11.5.12

Today, we began our poetry performances. I enjoyed all the different poems that were read today. Austin started us off with To Brooklyn Bridge by Hart Crane. I thought the sounds of this poem were very soothing. “Out of some subway scuttle…”, “…Accolade thou dost bestow”, and “…prophet’s pledge” were some of the things that stood out to me. I also liked how the poem used a lot of older modern English words such as thou, thy, and thee which I think added to the Biblical feel of the poem which I felt while the poem was being read.

I also enjoyed Night Funeral in Harlem by Langston Hughes. It reminded me of how some preachers dictate their sermons. The speaker of the poem asked a question that was follow by an answer. Looking at the structure of the poem, I can see how much it resembles a song. I think the structure of a poem is very important as it affects the way the poem is read. If this poem was one whole big stanza, I feel it would lose how it feels like a song. After Ariana read Love and Marilyn Monroe (after Spillane) by Delmore Schwartz, I thought the poem was a big joke making fun of how Marilyn Monroe tried to be taken seriously. After the poem was read a second time, I realized it wasn’t a big joke and the speaker was on Monroe’s side.

The poem Ariana read made me realize that sometimes poems need to be read more than once to grasp the meaning. Understanding the poem when someone is reading it can be quite difficult. Now, that I’m looking at the poem myself, I can analyze certain parts more in depth rather than trying to catch everything that was being said at the time. It’s not that easy trying to think about what the person reading the poem has just said and listen to what they’re saying in the moment. For the next presentations, I’m going to try to listen without thinking too much into things. When the person is finished I will begin to analyze the poem.

– Amber G.