Thursday, May 20, 2010
2 Poets, 1 Topic
I was really worried when we began reading and analyzing poetry in class because I have never truly been able to grasp it; at least, that is what I thought before this week. I really enjoyed reading the poems and listening to how everyone analyzed them in various and similar ways. One thing I found interesting was how people had gathered completely different thoughts or meanings from the poems, and that just goes to show that poetry can be interpreted several different ways. With that being said, I really enjoyed reading Emily Dickinson's poetry far more than I did Melville. Both of their poems covered the same time period and topic- but I feel like they were completely different. Dickinson's poetry spoke out to me more and I believe that is because of the amazing vivid imagery she places within her poems. My two favorite were Safe in Their Alabaster Chambers and The Name of it is Autumn. Immediately, I got the sense of calm and peacefulness in Alabaster Chambers, even if it was about a dreary subject such as death. I truly felt that she was trying to portray that in death individuals have peace. While her other poems dealt with the war, the first time I read the poem, I didn't beleive it was about dead soldiers who were burried. I took it as a poem that was speaking of death in general. This poem was a huge contrast from the others to me, not just because of the message, but because of the way it was written. Her other poem, The Name of it is Autumn, really spoke out to me as well. The imagery in that poem is fascinating, as gory (due to the blood imagery) as it was. Her poetry tried to send out a message- she was obviously against the war. As I was reading it, I imagined the soldiers dying and bleeding to death as their blood was trickling down the road. I appreciated the fact that her style was different from other poets, and the fact that her poems didn't necessarily rhyme.
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My thoughts regarding poetry and Dickinson as a poet in general were very similar to these. I too had difficulty understanding poetry at first, but after we interpreted the meanings on our won and discussed them aloud in class, it was much simpler for me to understand. In addition, I also enjoyed Dickinson's poetry more than Melville's. Dickinson's poetry, to me, seemed to have had a more "flow" than Melville's, and especially did not have the choppiness of "The Portent." Dickinson's poetry seemed to be richer and have more meaning, as well has being a part of Dickinson's voice. It allowed her to express her distaste towards the war and feelings of guilt for being a survivor and not fighting loyally like the soldiers were doing. The lines "It feels a shame to be alive, when men so brave--are dead" clearly expressed her feelings and attitude of the war. Overall, I think that Dickinson's poems have more powerful messages, as well as being easier to interpret.
ReplyDeleteI had similar thoughts regarding your assertion that you found it interesting that pretty much everyone had different interpretations of the same poem. It's not just poetry that prompts different thoughts, but just about everything. What seems most interesting to me is whether these poets had any idea, when writing these poems, that they could be taken in so many different ways. I know that the poets were "deep thinkers" but I can't help but think that they had no idea that eventually their work would be broken down so extensively. Surely, they understood that each poem could be interpreted differently, but I can't help but think that with each read, people uncover new aspects that the authors themselves never realized were there.
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