How was the poetry presentation / This semester as a whole !!

In all honesty, the poetry presentations went extremely well!!! It seems that the night before and even moments before class, I was worried a great deal about speaking and enunciating, as well as not letting my nerves get in the way of presentation, messing up the way the poem was conveyed. But all in all, this event was successful in all capacities as each student in class seemed to have prepared a great deal for this presentation, and everyone seemed calm, cool, collected, and comfortable when presenting and discussing their specified poet and poem. I chose to present a poem by poet, Maya Angelou, because I love her style of poetry, and she is a greatly recognized writer, civil rights activist, and altogether powerhouse! I read a poem by Ms. Angelou titled, “Passing Time”, published in her 1975 anthology “Oh Pray My Wings are Gonna Fit Me Well”. From my perspective of, “Passing Time”, it refers to the author’s observation of time elapsing, which is bolstered by her reference to skin as “dawn.” This suggests that the author senses time elapsing from the prior night to this early morning dawn. The choice to interpret the title as a verb (passing the time) or as a noun (the passage of time) directly influences how the reader engages the poem. If this relationship is merely a means to pass the time, the poem’s final lines suggest that the “certain end” that has begun is a relationship that will pass quickly.

On another note, this semester has been awesome!! I have thoroughly enjoyed being a student in Ms.Bowser’s English 1102 class! What a joy we have had to have her as a our professor, seeing that she doesn’t just take the normal generic approach of things, but always implements some form of creativity and excitement in te assignments we are given,. I have learned so much about literature this semester and creative writing as my professor has shared the great knowledge she has obtained with us. I will truly miss this class and I have enjoyed having you as a professor Ms.Bowser, thank you so much for all you have done!!!!

Poetry Presentation Methods……… With Ms. Monica Prince !!!

Through a small amount of research, and the great presentation our speaker Ms. Monica Prince gave in our English class, I learned that there are many methods available when it comes to presenting poetry. Whether it is in a slam poetry style or a simple free verse poem, the way a speaker presents their piece, determines the way it is conveyed and understood by its audience. Though there are many methods to performing poetry, the principle idea not matter which approach is taken is that is about communicating how that poem affects you, the reader, personally, so you get to add your own interpretation on top of the author’s (if you didn’t write it yourself). Here are a couple of key points to focus on when poetry pieces.

PHYSICAL PRESENCE

When considering physical presence, eye contact, body language, and poise are key factors when engaging and connecting with the audience from their viewpoint. A few tips would be to present yourself well and be attentive. Use good posture, and look and exhibit confidence. Use eye contact with the entire audience, and don’t just focus solely on the judges, or one section of the crowd. And finally, relax and be natural. Enjoy your poem presentation; the audience and judges will take considerable notice of this.

VOICE AND ARTICULATION

Next, when considering one’s voice and articulation, volume, pace, rhythm, intonation, and proper pronunciation play a great role in the effectiveness of this principle.
Practice on projecting to the audience, and capturing the attention of everyone, including the people in the back row. However, don’t mistake yelling for good projection, make sure to speak and not shout! When speaking, proceed at a natural and steady pace. Avoid nervously rushing through the poem, and try your hardest to not speak so slowly that the language sounds unnatural or awkward, creating a false sense of drama.

With the application of these few tips on presenting poetry, one is sure to succeed in any setting!!

SPOKEN WORD …… Is That Truly A Form Of Poetry ?!?

It is commonly discussed amongst various groups of individuals, if spoken word should really be considered poetry! But if truth be told, I believe indeed it is !! In definition, spoken word poetry is poetry that is written on a page but performed for an audience. Because it is performed, this form of poetry tends to demonstrate a heavy use of rhythm, improvisation, poetic phrases, word play, and slang. It is a more aggressive and “in your face” form of poetry than more traditional forms of written rhyme. When discussing the history of spoken word, it is said to have reemerged in the mid to late 1900’s as it became greatly prevalent through mainstream spoken word performance in hip-hop and rap music. In result of this, music fans and literary analysts began to evaluate poetry of many rap artists, and started to consider a great number of these artists intensely important contributors to the world of poetry. Modern spoken word poetry as we know it, was said to have became popular in the underground Black community in the 1960’s with The Last Poets. The Last Poets was a poetry and political music group that was born out of the African-American Civil Rights movement. They used it as a way to promote political ambitions and frustration. Still today, spoken word is mostly performed and well displayed by minority groups, no matter what issue, they all find a way to address their issues in a poetic and “in your face” manner.

Below I’ve attached a video of a Christian Spoken Word piece by an African American artist, entitled ” A Letter to Satan”.

After watching this powerful spoken word piece, and enjoying and relating to it in more ways than one, I believe I will be implementing it into my poetic presentation or musical ensemble as a component to the paper!!

Dean Rader As A Poet ( Analyzing A Few of His Works…)

Dean Rader is a profound poet, who is published widely in the fields of poetry, american indian studies, and popular culture.  In Dean Rader’s poetic collection, Works & Days, he provides a set of colorful poems that appear to carry similar themes that are prevalent in each of his poems.  By analyzing the poetic devices used in his poems, we can see the themes of quick witted humor and love are touched upon in each of Rader’s works.  Specifically, we can see these elements in his poems in “A Genealogy of Unfinished Love Poems”, and in his phenomenal poem, Frog and Toad Confront the Alterity of Otherness.  Through examining these poetic works, and understanding the author’s background, we can see Rader’s themes of humor and love that are present throughout his collection of poems. Through Frog and Toad, Rader gives us our own divided psyches as “the things themselves.” Rader makes of the fragmented modern subject  universal enough and, in its own reduced way, heroic enough to be the subject of epic poetry.

But there is more to this poem than the simple characters, Frog and Toad. There is also a fascinating play between the experimental and the lyrical, a sort of dialogue between two poetic strategies that also reflects a sense of the self divided. The image is compelling, and the toast with strawberry jam is a surprising and amusing touch. The poem is, however, is not a standard love poem, but is merely based on metaphoric allusions. In “A Genealogy of Unfinished Love Poems” the same fragmented effect is achieved by leaving out words: “Your eyes are so _____.” This poem also approaches the subject of love through the differing perspectives of elegy, comedy, haiku, and epistle, as if any one genre were incapable of capturing the full experience of love. The effect is unsettling, a sense of a self in restless pursuit of a coherence not quite obtainable.

The Beauty and Signifigance of Poetry

WHAT IS POETRY??

Well, I’m glad that you asked! Poetry is a form of literature that uses artistic and rhythmic features of language to suggest meanings in place of, the plain apparent implication! Poetry, as a vast subject, is as old as history itself, seeing it has been implemented since the beginning of language itself, considerably called the primary form of languages themselves.

With over fifty-five forms of poetry, it’s essential for writers to tap into the beauty and depth of poetry, as they explore the many various elements. The definition of “elements of poetry” is a set of instruments used to create a poem. The usages of many of these elements began thousands of years ago, as archeologists have shown that our ancestors used many of these elements within their ancient oral story. They help bring imagery and emotion to poetry, stories, and dramas. Here is a list of elements of poetry used within poetic literature to help bring emotion, meaning, and imagination to the reader.

Rhythm and Meter: Rhythm and meter are the building blocks of poetry. Rhythm is the pattern of sound created by the varying length and emphasis given to different syllables. The rise and fall of spoken language is called its cadence. Meter is the rhythmic pattern created in a line of verse.

Line and Stanza: Poetry generally is divided into lines of verse. A grouping of lines, equivalent to a paragraph in prose, is called a stanza. On the printed page, line breaks normally are used to separate stanzas from one another.

Poetic Forms: Certain traditional forms of poetry have a distinctive stanza length combined with a distinctive meter or rhyme pattern. Here are some popular forms.

• Haiku: A compact form of Japanese poetry written in three lines of five, seven, and five syllables, respectively.
• Sonnet: A single-stanza lyric poem containing fourteen lines written in iambic pentameter. In some formulations, the first eight lines (octave) pose a question or dilemma that is resolved in the final six lines (sestet).

Now that you’ve read the history behind poetry and what it means to me, its your turn to experience poetry first hand! #WRITEITOUT

Postmodernist Effect on Me, THE READER !!??!!

As discussed through this week’s class conversations, postmodernism is a term used in literature to describe the change in communications and technology that often refer back to earlier periods of history.  In media and film productions, postmodernism is a large part of popular culture in the U.S. as it often references movies of earlier periods in film history, seen in Synecdoche New York. Analytically in films, postmodernism can be seen in various ways, including the altering of the state of mind of the characters, in referencing or imagining an earlier style of film, or in a sense of distinguishing reality from a simulation of reality. Postmodernism films seem to appear like a collage of stereotypes, which mix different forms of animated sequences and integrate the elements of a stage show.

Now, okay, I know you are wondering! “So I have the definition and a great description of what postmodernism is and how it’s implemented, but what now?  What does an understanding of postmodernism mean to me?”

Well essentially in reference to you, the reader, observer, and audience member you gain the understanding that the study of postmodern style is basically the study of creativity. It’s a study in the reverse and adverse view of high art. It’s a kind of storytelling that proclaims, “There are no rules! Make whatever you want!” It’s a revelation that tells TV writers that it’s okay to lock all of your characters in a study room for a whole episode because a purple pen is missing and they refuse to leave unless the thief is revealed, and that if you sabotage the audience’s expectations by playing on those expectations, you’ll win their favor. Postmodernism prevalent in films and novels ultimately benefits YOU, the viewer by opening your mind and expanding your thoughts and viewpoints from the predictable to the unimaginable.

WHO IS BIFF LOMAN, IN DEATH OF A SALESMAN ?

Death of a Salesman, Arthur Miller’s most famous work, is a play that addresses the painful conflicts within a typical American family in the mid 1900’s. It tackles issues regarding American national values, as well as displaying and examining the cost of vision less confidence in the American Dream. The play is divided into two acts, one in the present and the other from the past, that flow in and out of one another, developing and connecting the story in its essence.

Biff is an extremely vital character to this play as he helps to develop the story by driving Willy’s actions and thoughts, particularly his memories, throughout the play. Whenever Willy is unable to accept the present, he departures to the past, and Biff is usually somewhere in the picture. In the beginning of the play, flash backs, Biff adored Willy as his father. He believed his father’s stories and accepted his father’s attitude towards success, being that a man was guaranteed success if that he is “well-liked.” Biff never examined Will’s logic, even when it was obvious that Willy was socially and morally incorrect. As a result, Biff grew up believing that he was not bound by social rules or expectations because Willy did not have to abide by them, nor did Willy expect Biff to.Biff’s perception of Willy as the ideal father is destroyed after Biff’s trip to Boston. Once he learns that Willy is having an affair, Biff rejects Willy and his philosophy. Biff considers Willy to be a “fake,” and he no longer believes in, or goes along with, Willy’s grand fantasies of success. Instead, Biff despises his father and everything he stands for.

After this experience of seeing who he father really was, Biff felt compelled to seek the truth about himself. While his father and brother are unable to accept the miserable reality of their respective lives, Biff acknowledges his failure and eventually manages to confront it. Biff’s discovery that Willy has a mistress strips him of his faith in Willy and Willy’s ambitions for him. Consequently, Willy sees Biff as an underachiever, while Biff sees himself as trapped in Willy’s lavish fantasies. Determined to reveal the simple and humble truth behind Willy’s fantasy, Biff longs for the territory hidden by his father’s blind faith in a skewed, materialist version of the American Dream. Biff’s identity realization is a function of his and his father’s failure, and in order to reclaim his identity, in a sense he must expose these truths.

Astoundingly, half a century after it was written, Death of a Salesman remains a powerful and notable drama. Its claim of essential American values, the American Dream of material success, and the challenge presented when perusing the achievement of these values, was quite thorough for its time.

Who Wrote “Continuity of Parks” ?

Who is the author, writer, and altogether “master mind” behind Continuity of Parks?

Well I am glad you asked; Argentine writer Julio Cortázar is the author and creator of the mystical Continuity of Parks, written in 1956.

Julio Cortázar was born in 1914 in Belgium, to parents Julio Cortázar and María Herminia Descotte, semi-well known as abroad business travelers. Even as a young child, Cortázar demonstrated a talent for writing and composing complex poetry and surprisingly, completing the works of his first novel at the age nine. With having written a novel so accomplished at this young age, many of his family members wondered and grew to believe he had plagiarized his works, but his mother knew of his great gifts and reassured him of his talents and capabilities. When the time came for Cortázar to further his education, he attended the University of Buenos Aires concentrating in Literature and shortly after worked as a teacher in small-town high schools.

After teaching in the school system for a number of years, Cortázar was now ready to expand his horizons and share his poetic works with the world. In 1938 he launched his professional writing career as a poet and playwright, publishing a collection of poems called Presencia under the false name “Julio Denis”. He didn’t stop there, but continued his career by publishing Los Reyes, a play influenced by the Greek myth of Theseus, in 1949. Los Reyes was the first work Cortázar published under his real name. Cortázar’s novels and short stories allowed for him to achieve greater critical commendation and financial success than he has ever imagined.

One of Cortázar’s most famous quotes discussing literary works is, “In quoting others, we cite ourselves.” Cortázar fully displayed this concept out throughout his works, giving abundant amounts credit and respect to those who came before him, showing how they helped to shape his style and love for literature.

I hope this fully answered any questions readers had about who the mastermind and individual was that authored Continuity of Parks.

Hills Like White Elephants : Abortion or Pro-Life

Ernest Hemingway’s “Hills Like White Elephants”, is a short story that illustrates a single theme, which takes place in one place on a single day. It entails an unequal couple, seeming to have troubles in their relationship, as a part of their new found pregnancy.

In my perspective, this short story incorporates many tools of symbolism that cannot be easily connected to the actual topic or concept that is trying to be reached. Through class discussions and research it seems most readers, even today, are still puzzled by the short story as to having a clear view of the plot and theme after reading it. Simply saying, it would take a remarkably observant reader to immediately grasp that the couple is arguing about the girl, having an abortion at a time when abortions are unquestionably illegal, immoral, and dangerous. This style of symbolic writing is referred to as allegory – extended symbols illustrated through an entire work.

After reading and analyzing this short story in-depth, I found it rather interesting that the girl never once forwardly said she wants to undergo this procedure, but it was the man the entire time trying to convenience her. It seems perfectly clear that the girl is not at all sure what she wants. She seems unresolved about the choice, seeing that she has the life or death of someone else, her child, in her hands.

In a sense I believe “Jig” is tired of traveling in general, and letting the man make all the decisions for her. The man in the story has become so dominate that he talks incessantly until he convinces her that his way is the right way, and she seems fed up with his actions. He has become her guide and her guardian, rather than her companion. It’s almost as if he has taken away her voice as to whether she desires an abortion or not, as he forcefully persuades her to undergo an operation that will be “extremely simple”.

The right to abortion or pro-life/ pro-choice should be left up to the women, who has to carry and nurture the baby as the mother. The definition of Abortion is the murder, the sacrifice, of tiny neighbors who have not yet been born. With this life changing decision being made,  feel no one person should feel pressured into choosing either choice, but decide on their own what’s best for their life and the baby’s life.