The Apparition

Okay, so creepy stalker boy is overdoing it just a bit in this one. Boys, don't try threatening girls to scare them into not rejecting you. It won't work, and we might hit you. Anyway, the tone in this one is definitely threatening and possibly vengeful even though she hasn't done anything to him yet. The crazy dude is in denial, and he's not even in a relationship with the girl. He feels like she's cheating on him because she's with another man even though she can't possibly cheat. She can't have murdered his heart if she never knew she had it. He's like one of those psychopaths from the crime shows. Overall, a creepy poem. Makes me think twice about the already-creepy people I meet at work.

My Mistress' Eyes

I really like how Shakespeare satirizes other poems and literature in the first half of the poem. I didn't quite see it until we talked about it in class, but it makes sense now that that was his point. He's not saying that his girlfriend is ugly and that he loves her anyway. What he's saying is that he loves her so much that he's not going to lie to her. He wants to tell her what he truly thinks of her rather than comparing her to something which she doesn't resemble. He makes fun of all the other poets for finding cheesy metaphors for women because there is no way for the comparisons to be true. No woman's lips are as red as coral unless it's cold and windy and she needs some Chapstick. He doesn't need to imply that her lips are chapped to compliment her when he can just say her lips are pretty. Thank you, Shakespeare, for your honesty and simplicity.

#7

The theme of "Getting Out" is coming to a new realization. That's primarily what takes place in the poem. The couple seems not to want a divorce. They've tried to work out their differences, and they really do want to be together. He packs up his things to leave many times, but he can't because he doesn't want to give up yet. The end of the poem brings about a new side of the divorce. The couple cries when the divorce is finalized. They both obviously regret the divorce and don't want to go through with it, but they know that they can't work things out. They realize that the divorce is something they have to do in order to be happy, and that realization gets them both through it and helps at least him to move on.

#8

The tone in "Crossing the Bar" is accepting and almost hopeful. The speaker is clearly about to die. He uses the sandbar as a metaphor for death. Once he's past the sandbar, he cannot turn back. When one describes death, a sad tone would be expected, but the speaker seems to be telling the people he's close to not to mourn. He tells them that he's going to meet God, and he's accepted that. Everything beyond the sandbar, I think, is heaven, so the speaker isn't sad that that's where he's headed. He doesn't use ominous or dark words to describe death, so his tone must be at least accepting if not hopeful.

Batter my heart...

I really didn't like this poem at all until we talked about it in class, honestly. Speaking of such, I'm glad we finally have a poem that's actually about God because I feel like our class attempts to relate things to God during discussions which are completely unrelated to God...just sayin'. Anyway, the paradox in the poem is that the speaker wants God to take away his freedom so that he can be free from sin. By forcing the speaker to stay close to Him, God would keep the speaker from Satan's grasp. The word "ravish" sort of killed the whole poem for me, though. That word makes me think of Candide and how Cunegonde (what an ugly name) was "ravished" by the Bulgarian soldiers. Contrasting "ravish" and "chaste" didn't help either as far as the comparison goes. Other than that, I like the poem a lot, and I especially like the words used in the first quatrain to represent God, the Spirit and Jesus. It made sense as soon as I saw the words on the board, and I think it gave me some insight on how better to interpret poetry in general.

Ozymandias

This poem seemed pretty straightforward to me which is refreshing. The speaker is criticizing government and rulers. When people reflect on history, a ruler's reputation is more easily remembered than the government as a whole. Ozymandias' reputation, from the speaker's description, wasn't the greatest, and he's remembered that way. The theme of that portion of the poem is that we should be cautious in regards to our actions because no one can control the way in which he or she is remembered. The part of the poem which talks about the legs and head in the sand is referring to a weak, powerless government. The most important part, the trunk, is missing, and the rest is separated. The separate pieces create weak spots in a government and leave it open to enemies' attacks. It's a recipe for disaster.

#6

"APO 96225" reminded me a lot of TTTC, but it wasn't just because of the Vietnam thing. It seems like the two works have a similar purpose. In TTTC when Kiowa's sister doesn't wrote back to Rat, the reader sees civilians' stance on the war. The purpose of "APO 96225" is the same. The poem shows that civilians cared about soldiers and the war, but they preferred that the truth about the war stay separate from their perception of it. The boy's mother wants to know about the war throughout the entire poem. She even worries when her son doesn't tell her about everything that's happening, but when he tells her the truth, she can't handle it. The mother represents the average civilian in America during the war. They wanted their own ideas of Vietnam to cover the truth about what happened to soldiers so that they wouldn't have to deal with the accompanying pain.

#13

In "Barbie Doll," society is paradoxical. Society will only accept the girl in the poem once her true self is dead. In society, her life begins when the person she truly is dies and a new personality and character takes over. This paradoxical view is used as a criticism of society. The speaker uses the seemingly contradictory values of society to make society appear backwards and nonsensical. To the reader, though, the paradox makes sense after some thought. How often are we told indirectly that there is a certain image which is defined as "pretty"? It allows the reader to relate more fully to the feelings of the girl in the poem because the reader has likely experienced a similar occurrence.

Bright Star

I definitely didn't interpret this correctly the first time I read it. I got the wanting to be like a star part, but it took a little conversing to find some better meaning for me. The lover part didn't make sense before either, but that's all good now too. I like the speaker's idea of the star. The star is strong and still and unchanging. It's comforting and safe just like being with a loved one. The star's loneliness seems peaceful to me. Loneliness isn't all that appealing, sure, but the star seems to be comfortable there. As a human, I wouldn't be, but the star's separation from everything else places it in its own little world just like the "world" the lovers have created for themselves. All this class discussion is awesome, by the way. I really like hearing other people's ideas and having a chance to gain a better understanding for myself through another person's interpretation.

Toads

This poem was weird. I understand that he is unhappy with his job. Good for him. Why does he want to be a bum, though? I mean, he says that money isn't important, but he knows that he needs money to support his family. How does he expected to make money based on just his wits like he wants to? The negative feeling that his job creates is inside him. The job is not the toad. The feelings created by the job are the toad. To be happy, he needs to get rid of the toad. He seems to just complain about his job a lot. Is there any real message there?

#11

In "I taste a liquor never brewed," Emily Dickinson uses a metaphor to compare nature to liquor. This poem, to me, made Dickinson sounds sort of "high on life," if you will. In the second stanza, just the air is making her feel drunk. She "taste[s] a liquor never brewed" because what she "taste[s]" isn't actually liquor. She's taking in the beauty of nature, and to her, it's intoxicating just like alcohol would be. She doesn't seem overly drunk, so nature isn't making her senseless. It's giving her an exhilarating sense of peace that she carelessly enjoys. By comparing nature to something with which people in her time period could identify, she ensured that others would understand what she was trying to say about nature and the relaxation that it brings to her.

#6

The central theme of "Dream Deferred" is annoyance with the circumstances of the time period (1930s and '40s) in relation to civil rights. The dream to which the poets is most likely referring is the dream of racial equality. The metaphors he uses in the poems describe different ways that the issue of civil rights could be handled by the country. He begins with several scenarios which could result from waiting to act on people's feelings about civil rights, all of which are bad, but they're not the worst. The second to last stanza describes the current situation with civil rights. It's weighing on the people like a heavy load. The last line describes the worst case scenario by relating it to an explosion. Violence is this worst case scenario.

#8

Okay so the chick from February is seriously unhappy, and that's what sets the theme. She actually really bugs me. The way she speaks to the cat makes her sound angry after the first few lines of the poem. At the end, she evens yells "Off my face!" at it. She just seems bitter about everything, and this attitude gives the poem a bitter, harsh feel. I understand why she's all angry, but she needs a chill pill. Anyway, the author creates the tone of the poem through her harsh diction and the punctuation she uses throughout the poem. Without those two, the point of the poem would be lost to the reader. How would we know she's bitter because she's all alone in the month of love?

In Regards to All the Poems

All of the poems seemed to have something in common in my opinion. Every poem had a depressing theme and a somber tone. The poems about spring gave the season of life a pessimistic spin. Emily Dickinson needs some Prozac or some Excedrin Migraine because she was potentially the most depressing. I really don't like that every poem has a negative twist to it. I understand that similarity between the poems is a part of what makes them a unit, but why do they have to be so depressing? No one wants to read about spring becoming a widow's reminder of death. That's taking a happy time and making it sound terrible. Honestly, there have to be happier poems to read, so why did we read all the depressing ones? I like poetry and all, but these are enough to make anyone feel sad after reading them.

I felt a Funeral, in my Brain

This poem is really depressing, but I actually liked it a lot. The first time I read it, two interpretations came to mind. One: she's going crazy, or two: she has a migraine. I personally prefer the second explanation because I can relate to it better. The steps of the mourners as the "tread" is like the beginning of the migraine. There is a steady pain which slowly grows stronger. I attribute the lack of visual details to the half-vision which is common with migraines or the focus of the pain behind one or both of the eyes. The drum beat is like the throbbing of the headache. The numbness is like the moments when the pain feels like it's beginning to subside. The lifting and moving of the box is the revival of the pain and the motion of the pain slowly moving around the head. The lead boots are the throbbing once again. The bells are like the sounds to which the sufferer of a migraine is so sensitive. The sense of being alone is like laying in bed in a dark room so that no light or sound can worsen the pain. Finally, the migraine ends, and the sufferer drifts off to sleep just as the poem drifts off at the end.

#12

In the poem "Spring," the symbolism brings about the true point of the poem. At first glance, the poem seems to be about a spring day. The symbols, however, reveal a deeper meaning. The beauty of spring is a symbol of the innocence of childhood. The springtime is a time of new growth and new life and pure beauty. Everything is alive and vibrant during spring just as everything is in childhood. A child is innocent and unblemished by the trials and tribulations of everyday life. The poem is saying that innocence has an end just as spring does, but the innocence should be appreciated and enjoyed while it's still there. As a loss of innocence spoiled the Garden of Eden, so too does it spoil the life of a child.

#7

The central theme of "Those Winter Sundays" is regret. Throughout the poem, the speaker recalls things that his father did for him and his family for which he was never thanked. The father made fires in the morning with hands tired for labor, but his kindness went unnoticed. When the author says "No one ever thanked him", it seems as though he feels regret for not thanking his father. The questions at the end of the poem reinforce the theme of regret. The questions seem to me like the uncertainty which loved ones experience after a relative's death. The speaker is asking himself why he never thanked his father for all of the things he did because he feels guilt and regret. Because his father has just died, he lost the chance to thank his father and change things, so his guilt is growing.

#10

In "The Widow's Lament in Springtime," imagery is the source of meaning for the poem. At the beginning, the speaker describes the flowers of a plum tree. From this point on, flowers convey the idea of the poem better than anything else. At first, the flowers seem to simply represent the colors of spring. The yellow and red of the trees are the bright colors that the speaker used to love in the springtime. At the end of the poem, the speaker describes trees of white flowers and wanting to fall into them. To me, the flowers symbolize a funeral with flowers surrounding the casket. Falling into the flowers would be like laying in a casket which makes me think that the speaker does in fact want to commit suicide.

Perrine's Mistaken-ness

This "essay" or whatever it is really got on my nerves. There is no "correct" interpretation of poetry or any literary work for that matter. The author may intend a certain meaning, but that doesn't make it correct. That interpretation simply becomes one notion derived from a work. Interpretation is about the meaning a work has for the reader, and different readers may have different interpretations. Reading the article just made my view of poetry stronger: it's not meant to have one interpretation. In fact, the true genius of an author or poet is the ability to create multiple meanings in a work. By doing so, the author makes the work appealing to a larger audience.
My biggest problem is with Perrine's argument that a proof has to fit every detail in a poem. If a reader believes his or her explanation to be accurate, said reader will make the details fit the explanation for himself or herself. Perrine seems to believe that his explanation is always right. For him, it may be the best explanation, but I really think that The Sick Rose uses the rose as a symbol for a woman. His theory or parameters cannot tell me I'm wrong because many people would agree that I am correct. And even if others didn't agree, I interpreted the poem that way, so that's the correct interpretation for me. What if the woman was ugly and mean and didn't represent something "beautiful or desirable or good"? The secret lover which I believe the worm to be could love her anyway. Her beauty or desirability has nothing to do with it.