Post 7: Poetry Unit Reflection

            I hate poetry. Or at least, I used to. After this unit I now have something of a begrudging respect for the form of writing. Previously I thought of poetry as a cliché and melodramatic way of expressing emotions. If I’m being honest, I still think of some poetry like that. But after analyzing famous works in this unit I’ve come to enjoy some of them, in particular ‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night ’ by Dylan Thomas.

            I find that I enjoy poetry that uses more formal language and what might be considered atypical descriptions and grammar. Normal speech and writing can become so dry and these sorts of poems allow the writer to ‘spice up’, if you will, the English language.

            Friends of mine write poetry as if it were their drug. I may not be at that level but I can understand why it’s addictive. After working on a poem or spoken word for an extended period of time I found myself thinking in rhythms, which might have been sort of funny had it not been so entirely irritating.

            Though we did the spoken word assignment in the poetry unit, it seemed like a subject on its own. Yes it is poetry, but its different in the way that its entire value is dependant on how you perform it and how it comes across in that moment.

            I had heard spoken word before but never seen live performances. I practiced my piece dozens of times the night before and had it memorized but I never anticipated the nerves. It was very different from reciting a speech, which I have done on multiple occasions without any mental breakdowns (As of yet). Obviously the subject matter was closer to my heart than the typical ‘Eye Symbolism in King Lear’ speech topics but I was none-the-less surprised by my own nerves.  

            I am told that the nerves gave it more emotion and actually enhanced the piece rather than took away from it but I was still irritated that it caused me to choke on some phrases, making the piece chopping in the places it wanted it to be flowing and smooth.

            What surprised me even more than my own nerves was how much more effective spoken word was when watched live. When I was looking for a piece to analyze for the blog post I listened to dozens on YouTube, but they couldn’t compare to being in the room while watching my classmates perform.

            In reflection, I enjoy poetry much more than when the unit started and can appreciate how difficult of an art form it really is. Words are fickle. A verse in a poem may work beautifully at first, but when you return to the work later the meaning has changed and the entire thing sounds like something bent at an awkward angle. I still find poetry frustrating, and probably always will, but it no longer seems like such as waste of time. 

Randompedia: Rivers of Gold

Subject: Belinda Mulrooney, Klondike Entrepreneur

Set to the music of Sound of Silence Sound of Silence

Where the mountains do yield

Lay yet unbroken fields

Here cold cuts to the bone

And rays run through the stone

Where the rocks do scrap the sky

There future and past do lie

In the rivers of gold

Each time your good fortune falls

The wicked northern winds do call

To this land your fate is bound

Three times these cruel grounds

Brought you riches untold

Forth from rivers of gold

Lost souls chips away at this land

In search of ever precious strands

With only strength of mind

Did fortunes knots you bind

While all the dreamers’ did but wilt

Its here a life you thrice built 

Amongst the rivers of gold

Post 5: Spoken Word Analysis

My Darling Sara 
I will be analyzing the spoken word piece “My darling Sara” by Shane Koyczan.

            The poet repeats several lines throughout the work, creating with them themes that are woven together in the end. For example:

“I’m Trying”

“My darling Sara”

“So I do my best impression…”

            Repeating these words with the same rhythm and pauses each time adds to the affect and separates ideas into verses of sorts. Ending with the line “I tried”, tied several of the themes together and concluded the piece well.

            The spoken word artist carries the same structure of rhythm throughout the performance. Looking at the words of the piece typed out you can visually see the verses follow the same form, with the same general number of syllables. This structure and similarity in the verses is what creates the effective rhythm.

             The artist builds intensity by quickening the pace and shortening the pauses until the words form one long sentence at which point he cuts off the flow with a simple sentence and a long pause.

            Instead of raising his voice to stress important sentences, a common practice in regular speech, he actually does the opposite. Koyczan says the significant lines slowly and with long pauses before and after, often directly following a long verse of unbroken lines. In a strange way this is much more effective than shouting these lines as at these points his voice carries the tone of someone who is remembering and attempting to control an emotion.

            This effect can be heard when Koyczan pauses after the sentence ‘My darling Sara’ each time and this lets the audience know its importance and the weight that the words carry in comparison to the rest of the work.

            Within the piece, Koyczan rarely ends a sentence but rather connects multiple without pause. The subject of the sentence shifts several times, using words or phrases as links between what might have been two sentences or three sentences in a written work.

            This spoken word poem displays Koyczan’s style well as it has his signature continuous sentences, heavy pauses and the simultaneous build up of speed and intensity that are heard in his other works.

            I could dissect the effectiveness of each sentence and pause in the piece but I think to understand why spoken word works the way it does you just have to hear it. And no amount of analysis could compare to simply listening to it.

Dusk Warriors

We passed the setting sun

Nothing gold can stay

Rage, rage against the dying of the light

When the stars threw down their spears,

The caged bird sings with a fearful trill

Paradise Poem

Papers cover watermarked walls

Quiet air

Into scarlet thoughts I fall

Sitting there

Roll into the sea of ink

Sunlight

Nothing to do but think

Long nights

Existing in infinite places

Sore fingers

Loving a thousand faces

Feeling lingers  

Not a place
Or line

Not an instant in time

Paradise 

Short Story Reflections

For my own short story analysis I did The Sound of Thunder. The main character Mr. Eckles was very memorable. While his character is not admirable the author developed him in such a way that he appeared very human, faults and all. As opposed to the typical brave and confident main character you often see in teenage literature, Eckles panics and selfishly puts his companions in danger. I think that in writing its very easy to create a hero but very difficult to create a human. Which is likely why I have always enjoyed characters that are developed to the point of being irritating, for example Holden of Catcher in the Rye. After writing my own short story I have a greater appreciation for the author of the Sound of Thunder as it proves to be very difficult to construct a convincing character in a short story and still provide an engaging plot.

            The most challenging aspect of writing the story was the balance between developing plot and character within such as short space. I’ve always appreciated writers who could simultaneously construct a plot, describe setting and create a rounded character.

            I prefer short stories that build up to a point in which something is revealed and the entire plot makes sense. This is something I tried to emulate in my own story. I found the setting and relationships in The Lottery effective for this type of plot line so I used aspects of it in my own short story.

            I guess I might say that I am indifferent to my short story. I can’t say I like it, but it’s also not the worst short story I’ve ever written. Had I the chance I would have liked to build up the relationships between the villagers and in doing so depict Millie as a leader in her community that people depend on. The central character Millie was supposed to be a strong woman that holds her crumbling family up but is also silently suffering. I don’t think Millie’s own fear transferred in the story as I wanted it to and so her character appears rather flat.

            Apart from character development, I would also work on integrating description in the plot. I sort of laid the description on thick in the beginning in order to set up atmosphere but then I left other areas very sparse. One part in particular was the point at which the villagers are standing waiting for the soldiers to come around the corner. I had intended to build up tension there but knowing that it would be the most difficult part to write I left to last, as I have a bad habit of doing. That paragraph ended up getting shortchanged as I ran out of time and ended up throwing in a few lines that just barely functional.

            I don’t often complete a short story as most of mine are abandoned in the drafting stage. Polishing and reworking stories proves to be more difficult than actually writing it in the first place. I’ve found that I learn a lot more about writing when I am forced to follow the process through to the end, as in this class.

55 Word Story

The girl tugged at her chestnut hair, pulling it into a messy ponytail as she peered into the mirror.

“Are you ready yet?”

Snapping the elastic into place, she smiled. “Okay, ready.”

Her companion offered her an outstretched hand. “Then let’s go.”

The girl took her reflection’s hand and stepped through the mirror.