Hum+2

=Humanities 2= //The Road Not Taken//  ** By [155|Robert Frost]
 * 

**//Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;//** And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that, the passing there Had worn them really about the same,//**
 * //Then took the other, as just as fair,

In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back.//**
 * //And both that morning equally lay

Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.//** This poem does not use many of the techniques we have covered. Its style is shown so that out of the 5 lines between each break, the first, third and fourth rhyme while the second and fifth rhyme. Robert does use personification in the line, //Because it was grassy and wanted wear.// This phrase describes the less traveled road and since roads do not //want// wear, it shows an example of a personification. I chose this poem because of the double meanings //I// see in it. It can be seen as a hiker having to choose which path he takes which is how Robert wrote it or how I like to see it, choosing the many paths in life. In this way, the poem can be thought of as motivational because it suggests that the person who had to choose roads, chose the one less traveled by and decided to be individual, other than taking the usual road which most people use. I also like the rhythmic style but even with its difficulty level, Robert doesn’t add irrelevant words just so his rhymes will work. When writing a poem, the thing I have the most difficulty with is writing one that makes sense but follows the same style throughout. I usually add phrases or words that are only used to keep the style flowing but are not focused on the poem’s theme. Therefore, I liked how Robert could fit the style in with a poem without making it off-topic or not necessary.
 * //I shall be telling this with a sigh

Amelie

breaks through my thoughts. What was once many great ideas is now a triumph, lost.
 * =Silent Tears= ||
 * by [|Heather Loughton] ||
 * A thunderous silence

Baffling words tumble through my mind. Reflections of darkness hover. A disturbing peacefulness beckons to me, and inside myself, I take cover.

What would it be like to stay there forever? To be lost in all my cares? From the inside, looking out - I cry silent tears. ||

I picked this poem because it made me think about all the sad things in my life and basically made me very depressed. Yet I still find this to be a beautiful poem because it’s simple but very deep. And I find that very hard to do. I can really relate to the line “From the inside, looking out. I cry silent tears.” This is because people may see you as a very happy person, but actually they know nothing about your life. Or they might think your life sucks but your’e actually very happy. This poem used three techniques. Metaphor, notice the line ” a thunderous silence,” thunderous is usually used to describe something very loud but used in this case with silence, which somehow seems to deepen the meaning of the silence. The Connotation came from the word “darkness” for me, it made feel sad, unloved, and a feeling of loss too. The poem also uses Irony, this is demonstrated when the author uses “peacefulness,” for this is a poem about sadness and despair, so using peacefulness is a bit ironic. --Emily

= Grandpa Died = by // Jeff Curtis

//http://www.poetry.com/contest/pastwinners.asp?qsGPWinID=200950

**He left me with his roses and his black dirt garden with his tomatoes and lettuce but he forgot to take our evenings in the kitchen together and he forgot to take the smell of his jacket and the sound of my name, the way he said it

He left me with his cat-fishing and his care of tools and a set of deer antlers on the wall but he forgot to take his glass of wine and ginger ale and his big hands around mine.

He left a grey tackle box a handmade knife and some homemade sinkers but he left his hat on the rack and his glasses by the bed but he forgot to take his name, forgot to take his smile.

He left his crucifix on the wall, the statue of the Virgin on his dresser and the braid of garlic he loved so well.**

This poem doesn’t really cover any of the poem techniques. It’s hard to find any similes or metaphors in this poem and also there are no specific examples of any other techniqes. I chose this poem because it reminded of my grandma who passed away few years ago. This poem’s title is called grandpa died but a lot of lines in this poem refer to my grandma. I guess that when somebody passes away they leave a lot of things in common. Just like this poet’s grandpa left him something for him, my grandma left me things like, the memory of her voice calling my name whenever I visit, presents I used to get when I visit, foods she and I used to eat, music that we listened together, and etc. Clearly, when I first read this poem, it grabbed my attention and made me think of my grandma.

Richard

YOUNG  SEA
by Carl Sandburg

It pounds on the shore Restless as a young heart, Hunting.** And only the stormy hearts Know what it says: It is the face of a rough mother speaking.** One storm cleans all the hoar And loosens the age of it. I hear it laughing, reckless.** Men who ride on it And know they will die Under the salt of it** Says the sea.** And hear me. I am the last word And I tell Where storms and stars come from.**
 * The sea is never still.
 * The sea speaks
 * The sea is young.
 * They love the sea,
 * Let only the young come,
 * Let them kiss my face

The poem is mainly about the sea's unique characteristics in comparison with human characteristics by incorporating personification. For example in the poem, “It is the face of a rough mother speaking." This compares the "murderous look" of a mother with the sea's constant movements. Carl also uses a variety of metaphors to help strengthen the meaning of the poem. The author of the poem looks at the sea from a “stormy night” kind of perspective when the waves are “restless as a young heart.” The author starts of creating the general scenario of which the poem takes place then adds expression to strengthen the picture

I chose the poem mainly because it was written by Carl Sandburg. After reading a few of his poems, I learned how he used the two useful techniques of metaphors and personification to create a realistic picture. This poem struck me because it was as if I could hear the waves roaring when I read this poem. It gave me a successful “4-D” scene of a stormy sea. Therefore, Carl Sandburg uses personification and metaphors to create a picture from words.

--Jonathan C--

 **Smart** By Shel Sliverstein

My dad gave me one dollar bill 'Cause I'm his smartest son And I swapped it for two shiny quarters 'Cause two is more than on!

And then I took the quarters And traded them to Lou For three dimes-I guess he don't know That three is more than two!

Just then, along came old blind Bates And just 'cause he can't see He gave me four nickels for my three dimes, And four is more than three!

And I took the nickels to Hiram Coombs Down at the seed-feed store, And the fool gave me five pennies for them, And five is more than four!

And then I went and showed my dad, And he got red in the cheeks And closed his eyes and shook his head- Too proud of me to speak!

This poem is about a little boy who thinks he's extremely clever, but actually isn't. The author doesn't use many techniques we have discussed. It's most obvious point is that it goes in a ABCB style, where the 2nd and 4th line of each verse rhyme.

I chose this poem because it is very humorous. It makes me laugh at the fact that the child in question thinks the quantity of coins is worth more than the value of coins. Another aspect that is hilarious about this child is that he thinks his father is proud of him, when he is actually embarrassed at this. Overall, I like the way Silverstein can make us laugh through different poetic subjects. -Alvin

__The Road Not Taken__ Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth. Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same. And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I– I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. //-Robert Frost// I like this poem because it explains how if you choose to make your own decisions, and maybe not follow what the crowd is doing, it can change your life for better or for worse. This also tells people that it isn’t always bad to stand out from the crowd or do something different than others. The poetry technique used in this poem is metaphors. The poem itself is a metaphor because it compares choices in life to a fork in the road. Once you have taken that road, or made that choice, you cannot change your past, and you cannot walk back to the fork in the road to change your mind. In the end it says how his choice changed everything. He took the road or choice not taken, and it may have worked better than the other choice. -Margeaux

By Krasimira Abadzhieva
 * Eavesdropping **

Come close and hear the Spring A baby yawning in the womb And flitting pigeons’ scribbling claws On melting February cloak

Hey, hushhhh, is it the whistle of the wind A cunning teeny fox tiptoeing zigzag Its breath invisible caress of steamy southern humming

And who is do-re-mi-fa-sol-ing up above A choir---Cloud of Raspberries Invited by the dawn To sing the winter dome its Farewell cantata

Then, hard to hear, somewhere under Lay down, and cup your ear A sigh, a moan, a sigh again…

The buzzing Earth is having twins

A snowdrop

And a crocus From http://www.poetry.com/contest/pastwinners.asp?qsGPWinID=255456

__ Reflection on ‘Eavesdropping’ __(by Chris) I liked this poem, ‘Eavesdropping’ because the way of the skills used were very special and intriguing. It was a nice combination of rhymes and the other figures of speech. The rhymes used were well-fitting and nicely used, and the figures of speech such as connotation or personification were able to make this poem to sound more sophisticated and mystic. For example of the rhyme used is //‘hard to hear, somewhere under……and cup your ear.’// This makes the reader to enjoy the poem, by making rhymes by using words which have ‘r’ at the last. In addition, it emphasizes the rhythm, which makes the poem sound better. Besides the rhymes, the usage of various kinds of figures of speech made this poem intriguing. For example of the figures, the author mainly used connotation, personification. The author especially used connotation a lot, such as ‘Melting February cloak,’ ‘winter dome,’ and ‘Farewell cantata.’ These connotations are not used to describe the original meaning, it means something different. For example of the personification, there are ‘Hear the spring,’ ‘Flitting pigeons’ scribbling claws,’ ‘Cunning teeny fox tiptoeing zigzag,’ ‘Whistle of the wind,’ and ‘Earth is having twins, a snowdrop and a crocus.’ Those examples are personification because even though the objects in the poem-such as pigeons, fox, wind, and Earth-are not humans, the author described them with humans' behavior, and this makes the poem to be more mystic. The result of the combination of well used rhymes and other figures made this poem intriguing, and it is the reason why I liked this poem.

//The City in the Sea// Lo! Death has reared himself a throne In a strange city lying alone Far down within the dim West, Where the good and the bad and the worst and the best Have gone to their eternal rest. There shrines and palaces and towers (Time-eaten towers that tremble not!) Resemble nothing that is ours. Around, by lifting winds forgot, Resignedly beneath the sky The melancholy waters lie.

No rays from the holy heaven come down On the long night-time of that town; But light from out the lurid sea Streams up the turrets silently— Gleams up the pinnacles far and free— Up domes—up spires—up kingly halls— Up fanes—up Babylon-like walls— Up shadowy long-forgotten bowers Of sculptured ivy and stone flowers— Up many and many a marvelous shrine Whose wreathèd friezes intertwine The viol, the violet, and the vine.

Resignedly beneath the sky The melancholy waters lie. So blend the turrets and shadows there That all seem pendulous in air, While from a proud tower in the town Death looks gigantically down.

There open fanes and gaping graves Yawn level with the luminous waves; But not the riches there that lie In each idol's diamond eye— Not the gaily-jeweled dead Tempt the waters from their bed; For no ripples curl, alas! Among that wilderness of glass— No swellings tell that winds may be Upon some far-off happier sea— No heavings hint that winds have been On seas less hideously serene.

But lo, a stir is in the air! The wave—there is a movement there! As if the towers had thrust aside, In slightly sinking, the dull tide— As if their tops had feebly given A void within the filmy Heaven. The waves have now a redder glow— The hours are breathing faint and low— And when, amid no earthly moans, Down, down that town shall settle hence, Hell, rising from a thousand thrones, Shall do it reverence. Edgar Allen Poe

I like this poem because it describes what Poe's vision of death is like. It gives details on the flowers and types of architecture there is in the afterlife. Even though his outlook is grim, there is a heaven. Poe uses personification in 'The City in the Sea' when he refers to the "proud tower", "happier sea", "hideously serene", and the "meleancholy waters".

Anna

//I Am Not Yours // by Sara Teasdale [|http://poetry.com/greatestpoems/poem.asp?id=%2049]8  I am not yours, not lost in you, Not lost, although I long to be Lost as a candle lit at noon, Lost as a snowflake in the sea. You love me, and I find you still A spirit beautiful and bright, Yet I am I, who long to be Lost as a light is lost in light. Oh plunge me deep in love—put out My senses, leave me deaf and blind, Swept by the tempest of your love, A taper in a rushing wind. The reason why I chose this poem out of all the others is because you cannot identify the techniques easily like others. The poet used simile by having ‘as’ in it “Lost at candle lit at noon, Lost as a snowflake in the sea.” This is a simile because she used the term ‘as’ in it and compared it with another object. She also used hyperbole in “Oh plunge me deep in love-put out.” This is an example of hyperbole because you cannot actually plunge out someone into deep love, so she exaggerated it to give more emotion to the poem. There are probably a lot of other techniques used in this poem, but I have not totally understood each definition yet. Therefore, this poem is beautifully well done and the techniques are not obviously shown. - Elena

**//“Success is the counted sweetest”//**
[|-Emily Dickinson] By those who ne’er succeed.** Although we can’t tell the structure of poem, but we can see the rhymes are placed in second line and fourth line of each verse. To summarize the poem, it is mainly told us Emily Dickinson’s own thought about success thus the only technique I can explain from this poem is connotation, emotional associations surrounding a word. When you take a look the second verse, it mainly says the purple Host, the winners of battle, can’t really define the word “victory”. That can be meant to tell us they are not the true victors. Moreover, it implies us physical victory is not a pleasure success in lifetime. I like this poem because her poet is very special from other 19th century’s poems. When I read the poems in 19th century, most of them were quite Romanticism, but her poet was quite metaphysical, it was creative and brutal than other usual poems in nineteenth century. Thus, I thought it would be better to choose a poem that is rare in that time. Moreover, with three short verses, she gave us a plenty of messeges and thoughts.
 * Success is the counted sweetest
 * To comprehend a nectar,**
 * Requires sorest need.**
 * Not one of all the purple Host,**
 * Who took the flag today,**
 * Can tell the definition,**
 * So clear of victory.**
 * As he defeated, dying,**
 * On whose forbidden ear,**
 * The distant strains of triumph,**
 * Burst agonized and clear!**

//**DongHyun**//

A Hand in the Bird By Roald Dahl

I’m a maiden who is forty, And a maiden I shall stay. There are some who call me haughty, But I care not what they say.

I was running the tombola At our church bazaar today, And doing it with gusto In my usual jolly way…

When suddenly, I knew not why, There came a funny feeling Of something crawling up my thigh! I nearly hit the ceiling!

A mouse! I thought. How foul! How mean! How exquisitely tickly! Quite soon I know I’m going to scream. I’ve got to catch it quickly.

I made a grab. I caught the mouse, Now right inside my knickers. A mouse my foot! It was a HAND! Great Scott! It was the vicar’s!

I really like this poem because it is so funny. Because it was written in “typically stereotyped British uptightness”, it increases the humor by contrasting the uptight attitude with the silly incident.

This poem is about a middle-aged woman catching someone groping her. The author used a hyperbole. The phrase “I nearly hit the ceiling!” was an exaggerated way of saying that the main character of the poem was so shocked and tickled that she almost jumped.

-Micky