Writer's Notebook

"Washing Rice"-- Lam Thi My Da

"A gentle wind ruffles the shade of the palms

The yellow rice glistens in rippled water

The ripe grains and the unripe look the same

They are both the color of silk, the same color

But why does she keep washing, washing so long?"

This poem really caught my attention. There are so many ways to interpret it and so many questions that the author introduces to answer. This poem has simple imagery then finishes with a number of questions that are running through the little girl's head. This easy task of washing rice gets turned into something bigger.

One thing that I want to take from the poem is the imagery. This poem is very short, but portrays a strong message. Another aspect of the poem that I want to take is the use of questions to finish off the poem. I feel that by leaving questions unanswered it leaves room for interpretation by the reader, and leaves them to ponder what the author's true intentions were of writing this poem.

Writer's Notebook

Negro-- Langston Hughes

"I am a negro:

black as the night is black,

black like the depths of my Africa."

The reason I chose this poem is because it reminds me of the book I am reading, and what people in the South went through. Not only were they discriminated when they were slaves, but even after they were emancipated they were not treated fairly. This poem just reiterates that opinion. This poem just shows that no matter what it comes down to the fact that someone is black. The narrator describes how he has been a slave, worker, singer, and victim, but he continues to come back to the "plain and simple".."I am a negro."

One thing that I want to take away from this poem is the repetition in both the beginning and ending of the poem. This repetition strengthens the meaning behind the words and makes this poem all the more powerful. It seems that no matter what the narrator accomplishes in life he will always be known just for his race.

Writer's Notebook

"Hope"-- Ariel Dorfman

"Somebody tell me frankly

what times are these

what kind of world

what country?

What I'm asking is

how can it be

that a father's

joy

a mother's

joy

is knowing

that they

that they are still

torturing

their son?

This poem is so powerful, not only the thoughts behind the words, but the set up of the poem. Throughout this piece the author seems indecisive about what she wants to write and how she can word something so painful for her to think about. This really shows what happens in other countries, and how we are lucky that we live in such a safe environment. Even though they knew the fate of their son they had no choice, but to proceed on with life. The pathos in this poem is incredible. It is so heart wrenching how she tells the reader that the only joy in her life is to know that her son is still being tortured, because that means he's still not dead, which derives the meaning of the title.

One thing that I would like to take away from this poem is her use of questions. The questions not only express what she is feeling, but also further the development of pathos in the poem. It allows the readers to interpret, while interjecting her own thoughts and beliefs. Another interesting aspect of the poem is her repetition or slight change of words, "and he may might could still be alive." I feel like this technique in the poem really shows her hopefulness, but also shows how she is unsure about the whole situation.

Writer's Notebook

"I'm four, in itchy woolen leggings,"- Marilyn Hacker

"the day that I can't recognize the man

down at the park entrance, waving,

as my father. He has ten

more years to live, that spring."

This poem really shows the innocence of a child. All of these images and emotions running through her head that it is hard to decipher what is right in front of her. The way the author describes the event is exactly like a four year old would see it. Instead of focusing on the negatives, like how awful her father looks she talks about her surroundings and little details others might not notice. Even how she starts the poem is relevant to that of a four year old. By introducing the problem with the itchy leggings it takes away some tension from her not even being able to identify her own father.

One thing that I want to get better at is being able to put the big picture in the background by portraying a lot of details. In this poem Hacker talks about her surrounding and what she is wearing in order to take some attention off the declining health of her father. This focus on surrounding shows a sense of innocence, but also allows the reader to identify pathos because of how she goes on to describe what she loves about her father.

Writer's Notebook

Mid Term Break- Seamus Heaney

"Wearing a poppy bruise on his left temple,

He lay in the four foot box as in his cot.

No gaudy scars, bumpers knocked him clear.

A four foot box, a foot for every year."

This poem is so different from what you first expect. Seamus Heaney catches the reader off guard with the title Mid Term Break. College kids see this as a joyous time that they have been waiting for a long time, but then he explains in the first line that he is crying. There is so much sadness in this poem, but there are also little details that give hope, like the baby cooing. The narrator seems out of the loop because he was in college, which made this event even more traumatic.

The one thing that I would like to acquire from this poem is Heaney's ability to build suspense and momentum. Throughout the poem the reader tries to fit the pieces together and in the end one sentences makes you realize everything. It is so incredible how one sentence can stop you dead in your tracks, and it just completely makes the whole poem. This poem portrays a tragic event in the author's life and the structure makes it all the more powerful.

Writer's Notebook

ABC- Robert Pinsky

"Any body can die, evidently. Few

Go happily, irradiating joy,

Knowledge, love. Many

Need oblivion, painkillers,

Quickest respite.

Sweet time unafflicted,

Various world:

X= your zenith."

This piece really shows the art of poetry. Pinsky went into a lot of thought to make all of these words align, and to actually have a meaning behind the words. It is one thing to write a poem with all of the letters in the alphabet, but it is another to have a purpose behind those words. Although the main concern is the layout of this poem the meaning is also very powerful. Death means different thing to different people, and it is interesting how Pinsky chose this topic to describe in very few words. Death is something that many people cannot describe because they have never experienced it, so his ability to put it in the small amount of words that he used is significant. By using this alphabet technique I feel like it takes some tension out of the subject. No longer is the main focus on death, instead it is on using the letter in the alphabet.

The one thing that I would obviously take from this poem is the layout of using all the letter in the alphabet. When I first saw this poem I thought it would be pretty simple to write something with only those letters in that specific order, but when I started jotting down ideas I started realizing how difficult it truly is. Pinsky put a lot of time and effort into this poem, and although there are few words to prove it, his message is powerful.

Writer's Notebook

"The Great Figure"-- William Carlos Williams

"Among the rain

and lights

I saw the figure 5

in gold

on a red

firetruck"

This poem is really powerful. Williams is able to get his point across with the fewest words possible. The reader may not know every detail about the event, but poetry is more than just details. This phrasing is very refreshing; often times in this world we over analyze everything. We take every little thing we can out of a situation until there is nothing more to say. To me, this poem shows that life doesn't always have to be certain, every detail is not as important as the big picture. In this excerpt he describes the firetruck so plainly that the reader is enthralled to read each line in order to find out a little bit more about it. This poem reminds me of innocence; like when little children tell stories and they talk about the little things that wouldn't matter to anyone else (like the fact that a firetruck is red) you can't help but to smile. This poem is not about realizing the true meaning of the author, instead it is about sitting back and looking at something for what it truly is.

The technique that I want to apply to my own writing is the simple imagery. Often times when readers think of imagery they think of elaborate sentences and various details, but sometimes the most descriptive scenes have the simplest words. By condensing the details into a couple words you take every word for what it is, as if the moment was frozen in time. This scene has a lot going on in it but only a few words to describe it. It is a raining night and there are lights everywhere and it is hectic and all that can be heard is the sirens, but the only thing Williams lets on to is the firetruck. By isolating the details he takes the chaos out of the story, and this way he can control the focus of the reader.