Poem Analysis: Abandoned House By Ted Kooser

My first poem was the worst because it had a lot of clichés. It was my first time at writing a poem and it was very difficult. I knew from the beginning at it was cliché because professor told the class about abstract, concrete and clichés in poetry writings. As my first attempt at writing poetry it was difficult and a took a very long time for me to come up with words to start the poem. Time was a main factor when writing poems; because there was a deadline for the assignment it made it much harder for me to concentrate on develop a good poem. I was reading an article on poetry writing and the author stated that poetry writing can be abstract or concrete and images can be vague or subtle, brilliant or dull; but yet my professor comments on

The poem “Abandoned House” is a sad story about a wife leaving her husband and taking their child with her; the theme of the poem is abandonment lines 17 to 21 states it, “Something went wrong, says the empty house in the weed-choked yard. Stones in the fields say he was not a farmer; the still-sealed jars in the cellar say she left in a nervous haste. And the child? Its toys are strewn in the yard.” The imagery the author used allows the reader to visualize the scene. However, my poem entitled “Thorns” did not capture the theme of this poem neither was it modelled in that fashion, now that I am reviewing my work I understand the comments given by the professor.” Thorns” theme was protection and being safe, lines 11 and 12 “Life is like a rose and it is surrounded by thorns, I think the rose decides to make thorns to protect itself.” My choice of words made the poem very cliché and I was repetitive at times. Kooser use of symbols such as the bible, a child’s doll and the lilac wall paper told the reader about the people who lived on the farm. The writer’s use of imagery was more power; however, I believe I used imagery but it was too vague and

I modelled this poem after the poem “Chicago” by Carl Sandburg. The theme of this poem is love and strength; the writer lets the reader know that he loves Chicago despite whatever is gone on in the city.” Stormy, husky, brawling, City of the Big Shoulders” and “Come and show me another city with lifted head singing so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning” tells me that he loves and respect the city no matter what happens or what anyone might say about the Chicago. In my poem entitled “Island” I show the reader that I love my country despite it weakness the country may have, “Sun, Fun, Rain and Dust,” and “An island with many faces” “Visitors to the island said it beautiful, and the people are friendly which is true; but they can be cynical too.” I believe that I used imagery, metaphors, simile and other devices in this poem. I know that using imagery or sensory images such taste, touch or smell evoke memories and gives a clear picture of the story sometimes even associating experiences from the past. This way a writer can tell the story without actually letting the reader the know what is the truth emotion expressed in the