Personal Letter No. 3 by Sonia Sanchez

The first thing i notice when reading this poem was the title "Personal Letter No. 3" because that to me meant that the author Sonia Sanchez was writing this piece as if it were to herself which meant it would be reflective and personal.  This caught my interest because i feel as though self reflection through deep thought and escapism like poetry is very beneficial and is something not enough people in the world do.  Another important factor contributing to the boldness i felt was layered throughout the poem was the rhythm Sanchez gave to the piece by basically writing sentences and having them end on each line at specific point that causes the reader to have to keep pausing and take in what they are reading with that extra second mid-sentence.  Also the rhythm develops a sort of cliffhanger at the end of each line because the reader wants to finish the idea of that sentence and must follow on to the next line in order to do so.  Overall i like this poem because the ideas the author mentions represent serious late night thinking which i can relate to.  Ideas that seem random and scattered actually have depth and important messages they are backed by.  Whether it be something as simple as older women attempting to keep their youth by with "cool playing sounds" or a sentence much more meaningful like saying sometimes "after midnight" the author is "sick of it all".  A line like the one that Sanchez ends the poem with is very straight forward but also a personal statement that many people can relate to.  For that reason, the ability to relate to it, i felt a good connection to this piece.

Barbie Doll By Marge Piercy

When reading the poem entitled "Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy i was immediately attracted to the subject of the piece.  Not only is there a very dark tone throughout the poem, but there is also a deep sense of connection that i felt the author had to what she wrote.  The poem discusses the issues faced by young girls when they hit puberty and the pressure society puts on them to be "beautiful" in a completely artificial sense of the word.  The author speaks of the girl in the poem being intelligent, good natured and healthy, but those features failed to surpass the barrier of superficial beauty.  Repeating the line "big nose and fat legs" or using synonyms to do so, instills the issue in the readers mind which this girl is forced to face, until finally what i felt was the climax of the poem, when the girl cuts off her nose and legs to rid herself of that which was the focus of scrutiny.  The line i enjoyed most and what i felt really captured and exemplified the very dark tone throughout the poem was the second to last line where the author wrote "consummation at last" referring to after the girl died, and she was done up by the undertaker, every saw the beauty she could not find herself without all of the makeup.  It is a very depressing view of how the author feels society views beauty because it does not take makeup to be beautiful, and beauty is definitely not and external thing.

Hay for the Horses by Gary Snyder

After reading the poem "Hay for the Horses" by Gary Snider i felt a very close connection because the author discussed an issue i personally have been conflicted with and worry about in my own life.  Snyder speaks of an elderly gentlemen who is driving his truck late at night and doing work.  The message unfolds towards the end when the man in the poem is quoted basically talking about his age now, being 68, and referring back to when he began his work at 17 when he told himself "I sure would hate to do this all my life" and it just so happen to end up that way.  There is a feeling throughout the poem i felt of a certain frustration that is disguised well by acceptance of the situation the man in the poem is stuck in.  As well as understanding that the time in his life flew by so quickly he wasn't able to stop it, only now able to reminisce about a better time in his life.  This is a big fear i face everyday because i too, along with the man spoken about in the poem, want to take advantage of my life and the world still being ahead of me as opposed to behind me like the farmer.  I hope i have a different future than he does.

Allen Ginsberg HOMEWORK

I really enjoyed this poem specifically because it was very straight forward and used simple language but also was able to deliver a strong message that is hard to miss.  Ginsberg is taking a task well known to human existence, laundry, and turning it into a way to rid the world of all the bad humans have done to it.  It is a striking comparison because similarly people do laundry and they dirty their clothes, something they are responsible for and that causes them to have to clean them.  This stays true when he discusses different parts of the world saying things like, "I'd throw in my United States, and pour on the Ivory Soap, scrub up Africa." This relates directly to issues discussed in his poem that exist still to this day but are ignored and not taken care of.  Ginsberg is able to take a very effortless task such as doing laundry, or pouring something down the drain, (line 9), and weigh that against something not even the most intelligent species we know to exist can resolve.  I also found it very interesting what he chose to name his poem.  The title Homework I think symbolizes our responsibility to take care of something, but in the same sense as known to be with homework, lazy people do not take care of it.  So in a way I feel as though Ginsberg is calling all humans who are part of the problems he mentions, basically all of us, lazy and irresponsible.  The same words you would use to describe someone who does not do their homework for school.

The Gift...Li-Young Lee

When reading the poem "The Gift" by Li-Young Lee you immediately are able to see the message the author is conveying with each line.  Without wasting time Lee begins by telling the reader a story about his father pulling a splinter out of his palm.  I believe that this is a great example as i feel it symbolizes not only a moment where children are very vulnerable, but anytime a child is in pain, their parent, in this specific case his father, being there for him in his time of need.  It is a topic that most people can relate to because many of us have gotten splinters before and at a time where we are too young to take care of it ourselves, we rely on the knowledge and help of our parents to aid us.  The message from this poem i feel is much deeper than just easing the pain Lee faced in that he goes on multiple times to tell the reader just how wonderful his father is.  Saying that he "watched his lovely face" referring to his father, to then go on to say how he learned from him and was able to use that to help his wife the same way his father helped him.  Although i felt picking out the splinter symbolizes much more than what it blatantly says, it is common that a specific memory such as the one the author speaks of will remain in our memory even when we become adults.  By not panicking, Lee was able to get past the pain, get the splinter removed, and then finish off the poem ever so sweetly with a really meaningful message that shows he thanked his father for his help by kissing him.  The bond between a father a son is everlasting and stronger than anything and i really enjoyed the way Li-Young Lee explored his feelings about his own father. 

Facing it by Yusef Komunyakaa

I found this poem to be extremely insightful and interesting.  It gives the reader a first hand look inside the mind of what seems to be a Vietnam War veteran who is suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.  This style of poetry that Yusef  Komunyakaa uses in his poem "Facing it" is very close to that of my own.  He is very direct and does not get sidetracked with any crazy diction or similes.  He is abstract in his writing but also makes sure to provide enough information so that the reader does not get confused by the complexity of the storyline.  The poem is not very long but it packs a large punch and certain lines like 3 and 4 really are able to drag the reader in to the emotional aspect of the piece.  Referencing the narrator not wanting to cry is a common thought among soldiers while at the same time they are still human and with that insight it is not forgotten.  Lines 25-28 refer to how someone sees that narrator and looks through them and then it jumps to him remembering a man with one arm.  It was especially meaningful to me the way that the author chose to end the poem.  Humans are aware it is our nature to have a thought process which could contain a hundred thoughts in a matter of seconds and that is exactly what were are being shown in this piece.  But throughout all the negative scenes the author describes, using imagery that is almost to vague or weird to actually imagine, he finishes it all off with a woman brushing a boys hair.  I found this to be very sweet and i appreciate the fact that the author chose not to focus solely on all the horrors of war but instead was able to incorporate a much nicer image to lighten the mood of the very serious and touching poem.

The fish

Though i may be completely off the mark, but when reading the poem "The Fish" by Elizabeth Bishop i couldn't help the feeling that the fish represented a man.  Playing off of the old saying "there are plenty of other fish in the sea" i felt as though i was reading "in between the lines" and caught a glimpse of a hidden symbol throughout the piece.  I saw a story unfold between the author and a man who she had lured into her life "caught" and was now breaking him down in her head as can be seen in the first 20 lines.  Each line more offensive then the next, really focusing on the physical features that cause you to feel bad for the fish, which is common for a person to do when selecting someone to be with.  Then, over the next 20 lines or so as if the man or the "fish" began to understand her hurtful comments she begins to feel bad for just how dreadful he looked, the same appearance she was mocking a few lines before.  I felt after this the tone of the poem completely changed.  Elizabeth Bishop began using words like medal, ribbon and rainbow, much more positive words.  She even went as far as to say she admired the fish.  At this point it seemed to me that when she stopped being shallow and looked past the exterior she began to appreciate the personality or in this case all the fish has had to endure.  Repeating the word rainbow in the second to last line gave me the feeling that she has had a mood swing and now is beginning to see a much brighter world.  In the beginning she had this man as i see it, in the palm of her hand, no pun intended, with complete control over him and she began degrading him.  But the longer she held him out of his comfort zone the more lifeless he became, and the closer to death he got, the more she began to understand him, and the more she began to understand him the more she sympathized with him which ultimately led to an epiphany causing her to let go because she was abusing her power.  I think it relates to women being more understanding of men and even though it is common that a man may take advantage of a woman, the writer speaks of a time where even when in complete control, she was in her right mind enough to do the right thing. If that makes any sense....