Li-Young Lee Poem Analysis

The poem “Braiding” by Li-Young Lee appeals to me in multiple different ways. After reading the poem I realized how the title produces a duel meaning. Even though the poem is about a mother taking precious time braiding her daughter’s hair, she also talks about the interconnections of the relationships people have with one another. The author explains “My father did this for my mother, just as I do for you” (Li-Young Lee lines 4-6) showing proof of the intertwining of separate generations as time passes. Lots of personal possessions and even time will dwindle on by, but the unity of love keeps on giving.

For our multimodal assignment I chose to do a video that corresponds to one of my favorite poems called Loves Deceit by Big Rube. Some factors that had an impact on why I chose this poem was because I felt like a lot of people haven’t heard it before or don’t know about the poem, unless they watched ATL a film made in 2006. Also, I feel like the poem can relate to a lot of us who have been in love before and for the reason that the author who created this poem is an American rapper and hip-hop producer. The way I approached this assignment was by first downloading Titanic to my MacBook so I could trim some parts out of the movie, which I had to wait almost two hours to finish downloading. After picking some of the parts out that related

Poets have the power to present their perspectives of the human experience through their poetic voice. Gwen Harwood, Judith Wright, and Bruce Dawe, all Australian poets have all expressed common ideas expressed by their unique poetic voice.They also speak for those who have no voice, such as the soldiers in Bruce Dawe’s poem Homecoming and in Gwen Harwood's poem Mother Who Gave Me Life where she gives a voice to the Mothers. A key theme resinating through all of these poets poems would be their common ideas on society and the role of a mother.

The poem “A Story” by Li young Lee tells of a young child asking his father for story. The boy simply wants a story that he has never heard, his father is bombarded with panic as he seems to think he is disappointing his son. Through analysis of structure, points of view and metaphors this seemingly simple story is transformed into a deep meaningful poem about a complex relationship between a father and son.

In the poem “Persimmons” Li-Young Lee leads us on a journey that bounces between childhood and adulthood. There is an undercurrent of divisiveness as Lee recounts moments from his time at school that conflict with the lessons he learns at home. Lee writes “Persimmons” as a stream of consciousness reflection of his youth and his struggle to reconcile his Chinese heritage with his American upbringing. He structures the poem to allow the audience to see these moments through his eyes and uses persimmons to show not only the emotional attachment that words have but as a symbol for the strained relationship Lee had with his white teacher Mrs. Walker. In reading the poem we gain a deeper understanding of Lee’s complicated relationship with the two worlds he finds himself in.

insight into his life and personality that he is not aware of giving. While the poet

My book “Two minute drill” By Mike Lupica is about a boy named Scott who just moved into a town and is the new kid at the school he is going to. Scott is a smart kid but is afraid to raise his hand for most of the questions even though he knows them because he doesn’t want to be teased for being to smart. But Scott gets bullied anyways and the coolest kid in school sticks up for him and becomes his friend. Scott isn’t good at football but after he creates a friendship with Chris he gets better and he helps Chris become smarter. Scott ends up makes the school football team, but after sitting on the bench for most season he decides he wants to quit. When he decides he won’t quit he goes to practice and breaks his arm and is not able to play in

While it is uncertain when exactly Li-Young Lee wrote this poem, it can be deducted that it was written sometime in the early eighties or late seventies. The exact date cannot be confirmed since it was published along with many of his other works in Rose, which was published in 1986. This year was full of tragedy with the Challenger explosion on live TV and the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant explosion. The years leading up to 1986 and following it were full of rising political tensions between the Soviet Union and the United States. Amidst all this darkness, Lee takes the time to reflect upon his own life and the simple pleasures within it, focusing on the individual human experience as opposed to societies faults.

The poem is often ironically depressing and hopeless. His irony is very oblivious and frequent, but it greatly expresses his sadness and anger over his lifetime. (“For a New Citizen of These United States,” 61). For example, Irony is most present on Lines 14-17. “But you don't remember, I know, so i won't mention that house where chung hid, lin wizened, you languished, and ming-ming hush-hushed us with small song.”(Lee, lines 14-17) Ironically, America is always known to be a place of opportunity, though people such as “foreigners,” are still fighting hardships such as racism or non acceptance. (“For a New Citizen of These United States,” 61). Lee has in his poem a good explanation of how he felt after arriving to america, “And I won't hum along, if you don't,” (Lee,

Freedom I need freedom Not confinement I need courage Not fear I need bravery Not cowardice

How would you like to learn English nursery rhymes in a foreign language? Well, that was my introduction to poetry, as a Sinhalese child, chanting ‘Humpty Dumpty’ in a kindergarten classroom. It meant little though the picture of the fat little egg-man did make me laugh. But… the rhythm, rhyme, and repetition were sweet to my ears, and something I will always remember. They linked me to my new culture, much later, in an English speaking Primary school and gave me a sense of belonging.

Cathy Song is a 60 year old woman who resides in Honolulu HI with her husband and 3 children. Along with being a wife, mother, and daughter, Song is a developed poet as well. Although Song does not particularly like being classified as an Asian-American poet, her ethnicity largely influences her poetry as well as her family life. Concerning her ethnicity, Song states “I am just a poet who just happens to be Asian-American.” Ethnic background and her family are not the only things that distinguish Cathy Song apart from other poets. Song also has a habit of bursting strong imagery in her poems during pivotal points in her poetry to help a particular piece of the poem stand out and

I notice that Kay Ryan develops the meaning of the poem from literal to metaphorical. She does this throughout the stanzas. The first stanza says, “They are not imaginary but accessible only intermittently.” She uses language that leads the readers to believe that this poem is literal. In the second stanza, this is where the meaning of the poem shifts from literal to metaphorical. She says “Seasonal, shall we say, in the way of the exquisite high parts of Yosemite”. After reading and examining this stanza, the meaning of the poem opens up and changes from literal to metaphorical. What if “These places” weren’t actual places, they were a state of mind. This makes sense because a feeling or a state of mind is not imaginary, it’s real and certain feelings are accessible only occasionally, hence the word “Seasonal”. Plus, if the

Have you ever felt as an outsider? Are you scared to voice your opinion? Those are two questions that many Americans including poet Kay Ryan can say yes to. Kay Ryan is often referred to as a poetry “outsider” and underdog. She resists writing in the first person, preferring to write personal poems “in such a way that nobody has to know it.” In narrative and biography forms, she uses irony and humor to unravel the idiosyncrasies of language and the haplessness of human existence. She is fond of malapropisms and clichés, two linguistic devices that many poets consider taboo. She employs what she calls “recombinant rhyme”—hidden rhymes that appear in the middle, rather than at the end of her short lines. Her penchant for brevity has garnered her a reputation as a poet of “compression,” but Ryan disagrees. Although she says she likes to “squeeze things until they explode,” she insists “there’s a sense of air and ease in even the smallest of my poems.” The seven volume publisher and sixteenth United States Poet

Kuwl, translated as a kind of sustenance, is exemplified throughout the Old Testament in which various individuals or groups of people are sustained with food and drink, as well as clothing. Beyond that, is another type of support: “He will restore your life and be the support of your old age, for his mother is the daughter-in-law who loves you. She is worth more to you than seven sons!” Naomi was left all alone without her husband and children until Boaz and Ruth gave birth to a son named Obed. The opportunity for Naomi to become the nurturer of Obed allowed her to restore her livelihood. So, not only does Kuwl include basic necessities, but also a meaningful life.