Mary Oliver As My Poet

Just as Conrad conveys the creation of one’s own path subconsciously in Marlow, the poem “Road not taken” by Robert Frost explores this idea, represented my literal paths and an alternate, unspoken third path. The metaphor of the physical journey shows the moral growth in the protagonist. The poem is written in first person, giving it a very personal and reflective tone, expressing a pivotal moment in the persona’s life. The use of andante, the flowing rhythm establishes a conversational tone. The rhyme scheme is simple and effective throughout the poem, however, it changes in the final stanza. By implementing a new scheme here, the final thought of reflection is emphasized. The "less traveled" road is symbolic of the gamble of choosing a more individual path in life, the protagonist’s own road. This can be compared to the quote by Antonio Machado, “Travelers, there is no path, paths are made by walking.” This quote exemplifies the fact that walking the path is more important than

Most poems, new and old, almost always have an important message to teach to all those who take the time to read it. Authors use poetic devices to get their message across in creative, yet effective ways. For example, Mary Oliver carefully uses several poetic devices to teach her own personal message to her readers. Oliver’s use of the poem’s organization, diction, figurative language, and title aids in conveying the message of how small, yet vital oxygen is to all living and nonliving things in her poem, “Oxygen.”

Not only do these poems share differences through the speakers childhood, but also through the tones of the works.

One similarity that the poems “A Blessing” and “Predators” have is that they both have tame animals. An example that supports this statement it that in the poem “Predators” there are two tame animals or domesticated animals. One example that proves this theory is that in the poem it explains that there is a dog and a cat that is the speaker’s pets. Additionally, in the poem “A Blessing” it explains that in the poem it informes that “We stepped over the barbed wire into the pasture.” This proves that the two Indian ponies are tame because the barbed wire is protecting them and they are in a pasture. Furthermore, the speakers also have similarities. One similarity between James Wright and Linda Hogan is that in the two poems they both learn something. James Wright learns about the feelings that the two Indian ponies had and how that made him happy and peaceful. Likewise, Linda Hogan learns that she needs to be more protective of her pets once she finds out that there are wild animals living in her

The common theme they share is if something needs to be done you have to go and achieve it. In the poem it says “The people I love the best jump into work head first, without dallying in the shallows.” In the poem the last sentence says that the kids are walking through the snow and no person or thing is going to stop them from getting to school. It also states that he has to shovel snow he said “ he could leave it undisturbed” but he said he has obligations and the kids walk down his street to get to the school, he had to get it done so the kids could walk to school. There was another snowfall after he had just got done shoveling snow the first time and he knew that he had to shovel it again so he went outside and shoveled it again. The poem

Poems can be interpreted in many ways; however, every reader has their preference. One interpretation of “The Journey” is that it is a story about battling depression. The

The use of first person pronoun ‘I’ shows that it is a personal journey where choices need to be made. The repetition of ‘I’ in the last stanza highlights the speaker’s solitude and that he is proud of the choice he has made ‘and I-I took the one less travelled by’, also emphasises that we are responsible for our own decisions on our own journey. It helps the audience connect to the poem and inturn reflect on their own inner journey experiences.

There are lots of things in the poems that are similar and different both of the writers are different and similar in many ways .In the poem’s “When You Are Old” By W.B Yeats, and “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night” By Dylan Thomas.They have a bunch of similarities and differences.For example in each of the poems the theme of the poems are death and the narrator’s message in the rhyming pattern poems are both similar in the poems ,and the writing style of the poems are rhyme schemes and therefore they use different rhyme scheme in each of the poems.

Both poems share a theme involving the beauty of nature. “The Silver Thread” focuses on the scene of a stream, while “Fall Song” emphasizes the Fall season. The scene in “The Silver Thread” shows how nature blends with modern life and civilization when it says, “the stream disappears under a bridge made by men so trucks can crawl back and forth over this road of dirt with its one row of grass.” This image of a man-made bridge over the naturally occurring stream shows a balance in the world between the world’s now complicated aspects of life and the simplicity of nature which remains straightforward. I can appreciate the balance represented in this poem because I also try to balance the stresses of life with the beauty of nature. The elegance of nature, which would be hard to recreate. Nature’s simplicity gives people a sense of calmness even in bad times.

I personally have read theses six poems a few times each now. Starting with “Introduction to Poetry,” “How I Discovered Poetry,” “Poetry Should Ride the Bus,” “How Poetry comes to me,” “Making It in Poetry” and “Poem.” I for one will be explicating each poem and discussing how they are similar and different in their own ways. As well as explaining my own thoughts on the poems themselves and summarizing what I believe them to be.

Although the similarities are striking in both poems, there are both diverse in there own way. Both poem expressed admirations for the small things in life. They both mention the sun, sky, and the ground specifically in their texts. For example in Strand poem he says, “… I praise the sky… I praise the wind, the rising generations of air… I praise the clocks…”

Mary Oliver was just 28 years of age when she first published her first book titled No Voyage and Other Poems in 1963. During the 50’s she studied at Ohio State University and Vassar College, but did not attain a degree. She did however, meet her partner of almost 50 years, Molly Malone Cook. While together, Oliver’s love for nature and words thrived for the last 60 or more years, even after the death of her partner in 2005 (About Mary Oliver). Susan Salter Reynolds, in the Los Angeles Times Book Review, took notice that Oliver’s earlier poems are almost always about nature, never personal.

In today’s modern view, poetry has become more than just paragraphs that rhyme at the end of each sentence. If the reader has an open mind and the ability to read in between the lines, they discover more than they have bargained for. Some poems might have stories of suffering or abuse, while others contain happy times and great joy. Regardless of what the poems contains, all poems display an expression. That very moment when the writer begins his mental journey with that pen and paper is where all feelings are let out. As poetry is continues to be written, the reader begins to see patterns within each poem. On the other hand, poems have nothing at all in common with one another. A good example of this is in two poems by a famous writer by

The two poems have a similar structure, however, their rhyme schemes have suggestive tones towards their people and their structure reflects

The exclamation point after line 13 conveys excitement, but that excitement is severed by his admission in the following lines. ?way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back?(3.14,15). In the final stanza, lines 16-20 the tone of the poem changes completely. This is the only stanza that begins with a new sentence, indicating that it is a stronger break from the previous ideas. The speaker puts himself in a future situation discussing his life. What he states here seems to contradict what he has said earlier. From his future prospective he says that the paths where different and that he did not choose the one most traveled by. Perhaps he will in the future actually believe this and he only wishes that he could choose in the present ?the one less traveled by.?(5.20)