10. ECHOES

In Audre Lorde’s “Echoes” she uses a lot of figurative language throughout the poetry. Like many poems the use of figurative language in laced throughout “Echoes.” Being Part of the Black Arts Movement, Lorde uses a lot of imagery, the use of the five main senses, throughout the poem. Lorde’s also uses unique spacing throughout the poem to create a pause for the reader. She starts the poem with “There is a timbre of voice tht come from not being heard” (line 1-2). Within the first stanza Lorde means that the voice is identifiable though it’s never been heard, an interesting contradiction that has depth. Since this “voice” hasn’t been heard it’s unique, unheard, becoming identifiable. Then she continues saying that your not heard because of the voice, but simply noticed because of the unique sound, and what is being said is still not heard. She uses this to create an idea and her meaning of sound.

In the second stanza Lorde uses a lot of descriptive words and adjectives and more figurative language. I feel she uses a particular metaphor in her poem for the climax. “Till after you’re gone your hot grain smell tattooed into each new poem” (line 14-16). She is saying that even the person is gone, that they will forever leave a permanent linger throughout the future to come. The hot grain smell she refers to is the lasting sense that cannot be forgotten. The smell tattooed, a permanent mark that leaves a lasting impression. The future is each new poem that hasn’t been written yet. I feel this is bold metaphor that strikes the reader. She follows that metaphor with “resonant beyond escape” (line 16-17), the echoes that one cannot escape. I feel this really affects the meaning of the poem, the power Lorde’s is trying to convey. This is a strong metaphor that the poem builds up to. This is more than a meaning; it is an example of the meaning in action. I feel that by using this metaphor in that particular placement that Lorde’s develops a powerful tone that is set for the rest of the poem.

9. INFLUENCE

Influence can be a powerful tool for anyone. No matter what your profession is as a student you learn about the leaders before you. And who better to learn from than the masters of your passion. The writers we’ve been reading have all probably known of the greats before them. As we have read before the themes that have been the strong continue to be used. Nature and human feelings are two of the most popular themes poets will frequently use.

There were multiple poems we read this week that used the theme of nature commonly embraced by poets of the Romantic period. Most of Robert Frost’s readings included many aspects of nature. Apples were mentioned in “Mending Wall” “He is all pine and I am apple orchard. My apple trees will never get across” (Front 24-25). Frost also writes “After Apple-Picking,” about all the human feelings (another Romantic period poet trait), the surrounding land, nature, actions he reflects about apple harvesting. In his “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” and “Come In” both mention the woods as well as the land and earth are brought up in both “After Apple-Picking” and “The Gift Outright.” Some of the nature speaking Romantic’s we’ve read which influence writers such as Frost are William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

I feel that Carl Sandburg was influenced by Emily Dickinson. In Sandburg’s poem “Grass” has a similar Dickinson style. “Grass” is a very abstract poem. Sandburg has made the author of the poem nonhuman, a trait that would be familiar to Dickinson. This poem is very similar to the abstract form Dickinson uses, creating that individual spin to the style of wording and meaning of the poem. This poem is also slightly morbid, another common trait of Dickinson’s poems. After I read “Grass” I saw a very familiar connection to Emily Dickinson.

Poets can be influenced by all the authors before them. They can be influenced by a time period or by identifying with the popular common themes. Poets can also be influenced by another particular poet. Regardless of the source, writers will forever be influenced by the authors before them.

7. ODE SQUARED

I am going to compare John’s Keats’ “Ode on Melancholy” and William Wordsworth’s “Ode: Intimation of Immortality” from Recollections of Early Childhood. Two different poets wrote them during the eighteenth century but they have many differences and similarities.

Both poems have an abstract speaker. Neither poem states the sex of the speaker, but they are in first person so it is safe to assume that they are both male speakers. In Melancholy the unknown aged speaker is giving advice to an unknown person in the same manor as a general audience. At the end you feel that the speaker had already told this to the unknown person and continues to explain that person’s fate. He tells his audience not to choose death as an answer for mourning. The reliable speaker has emotions for the audience he is speaking to. A theme throughout the poem is death and another is taking one’s own life because of a loved ones death. The mourning person is being lured by the idea of death, “Nor let the beetle, nor the death-moth be” (Keats line 6) to end their own personal misery or loss. In Immortality the author is much older than his memory, starting the poem with, “There was a time” (Wordsworth line 1) and stating “It is not now as it hath been of yore” (W line 6). The speaker’s reliability is not really tested through out this poem. The speaker continues to reminisce about many past thoughts, feelings, and memories speaking to a general audience in a story speaking manner. There are a lot of different scenes, feelings and descriptions going on in this poem. Themes within this poem include human life and nature.

Both poets use many poetic elements throughout their odes such as sound and rhyme. “Ode on Melancholy” does not use assonance, consonance, or alliteration: the repetitions of sounds and letters within a line. In “Ode: Intimation of Immortality” Wordsworth does not use those a lot either but starts a line with a consonance, “Fresh flowers; while the sun shines warm,” (W line 48). Keats rhymes the last word of every line with another line; a rhyme scheme. There was not as much of a sound repetition as there is rhyme. The rhymes were mostly written naturally since it was not a constant repeating of two lines in a row, which affected the sound flow but not the meaning of the poem. Wordsworth uses rhyme but in not particular pattern throughout his stanzas. Nether forced the sound or tone. Keats’ was not forced because of the chosen rhyme scheme he uses and Wordsworth does not use a particular rhyme scheme which allows it to flow more natural. Keats uses a metered rhyme scheme repeated throughout ten lines. The first four lines create a quatrain and the last six create a tercet. The rhyme scheme repeats a total of three times. I feel that the rhyme is an appropriate tone for poem. The poem is mellow along with the rhyme that was used. In Immortality is written in open form, there is no specific rhyme scheme or followed meter. The eleven stanzas also differ from each other ranging from seven to thirty-eight lines, some rhyming but a variety of sounds. I feel this compliments the perplexity of the poem and being an appropriate tone.

In both odes the poets used the sentence element. In Melancholy the sentences are on average the same length. They are not very complex offering a particular idea or thought per line, “Turning to Poison while the bee-mouth sips;” (K line 24). The sentence structure continues to favor the meaning parallel to the previous mentioned pattern, rhyme and line length of the poem. Each line is very similar to one another creating an overall unity and flow of the poem. Wordsworth sentence structure is not the same. There is a combination of both short and long lines, as well as lines that are complex and very simple, “Land and sea” (W line 30). This adds meaning through the assortment Wordsworth uses throughout the poem. Both Keats and Wordsworth use punctuation in their poems. Keats uses punctuation at the end of almost every line as a break but each stanza is broken into its own complete sentence by only ending in a single period. Wordsworth’s stanzas are broken into several sentences ending in different punctuation. Wordsworth like Keats uses punctuation at the end of almost every line to form a break for the reader.

Another poetic element that John Keats and Williams Wordsworth use are line structure and line breaks. In Melancholy the lines remain around ten syllables no less than seven, a natural breath. Since all the lines remain around the same length it tributes to the constant flow and pattern of the poem. On the other had in Immortality the lines are different lengths, still around the natural breath of ten syllables but going as low as two to a line, “But he” (W line 69). The fluctuating line length can relate to the variety of thoughts and stories of the free verse poem. Most of the lines in Keats’ ode are end stopped, each line finishing at the end of the line, “Sudden from heaven like a weeping cloud,” (K line 12). However, in Wordsworth’s lengthy ode he uses a combination of that and lines that are enjambed, a line continued through the next verse, “And by the vision splendid Is on his way attended;” (W lines 73-74). This affects the poems the same way the line length favors the flow and meanings of the odes. Not all the lines are broken on specific words for emphasis. In Melancholy the lines are ended more to match the rhyme scheme of the poem. Wordsworth uses the technique more since he has an open formed poem that does not require a particular rhyme or line length to end the line. This also allows for more enjambed lines.

I enjoyed both poems in different ways. I felt that the diction used made it difficult at times to understand the poems thoroughly. The way Keats used an abstract speaker for the audience made it an interesting way for the reader to interpret the poem. I enjoyed the foreshadowing that began to explain the reason for the people in the end of the poem. I thought it was a thought out poem that made you think about not only the person that you were reading about but also relating it to real life. Losing a loved one is never easy and for someone to want to end their own life for the love of another is a powerful meaning. Wordsworth was often wordy and jumped around a lot. He talked a lot about human life and different stages. His wording and thought structure was hard to following clearly and tough to find the connections. I enjoyed the differences of the poem and how the different poetic elements contributed so much to the style of the poem. John Keats’ “Ode on Melancholy” was a followed pattern. Each line, each stanza and each rhyme linked the poem together well in a followed blueprint. This added to the monitored structure which made the poem symmetrical in a way. William Wordsworth followed the exact opposite approach in “Ode: Intimation of Immortality.” He used a variety of poetic elements that followed no particular structure creating abstract connections throughout the poem. His variety also factored into the array of thoughts and ideas throughout the poem.

Keats, John. "Ode on Melancholy." The Norton Anthology of Poetry. Ed. Margaret Ferguson, Mary Jo Salter, Jon Stallworthy. 5th ed. New York: Norton & Company, 2005. 937-938.

Wordsworth, William. "Ode: Intimation of Immortality." The Norton Anthology of Poetry. Ed. Margaret Ferguson, Mary Jo Salter, Jon Stallworthy. 5th ed. New York: Norton & Company, 2005. 796-801.

6. WINE BOWL'S LINES

H.D., Hilda Doolittle, used her own non-traditional form of writing to write "Wine Bowl." She uses a lot of quick simple lines, about a thought per line. H.D. breaks the lines often in a short 93 lines poem. She uses a lot of different techniques throughout the poem to create her own image. When she lists multiple things, she divides them up into a line per item as in "a Centaur, a Nymph, and a Faun;" (lines 11-13).
H.D. uses different forms of repetition. She begins and ends the poem the same; the first 9 lines are also the last 9 lines of the poem. Also, she repeats “in my skull, where the vision had birth, will come wine, would pour song” (lines 27-30) and lines 37 through 40 but changing “had birth (line 28) to “took flight“ (line 38). Though she follows the repeated lines with foil thoughts, first stating “of the HOT earth” (line 31) and in the latter “of the COOL night.” H.D. used a contradiction in her own writing, first repeating the same thought trailed by two opposite lines.
This poet breaks the lines by every different thought, action, or object. This helps the meaning of the poem by giving a lot of little information, almost as if she was forming a list. This creates a montage of a poem centered on wine. The meaning of the poem is about her drinking the wine. That is why she uses the repetition, opening and closing with the same thought. Then everything in between makes up center of that one particular experience for her. Though it is a single event, many thoughts and feelings she is reminded of.
Poets break up lines in their own fashion to create their own individual style. The style might be a list, a song, or a single thought or image. When poets use this form of free style is opens all the barriers of traditional poems and creates a new form that is identifiable with them or that particular poem.

5. CHANGES & TRADITIONS

As we continue to read poems there are some traditions that poets still to follow. As times change they introduce new ideas, thoughts, and objects into the poems. Throughout this week’s poems there were a lot of religious and biblical poems references. Many mentioned God an identified character being the only god, verses believing in multiple gods. The act of praising, blessing: “blessed Hope” (The Darkling Thrush, line 31), and praying is commonly mentioned, being derived from religious acts. William Butler Yeats uses Adam from the Book of Genesis in the title of his poem, foreshadowing the theme of the poem. As times passes, people become more knowledgeable, worldly, and aware. They are also creating new ideas, new inventions and developing things on their own.

Traditional themes being continually used are people’s feelings and nature. Using common traditional themes that surround human beings constantly create a connection between the poem and the reader. A person can always relate to personal feelings, poets use feelings to help the reader form empathy to the poem, being able to relate to it on a personal level. In Thomas Hardy’s “Hap” he quickly mentions “love’s loss is my hate” (line 8) two strong foil feelings to capture the reader’s feelings for both love and hate. As many poets do Hardy also uses nature; “sun and rain” (Hap, line 11) “leaves lay” (Neutral Tones, line 3) and “God-curst sun” (Neutral Tones, line 15).

As years, decades, and centuries pass the written language of poems change. The way it is written, the connotation of words, the lingo used, and the ideas continue to develop and evolve. Poets in the beginning don’t have the same beliefs, ideas, or knowledge the latter poets have. The language they use is out of date and loses some of the meaning in the translation. The poets that were influenced them have continued to use to main, popular, common themes while developing their own form of writing. Influences from poets to new generation poets will continue, fore the newer poets embrace the poetry they read and still use the themes, subjects, and styles that never get old.

4. EMILY DICKINSON

British Romantics have influenced many poets that have followed them. Emily Dickinson is one of these poets, but not strictly following the same standards she has her own poetic styles. Emily Dickinson seems to be a poet that uses the voice of an unknown speaker directed at an unknown or open audience. The use of nature to set themes and surroundings is a common influence used by her and other poets. In #359 she uses a bird, which is a part of nature and the bird’s natural undisrupted by man, until the end, characteristics and habits. The use of identifying with human feelings such as in #588 is another influence from British Romantics. By embracing the reader with common feelings and emotions creates empathy for the reader. The language is casual but she uses more of a modern lingo; the British Romantic poems often used words unfamiliar to today’s time and uncommon phrases. Dickinson writes shorter poems, revolving around usually just one main theme and discussing it in different ways. Since they are short they are written without a lot of structure, patterns, or form. They are often short stanzas and might only consist of a few verses sometimes just a single verse. In #39, though it is short, has a simple rhyming scheme that is repeated in both verses by rhyming the last word of the second and fourth lines. Since there are many of her short poems she doesn’t always necessarily follow the same form, outline or structure, and uses a variety of writing and poetic techniques. Dickinson rights a lot about death, the idea and feelings of death and the acts of dying or being dead. She writes more as an “immortal” than simply discussing what it would be like to die. In #591 she speaks of the fly she heard when she died, then reminisces the last moments of her death until she mentions the fly again before dying. This is an abstract way or writing and thinking. As the speaker she continues to have a voice after death. Emily Dickinson embraced the influence of British Romantics and created a style of her very own.

3. ODE ON MELANCHOLY

John Keats’ Ode on Melancholy has an abstract speaker. As a reader you do not know the age or sex of the speaker. The speaker gives advice to an unknown person in the same manor as a general audience. At the end you feel that the speaker had already told this to the unknown person and continues to explain that person’s fate. Telling them not to choose death as an answer to mourning. The speaker appears to have values, be reliable and cares for the audience they are talking to. The situation appears to be that a person is mourning for someone they once loved, “A partner in your sorrow’s mysteries” (line 8). The mourning person has been lured by the idea of death, “Nor let the beetle, nor the death-moth be” (line 6) to end their own personal misery or loss. A theme throughout the poem is death and another is taking one’s own life because of a loved ones death.
A poetic element Keats uses is sound and rhyme. Ode on Melancholy does not use assonance, consonance, or alliteration: the repetitions of sounds and letters within a line. Keats rhymes the last word of every line with another line, a rhyme scheme. There was not as much of a sound repetition as there is rhyme. The rhymes were mostly written naturally since it was not a constant repeating of two lines in a row. Keats did not force the sound or tone because of the chosen rhyme scheme he uses. There is a rhyme scheme repeated throughout ten lines. The first and third lines and the second and forth lines rhyme. Then the fifth and eighth, sixth and ninth, and seventh and tenth lines rhyme. The rhyme scheme repeats a total of three times. I feel that the rhyme is an appropriate tone for poem. The poem is mellow along with the rhyme that was used.
I did enjoy the poem. I felt that the diction used made it difficult at times to understand Keats point of view. The abstract use of speaker to audience made it an interesting way for the reader to interpret the poem. I enjoyed the foreshadowing that began to explain the reason for the people in the end of the poem. I thought it was a thought out poem that made you think about not only the person that you were reading about but also relating it to real life. Losing a loved one is never easy and for someone to want to end their own life for that other person show’s a “Romeo and Juliet” love for one another. A passionate death.