I often wish I had more time to study poetry in class. Poetry allows the brain and the heart to connect in a way that other literature does not always allow. Unfortunately, many students do not enjoy poetry because they find the art form to be difficult to understand and "useless" in their everyday lives.
In my attempt to promote appreciation for poetry I would love to share some of my favorite poems. Below is a list of the poems that I hold near and dear to my heart.
"The Stolen Child" by W.B. Yeats
"To Ireland in the Coming Times" by W.B. Yeats
"How Do I Love Thee?" by Elizabeth Barrett Browning
"i carry your heart with me (i carry it in" by E.E. Cummings
"The Untold Want" by Walt Whitman
"Sick" by Shel Silverstein
"Forgetfulness" by Billy Collins
"Helen" by H.D.
"Greater Love" by Wilfred Owen
Sonnet 129 by William Shakespeare
18 comments:
I learned about Walt Whitman in my American History class. From what I heard, he was a perverted/weird guy. I read his poem, "The Untold Want", and yeah I didn't understand it. I'm sure there is deep meaning in the poem, despite it being only two lines (and I'll at least try to analyze it).
Shel Silverstein is definitely a great poet. His poems have a certain charm to them that makes them fun to read. I actually happen to have "Where the Sidewalk Ends" which in my opinion is a great collection of poetry. It's been a while since I've actually opened the book, but now i have the sudden urge to read through some of his poems.
Out of the many links you posted I took the time to read three, Forgetfulness, Greater love, and the untold want. Out of the three the first one I opened was Walt Whitman’s mainly because I recognized the name. I was actually annoyed by what was written, I continued on to the 2 other poems but those short 2 lines kept bugging me. It wasn’t that it was offensive or badly written but because it was so well written. When you first glance over it you just think its short and makes no point but if you take the time to read it, its quite astonishing because its the first thing I have seen i am my life that has told a story in less then 20 words. It was also something that connected to me because I have been thinking about my future for some time and I wish to find my story.
The poem of E.E Cummings has to be the most gorgeous poem I've read so far. How touching would it be if your boyfriend would dedicate that to you, I would personally suffer of a stroke. He really says what he is feeling in such a small amount of words but at the same time he says so much. A factor I love most about poems is that each person can interpret it differently, making a comparison to previous expiriences or emotions you might be feeling at the time. It's incredible how such a small paragraph could express such immense and unique feelings like love is.
I agree that poetry i a great way to express yourself. I thought the poem "sick" was really good it made me laugh alittle towards the end i found it to be very ironic and funny. I find it to be so because it is exactly a little kid would react, and it reminded me a lot of my little brother. I remember how when it came time to do homework he was sick but when all of his friends were outside he was okay
I have read "Greater love" by Wilfred Owen before. But im one of those people who just dont understand poetry. But I do understand that it's a great piece of literature wich expresses the feelings. I read some poems over and over again but I still can't understand the deeper meaning most of the times.
I decided to read Owen's "Greater Love" and Shakespeare's "Sonnet 129" because those are the only two poets I have studied really. From reading "Dulce Et Decorum Est" and "Anthem for Doomed Youth," I realize that Owen is depicting World War I in his poetry. "Greater Love" is no different. It’s a poem that reveals Owen's admiration of brotherly love. This is the sacrificial love of soldiers that is unbeknownst to the readers until they experience it for themselves.
As for Shakespeare's "Sonnet 129," it is unlike most of Shakespeare's sonnets. It is not directed to a particular individual but is addressed to an audience. He is obviously talking about sexual lust. The first line states that lust is disgraceful and spiritually draining. The rest of the poem simply elaborates upon this idea
I just chose a random poem and I picked "Sick." Okay that's a lie. I am not a fan of poetry, so it sounded the most interesting. I did like this poem, it was pretty humourous when after giving every excuse in the book not to go to school, he finds out it is Saturday and is automatically better. And almost every person can relate to this, that is what makes it even better.
I read that poem by Wilfred Owen before and i couldn't understand it. For me poems are hard to understand. Even though I keep reading them over and over again to understand. I just can't get to the deaper meaning of them. But I do understand and appreciate the work of art in poems and how they express the readers tru feelings.
Poetry is another amazing way to express your ideas. I remember the poem "Sick" from elementary school. My teachers had us recite poems, mostly from Shel Silverstein. I found this poem to be actually pretty funny. It reminds me of something that I maybe did in my past because I know that we all really enjoy school. Poems can be a very powerful piece of literature to really get your point across.
I read the poem "Forgetfulness." I believed that this poem was trying to make a statement to the society we have today. It is stating that the people today in school don't really care about actually learning but only getting a good grade. Students will only memorize the information given rather than retaining it. After a test, they will just throw the information learned out. This is a bold statement that I find very true. I enjoyed this poem as it showed the reality of the world today.
POETRY, I was one of those kids that tried to use poetry on the first writing assignment you gave. Sadly, this is when I learned the poetry may not be for me. It is without a doubt that poetry allows the "brain and the heart to connect in a way the other literature does not". Sometimes I feel like you have to use to much to try and figure out poetry, it way to confusing. I read a few of the poems listed below, they were good, but now I got a headache. I need a simple, to the point, poem. Roses are red, violets are blue, nothing as beautiful as a curly haired Jew. Now thats a good poem!
Wow, the poem by Walt Whitman is very short. That's not why I pick it though. I just randomly chose one. I believe that poem is talking about a perfect place that someone is trying to find. But that person can not find it. I think thats right, but I am not sure. I analyed the poem though for a good 15 minutes.
I read the poem by Shel Silverstein, "Sick". I have read many of his poems when I was younger and reading this took me back to this time. His poems capture the spirit of little children and makes me feel happy because this is exactly how I used to feel. I don't think that there is a deeper meaning to this poem besides the fact that there is a child that obviously is making up excuses for things that he doesn't want to do until he finds out that he doesn't have to them anyway.
I especially liked "I carry your heart with me". It was such a sweet poem, and I liked the line where it talked about how this person didn't fear fate, because fate lead him to love. I wish someone would one day say the same about me!
I wish we could havelearned more about poetry in th class and how to analyze the writers meanings. I do not know a lot on poems and i would like to. I used to write lyrics but I never really knew how to put them into poetry form. Poetry is such a good way though to let out your emotions and how you are feeling.
I love the poem "sick". I think that poem represents a little part of all of us when we have to wake up to go to school everyday. Especially when you're younger. I can really imagine a young child saying all of those things in order to stay home from school, but when he realizes it's saturday and there is no school, he gets up immediately to go out and play. The power of imagination.
I wish we had some more time to study poetry as well. It's probably one of my favorite forms of writing. I love that you picked Shel Silverstein as the author of one of your favorite poems!! I remember reading all of his poetry books when I was in elementary school and actually cracking up at his rhyming corny jokes. They were so cute and easy to read and understand, I'm sure they are still really popular among young students today.
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