Poetry Project

   Poetry Project

Original Poem

The Sound of Morning

The morning’s rush

The gentle breeze

The uplifting rush of birds on trees

A child’s yawn

The dew on grass

Finally, the break of dawn

At last

Reflection:

I wrote this poem because, I realized that, all my other poems generally described how things look like. For instance, in my sonnet, Another Sonnet for Sunrise, I mostly used only sight to describe the objects that are presented in my poem. In this poem, I tried to take a different approach, and tried to use more than one sense to describe something. Another reason why I wrote this poem, is because I really liked the idea to write about something that describes how stilled peace slowly goes away. There’s always that time of day, where the peace starts to wear away, and so will everyone’s sleep. Everyone will start to wake up, getting busy. So, I chose to do something in between peaceful and busy. The literary devices that I have incorporated in this poem are end and near rhymes.  Lines two and three rhyme :breeze and trees. The same goes for lines four and six: yawn and dawn. And lines five and seven: grass and last. I have also incorporated imagery to create a vivid scenery and a soothingly calm tone. Line break in this poem seems to be composed of end-stopped lines. However, they still need the other lines to complete the thought.

Original Poem

A Collection of Haikus

Nature’s first bloom                                            

gold instead of green

winter’s icy breath no longer here

Birds gossip among

tall tangled limbs

towering over me

Shattered glass on the floor

broken wings yearn for flight

the apocalypse

The gray sky filled with dark clouds

everyone so miserable

except me

Reflection:

I decided to write the first haiku based on a picture I took at Prospect Park last year. It was a picture of the very few flowers that were blooming that early spring. Because it was under direct sunlight, the flower seemed to look more golden than the pale green it usually presented. For this haiku, I followed the traditional haiku format of three lines. For my literary devices, I used imagery to describe the blooming flower under the sunlight, and how the cold wind had felt like before spring hit: its icy breath. For this haiku, I used enjambment so my readers would have to read the whole poem to fully understand the message I’m trying to convey. The tone of the poem would lean towards hopeful and relieved that winter is finally gone.

The second haiku is based on another picture that I took in Prospect Park that day. It was a picture of a tree. The branches in the tree looked really tangled, and they reminded to me of uncoordinated limbs: tall and awkward. Another thing I had remembered that day, were the extremely noisy birds. It was as if the birds couldn't stop chirping. Whatever they were chirping about seemed to get them pretty excited, and that reminded me of  a bunch of girls gossiping. Like the first haiku, I followed the traditional haiku format of three lines. For this haiku, I made sure each line was incomplete without the other lines. If those lines were read all together, only then, would they make sense. I also used metaphors to describe and compare the branches of the trees and tall tangled limbs. Imagery is also used in my haiku. I used imagery to express how loud the birds were, and how the tree looked like. The speaker of this poem would be the perspective of someone looking at that tree. I used enjambment in this poem, and a tone with a sense of wonder.

I wrote the third poem with a post-apocalyptic view, and that would cause a tone of despair and a sense of hopelessness. I did this poem inspired by a artwork I had done along with my classmate Ayane Naito. It was a 3-D bird attached to a painting. This bird was falling down, about to die. And there were shards of glass surrounding the bird, suggesting its impact once it hit the ground. I felt as if there was no hope for the bird. This haiku would be an illusion to the artwork that was mentioned before. In this haiku, I used end stopped lines.

This fourth haiku was based on a personal aspect of myself. I love the rain. But my friends don’t exactly feel the same way. Like all the other haikus, I have only three lines. But in this haiku, I decided to follow a feature where the third line of a haiku is a surprise. The first two lines had a tone of gloom and misery, but the last line went towards happiness and pleasure for that one person who liked rain. The speaker of this poem, is in first person narration. I also used enjambment.

Sonnet

Another Sonnet for Sunrise

I have to see the morning light today

The break of dawn is not something to miss

Oh, nature leaving golden hues to play

This light illuminates the land, sun-kissed

Confused of why I find the sight unique

The golden sight is why my heart just soars

I know those woven waves, the molded streaks

I soon sat there and hoped for time to snore

Below, the straight way down, my city home

Inside a stranded place that does not sleep

A maze, concrete, will overflow with souls who roam

Besides those lifeless souls, will soon be me

Next thing I saw invades my heart with dread

The sight was gone, and now my soul is dead

Reflection:

I wrote this poem inspired by a small aspect from Starry Night by Anne Sexton. When I read that poem there were these two lines that I thought was thought-provoking. Those lines were ‘’The town does not exist’’ and ‘’The night boils with eleven stars’’. These lines made me think that the starry night was the only thing alive in the speaker’s world. This aspect inspired me to write a poem about a person who thinks the sunrises and the  colors made by nature is the only beautiful and ‘’alive’’ feature about the speaker’s city. The first stanza describes the sunsets the speaker is seeing, and the second stanza shows what the speaker is feeling when the sunrise was gone: dead. Like having no purpose in life, and that sunrise is what kept the speaker up everyday. For my literary devices, I used end rhymes using the Shakespearean  rhyme scheme of ABABCDCDEFEFGG, a rhythm: iambic pentameter, which were necessary for a sonnet. I also used stanzas to organize my writing, personification describing parts of the sky and the city, imagery to describe the sunset, a speaker’s point of view: first person, and a tone of both admiring and sorrow.

Reading Response on Heart Poem

Hanging Fire by Audre Lorde

I am fourteen

and my skin has betrayed me

the boy I cannot live without

still sucks his thumb

in secret

how come my knees are

always so ashy

what if I die

before morning  

and momma’s in the bedroom

with the door closed

I have to learn how to dance

in time for the next party

my room is too small for me

suppose I die before graduation

they will sing sad melodies

but finally

tell the truth about me

There is nothing I want to do

and too much

that had to be done

and momma’s in the bedroom

with the door closed.

Nobody even stops to think

about my side of it

I should have been on Math Team

my marks were better than his

why do I have to be

the one

wearing braces

I have nothing to wear tomorrow

will I live long enough

to grow up

and momma’s in the bedroom

with the door closed        

Reading Response:

                    Our society faces many issues. These issues range from racism all the way to neglection . Although our society’s social issues can be experienced by anyone, teenagers seem to experience them more than any other age group. The poem ‘’Hanging Fire’’ by Audre Lorde is a particularly compelling example that represent the few of many issues that teenagers face.  This poem by Audre Lorde represents this issues from the eyes of a disoriented fourteen-year-old girl. This girl is constantly repeating the issues that she has to deal with, and it gives the reader a sense that she hates her life. Furthermore, this poem provides a good example towards what teenagers face in their young adult life.

                      Neglection can come in many forms. Whether its from society or from your parents, it can greatly impact someone’s life. The speaker in this poem seems to have experienced neglection from her mother.  The poet uses repetition to show importance towards two specific lines, that represents the issue that the speaker is going through. At the last two lines of every stanza it repeats, ‘’and momma’s in the bedroom with the door closed.’’ These two lines indicate that the mother of the speaker is neglecting her child. The mother shuts herself away from the world, away from her daughter, and away from her responsibilities as a mother. Neglection from her mother greatly impacts the speaker. In each stanza, she states all of her concerns first. And then, the last two lines seem to remind herself that there’s no one that could comfort her. Those two lines show how important a parent can be for a child. They establish the thought that the speaker needs her mother to cope with the problems that she is going through.

                        Depression in teens is another common issue that many of the world’s teens face today. And many know that depression can lead up to suicidal thoughts. These suicidal thoughts appear in every stanza of the poem. In the first stanza its says, ‘’what if I die before morning’’. In the second stanza it says, ‘’suppose I die before graduation they will sing sad melodies’’. Finally, in the third stanza, it says, ‘’will I live long enough to grow up.’’  These lines show that the speaker is constantly thinking about death. The second line implies that the speaker is having thoughts about how her death may affect other people. This aspect  suggests that the speaker is self-conscious about herself, and she thinks that opinions thought by other people are greater in importance than her own opinions. Her need in pleasing other people may be the cause of her depression. For instance it says, ‘’There is nothing I want to do and too much that has to be done.’’ This line signifies that she doesn't want to be self conscious but she can’t help it. Since she doesn't admire or appreciate anything in her life, there’s nothing left for her to do that at least be admired. This poem describes the speaker’s hopelessness: she was so pessimistic about her life that she couldn't stop to enjoy the joyful things that she has right now.  And that is probably why the speaker is having suicidal thoughts.

                    This poem reminds me of myself as a teen right now. The poem talks about the speaker’s early teen problems that I myself can relate to. I had so many questions about life, on why some things were fair and others weren't. I found like life very confusing and frustrating, like the speaker. But I had my mother to help me cope with my problems, unlike the speaker. This poem gave me a new visual about people who may experience problems like the speaker. (Isolation, self consciousness, depression, etc.) Although this poem gave me a better view on how other teens think and their troubles, it still left me with a few questions. One such question that I would like to answer is how would teens cope with these kinds of situations? What kinds of ways are there for that? I wondered how anyone could cope with this part of a young adult’s life without having someone to guide you through it. Overall, ‘’Hanging Fire’’ Audre Lorde, is a great way of viewing someone else’s perspective about teen life. Original Poem Inspired by Heart Poem I am a teenager and my skin has betrayed me the people I cannot live without forbid my pathway to freedom how come I always get blamed for the mess he did it, not me and I’m in my bedroom with the door closed I have to learn trigonometry in time for tomorrow morning’s test I’m too ugly how come I can’t go out with my friends Theres so much to be done and not enough time and I’m in my bedroom with the door closed No one really cares they’re just pretending I should be the one who gets the last cookie I’m older than him Why do they always think I’m rebelling I’m not and I’m in my bedroom with the door closed Reflection As said above, I decided to write this poem based on my heart poem. I started with ‘’I am a teenager’’, and focused mainly three aspects like my heart poem. In ‘’Hanging Fire’’ by Audre Lorde, her poem was mainly about was the speaker’s death, the speaker’s self-consciousness, and the speaker's neglection from her mother. In my poem, I tried to focus on vanity: ‘’and my skin has betrayed me’’ and ‘’I’m too ugly’’. I also focused on how my family ( ‘’people I cannot live without’’ ) always thinks I’m rebelling and limit my freedom. And like the author, I repeated the last two lines of every stanza, ‘’and I’m in my bedroom with the door closed’’. Not to get confused with isolation, these two lines actually represent a teenager’s growing need for independence. In my poem, I basically just mixed in my personal experiences as a teenager. The literary devices I have incorporated in my poem stanzas to organize my writing, represented the speaker as a teenager and wrote in first person, used enjambment, had a tone of despair, and made sure that my poem was in free verse.