Poetry Analysis of "The Farewell"

"The Farewell"

Edward Field

They say the ice will hold

so there I go,

forced to believe them by my act of trusting people,

stepping out on it,

and naturally it gaps open

and I, forced to carry on coolly

by my act of being imperturbable,

slide erectly into the water wearing my captain's helmet,

waving to the shore with a sad smile,

"Goodbye my darlings, goodbye dear one,"

as the ice meets again over my head with a click.

The speaker of this poem tells the reader about two traits that he or she has: he or she trusts people too easily, and he or she wants to be "imperturbable" (Field 7). The speaker faced death with surprising calmness; he or she said " 'Goodbye my darlings, goodbye dear one' " (Field 10) as he or she fell into the icy water. The speaker might even have known that he or she was going to die, because the speaker says "and naturally it [the ice] gaps open" (Field 5).

The diction in this poem uses words that might have cold, distant connotations. For example, "coolly," "erectly," and "sad." "Coolly" might make one think about someone with a cold manner towards others. "Erectly" gives the image of someone standing rather stiffly. "Sad" has an obvious connotation.

There are few images in this poem. The only ones that were easily visible were a person walking out onto the ice, only for the ice to break, causing the speaker to fall into the water below.

The entire poem could be a metaphor for knowing who to trust, or when to trust someone. The speaker trusts someone enough to walk out onto the ice, even when he or she possibly knows that the ice isn't stable. When the ice cracks, and the speaker falls in, he or she has a "sad smile" (Field 9) on; most likely, he or she wasn't sad that he or she was about to die, but is sad about the betrayal of the friend.

The phrase "my act of" (Field 3, 7) is used to show a trait of the speaker. These traits could possibly be considered flaws because the speaker says that he or she is "forced to" do these things because of his or her traits.

The meaning of this poem is that there are certain times when one should trust others and other times when one should trust their own instinct. The speaker says that "They [the speaker's friends, possibly] say the ice will hold" (Field 1); the speaker trusts his or her friends and steps onto the ice. However, the ice breaks and the speaker falls into the water. As a result, the speaker died due to trusting the wrong people.

Poetry Analysis of "Fat is Not a Fairy Tale"

Fat Is Not a Fairy Tale

Jane Yolen

I am thinking of a fairy tale,
Cinder Elephant,
Sleeping Tubby,
Snow Weight,
where the princess is not
anorexic, wasp-waisted,
flinging herself down the stairs.

I am thinking of a fairy tale,
Hansel and Great,
Repoundsel,
Bounty and the Beast,
where the beauty
has a pillowed breast,
and fingers plump as sausage.

I am thinking of a fairy tale
that is not yet written,
for a teller not yet born,
for a listener not yet conceived,
for a world not yet won,
where everything round is good:
the sun, wheels, cookies, and the princess.

The speaker of this poem is a person who came to the realization that in all of the fairy tales he or she has heard, none of the glamourous princesses are fat. The speaker is naming all the options of titles where princesses are large, rather then, "anorexic" or very tiny. Maybe the speaker is larger and was looking for support through fairy tales, but just became more self conscious when he or she came to the realization that all the princesses are very skinny.

The speaker uses a lot of adjectives in this poem, especially in the second stanza. After listing optional names for new fairy tales, the speaker says things like, " a pillowed breast" (Yolen 13) or,"fingers plump as sausage." (Yolen 14). These words create pictures of very large people.

There are many images in this poem. One image is, "where everything round is good: the sun, wheels, cookies, and the princess." (Yolen 20-21). Another is, "has a pillowed breast, and fingers plump as sausage." (Yolen 13-14). Both of these images are very imaginable.

The speaker doesn't use a lot of figurative language in this poem. The speaker is very strait forward in this poem. The speaker clearly explains his or her point. The speaker is trying to explain that maybe, one day, there will be a writer who will want to write about a round princess, rather then an anorexic or skinny princess.

Poetry Analysis of "Variation on the Word 'Sleep'"

"Variation on the Word Sleep"
by Margaret Atwood

I would like to watch you sleeping,
which may not happen.
I would like to watch you,
sleeping. I would like to sleep
with you, to enter
your sleep as its smooth dark wave
slides over my head

and walk with you through that lucent
wavering forest of bluegreen leaves
with its watery sun & three moons
towards the cave where you must descend,
towards your worst fear

I would like to give you the silver
branch, the small white flower, the one
word that will protect you
from the grief at the center
of your dream, from the grief
at the center. I would like to follow
you up the long stairway
again & become
the boat that would row you back
carefully, a flame
in two cupped hands
to where your body lies
beside me, and you enter
it as easily as breathing in

I would like to be the air
that inhabits you for a moment
only. I would like to be that unnoticed
& that necessary.


The speaker of this poem has an obsessed tone because he or she talks about really wanting to sleep with someone. The speaker wants to "give you [the partner] ... the one word that will protect you" (Atwood 14-15), and they talk about wanting to walk with this person through a peaceful place. The speaker and his or her partner are walking toward the partner's worst fear, so perhaps the speaker wants to help the other person. However, the speaker doesn't want to be seen by the partner, because he or she says "I would like to be that unnoticed" (Atwood 29).

The speaker uses a lot of adjectives in this poem, especially in the second stanza, that create a peaceful, dream-like image. For example, the speaker mentions "watery sun & three moons" (Atwood 10), which was a fantasy-like connotation.

There are many images in this poem. One image is "the long stairway again & become the boat that would row you back" (Atwood 19-21); another is "a flame in two cupped hands" (Atwood 22-23). Both of these images are clearly imaginable.

The speaker uses apostrophe throughout the whole poem, because he or she is most likely talking to someone who isn't physically there. The speaker uses personification in the lines "enter your sleep as its smooth dark wave slides over my head" (Atwood 6-7) because he or she gives sleep human characteristics. The speaker uses a metaphor when he or she says "I would like to be the air" (Atwood 27) because a person can't physically become air.
One pattern is that the speaker repeats the line "I would like to..." several times. Another pattern could be the speaker's wish to not be seen by the person he or she is talking about. Another pattern is the speaker's wish to sleep next to this person.

All of these things contribute to the meaning of the poem, which is even though you might feel that you need to protect someone, ultimately you can't.

Poetic Terms Examples

Below are examples of some poetic terms to help you understand what these terms mean.



Anthropomorphism: The book series Redwall by Brian Jacques involves anthropomorphic animals that live in an Abbey and fight off predators.


Apostrophe: If you were to talk to your grandfather who had passed away, a friend that isn't in the room, or a mirror, that would be using apostrophe.


Irony: The Gift of the Magi is an example of irony. A poor couple wanted to get each other Christmas presents. The boyfriend sold his harmonica to buy combs for his girlfriend; meanwhile, his girlfriend cut off her hair to buy her boyfriend a harmonica case. In the end, neither could enjoy their gift.


Metaphor: The girl was a pack mule as she carried a dozen bags through the mall.


Metonymy: He licked the bowl dry. (Instead of: He licked the contents in the bowl dry.)


Paradox: No one goes to that restaurant because it's too crowded.


Personification: The sun smiled down at me on that bright summer day.


Simile: Her skin was as smooth as butter.


Synecdoche: Those are some nice wheels.


Tautology: A gentle breeze blew through the room at the same time as a small gust of wind.


Understatement: It's very easy to run three miles.

Intro

Hey, people of the world, I'm Jessica. Hi, I'm Katie. I'm Nick G.

We've started this blog to express our opinions on poetry that we're studying in our English class. Also, we think it'll be interesting to see other group's opinions compared to ours. We're going to be talking about our opinions on poetry and poetry analysis.

Nick: Poetry is a way to express how you're feeling, or what you're going through.
Katie: You can express many different feelings through different images in poetry.
Jessica: Poetry is putting sadness, happiness, anger, memories, or pictures into words that can be understood by everyone.

We've learned about the diction of a poem, and how to find images through ordinary words. We've learned about the speaker of a poem, and understanding the speaker through their thoughts and ideas expressed in the poem, and the way that they express themselves. The speaker doesn't necessarily have to be the writer; the speaker is the main character of the poem.

Katie: I hope to learn more about the speaker of a poem while reading the poem.
Nick: I hope to learn different ways on how to find the underlying meanings of poems.
Jessica: I also hope to learn how to find the meanigns of poems, and different meanings it can have.