Lenore Keeshig-Tobias
analytical Essay
511 words
Abdirahman Abbas
Ms. Curran
ENG-3U1-02
3 Oct 2014
Poem Analysis Assignment of “I Grew Up” (Historical/Biographical) Most times in life we don’t appreciate what we have, but in some rare cases people do appreciate what they have because they don’t realize that there is anything better. In the poem “I Grew Up” by Lenore Keeshig-Tobias that is exactly what she is trying to put forth to the readers. Lenore Keeshig-Tobias is describing her love towards the native reserves and all the great memories she had their as a child. Born in 1950 Wiarton, Ontario, she was the eldest of ten children and a member of the Chippewa of the Nawash First Nation on the Bruce Peninsula. Much of Keeshig-Tobias’ work draws upon the realities of native life and
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how lenore keeshig-tobias' poem "i grew up" reflects her love for the native reserves and the mythological icons and symbols of her people.
- Analyzes how the subject matter of "i grew up" is written through the eyes of an aboriginal woman who grew up living on a reserve.
- Analyzes how structure, format, and rhyme are important elements in poetry. "i grew up" is structured into stanzas of three short lines and has no use of punctuation to mimic nature and its natural flow.
- Analyzes how audience, tone, and mood are key aspects towards the understanding of this poem. the tone is positive and establishes the true essence and pure beauty of nature.
- Analyzes how the literary/ poetic devices in the poem are in every stanza. hyperbole, repetition, personification, and imagery make the language interesting and influences one to interact with the world.
- Analyzes how the poem "i grew up" by lenore keeshig-tobias is trying to express that people should appreciate what they have even if others think it is unbearable conditions.
It describes the many positive and memorable events shared there. These experiences allowed the woman to cherish and appreciate the revere and all it can naturally offer. The speaker also discusses the significance of the life on the reserve in regards to nature for aboriginal in contrast to how non-aboriginal views it. Structure, format, and rhyme are all important elements in poetry. “I Grew Up” is structured into stanzas of three short lines. It also has no use of punctuation to mimic nature and its natural flow. The format is a narrative of the speaker’s life on the reserve and the poem has no evident of rhyme scheme. Audience, tone, and mood are key aspects towards the understanding of this poem. The audience in this poem includes everybody specifically those who are ignorant to the life and culture of aboriginal living on reserves. The tone is positive and establishes the true essence and pure beauty of nature. The tone could also be reflective because it reflects upon the qualities that accompany life on the reserve. The reader can simply infer that the mood is peaceful, hopeful, cheerful, and
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In this essay, the author
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- Analyzes how keating's redfern address explores the development of belonging through connections to people, places, groups, communities or the larger world.
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- Analyzes how keating addresses the white australian community directly through personal pronouns such as ‘us’ and ‘we’, which connects with people personally, and directs the accusation towards the whole white community.
- Analyzes how identity, relationships, experience, and understanding are significant in paul keating's 'redfern address' as it adds depth and complexity to the text.
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- Explains that relationship is an important theme to explore in "the redfern address" because it shows how long indigenous australians have been attempting to belong to the non-indigenous community.
- Explains that some of the experiences discussed in this text are a direct result of not belonging. the inclusion of these experiences allows responders that do not have an indigenous background to resonate with the text.
- Analyzes how paul keating aims to enrich the lives of indigenous australians by showing them that white australia has recognized the wrongs of the past, and are trying to right them.
- Analyzes how keating challenges the lives of the non-indigenous community, asking if indigenous australians have been portrayed as accurately as they should be. these lines prompt responders to challenge their own ideas about history.
- Analyzes how keating has created a text that challenges, as well as enriches the lives of others through the information that he has incorporated into his speech regarding indigenous and non-indigenous australians.
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- Analyzes how the text references the mabo case, which reflects a massive change in the attitudes towards indigenous peoples.
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- Analyzes how the lines "it might help if we... we can imagine it’s opposite" use perspective to put the non-indigenous australians into the shoes of indigenous australians.
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- Analyzes how elaine o'neil's image titled "hugging to show an affection of love" reflects feelings of sadness, anger, and affection through hugging one another.
- Analyzes how o'neil's poem depicts a young woman and her loving mother discussing their heritage through their matrilineal side.
- Analyzes how linda hogan's poem portrays the traits that significantly shape the human identity, such as the young daughter wondering how her life will turn up beyond her heritage.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how louise halfe's poem "my ledders" connects the loss of native traditions, customs, and languages to the residential school system.
- Analyzes how the speaker is expressing on behalf of the effects resulting from the residential schools, stating that the cultural customs were taken from "nohkom and nimosom."
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- Analyzes how the poet uses satire to convey disgusted feelings of how her culture has been altered and combined with a loss of meaning.
- Analyzes how the poem characterizes the view of a native woman expressing feelings of passion relating to her culture, criticizing society, in particular christianity.
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In this essay, the author
- Explains that louise halfe was born in 1953 in two hills, alberta. she grew up a member of the saddle lake reserve and at 7 was sent to the blue quills residential school in st. paul.
- Explains that halfe has a degree in social work from the university of regina, as well as training in drug and addiction counseling.
- Describes how louise halfe uses all four common elements of native literature in her writings.
- Analyzes how halfe's poem, my ledders, is written as if it were being spoken, using phonetic spelling.
- Analyzes how halfe uses the repetition of words to express orality. in she told me,'she always told me' describes native legends or old wives tales passed down to her by her mother.
- Analyzes how halfe uses storytelling and oral traditions in her poem the heat of my grandmothers. she intersperses the cree language with english, which shows her struggle with living in a white society.
- Analyzes how the theme of spirituality is a main theme for louse halfe in her poem the heat of my grandmothers.
- Analyzes how this poem shows her connectedness with nature when describing the deaths of her grandmothers’ husbands: "called magpie, crow and raven to clean his body"
- Analyzes how halfe describes the menstrual cycle as the moon and the power that women have during this time. she also talks about spirits in the poem she told me.
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- Cites moses, daniel david, and terry goldie's an anthology of canadian native literature in english.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how heather buck's 1993 poem, the lost heritage, uses literary elements and devices to communicate her intended message. it discusses a new generation that has forgotten its cultural roots and laments the passing of old traditions.
- Analyzes how buck creates a sharp contrast between the past and present, which enhances the overall nostalgic tone.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how heather buck's 1993 poem, the lost heritage, uses literary elements and devices to communicate her intended message. it discusses the issue of a new generation that has forgotten its cultural roots and laments the passing of old traditions.
- Analyzes how buck creates a sharp contrast between the past and present, which enhances the overall nostalgic tone.
- Analyzes how buck's dramatic choice of words influence the reader’s perspective of the poem and convince them to adopt her message.
- Analyzes how buck uses metaphorical figurative language in the last stanza to demonstrate the consequences of being isolated from one's cultural background.
- Analyzes how heather buck conveys her message about the value of knowing one's cultural background through imagery, diction, and figurative language.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how mary oliver uses the voice of her speaker to dismiss and belittle poets who focus on their own misery in their writings.
- Analyzes how the speaker's diction and tone primarily stress her irritation towards the poet, but they also emphasize the different attitude she feels toward the poem’s second 'poet.'
- Analyzes how oliver's incorporation of imagery, setting, and mood to control the perspective of her own poem serves a critical role in creating the lesson of the work.
- Analyzes how oliver's purpose extends beyond simply reproaching overly dramatic poets; her incorporation of various poetic elements has created two opposing images of poems as the evidence for her argument that poetry focusing on more positive, or externally meaningful, subjects.
- Analyzes how oliver alters the nature and structure of her simple scolding into a more meaningful reproach of the poet who chooses to create his poetry on internal suffering as opposed to external beauty.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how change shapes our personalities, molds us as we journey through life, and for some people, change is what breaks us. silko explores the struggle to keep up with an evolving world while still holding onto their past.
- Analyzes how silko presents rocky as someone who wants more than what a reservation can provide, and highlights the push for native americans to essentially become white.
- Analyzes how silko emphasizes the change his character has undergone, the effect war has on these reservation veterans.
- Opines that silko's message is timeless and doesn't just apply to native americans. it applies to changes we all experience, including death or growing up.
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- Analyzes how the heart wrenching poem decries the heinous crimes that the white committed against the aboriginals. the mood of the poem is predominantly melancholy.
- Analyzes how davis' discriminatory choice of vocabulary contributes to the feeling of the poem. he intentionally used old english words, such as kith and guile, to give historical context.
- Analyzes how the writer's selective use of poetic devices enhances the message. davis uses metaphors to accentuate his words.
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- Describes the colour of the poet, frank corso, who is non-aboriginal of italian heritage.
- Analyzes how corso's cultural background and heritage gives him insight into the major issues facing aboriginal people. he composed my face is black on australia day, when the aboriginal plight was brought to the forefront.
- Analyzes how my face is black is a heavy and confronting poem that evokes emotion from the reader. the tone of the poem is solemn and dismal.
- Analyzes how vocab, ailments, condescension, fiscal, nullius, and poetic devices are used in the poem. the imagery conveys corso's ire at the disrespect of aboriginal culture.
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In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how paul keating's 1993 speech, "the unknown australian soldier," acknowledges the contributions of the australian soldiers in the war to develop a sense of unity and national identity.
- Analyzes the theme of unity in sir william deane's 1999 ecumenical service for the victims of the canyoning tragedy. the literary allusion evokes unity within a nation.
- Analyzes how keating reminds the audience of the universal experiences of war to unify the nation and the world.
- Analyzes how deane draws connections between switzerland and australia by placing two different ideas beside each other. the use of second-person engages the audience from this personal approach.
- Analyzes how the composer's tone shifts and ends with positive vocabulary in the concluding paragraphs to let the audience gain a deeper understanding of what it means to be australian.
- Analyzes how deane's sombre and calm tone is conveyed through the long, flowy sentences reminding the audience that australians value unity and peace.
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