Shel Silverstein does it again with his book, A Light in the Attic with his childish, sometimes terrifying, creativity. The book itself seems like a mild book for children at first sight, with the majority of poems about childhood, parents, talking animals, and the power of imagination. But as soon as you get under the initial fluff of the poem, you’ll be sure to find the thick felt underneath as these poems deal with a lot of universal themes. Themes such as following your dreams (“Moon-catchin’ Net”), making the best of your situation (“Somebody Has To”) , and giving and getting the chance to learn about people to fully understand them (“Deaf Donald”). To achieve these topics as well as make reading books enjoyable for children, Silverstein uses hilarious imagery, a lot of it. The poem, “Bear in There” shows this use by describing a quite large polar bear residing in the character's fridge eating everything! “With his seat in the meat And his face in the fish And his big hairy paws In the buttery dish…. “He’s nibbling the noodles, He’s munching the rice He’s slurping the soda He’s licking the ice…” (47) There is rhyming in the poems as well, however, some poems are pushed to a point where the author makes up …show more content…
Although all of the poems are written from Tupac Shakur himself, he did not compose the book. In fact, this book was made in an honor of him and his collaboration of poems he had written throughout the course of his life. In a way, Tupac is a true poet and he is not because he did not intend to publish the book as others did it for him. The books also has real-life scans of his drafts and poems, written as they are (exactly as they are) on the next page. Because the poems are written as they were originally, the raw energy and emotion may compare to that when Tupac had first written the poems, creating a truly unique
Early on, poetry was often used with rhyme to remember things more accurately, this still rings true today, even though its use is more often to entertain. However, although it appeals to both the young, in children's books, and the old, in a more sophisticated and complex form, people are bound to have different preferences towards the different styles of poetry. Dobson’s poetry covers a variation of styles that captivate different individuals. “Her Story” is a lengthy poem with shorter stanzas. It’s free verse structure and simplistic language and face value ideas might appeal better to a younger audience. This poem includes quotes with informal language that children or teens would better understand. It’s narrative-based style is easy to follow, and although the poem covers very basic concepts, it’s message is still communicated subliminally. This particular poem is interesting because it focusses on the universal experience of pain and it’s relation to time. Similar to this is “The Householder”, written in a cyclical style, opening with a “house” and ending with a “home”. With only three stanzas, it is
Rhymes are two or more words that have the same ending sound. Songwriters and poets often times use rhymes to help their piece flow better, or keep the audience or readers engaged. Billy Joel’s song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” is filled with rhymes, with a rhyme in almost every single line: “Brando, the King and I, and the Catcher In The Rye / Eisenhower, Vaccine, England’s got a new Queen / Marciano, Liberace, Santayana goodbye” (line 6-8). Billy Joel uses the rhymes to move from one topic to the next, and the song is even in chronological order from 1950 to 1989. The rhyme schemes of the song are end rhymes as well as perfect rhymes. On the other hand, the poem is completely free verse, or without a single rhyme. This makes the poem less artistic and harder to remain engaged and interested. In addition to rhyming, allusions are another way of displaying artistic
Silly poems and deep, dark truths are the world of Shel Silverstein. The lights in the attic always seem to be on; however, if one takes a hard look at Silverstein’s work, one must look beyond the lights in the attic to delve through the rest of the house to come up with a whole picture of who Shel Silverstein was. As with most authors, the face put forward in public for consumption rarely matches the behind-the-scenes person who keeps personal secrets away from society. All understand this concept because everyone holds “secrets” close, never to be revealed to the world at large. As one reads Silverstein’s books, his Chicago upbringing becomes apparent. Not only are his poems timeless; his poetry delves into the world of what was important
After a four week survey of a multitude of children’s book authors and illustrators, and learning to analyze their works and the methods used to make them effective literary pieces for children, it is certainly appropriate to apply these new skills to evaluate a single author’s works. Specifically, this paper focuses on the life and works of Ezra Jack Keats, a writer and illustrator of books for children who single handedly expanded the point of view of the genre to include the experiences of multicultural children with his Caldecott Award winning book “Snowy Day.” The creation of Peter as a character is ground breaking in and of itself, but after reading the text the reader is driven to wonder why “Peter” was created. Was he a vehicle for political commentary as some might suggest or was he simply another “childhood” that had; until that time, been ignored? If so, what inspired him to move in this direction?
Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews Have you ever imagined living locked up in an attic for 3 years and 5 months? Have you ever imagined not growing up with your mother's care and love at the time you were 5? Flowers in the Attic is one of the more original series written by V.C. Andrews of the Dollanganger series. It is one of the best books I've read because it's depressing and dark yet heart-touching. In this book report, the setting, plot and the characters of the book will be included. Flowers in the Attic is one tragic yet a hopeful story of four children.
Rhyme-The last words of line one and line three of each stanza rhyme. The last words of line two and line four of each stanza also rhyme. The rhyming words contribute to the rhythm and flow of the poem.
In each of his poems, the Loser, Thumb Face, Warning, Squishy Touch, and Skin Stealer, Silverstein presented an illogical situation, but made it entertaining to the reader by using end rhyme, creating an amusing story, and including a vivid picture. His writing ability made his poems enjoyable for both children and adults and will continue to delight his readers for years to come. Works Cited Friday, Sely. "Biography." Shel Silverstein Collected Information. 1999. http://195.114.233.19/Silverstein/bio.html (25 Oct. 1999).
It can be incredibly hard to create a natural, almost musical rhythm with words, but it doesn’t seem to be a problem for the speaker. Because they are passionate about words, they easily manipulate them such that the words roll off the readers tongue. The author even hints at their intent of this effect in the poem, stating “the ripest berries fall almost unbidden to my tongue, as words sometimes do, certain peculiar words”. The speaker beautifully crafted their words into a rhythmic masterpiece that almost begs to be sang—it is difficult to read the poem out loud without singing the words due to the rhythm the author infused into the
...ration, onomatopoeia, rhyme etc. One of the sound types I will be looking at is Full or perfect rhyme. This sound type is significant as in Dulce Et Decorum Est at the end of each sentence rhymes with the one before the last. This is significant as when reading this poem you notice this rhyming scheme and take more time to stop and ponder over the significance of the language it is based around and what connotations that word has: “Bent double, like old beggars under sacks” and “Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs”. This is one of the most effective rhyming schemes in the poem. Due to every second line rhyming this makes your remember what the poet was trying to put across in the previous lines as all the different lines have a way of tying in with one another.
Richard Robinson, the President and CEO of Scholastic Inc., the world’s largest publisher and distributor of children’s books, said that a great children’s text contains a simple and original idea, is written with humour and makes the world more interesting. Despite being published in 1928, A.A. Milne’s The House At Pooh Corner remains a highly effective children’s text. The text meets the criteria set out by Richard Robinson and it has been able to do so through its good uses of literary elements such as style, themes and characters. Some examples of this can be linked to the works of various developmental theorists such as Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky and Erik Erikson.
Not all of those forms rhyme. The poetry is not the line placement, it is what the line placement helps express. It is simply a more effective (and more technically difficult) thing to accomplish when placed in meter. Poetry is that song that finds its way from within when we see it in some form before us, regardless of line or verse.
“If you are a dreamer, come in” (Silverstein 9). The opening line in Where the Sidewalk Ends, the first book in his popular trilogy, Shel Silverstein offers the reader a seat by his fire and a few tales to hear. He sets out his theme, for this book and others, of adventure, imagination and creativity. Silverstein’s style of poetry is often referred to as peculiar or unconventional. Each of his poems, though off the wall, has an underlying message or advice on life, love, school, family and many other topics. Shel Silverstein teaches his readers life lessons through his quirky and eccentric poems.
According to Eileen Gillooly, in Poetry for Young People: Rudyard Kipling, the flowing cadence of the poem is a well honed technique that Kipling often uses. She explains that Kipling worked carefully to make every word count and have a strong impact (4-5).
Since the late 18th century, nursery rhymes or Mother Goose Rhymes become popular among young children as a form of poem (Carpenter & Prichard, 1984). People have been enjoying nursery rhymes for centuries (Think of the Children, 2015). If you ask people to recall childhood memories, they would probably be chanting the wonderful nursery rhymes they were able to recite long before they could read or write. However, at-risk young children are not experiencing these wonderful poems properly nowadays though they have a more enriched information and social environment than young children of previous generations.
The short story, “Unlighted Lamps,” by author Sherwood Anderson is about a relationship between a father and his daughter. Their relationship is a stressful one because neither of them talk to each other, nor show their emotions. Throughout the story, you find out why their relationship is the way that it is, and why it is hard for her father to talk to her. The unlighted lamps in the story represent flashbacks of memories wherever light dances across something.