Exploring the Relationship Between How a Person Speaks and What That Tells Us About that Person Through Poetry
The poem 'Half-Caste' has been chosen to be compared with 'Unrelated
Incidents'. Pride in language is shown in both the poems. Both the
poems are very similar in a number of ways. The two poets, Tom Leonard
and John Agard, are proud of the way they speak and they feel angry
towards society. While Tom Leonard tries to show how society is
prejudiced against the people who talk in a Glaswegian accent, John
Agard is satirizing the stupidity and offensiveness of the term
"half-caste". This reflects in the structure of the poem. The language
and tone is quite similar in both the poems.
The structure of the poem 'Unrelated Incidents' is very simplistic. It
looks like a teleprompter. Very short lines have been used. This poem
is carefully written in a phonetic version of the Glasgow accent. If
you pronounce it exactly as it's written, it should sound more or less
like a Glaswegian voice. The poem seems to be spoken by a BBC
newsreader. The poet stresses on the use of the local accent, which is
just the kind of voice the newsreader is rejecting. The reader, on
seeing the structure of the poem, can at once understand its concept.
The poem 'Half-Caste' is written in five stanzas of varying lengths
and irregular line length. It is bound together by assonance,
alliteration, and repetition rather than rhyme or meter. The lines
throughout the poem are quite short, perhaps to hammer home the
message. The structure of this poem is quite contrasting to that of
'Unrelated Incidents'.
In the poem 'Unrelated Incidents', the poet has played with language
in a number of ways, apart from the phonetic spelling. There is almost
no punctuation. There is no use of any capital letters and very few
full stops. There are lots of slang and colloquial words (scruff, belt
up). The persona seems frustrated over cultural differences. The lines
of the poem are very short. This makes the poem sound amusing.
Poetry is often created by an author’s need to escape the logical, as well as expressing feelings and other expressions in a tight, condensed manner. Hundreds of poets have impacted society throughout history through phenomenal poetry that, even with dark tones can be emotionally moving.
Poetry is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and rhythmic qualities; it is solely used to evoke emotive feelings in the reader in which to convey a message or story. This form of literature has a long history dating back thousands of years and is considered a literacy art form as it uses forms and conventions to evoke differentiating interpretations of words, though the use of poetic devices. Devices such as assonance, figurative language, alliteration, onomatopoeia and rhythm are sometimes used to achieve a musical and memorable aspect to the poem. Poems are usually written based on the past experiences of the poet and are greatly influenced by the writer’s morals values and beliefs. Poetry regularly demonstrates and emphasises on the
“One merit of poetry few persons will deny: it says more and in fewer words than prose.” Said by Voltaire can describe the two poems, Seventeen by Andrew Hudgins and Traveling through the Dark by William Stafford. Both poems are written in a prose fashion but mean so much more than the written words. At a glance, the poems both seem to be about the tragic deaths of animals; however, the poems differ in their themes of growing up in Seventeen and the intermixing of technology with man and nature in Traveling through the Dark.
In today’s modern view, poetry has become more than just paragraphs that rhyme at the end of each sentence. If the reader has an open mind and the ability to read in between the lines, they discover more than they have bargained for. Some poems might have stories of suffering or abuse, while others contain happy times and great joy. Regardless of what the poems contains, all poems display an expression. That very moment when the writer begins his mental journey with that pen and paper is where all feelings are let out. As poetry is continues to be written, the reader begins to see patterns within each poem. On the other hand, poems have nothing at all in common with one another. A good example of this is in two poems by a famous writer by the name of Langston Hughes. A well-known writer that still gets credit today for pomes like “ Theme for English B” and “Let American be American Again.”
Poetry is more than just a correlation of words; poetry contains power. Poetry works by sculpting the English language in such a way that it produces sound, while endeavoring to recreate experiences. I really grasped this concept when we read Dulcem Et Decorum Est, by Wilfred Owen. Among other things, this poem contains haunting imagery, and a rhythm that produces the sound of being in the trenches. While reading this poem, Wilfred Owen’s words made me fearful and paranoid. The slightest sound could hold my attention. I also noticed how silent the room felt after we finished the poem. We were all struck and disturbed by the old phrase Dulcem Et Decorum Est.
The poem told the story of a man who is inhibited by language, and has never quite had the ability to articulate his thoughts and feeling through words. It is said that his family members have tried
Poetry is a literary form of art in which poets express their emotions and opinions about the world. There are many forms of poetry and goals that poems wish to achieve. Some poems exist merely for the reason of entertainment and release of emotions, but poems should exist as a form of art that is trying to achieve something or get a point across. Poems typically have an overreaching theme and can “speak to each other” or in other words can relate to one another. For one to understand these themes and connections among poems one must use a method of closing read. Among the many poems that have been explored in my jazz literature course, two poems standout “Black Art” by Amiri Baraka and “A/Coltrane/Poem” by Sonia Sanchez. Both poems “speak
Though most of the poem is not dialogue, from what little speaking there is between the...
Whenever people read poetry it takes into another planet, wonder how? Most authors of poetry have managed to take people into places they never seen before. Their use of imagery can describe both a majestic place or a nightmare on earth, and anything in between. For example, the use of metaphors can connect objects, or places to another, and as a result a metaphor can uncover new and fascinating advantages of the original thing. Another example is alliteration that provides importance, and sometimes supports in memory because it is catchy and perhaps humorous. In the magical world of poetry, all the rules of formal writing go out the window and create a piece of art, something that is entirely unique. Poetry is also very unique because it rarely uses characters; instead it uses literary devices that describe everything in depth. Overall, poetry uses many ways and methods to intrigue its readers to what more and more poetry. With hundreds of spectacular poets we have today it is made possible.
When reading or listening to poetry, the main objective for me is to feel moved. Happiness, longing, sadness are some of the feelings that can be achieved just by listening to others’ words. It is within these words that creates another world, or separates us from our own. Words all have a certain kind of attachment to them, so if used properly an author can stimulate a reader beyond belief.
Even though poetry is still taught in classes, students will only view it as a required subject. A majority of students do not find poetry interesting just from investigating on their own. However, when they are learning it in a classroom setting with their peers, they may have more enthusiasm about the topic. Yet, after these students learn about the influence that poetry has brought to our society, they are still inclined to explore their own writing style. There is nothing wrong with this, but this proves that poetry has strayed away from its actual literature and the value it
When we first started the poetry unit, I felt that I would hate reading and creating poetry. When I heard we had to read poetry I was very disappointed. Every other year we did poetry units, I hated it. I hated every part of it. I dreaded reading poetry and answering the questions. I mostly felt this way because I am a factual person. I always have to have one right answer. I do not like when there are more than one answer choices that are correct. Poetry always has more than one interpretation.This year, however, hearing poetry and writing my own poetry has changed my opinion on poetry. Although I still hate answering questions on the poems I love to listen to poetry and write my own poetry. But, even when you read the poems that I write they are very straightforward and there are usually no other ways to interpret it.
I have read her chapbook The Branches, the Axe, the Missing” several times and her words stirred in me the need to tap into my own emotions when I write my poetry. The amount of time she ponders regarding her relationship with her father appeals to my artistic inclination to explore further in my own poetry some of the relationships that have come and gone in my own life. Specifically, her work speaks to a long dormant relationship I had with my own father, a conflict that became an empty hole upon his death years ago. Her poems such as pages “Eighteen and “Twenty-six” were my favorite poems in her book. I have read poem twenty-six several times and have read it aloud to myself in the mirror. Charlotte Pence pens a concrete image of life with her father, intertwining in specific diction an event that has impacted her adulthood. This prose technique allows me to understand that the remembrance of one specific event in a relationship can affirm the infinite effect a relationship between a father and daughter has on the future. The lesson I learned from her work is that a good poet must avoid corny language in the process of writing a poem. I took this lesson to heart when I revised my poem “Stolen Trust” and my attempt to remember how one specific life event impacts how I view the world. Many of her words have a resonating ring of familiarity with me yet I am clear that my relationship with my father was much different that she has with her father. Thus, when I revise my poem I want to stick with the truth. I use the language I know and stick with the facts of the event. Even though I identify with Charlotte Pence and her words, my poetry is in my own
Poetry unlike fiction is solely based on the author’s personal take on a certain subject. The tone, diction, syntax, and mood of a poem are all determined by the author of the poem. For some readers, to interpret a poem or explain the plot can be a difficult task. Other forms of literature such, as fiction is much easier to understand and discuss.
Not often are students educated about the way they speak in the past. Another way to reach a bigger audience is to make the poems easily attainable.