this article to help guide your study of poetry in this class?


Although I have not spent a ton of my years in school studying poetry, I always thought that a poem could be interpreted any way the reader wanted to interpret it. Boy was I wrong. Perrine immediately states that this idea is "a critical heresy". Nevertheless, the more I read the essay, the more I agreed with Perrine. Poems don't have to have one set meaning, but they can't just mean anything we want them to mean. I liked his example of the poem The Sick Rose by William Blake. When we were asked to read this poem for homework, I thought that the rose symbolized love or a lover and the worm symbolized what went wrong in the relationship. (this was the only poem I got even close to being right) Anyways, Perrine goes on to explain that the rose must mean something beautiful or desirable and the worm must mean some kind of corrupting agent but the two things can't just mean anything. Perrine relates his idea to an ink blot. Poems are not like ink blots, poets have a specific purpose for writing their poems and they strive to have the reader understand these meanings.


I think this article could be very helpful in studying poems in class.  I really liked when Perrine said that a correct interpretation of a poem must explain details in the poem and not rely on assumptions based on things outside of the poem. Personally, when I attempt to interpret poems, I find myself assuming things and stating a meaning that is based on things I don't know for sure. Perrine states that we have to use the details given in the poem and not rely on outside sources. As I study poems now, I will try to interpret the meaning based on what the writer has given me. When I feel like I have discovered the meaning, I have to make sure that it is not far-fetched and the details in the poems support my analysis. Perrine's example of Emily Dickinson's poem helped explain this theory. Although the garden meaning could be right, the sunset meaning is more applicable. The garden meaning doesn't define all the details in the poem and relies on assumptions like the wind stopping. In order for a poem to be correctly interpreted, the meaning has to satisfy all the details of a poem.