I Believe By Meena Alexander

The first stanza foregrounds the importance of love to the lyrical voice. Throughout the stanzas, the lyrical voice will express his/her particular feelings about something that occurred particularly to him/her. It shows the writing through experience. The poem begins by saying that this lover has no riches and, consequently, couldn’t share them with the lyrical voice “No riches from his scanty store/ My lover could impart”. Notice the alliteration on “scanty store”, which gives a soft feel to the first part of the stanza. Then, the lyrical voice states that this lover gave him/her something that he/she values more “He gave a boon I valued more-”: his heart “He gave me all his heart!”. Notice the great emphasis made on the last line and how the lyrical voice accentuates it by using a final dash and creating a pause at the end of the previous line.

INTRODUCTION – (1 paragraph) STRUCTURE 1. Opening sentences which introduce the poem, its author and its form.Explain why the poem is of a particular form (either a ballad or lyric poem). 2. Thesis statement: A general statement about what the poem communicates about life and life experience. 3. Signpost: briefly outline the more specific reasons for how/why the poem conveys this life experience and / or message. (Introduce the main features which will be explored in more detail in the body of your essay).

Although this is a short poem, there are so many different meanings that can come from the piece. With different literary poetic devices such as similes, imagery, and symbolism different people take away different things from the poem. One of my classmates saw it as an extended metaphor after searching for a deeper connection with the author. After some research on the author, we came to learn that the

The author has shown his desires in the first verses of the poem. One of his wishes being that “[Students should] walk inside the poem’s room” with this stanza he states that a way to connect with a poem is if students would take in every detail of the poem’s words and structure the way they do when they are in a friend’s house for the very first time, to look around each word. After stating his desires, Collins is more realistic when describing how students treat poems. He illustrates that “[Students] torture a confession out of [the poem]”. This demonstrates that when people misunderstand the purpose of a poem, the poem itself feels tortured by students forcing its purpose. Collins has shared his desires and the reality of a poet through the use of personification by stating how a student should connect with a poem (by walking through its rooms) and how they treat the poem

· In the first line of the poem, the speaker expresses her feelings towards men by using the word “Anger”(1). From just the

The poet uses many metaphors, repetition and morbid diction to illicit the response I had to this poem. Firstly, Butson compared the emotions and internal struggles of a

Prompt: In a brief essay, identify at least two of the implications implicit in the society reflected in the poem. Support your statements by specific references to the poem.

Unlike other forms of literature, poetry can be so complex that everyone who reads it may see something different. Two poets who are world renowned for their ability to transform reader’s perceptions with the mere use of words, are TS Eliot and Walt Whitman. “The love song of J Alfred Prufrock” by TS Eliot, tells the story of a man who is in love and contemplating confessing his emotions, but his debilitating fear of rejection stops him from going through with it. This poem skews the reader’s expectations of a love song and takes a critical perspective of love while showing all the damaging emotions that come with it. “Song of myself”, by Walt Whitman provokes a different emotion, one of joy and self-discovery. This poem focuses more on the soul and how it relates to the body. “Song of myself” and “The love song of J Alfred Prufrock” both explore the common theme of how the different perceptions of the soul and body can affect the way the speaker views themselves, others, and the world around them.

Poetry has a role in society, not only to serve as part of the aesthetics or of the arts. It also gives us a view of what the society is in the context of when it was written and what the author is trying to express through words. The words as a tool in poetry may seem ordinary when used in ordinary circumstance. Yet, these words can hold more emotion and thought, however brief it was presented.

Although there is more detail expressed in this poem, simple words are still used but still manage to retain the deep meaning that can easily be understood by anyone. I think this is used to try and create an understanding of how the Grandmother valued all of her material items. A large portion of the poem is dedicated to these items to show that they were a big part of the old lady's life. The poem is divided into four stanzas, each of them tells a different part of the story.

poem is not merely a static, decorative creation, but that it is an act of communication between the poet and

In the poems “The Wanderer” and “The Dream of the Rood,” anonymous authors give way to the idea that an Almighty God will solve every problem a person has by doing two things: 1) drawing upon the memories of a warrior who has lost everything near and dear to him due to war, and 2) entering the dream of a man who has been exiled and isolated. Each piece takes its reader through the trials and tribulations that one may not relate to in this era, yet the reader is still there alongside the character wanting them to find peace with their world and themselves. Initially, it is believed that the characters will overcome their hardships and achieve the happiness they seek. However, as the reader delves deeper into the character’s story, there is an overwhelming sense of incompleteness. What actually happens at the end of each piece is not written in stone - telling us the story is not whole - nor has a conclusion been reached. The intrapersonal thoughts being shared with the reader reveal the obstacles that keep an overall wholeness from occurring.

Poetry is often meant to be smooth, flowing, pleasing to the ear and the mind. To achieve this effect, many poets use different poetic techniques to help convey the meanings of their poetry. In the sonnet, 'Yet Do I Marvel' written by Countee Cullen, many different features of poetry is used. In this essay, I will discuss the relationship between the meanings and the theme Cullen tries to convey in his sonnet and the techniques of metaphors, both religious and non-religious, allusions to Greek mythology, different rhyme schemes and repetition that he uses.

“The relationship between the energies of the inquiring mind that an intelligent reader brings to the poem and the poem’s refusal to yield a single comprehensive interpretation enacts vividly the everlasting intercourse between the human mind, with its instinct to organise and harmonise, and the baffling powers of the universe about it.”

The poem has many different hidden meanings but they are all based around a common theme of faith.