Vianna's Poem

Life. Death. Time. The poem “Life” is about how everyone birthed and lives their lives, and then everyone dies one day no matter what. Times runs out for every person on the Earth. This poem reminds me of when my great-grandmother died. She was in her nineties and my family and I thought that she would live longer than she did. It was very sudden and I was shocked at the funeral. I think it was just time for her to let go. It’s hard losing someone who is close with one. The author’s tone is light- hearted and simple. The mood of the poem can make someone feel more comfortable with the thought of death. This essay will show how the author’s tone and the reader’s mood can affect how the poem, “Life” is read.

The theme found throughout the entirety of the poem “Identity” by Julio Polanco is displayed to be: freedom through individuality. ‘Identity” is a poem that uses extended metaphors and imagery to express its theme. In “Identity” the use of the extended metaphor portraying people as plants shows how although flowers are always “watered,fed,guarded,[and]admired,” they will always be “harnessed to a pot of dirt” (Polanco 1). The quotations from the poem depict the flowers as enchanting specimens however it also shows that they are also chained down to a pot of dirt.

Richard Blanco is a Cuban- American poet who was given the oppurunity to write an inaugaration poem for Barack Obama's second swearing-in. He wrote a poem titled "One Today" that praised the good and unique things about the United States and also the everyday people who's daily routines help to make America the proud country that it is.

The poems ‘Still I Rise’ and ‘Unknown Girl’ both explore the way women are expected to behave in specific societies. ‘Still I Rise’ focuses on Maya Angelou’s refusal to accept racism and to allow “them”, white oppressors, to push her down. ‘Unknown Girl’ focuses on Moniza Alvi’s want to be accepted in a society where she belongs, but can’t call her own.

Although Lysandra got her revenge, Elaine was never a good friend to her. When the time came to show her loyalty, her stubbornness and opportunistic traits took over. Back when they were younger Lysandra would get bullied by people in her class, but Elaine would never stand up for her. This story is written from Elaine's perspective. When she describes Lysandra she even mentions her "awkward jerky gait" (Wilson 66), then talks about how other kids would whisper "Pigeon-Toed Cochrane!" (66), as she passed by them. This shows that Elaine heard the others whispering and even considered that Lysandra had a jerky gait. Although, chose not to tell her about what she thought, as a true friend would. Furthermore, she would never stand up for her against the people

Do you feel that your movement is limited due to your appearance? Nikki Giovanna, author of the poem Choices, is an activist, writer, educator, and poet who originally published this poem in 1972 in a collection of poetry titled My House. Furthermore, Giovanna’s inspiration towards creating this poem is the Black Arts Movement, Civil Rights Movement, Equal Rights Amendment, and through her personal experiences as an African American female. This poem cornerstones the dilemma of the African American race.

In “The Great Scarf of Birds” by John Updike, he describes the power of nature to impact people by using structure, diction, figurative language, and imagery. By incorporating all of these literary devices, Updike constructs an authentic poem and a great read. The author is truly able to chronicle all the emotions that come with having a change of heart. Every literary device he uses is equally important in construction of the poem and the meaning behind it.

One struggle many individuals experience is speaking with conviction. Especially in today's day and age where people are possessed by their phone and would more likely send out a tweet then have a conversation with a loved one. The Poem “Totally like whatever, you know?” written by Taylor Mali addresses his concern that people no longer speak with meaning in discussions and conversations. He uses humor, sarcasm, as well as XXXXX to get his point across that people of this generation greatly lack confidence when they communicate. Throughout the poem he uses the word “like” in systematic places to strengthen his point. These places strengthen his argument because they sound natural and unnoticeable when listening to the poem but when reading

In “Conte” by Marilyn Hacker, Cinderella shows the reader a glimpse of her life after the childhood tale ends, a less happier ending than the original story implies. She feels trapped in a constant state of misery and boredom in the royal palace. Without life experience guiding her, Cinderella is in a dilemma caused by her ignorance of the potential consequences of her actions. With the use of irony, structure, and diction, “Conte” shows how innocence and naïveté result in regrettable mistakes that create life experience.

Dwight Okita wrote the poem "Responce to Executive 9066", while Sandra Cisneros wrote "Mericans", both are about American identity. Okita talks more about culture with your family and Cisneros wrote about cultural heritage and physical appearance. Those three things do not determine if you are fit to be an American or not.

I think that this poem mostly portraits death. I feel like this poem is really dark. Towards the end though, the girl in the poem showed some signs of hope. My butterfly will be black to represent the darkness in the poem. Also I will add a black Star of David to represent hatred Nazis had for Jews and the hatred Jews had for Nazis. I will also include a grey skull just as a representation of death. Then I will have surrounding pictures of poor Jewish kids that had to suffer during the Holocaust in the background. It wasn’t until the very end she actually show signs of hope. Most of my butterfly will be black because I need to the main of focus to be that in this poem there was no bright side. It is death, fear, and sickness wrapped in a little

Minorities struggle to break free from poverty, due to the systematic oppression and racism established in America. There is an odd belief that granting minorities rights would allow them to be on the same playing field as the majorities. However, the various death and injustice sentencing that has occurred for decades, proves civil rights were not the only problem. Pedro Pietri’s Puerto Rican Obituary and Wanda Coleman’s South Central Los Angeles Death Trip, 1982 shed light on what minorities face, with some stylistic differences.

The poem “Dear Matafele Peinam” by Kathy Jetñil-Kijiner is a tremendously moving poem about climate change. To begin, two of the main symbols of this poem are the lagoon and hands. Firstly, the lagoon symbolizes what the world could look like if people do not change. It shows the negative aspects of the world, and it also highlights the direction Earth is going. This symbol can be interpreted from the quote “men say that one day / that lagoon will devour you” (10-11). This implies that scientists are claiming that the Earth is headed in the wrong direction, and change is necessary before Earth devours its residents. Next, hands symbolize collaboration and change. Whenever hands were mentioned, it was always associated with change. A few examples are “hands reaching out / fists raising up” (62-63) and “marching with signs / hand in hand / chanting for change NOW” (80-82). These are powerful statements about rallies and statements about change. The hands are symbols of how the only way to save the planet for the future generations is to collaborate and work together to achieve a common goal.

In this poem, “Under the Feet of Jesus” the development of Estrella’s character consisted of many conditions. She went through several stages as in anger, curiosity, realization, and happiness. Estrella is going through all these different mood changes because she notices different events in her life. Her character’s literary element is tone. Here are some reasoning’s on why this theory is said.

One daiii at skool, this girl named Shaquaria and her crew was talkin ****. Dere was a party tha week B 4 , & there was dis dude i was grinding on . He drove me homee things popped off and whateva whateva . She wanna come in my face like U a h*** and sayin why u sleep wit my ex and say she finna beat my *** . I say hell nawl ***** . And she was a dark *** b**** too . I threw off my beat up converse wit da bottom stapled together [Cause dey was old and fallin apart mama had to hit em wit da hot glue and stapler u knoe what it do] Tied upp my boosted indian weave I had stole off dis b***** and said wussup b****** pop off . She wanna lunge at me like she a animal or some **** hell naw . I rko'ed dat h*** baq into slavery . Made dat h**** harriet