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Mary oliver singapore poem analysis
Mary oliver singapore poem analysis
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Certain words or images can trigger an emotional connection or a memory and in the poem, Knife by Mary Oliver, I personally had some of those connections. “Whatever goes flashing by”, I envision my childhood, specifically the days where I would station myself right in front of the television during the weekends at my grandparents. I was typically with my older brother and sister for the most part since were all two years apart and we would binge watch the shows from channels like Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. In the background I can imagine the sound of a rocking chair that my grandma would sit on. “When I sit like this, quiet”, this relates to a personal experience of mine. This quote would take me back to high school where I would begin
Authors use many different types of imagery in order to better portray their point of view to a reader. This imagery can depict many different things and often enhances the reader’s ability to picture what is occurring in a literary work, and therefore is more able to connect to the writing. An example of imagery used to enhance the quality of a story can be found in Leyvik Yehoash’s poem “Lynching.” In this poem, the imagery that repeatably appears is related to the body of the person who was lynched, and the various ways to describe different parts of his person. The repetition of these description serves as a textual echo, and the variation in description over the course of the poem helps to portray the events that occurred and their importance from the author to the reader. The repeated anatomic imagery and vivid description of various body parts is a textual echo used by Leyvik Yehoash and helps make his poem more powerful and effective for the reader and expand on its message about the hardship for African Americans living
Sometimes a simple life event that occurs to most people and is not even noticed can mean so much more when put in a poem. In Taylor Gorman’s poem “Cut”, this is exactly what the author does. He takes a simple event like cutting yourself and then writes a poem and lets the reader imagine what it means or should mean. Most critics would agree that a poem that seems very simple on the outside may contain a much deeper meaning if studied in depth, as is the case with Robert Frosts, “A Road not Taken”. “’The Road not taken’ has always been extremely popular with readers and critics alike. On the surface, the poems premise is simple, but critics have examined the poem in detail and have discovered depths of meaning not apparent in casual reading.”(Lee 2) He begins with the simple cut, and what most people do afterwards, which is continue with their life and ignore it. “There is a cut in your face from shaving. You can feel it burn, but you don’t remember ever cutting yourself shaving. You have good skin, but there it is: a cut in your face from shaving. Still, you go about your day.” (Lines 1-3) However, the author after this takes it to the extreme which is the person becoming somewhat like a ghost in the end of the poem. This then gives this poem a possibility to have a much deeper meaning, such as maybe the cut means something different or just has a deeper meaning. The author’s use of
The informal language and intimacy of the poem are two techniques the poet uses to convey his message to his audience. He speaks openly and simply, as if he is talking to a close friend. The language is full of slang, two-word sentences, and rambling thoughts; all of which are aspects of conversations between two people who know each other well. The fact that none of the lines ryhme adds to the idea of an ordinary conversation, because most people do not speak in verse. The tone of the poem is rambling and gives the impression that the speaker is thinking and jumping from one thought to the next very quickly. His outside actions of touching the wall and looking at all the names are causing him to react internally. He is remembering the past and is attempting to suppress the emotions that are rising within him.
Therefore, Oliver’s incorporation of imagery, setting, and mood to control the perspective of her own poem, as well as to further build the contrast she establishes through the speaker, serves a critical role in creating the lesson of the work. Oliver’s poem essentially gives the poet an ultimatum; either he can go to the “cave behind all that / jubilation” (10-11) produced by a waterfall to “drip with despair” (14) without disturbing the world with his misery, or, instead, he can mimic the thrush who sings its poetry from a “green branch” (15) on which the “passing foil of the water” (16) gently brushes its feathers. The contrast between these two images is quite pronounced, and the intention of such description is to persuade the audience by setting their mood towards the two poets to match that of the speaker. The most apparent difference between these two depictions is the gracelessness of the first versus the gracefulness of the second. Within the poem’s content, the setting has been skillfully intertwined with both imagery and mood to create an understanding of the two poets, whose surroundings characterize them. The poet stands alone in a cave “to cry aloud for [his] / mistakes” while the thrush shares its beautiful and lovely music with the world (1-2). As such, the overall function of these three elements within the poem is to portray the
In the first two lines, an aural image is employed to indicate a never-ending anger in the girl's father. Dawe uses onomatopoeia to create a disturbing and upsetting description of his enraged "buzz-saw whine." An annoying, upsetting sound, it gives the impression of lasting ceaselessly. His anger "rose /murderously in his throat." Because "murderously" begins on a new line, a greater emphasis is placed on it and its evil and destructive connotations. An image of a growling lion stalking its prey is evoked in the reader, as it threateningly snarls from its throat. The girl is terrified as it preys on her persistently "throughout the night." Furthermore, because there is no punctuation, these few lines are without a rest, and when reading out aloud, they cause breathlessness. This suggests that the father's "righteous" fury is ceaseless and suffocating the girl.
In the poem pride, Dahlia Ravikovitch uses many poetic devices. She uses an analogy for the poem as a whole, and a few metaphors inside it, such as, “the rock has an open wound.” Ravikovitch also uses personification multiple times, for example: “Years pass over them as they wait.” and, “the seaweed whips around, the sea bursts forth and rolls back--” Ravikovitch also uses inclusive language such as when she says: “I’m telling you,” and “I told you.” She uses these phrases to make the reader feel apart of the poem, and to draw the reader in. She also uses repetition, for example, repetition of the word years.
women. This poem shows just that. After the fish monger asks her if she wants the fish cut, she immediately says no. She is “Not a girl and longer, she is capable of her own knife work now. She understands sharpness and duty.” This quote, in itself, not only shows that she believes she is capable of doing things herself, but that she can be a force in the world. She understands what she is supposed to do, but realizes that because of her sharpness, she can do more that her duty. The use of the word sharpness here is key. She is not just clear on what she wants, but she will do anything she has to to get it. She goes on to say, “She knows what a blade can reveal and destroy… She would rather be the one deciding what she keeps and what she throws away.” This again points out the feminist side of the women. She understands how she is supposed to act, but she gets to decide what she is going to keep of that idea and what she is going to discard. She gets to decide how she can use the little power she has to reveal and destroy. Reveal here implies a much deeper meaning than to uncover, but that with her determination she can expose social injustice in the world and has the power to demolish it entirely. She is not just a girl, she is a person with a voice to be heard. This idea is also mirrored with
In Mary Oliver’s poem “The Black Snake,” the narrator contemplates the cycle of life with the unpredictability of death. Mary Oliver’s work is “known for its natural themes and a continual affirmation of nature as a place of mystery and spirituality that holds the power to teach humans how to value one’s life and one’s place” (Riley). In the poem, The Black Snake, the narrator witnesses a black snake hit by a truck and killed on a road one morning. Feeling sympathy for the snake, the narrator stops, and removes the dead snake from the road. Noting the snake’s beauty, the narrator carries it from the road to some nearby bushes. Continuing to drive, the narrator reflects on how the abruptness of death ultimately revealed how the snake lived his life.
Donald Hall describes the use of imagery in poetry as a device that "makes us more sensitive to [literature], as if we acquired eyes that could see through things"(p 530). Imagery creates vivid details that deal with one's sense of sight, sound, touch, smell, or taste. These details can be seen in Theodore Roethke's "My Papa's Waltz" because the senses of touch, sight, sound, and smell appeal to the reader in order to better explain the feelings of each character in the poem. Roethke's use of imagery creates a negative picture that is painted by the son of an abusive father.
The two prominent images evoked throughout the poem are the dance itself and the violence associated with the dance. Roethke first uses olfactory imagery as he explains the father’s breath after drinking. He states, “The whiskey on your breath / could make a small boy dizzy;” (1-2). It is now evident to the reader that the father is drunk and that the situation could lead to violence. The title of the poem sets the scene of a happy, upbeat dance between a father and son; however, the reader quickly uncovers the truth. In the second stanza, Roethke utilizes auditory imagery as he describes, “We romped until the pans / slid from the kitchen shelf;” (5-6). These lines create the image of a rough dance in the kitchen, which forces the boy to hold on tight to his father. Although the dance entails violence, the reader still understands that the boy loves his father. In addition, Roethke uses visual imagery as he depicts the father’s hand in the third stanza. He describes, “The hand that held my wrist / Was battered on one knuckle;” (9-10). These lines imply violence as “battered” is an intense word to describe a knuckle. The poem continues, “At every step you missed / My right ear scraped a buckle” (11-12). Although the father is not intentionally being violent, he is still accidentally harming his son. Additionally, the image of a
To set the mood of the poem, Olds relies heavily on imagery to create the effect. The mother feels betrayed as she watches her daughter slip away from her. Small trivial acts like a simple haircut evoke strong images of discomfort. The barber is described as a "knife grinder" (4) sharpening the edges of her daughter's hair as if they are weapons. Olds slips words such as "slice" and "blade", which thrust images of separation into the mind of the reader. She follows these images with sharp edges and cold steel, and then she tops it off with a blazing, red fire The strong intense color red spills over the lines of the poem as blood of soldiers in a heated battle. The vibrant nature of the color red attracts the human eye creating intense emotions. The intense images express the intensity of the mother's emotions. The imagery in this poem aches the pain and discomfort the mother experiences as mother and daughter prepare for a battle.
Not only the words, but the figures of speech and other such elements are important to analyzing the poem. Alliteration is seen throughout the entire poem, as in lines one through four, and seven through eight. The alliteration in one through four (whisky, waltzing, was) flows nicely, contrasting to the negativity of the first stanza, while seven through eight (countenance, could) sound unpleasing to the ear, emphasizing the mother’s disapproval. The imagery of the father beating time on the child’s head with his palm sounds harmful, as well as the image of the father’s bruised hands holding the child’s wrists. It portrays the dad as having an ultimate power over the child, instead of holding his hands, he grabs his wrists.
Reading poetry, not only evokes feelings, it also triggers memories and past experiences. “The reader is paying attention to the images, feelings, attitudes, associations that the words evoke in him” (Rosenblatt, 34) We create our own meaning from a literary work of art when we relate to it; when we can bring our own personal experiences to the table. It’s all about the relationship between the reader and the literary work of art. This is why the reader response criticism is so effective in order to interpret literary works of arts. It allows the reader to experience the work in whole different level. After all, “The poem is what the reader lives through under the guidance of the text and experiences as relevant to the text.” (38)
When reading or listening to poetry, the main objective for me is to feel moved. Happiness, longing, sadness are some of the feelings that can be achieved just by listening to others’ words. It is within these words that creates another world, or separates us from our own. Words all have a certain kind of attachment to them, so if used properly an author can stimulate a reader beyond belief.
Through alliteration and imagery, Coleridge turns the words of the poem into a system of symbols that become unfixed to the reader. Coleridge uses alliteration throughout the poem, in which the reader “hovers” between imagination and reality. As the reader moves through the poem, they feel as if they are traveling along a river, “five miles meandering with a mazy motion” (25). The words become a symbol of a slow moving river and as the reader travels along the river, they are also traveling through each stanza. This creates a scene that the viewer can turn words into symbols while in reality they are just reading text. Coleridge is also able to illustrate a suspension of the mind through imagery; done so by producing images that are unfixed to the r...