Comparing Rumi and Mirabi's Poetry
Rumi and Mirabai's poetry, in different ways, has the ability to convey a deep longing for something sacred in their time. Mirabai sometimes refers to herself in the third person that deepens her desperation of being heard by the dark one. In overall poetic structure, Mirabai's work is seldom more than one page whereas Rumi's poems tend to be several pages in length and the different sections broken down into smaller poems. After hearing the Songs of Mirabai in class, the persistent longing for love of the dark one makes much more sense. The human voice can convey deeper emotion than merely reading poetry in one's own head. This is where the power of her words come through, even if they are not understood to the English speaking listener. Mirabai uses the image of restless sleep as an example of her in-completion.
Both of these poets say things in their work that I can only suppose would be somewhat controversial in their respective times such as Mirabai singing about wanting to be born as a man. Another device Mirabai uses in her writing are birth-to-death references, which I have recently learned to be one of the Buddhist exercises for awakening. As we have discussed in class, it is sometimes difficult to truly make a judgement on how a particular poet "reads" as it is up to the individual translator, within a certain poetic license.
Of the two, I enjoyed reading Rumi the most. His writing is more like storytelling and I can follow it more easily. Rumi also has an underlying philosophy that Mirabai's songs don't contain. To him, intoxication can be a form of astral travel, and in finding this higher plane, Rumi warns that others will simply not understand. Both poets have strong beliefs in their work, but Rumi is broader in the sense that he deals with a wide range of topics from religion to children to nature and seems to be sure of himself and his writings, even when he occasionally directs a thought provoking question to the reader at the end of a stanza.
Themes in both pieces differ even though they are related to a religious subject. There is a biblical context in both pieces. For instance, Guillaume Machaut expresses devotion to the Virgin Mary in the lyrics. To illustrate, the composer wrote the following text for the motetus voice:
...nts a man looking back on his childhood with love and longing admiration. Both poet's have used their childhood experiences to create a window into their past, reviewing a piece of their lives, to move forward with their bold futures.
what they believe in. The similar that both of authors for the common themes is that they
which is perhaps what the girl in the poem was lacking as a child and
on: April 10th 1864. He was born in 1809 and died at the age of 83 in
“How many notes written…” (Mirikitani 1-2). This opening line of Mirikitani’s poem introduces many different questions and ideas one may have about the poem and also introduces the metaphor that will be used throughout the poem. When reading the first line, one may ask the questions: How many notes has the speaker written?, Has she thought of attempting suicide before?, Has she tried writing a suicide note before
These poems have many different things in it. Both of them have mentions of a higher power. For example Songs of Innocence “ and by came an angel who had a bright key,” and Songs of Experience “ and are gone to praise God and his Priest and King.” Also both poems have a mostly negative tone, and have a child as the speaker whether it is third person or first person.
As Edgar Allan Poe once stated, “I would define, in brief the poetry of words as the rhythmical creation of beauty.” The two poems, “Birthday,” and “The Secret Life of Books” use different diction, theme, and perspective to give them a unique identity. Each author uses different literary devices to portray a different meaning.
All the poems you have read are preoccupied with violence and/or death. Compare the ways in which the poets explore this preoccupation. What motivations or emotions do the poets suggest lie behind the preoccupation?
of the speaker through out the poem. One Art is a poem about inevitable loss and the incognizant
In his preface of the Kokinshū poet Ki no Tsurayaki wrote that poetry conveyed the “true heart” of people. And because poetry declares the true heart of people, poetry in the minds of the poets of the past believed that it also moved the hearts of the gods. It can be seen that in the ancient past that poetry had a great importance to the people of the time or at least to the poets of the past. In this paper I will describe two of some of the most important works in Japanese poetry the anthologies of the Man’yōshū and the Kokinshū. Both equally important as said by some scholars of Japanese literature, and both works contributing greatly to the culture of those who live in the land of the rising sun.
Keshavarz discuss the life and poems of Rumi. Rumi was inspired by his thoughts of spirituality, love, religion and the Sufi Traditions, where he observes how people relate one another. Tippett explains how Rumi utilized the community of the Whirling Dervishes by focusing on how people should stay centered while moving in their lives, learning from their experiences, which will help us grow and be a better person. Keshavarz points out that Rumi was inspired from the Islamic Traditions to write about how people should
Aside from the conditions, which lead to the creation of these works, they share a number of other common threads. Symbolism aside these works are very similar on the surface. Both are a collection of seemingly disjointed images, which when put together by the reader or observer serve up a strong social message. That messages being that the wars and conflicts of the times have twisted the world. This is reinforced by the contorted and misshapen images in both works.
So in conclusion I think both of the poems are very interesting. Both of the poets have felt similar emotions throughout their experiences and poems. Such as anger, humiliation, unfairness and sadness. Although I like them both I prefer “In a Brixtan Markit”. I prefer this I because it is based on a real experience, and it is in a West Indian dialect which I think makes it unusual, interesting and different.
Lorca’s poetry is seen as dull and flat when translated into English, but when the original poem and the translation are side by side, they still manage to be captivating. The incorporation of musical knowledge was a nice touch on his work. Because he was also a playwright, some of his plays were found in his poetry as well. Readers can find repetition of nature-based imagery. He is constantly compared to Burns because of his realism, while he always admired Whitman (1).