zaaaAP Lit Blog 4

I haven't seen many sestinas lately.

Let's change that! Well, here it is. Heidkamp was right, though; it's really hard to make a joke sestina. So, I did what any amateur teenage poet would do: turn emo and make **** up! Brace yourselves:

BREAKFAST

I prefer pancakes to waffles
but mother prefers waffles to pancakes.
I say waffles use too much syrup.
She says pancakes need fruit
to be good. I disagree,
And separately we each eat our meal.

We each make our own meal
every day. She usually has waffles
and, just to disagree,
I chide her on the supremacy of pancakes
while I cut my fruit
and she pours her syrup.

She runs out of syrup.
I laugh at her ruined meal
as I prepare my fruit.
She stubbornly eats her waffles.
I offer her some of my pancakes,
but she refuses, just to disagree.

We always disagree.
Not just about syrup
or pancakes.
At every meal,
there’s a tension not caused by waffles
or fruit.

Honestly, I’m sick of fruit.
Outside, I stubbornly disagree
with her, but I actually like waffles.
I want to use too much syrup
and have, for a change, a different meal.
But every day I eat my pancakes.

I’m not saying I don’t like pancakes
and I really do like fruit.
It’s just that our meal
is set. My mind and body disagree
as I silently long for the syrup-
covered waffles.

I can’t say waffles are better than pancakes
or that syrup is better than fruit.
I want to know why we disagree and never share a meal.

Sonnet-ish

In these final weeks attendance is but only a suggestion

Classes trail on -- one indistinguishable from the next

During class, I care not to even ask a mere question

Even the simplest of tasks are enough to me vex

Daily fire alarms are customary

The heavy smells of the school are like that of a jungle

The endless stairs in this heat are enough to make me go wary

I think that wrap from the cafeteria was made with something fungal

The entire community thinks that we OPRF’ers are a bunch of alcoholics

They just don’t realize that we lied on that survey

In fact, we are just a bunch of workaholics

Because we are all focusing on those A.P’s in May

I’m just being real

Let’s make these last few weeks surreal.

This is not a true sonnet because it lacks iambic pentameter.

Classical Music Poetry

As we've been doing music poetry (or... had been doing, seeing as we're not really doing it anymore), I've recalled a lot of classical music that I've listened to which is poetry set to music. Tchaikovsky, Schubert, and others have done wonderful interpretations of poetic works. 

What I find interesting is showing how interpretations of the same poem can vary between composers. Take Goethe's poem, Nur Wer die Sehnsucht  Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Schubert had their own interpretation of the poem. I was able to find videos of each on youtube:

TCHAIKOVSKY:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g_tFlkibaC4&feature=related

SCHUBERT:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wR8FQ3fYLTQ

BEETHOVEN:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vByOP7MQ3gg

Of course, all of these are from youtube, so the production quality varies. Nevertheless, each song conveys a unique feeling from the music, and reflects each composers unique reading of the music.

For those of you who  listen to each, do you have a preference for one over the other?  Do you think one composer misses the point of the poem, whereas another does a much better job? To help, here's the version of the poem in English:

 Only one who knows longing
 Knows what I suffer!
 Alone and cut off
 From all joy,
 I look into the firmament
 In that direction.

 Ach! he who loves and knows me
 Is far away.
 I am reeling,
 My entrails are burning.
 Only one who knows longing
 Knows what I suffer!

I think that Schubert conveyed the greatest sense of pain and suffering which the poem calls for, and is probably the best reading of the poem. Nevertheless, I enjoy listening to Tchaikovsky's a lot.

If you don't feel like listening to any of them, what do you think about the general concept of musical adaptation as discussed above?   I tend to think that it would also vary between performers, and that the level of interpretation extends beyond just the music written on the page. Perhaps we hear a little bit of that form the youtube videos as well...

My Villanelle is #1.. YEAH I SAID IT!

SCHOOL

A place to learn is called school

Trying to learn so I wont be a fool

Tempting with distractions

 

A place to learn is called school

A park with a boy and older girl

Trying to learn so I wont be a fool

 

Trying my best to be cool

Drinking at a party hoping not to hurl

But really last night I was the fool

 

The next day I woke up in the pool

My head feels like I’ve been in a whirl

Now I realize I should have not broken the rule

 

But today I will be cool

And meet a nice girl

Therefore I will goto school

AP Poem Comparison

The poems on Five A.M. and Five Flights Up are remarkably similar at a glance, but differ greatly in content. Both poems describe an early morning scene and both have images of a bird and a dog. The main difference between the two is that while Five Flights Up sticks to bringing this scene to life throughout the poem, Five A.M. suddenly shifts to insights on world peace in the second stanza.

Five A.M.'s early morning scene is more about capturing this moment of serenity, while Five Flights up details the actions of each morning. In Five A.M. the dog is only mentioned briefly in order to add detail and memories to the houses the speaker is passing. The dog in Five Flights Up contributes largely to the meaning of the poem (which I'm not going to touch). The dog is scolded by his owner for being a dog and doing what dogs are meant to do. This contrasts with Five A.M.'s meditation on people, and the speaker's optimistic view on humanity.

Random Happenings in Life

This post has very little to do with class, but I'm just looking for advice here.

To all of you who have decided on a college...how did you do it?!  I'm reallllly struggling right now in trying to decide where to spend the next four years of my life.  I've narrowed down my list to four schools; Wisconsin-Madison, Boston College, Boston University, and Denver University.  And now I'm stuck.  Each school has different characteristics and personalities that I'm confident I would enjoy, I just can't choose which one I would fit in best at.  Plus, I know it's too early to really think about life after college, but adding in which college will present the most opportunities after school is another pressing factor.

And time is running out...advice? Anyone?

A Whole Lotta Mumbo Jumbo and a Terrible Headache

What it do class of '08!!??

First off did anyone else feel majorly stressed by that AP take home test? And that strange and uncomfortably structured poem that's due soon? Or that comparison paper? Or maybe a little fretting here and there over that silly little AP test in general? (By the way, this is only for English class)

yeeeea, tis the season to be on Prozac and Adderall. (a joke..please students, no drugs...no. no. no.)

I definately thought that I would easily be able to walk right in and out of senior year...but this has actually been my hardest year yet...I've been OD-ing on stress for about three weeks now and it feels AWFUL.

I know my last post was practically identical to this one, but does anyone else feel me? I feel like I'm going to just slip through the last few weeks totally struggling, wiped out, and utterly frustrated...I don't know. But all I do know is how terrible and stressed out I feel.

Besides the fact that I feel stressed out with work that just feels like "mumbo jumbo" space filling assignments.

Alright, I'm going to go out and say that the comparison essay was pretty unnecessary and unimportant. A Beloved essay I can completely understand, but this essay is continuing to haunt and aggravate me.

So I want to wish all my fellow '08ers GOOD LUCK with all this mumbo AP jumbo and to take a lil advil with every assignment, and to anyone who has any other advice for me... Hell, I'll pay you for it.

PROM!

I would like to start this post with a comment about all the signs against drunk driving around the school...I am incredibly supportive of this action because I am against drunk driving (obviously).  The question I have is, will it matter? I think that those who are planning to drink and drive have already decided upon the acceptability of their actions and aren't going to be swayed by stories of those who have died and a smashed car. I think that we should be appealing to children when they are younger and impressing upon them the importance of driving sober.

Another point about prom-is anyone going to the ESPN zone afterwards? I think that it was again a well-intentioned idea on the part of the school and is much more cost effective, but is anyone actually going to go? I would like to see how that works out. And if you guys have anything else to say about prom, feel free to leave that as well.

Chicago by Graham Nash

Lyrics provided by http://www.ocap.ca/songs/chicago.html

When we did a preliminary analysis of music poetry, I knew little of the literary techniques and their "proper" uses.  I did "Chicago" by Graham Nash.  The song was written after the 1968 Democratic National Convention.  The Chicago Eight, including their "leader" Bobby Seale were arrested for "inciting riot" about the war and the recent assasinations of MLK and Bobby Kennedy.  The purpose of the song was to show how unnecessary the police brutality upon the protestors was.  I said that there were three literary techniques used.  The first was Allusion.  I thought things such as "brothers bound and gagged" and "Chained him to a chair", which reffered to the Chicago Eights' treatment in the courtroom were examples of allusion, although they do not directly refer to them.  So that was mostly incorrect.  Diction was another mentioned technique, in examples such as "land that's known as freedom", referring to the U.S. which was ironically not so free in this instance, and "please come to Chicago" referring to the understatement of the need for more protestors in order to get the message heard.  Niehter of these really show examples of diction, but rather some sorts of irony.  My last technique was metaphor.  "Rearrange the world, it's dying" I said shows the corruption of U.S. politics and how our foreign relations suffer in times of war.  This too was an incorrect judgement. 

But now I ask myself "do I care?"  I don't like music because the lyrics have a deeper meaning.  I listen to 60's and 70's rock! Most songs are about drugs, booze, women, and war.  Most of these songs, with exceptions, don't need a deeper meaning, and I still like them.  Songs don't top billboard charts because of the meaning! Back then, you throw in some nice guitar solos and you've got yourself a hit!  I think trying to take meaning from songs butcher their purpose to entertain.  I'm sure many diehard poetry/ english fans would disagree, but this is how I feel!

As Much as I Love Zac Efron...

...it's not poetry. I won't lie, I have been known to listen to this song, as tacky as it is. The truth is, it's okay to like songs that aren't exactly the most poetic or complex pieces of poetry. And this is definitely one of those examples. I don't want you to get the wrong idea - it's not my favorite song - but i do listen to it when it's on the radio. I'm already embarrassed about this.

It's chock full of cliches ("there's not a star in heaven that we can't reach"), its only simile compares their attraction to a wave, and there is just way too much verbage in there - throughout the poem, they're soaring, flying, climbing, running, and just generally trying to break free. We get it. You are facing some adversity in liking each other, so you've got to escape. Anyways, I know it's hard to define what poetry is, but sometimes it's easier to decide what doesn't qualify. Though it's catchy, you can get the basic idea of the song after reading the first three lines.

Troy:   
We’re soarin’, flyin’
There’s not a star in heaven
That we can’t reach

Gabriella:
If we’re trying
So we’re breaking free

Troy:   
You know the world can see us
In a way that’s different than who we are

Gabriella:
Creating space between us
‘Til we’re separate hearts

Both:   
But your faith it gives me strength
Strength to believe

Chorus #1
Troy: 
We’re breakin’ free
Gabriella:
We’re soarin’
Troy:   
Flyin’
Both:   
There’s not a star in heaven
That we can’t reach
Troy:   
If we’re trying
Both:   
Yeah, we’re breaking free
Troy:   
Oh, we’re breakin’ free
Gabriella:
Ohhhh
Troy:   
Can you feel it building
Like a wave the ocean just can’t control
Gabriella:
Connected by a feeling
Ohhh, in our very souls
Both:   
Rising ‘til it lifts us up
So every one can see

Chorus #2
Troy:   We’re breakin’ free
Gabriella: We’re soarin’
Troy:   Flyin’
Both:   
There’s not a star in heaven
That we can’t reach
Troy: 
If we’re trying
Yeah we’re breaking free
Gabriella:
Ohhhh runnin’
Troy:   
Climbin’
To get to that place
Both:   
To be all that we can be
Troy:   
Now’s the time
Both:   
So we’re breaking free
Troy:   
We’re breaking free
Gabriella:
Ohhh , yeah

Troy:   
More than hope
More than faith
Gabriella:
This is true
This is fate
And together

Both:   
We see it comin’
Troy:   
More than you
More than me

Gabriella:
Not a want, but a need
Both:   
Both of us breakin’ free

Chorus #3
Gabriella: Soarin’
Troy:   Flyin’
Both: 
There’s not a star in heaven
That we can’t reach
If we’re trying
Troy:   Yeah we’re breaking free
Gabriella:
Breaking free
Were runnin’
Troy:   
Ohhhh, climbin’
Both:   
To get to the place
To be all that we can be
Now’s the time
Troy:   Now’s the time
Gabriella: So we’re breaking free
Troy:   Ohhh, we’re breaking free
Gabriella: Ohhhh

Both: 
You know the world can see us
In a way that’s different than who we are

Musical Poetry

Since starting this new poetry unit I have been able to see things around me that I have never noticed before as great examples of poetry.  For instance, tonight is the car I was jammin' it out with some of my friends listening to my favorite album right now "As I Am" by Alicia Keys.  I love every song on the CD, and I realized tonight that the lyrics are just as beautiful as the music. Keys uses a variety of literary devices in her songs, such as simile, alliteration, repetition, and rhyme. These devices are used in such a way to deepen the meanings in the songs and create musical poetry.

The other day I went to the store with my dad to buy a birthday card for my mother's birthday. As I looked intensely through the cards, I realized that all the cards contained poetry. The power of poetry evokes an emotional response that is sometimes more effective than everyday writing, often because of the use of literary devices--just like Alicia Keys. I'm more aware of poetry now, and this awareness has made me a more observant person.

Amazing Angst? Or Incredible Indignation?

I've never been big on angsty music, but dang sometimes, SO GOOD. Surprisingly poetic, I'd say and very very...powerful, for lack of a better word, lyrics. Compelling and raw. Oh and side note, I heard this in a friend's car one night, and did not like it. Yet reading the lyrics without the music is amazing, two different songs in my mind.

"Down, Down, Down, Down To Mephisto's Cafe"

If I were you, I would take this as a sign
Believe it's true, we were never meant to fly
And I owe you, I know you more than anyone alive
And I will not let go
They will not remember this song
No matter what we do we'll be wrong
They will not remember this song
No matter what we do we'll be wrong
I can't seem to see the seal we're breaking
I can't seem to see the seal we broke
I refuse to recognize your views
Someone shouted "Everything's for nothing"
Somebody shouted, "All is lose"
But I can't buy that nonsense too
Way back when the prophecies began
Do you think they really had a master plan
Or were they merely writing fables, stories?
I don't know but it has occurred to me
The punishment that they threaten constantly
It's only real if they could just convince me
We're going down, down, down to Mephisto's Cafe
Down, down, down to Mephisto's Cafe
we're going down
And the gears will spin and the sinners sin, but at least we'll give them hell
And the righteous few will spit on you, so bid them all farewell
We're going down, down, down to Mephisto's Cafe
We;re going down (Right?) (Right!)
So fuck the flocks of sheep that keep amassing masses
Asses being led so far astray
And I won't claim to believe the things I read
Black books or agenda magazine
I'd rather see in shades of gray
If I were you, I would take this as a sign
Believe it's true, we were never meant to fly
And I knew you when you were you
Before they twisted all your views
Before you came unglued
We're going down, down, down to Mephisto's Cafe
Now everybody's telling taller tales
And I don't know who to believe
Ok, if your father really loves you more
What about the other families?
Finally, I met a man with kindness in his eye and fire in his heart
He said you'll never have to choose a side
It's rewarding but oh, the road is hard....
They broke him wide open
Like a dam and a cork that's holding everything inside
You can play the role of rebel
Just be sure to know your wrong from right
I remember it was years ago
You know I still count the days
You and I had quite a ways to go
I never once heard you complain
And you said
Don't crack, because you might not make it back
And if you do you will be alone and you can't live like that
Well I know when I'm wrong and I sure as hell ain't wrong this time
We're going down, down, down to Mephisto's Cafes

Bolded lines are the ones that I find most intriguing and compelling.
And the last one haha reminded me of how this year is ending and how a lot of seniors are going insane at the moment, so that line gives me comfort "Don't crack, because you might not make it back/And if you do you will be alone and you can't live like that"

...Stay strong everyone!

Meet Soap, Wave Hello to Death, and Interpret

Soap is quite fascinating really. Look at one, it's a bar of scenty goodness that battles belligerent bacteria. Never heard of fat and oil pulling that one off. It also comes in an array of sizes and shapes, ranging from dull squares to pigs to leaves to.... sometimes inappropriate suggestive shapes.... yes in Italy, true story. Let alone, my new best friend. From now on I covet to sterilize everything that may threaten my existence because thats who I'm facing at the moment. Death. You heard me, Death itself. I challenge you to use soap too, for the better of the masses, for the better of the environment, for the good health of the people!
After being out of school for four days, you'll do just about anything to get back on top of things...

So to come full circle, while you're sick/bedridden/"enjoying" the feeling of having two bouncy balls lodged in your throat, there's a lot of down time. Aka a lot of music time. And what does music entail? Oh possible forms of poetry to analyze! And after going through various playlists I've realized once again, that a lot of songs are not poetic verbally but instead musically. Certain beats, certain basslines, the way the song is constructed and strung together in a complicated or even a super simplistic original way can be profoundly poetic. Does anyone else ever feel that? Especially after going through songs to select one for class, before I found a song that actually contained more literally elements besides rhyming, I had a mental list of which songs could be justified as poetic, and out of a list of 5 songs only one had lyrics that were truly poetically correct. Baffled, I asked myself why this may be. Music in itself, lyrics aside, is a form of poetry. And I've come to believe that poetry, although innately classified as a literary art form, does not need to have words to be poetic.

Maybe I'm off my rocker here and clearly need to pop some more Tylenol, but does anyone else agree?

Moving On...

So, visiting Swarthmore College,(a small liberal-arts college in Pennsylvania for those of you who don't know it) this Thursday and Friday was quite a breath of fresh air. Seeing the differences makes me a little depressed returning to high school. So, I thought I'd list a few of the major changes going from high school to a small liberal arts college.
1. An administration that actually cooperates with students
    It felt as if the school was trying to be how its students wanted it to be in many ways, rather than our    school which seems like it is constantly at war with its students. The school would actually serve meals that students suggested, rather than take away our favorite foods (swedish fish).

2. Interesting classes

    For some strange reason, I felt worse sleeping in classes that I was visiting, which I didn't need to go to, than I do in any of my classes now (sorry Heidkamp). I also thought that astronomy was really cool after taking a class in it.

3. Less policing

    I enjoyed not being yelled at by security.

OMG!!! Last Paper!!

Alright so not going to lie...I definitely forgot to blog last night and I fell asleep writing that paper because I was up most of the night doing Psych homework. (sorry Mr. Heidkamp, I know I've worn out my excuses). Anyways, I'm completely ecstatic about writing our last paper especially since I like poetry and I like comparing and contrasting things. Or maybe it's just because I'm really hyper and at lunch blogging this.

So yea I'm writing my paper on these two poems called To A Daughter Leaving Home and Quinceanera. Basically both of these poems are about growing up and stepping up into society and becoming independent. I thought these would be appropriate to write on since the end of the year is quickly approaching and most of us, if not ALL of us, are going off to college and away from mommy and daddy so that we can finally become independent. The only differences between these to pieces is that they both share very different opinions in growing up. In Quinceanera, the little girl dreads becoming independent and being brought into society through her cotilion  and in TADLH the mother is sad but happy at the same that her daughter is growing up.

Whurr U AT??

I know many of you have probably already shared where you are going next year/what you are going to be doing, but I thought that this blog should have a list too.  Im too excited to be graduating and taking a year off of school. After my year off, I'm going to Colorado College in Colorado Springs.

Does anyone else know where they're going yet? (I hope so).  And if so...feel free to share. We all deserve some bragging rights after the four hard years we've been through.

Spring

I have to say, of the two poems we read about spring, I think I like the Dickinsen one better.  I like spring, but there is something cool about Dickinsen's style.  There is also something I didn't like about Whitman's style.  He reminds me kind of Wordsworth, whose name is a perfect example of irony, whose poems are always overblown descriptions of nature.  It's like they are worshipping nature, which I don't really like.  Nature is noce, but it seems like they are building it up to be a concious entity, which detracts from its complexity and reality.  I could definitely see Whitman being the way Mr. H. described him too, as a very public figure, who liked to show off and make himself known.

Quotable Card

Yeah, you know what I'm talking about, those lovely little cards that have random quotes on the front in bright, colorful letters?  Who doesn't love those?

A lot of the quotes are taken from poems, so I decided to investigate and find one I liked and read the whole poem.  Then that didn';t work out, so here is a random Langston Hughes poem that I like.

Dream Deferred by Langston Hughes

What happens to a dream deferred?

Does it dry up
Like a raisin in the sun?

Or fester like a sore--
And then run?

Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over--
like a syrupy sweet?

Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?

Maybe at first glance it doesn't seem that complex, but the imagery he uses probes every possibility of what figuratively happens as we get older and must compromise some of our ambitions.   

Earthquake!

In other news, my poetry comparison essay (or at least the process of writing it) is, quite literally, earth shaking:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89749491

I am such a midwesterner. I thought the odd sounds/shaking door were due to a) animals walking around on my roof, or b) a disfunctional ceiling fan. Actually, it was the earth's plates colliding... or something along those lines.

How odd.

A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall

I am just going to say right now that it is near 2:00 AM, so I will try my best to write so that you all can comprehend. I am going to U of I tomorrow and will not be in school, hence my late night post.

Anyways, I see that a lot of you have posted your music-poetry songs and I thought that was a good idea, not because I have run out of ideas of what to post, but really because I love my song and have some things to say about it.

A Hard Rain's A Gonna Fall, Bob Dylan

Oh, where have you been, my blue-eyed son?
Oh, where have you been, my darling young one?
I've stumbled on the side of twelve misty mountains,
I've walked and I've crawled on six crooked highways,
I've stepped in the middle of seven sad forests,
I've been out in front of a dozen dead oceans,
I've been ten thousand miles in the mouth of a graveyard,
And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, and it's a hard,
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.

Oh, what did you see, my blue-eyed son?
Oh, what did you see, my darling young one?
I saw a newborn baby with wild wolves all around it
I saw a highway of diamonds with nobody on it,
I saw a black branch with blood that kept drippin',
I saw a room full of men with their hammers a-bleedin',
I saw a white ladder all covered with water,
I saw ten thousand talkers whose tongues were all broken,
I saw guns and sharp swords in the hands of young children,
And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.

And what did you hear, my blue-eyed son?
And what did you hear, my darling young one?
I heard the sound of a thunder, it roared out a warnin',
Heard the roar of a wave that could drown the whole world,
Heard one hundred drummers whose hands were a-blazin',
Heard ten thousand whisperin' and nobody listenin',
Heard one person starve, I heard many people laughin',
Heard the song of a poet who died in the gutter,
Heard the sound of a clown who cried in the alley,
And it's a hard, and it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
And it's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.

Oh, who did you meet, my blue-eyed son?
Who did you meet, my darling young one?
I met a young child beside a dead pony,
I met a white man who walked a black dog,
I met a young woman whose body was burning,
I met a young girl, she gave me a rainbow,
I met one man who was wounded in love,
I met another man who was wounded with hatred,
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.

Oh, what'll you do now, my blue-eyed son?
Oh, what'll you do now, my darling young one?
I'm a-goin' back out 'fore the rain starts a-fallin',
I'll walk to the depths of the deepest black forest,
Where the people are many and their hands are all empty,
Where the pellets of poison are flooding their waters,
Where the home in the valley meets the damp dirty prison,
Where the executioner's face is always well hidden,
Where hunger is ugly, where souls are forgotten,
Where black is the color, where none is the number,
And I'll tell it and think it and speak it and breathe it,
And reflect it from the mountain so all souls can see it,
Then I'll stand on the ocean until I start sinkin',
But I'll know my song well before I start singin',
And it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard, it's a hard,
It's a hard rain's a-gonna fall.

I'm sorry the lyrics are so long. I absolutely love this song, and the lyrics especially. It holds a particular significance to the time period it was writing in (the 1960's with the Cuban missile crisis), but I think a lot of the lines are more general. Overall, I see the meaning of the song really being that there is a lot of beauty in the world, but there is also a lot of sadness. Harder times are coming, and everyone has to be aware of that fact. I found a lot of irony in the poem too, that was really unique. I bolded some of them above - yes I am going back to junior high when everyone bolded lyrics in their AIM profiles. The line about the white ladder is one of my favorites. The ladder seems like a useful instrument that could be helpful in getting up higher literally or as a metaphor for life, yet it has water on it so we may slip. I just think this song is chock full of great literary devices and some really great irony.

Glamour Profession

This is my poetry song.  Glamour Profession by Steely Dan

6:05
Outside the stadium
Special delivery
For Hoops McCann
Brut and charisma
Poured from the shadow where he stood
Looking good
He's a crowd pleasing man
One on one
He's schoolyard superman
Crashing the backboard
He's Jungle Jim again
When it's all over
We'll make some calls from my car
We're a star

It's a glamour profession
The L.A. concession
Local boys will spend a quarter
Just to shine the silver bowl
Living hard will take its toll

Illegal fun
Under the sun

All aboard
The Carib Cannibal
Off to Barbados
Just for the ride
Jack with his radar
Stalking the dread moray eel
At the wheel
With his Eurasian bride
On the town
We dress for action
Celluloid bikers
Is Friday's theme
I drove the Chrysler
Watched from the darkness while they danced
I'm the one

It's a glamour profession
The L.A. concession
Local boys will spend a quarter
Just to shine the silver bowl
Living hard will take its toll

Illegal fun
Under the sun

Hollywood
I know your middle name
Who inspires your fabled fools
That's my claim to fame

Jive Miguel
He's in from Bogota
Meet me at midnight
At Mr. Chow's
Szechuan dumplings
After the deal has been done
I'm the one

It's a glamour profession
The L.A. concession
Local boys will spend a quarter
Just to shine the silver bowl
Living hard will take its toll

Illegal fun
Under the sun

This poem is essentially about drugs and a drug dealer.  There are a lot of metaphors, including "schoolyard superman"  implying that he's outstanding at basketball.  Shining the silver bowl refers to sniffing drugs.  there is also personification, when he says "Hollywood, I know your middle name".    This poem shows some of the "glamour" of the life of a drug dealer, but carries an underlying message indicating that this type of life is not ideal.  This is shown through the repeated phrase 'living hard will take its toll."

Stop Kiss Extended Comment

So this is a response to Sam F's post about Stop Kiss. I, obviously, have a lot to say about it...and I didn't think I could fit it into a small comment.

I think I see Stop Kiss in a very different way then most people, especially those who have only seen or read it once. I have seen and read it a billion times. To me, it really is not a play about lesbians, coming out of the closet, gay rights, gay bashing, or being gay in a heterosexist society. I don't even think of Callie and Sara as "lesbians." If I had to label them, it would be bisexual, given their sexual histories, but I even think thats a stretch. And at the same time, I wouldn't label them as straight either. To me, this play advocates the theory that you fall in love with who you fall in love with--gender is not an issue. And with that love comes the sexual attraction. This is a fictional play, but I've seen proof of this in people I know and know of, and I think it has some merit.

More than anything, I think the play is about discovery. I don't think the sole reason that Callie struggles to admit her attraction and relationship with Sara is because of the implications or "stigmas" from the outside world, but far more because of an internal struggle. Callie, a woman in her late twenties, has liked and been with men her entire life. Then she falls in love with another woman...something that she thought completely beyond her abilities or possibilities. I think what is also so surprising to Callie is that her love for Sara doesn't seem any different to her than the love she has had for men in the past.

One of my favorite books, The Realm of Possibility, by David Levithan, is about this exact concept. My favorite quotation from the book reads:

Here's what i know about the realm of possibility--
it is always expanding, it is never what you think
it is. Everything around us was once deemed
impossible...
As hard as it is to see sometimes, we all exist
within the real of possibility. Most of the limits
are of our own world's devising. And yet,
every day we each do so many things
that were once impossible to us.

In other words, we each have our own realm of possibility--what we can do, what is possible here and now--and the world has a realm of possibility. We don't underestimate our realm of possibility necessarily, but it is never concrete or permanent. Whether we discover new things that we can do and learn more about ourselves or if an outside force expands our realms of possibility, they WILL expand. That is what happened when Callie met Sara. Sara expanded Callie's realm of possibility to the point that Callie could fall in love with Sara, a woman. Callie, as a character, is very confident, collected, and definite. She defines herself, she believes she knows who she is, and she only does things that fit in with that definition. She thinks she controls her realm of possibility. In reality, she has no control whatsoever and the reason that she is in such a state of confusion that we do not see as much of in Sara is because she doesn't believe in the expansion of the realm by something that she does not control. Sara is much more open to change and sees the world as what it is--something much larger than herself that will inevitably change her if she chooses to be a social being.

Is that at all clear? I would like to hear what anyone has to say about this.

Kanye West- Homecoming

Back in..October?..I chose Kanye West's "Homecoming" for the music poetry assignment.  First, the lyrics:

[Chorus - Chris Martin]
I'm coming home again.
Do you think about me now and then?
Do you think about me now and then?
Cause I'm coming home again
I'm in home again.

[Verse 1 - Kanye West]
I met this girl when I was three years old
And what I loved most she had so much soul
She said, excuse me little homie, I know you don't know me- but,
My name is Windy and, I like to blow trees and,
From that point I never blow her off,
They can come from outta town I like to show her off,
They like to act tough, she like to tow em off,
And make em straighten up their act, cause she know they soft
And when I grew up she showed me how to go downtown
And at nighttime my face lit up so astounding
And I told her in my heart is where she always be
She never mess with entertainers cause they always leave
She said it felt like they walked and drove on me
Knew I was gang affiliated got on TV and told on me
I guess it's why last winter she got so cold on me
She said, Ye keep making that, keep making that platinum and gold for me

[Chorus - Chris Martin]
Do you think about me now and then?
Do you think about me now and then?
Cause I'm coming home again
I'm in home again
Do you think about me now and then?
Do you think about me now and then?
Oooh, now I'm coming home again

Maybe we can start again

[Verse 2 - Kanye West]
But if you really care for her, then you would n-never hit the airport,
To follow your dream, sometimes I still talk to her, but when I talk to her
It always seems like she talking about me,
She said you left your kids and they just like you
They wanna rap and make show beats just like you,
But they just not you and I just got to
Talking bout what she can try to do just not new
Now everybody got the game figured out all wrong
I guess you never know what you got till its gone
I guess this is why I'm here and I cant come back home
And guess when I heard that when I was back home
Every interview I'm representing you making you proud
Reach for the stars so if you fall you land on a cloud
Jump in the crowd, spark you lighters, wave em around,
And if you don't know by now, I'm talking about Chit town,

[Chorus - Chris Martin]
Do you think about me now and then?
Do you think about me now and then?
Cause I'm coming home again
Maybe, do you remember when fireworks at lake Michigan
Oooh, now I'm coming home again
Im in home again
Maybe, do you remember when fireworks at lake Michigan
Oooh, now I'm coming home again
Maybe we can start again

I consider "Homecoming" as a sort of ode to Chicago, Kanye's hometown (I hope a majority of everyone here knew that).  He uses personification throughout the song, staging a conversation between himself and "Windy", aka Chicago.  Kanye uses many of the characteristics of Chicago to describe "Windy", such as "My name is Windy and I like to blow trees", which is a reference to Chicago's nickname, the "Windy City".  He also says "...last winter she got so cold on me", using the cold temperatures of Chicago's winter as a description of the character he is talking to.

Kanye's song undoubtedly has greater meaning to those listeners who are familiar with Chicago's attractions and characteristics.  Chris Martin (Coldplay's lead singer) words "Do you remember when, fireworks at Lake Michigan" describe a scene that is a staple of Chicago's culture, and provides the listener with an example of a portion of Chicago's persona that incites nostalgic memories of times spent in Chicago.

I think that "Homecoming" is a superb song/poem because I relate to Kanye's love of Chicago.  The visions of downtown and of fireworks are images that I have grown up with, and will undoubtedly miss when I move away from Chicago.  I would feel confident guessing that a majority of Chicagoans reminisce and feel proud of Chicago whenever this song is played...I know I do.

Writing a Poem

I'm not really a negative person, but I will not lie to you. Poetry is not exactly my forte. I appreciate the written word, and I'm impressed by those who can write a good poem, I'm just not among them. I don't really like learning about poetry, analyzing poetry, and I especially dislike writing poetry. Also, I'm definitely one of those people that completely misinterprets a poem. Having said that, it may be given that I don't exactly want to talk about music poetry or analyze a poem from Sound and Sense. So instead, I decided to address poetry in general.

I'm kind of confused about what really defines a poem. According to the dictionary that came with my computer a poem is "a composition in verse, esp. one that is characterized by a highly developed artistic form and by the use of heightened language and rhythm to express an intensely imaginative interpretation of the subject." So then do poems have to have a rhythm? And if so, is it better to rhyme? I feel like poetry has such a loose definition that it really could be anything. That is something that makes me really appreciate poetry even when I don't enjoy it. You really can do almost anything you want with poetry. So while I personally would rather not, I encourage you all to write a poem.

What souls are for

So, there are a lot of people posting songs on the blog this week, and I thought I would as well.  This song is by a Santee Sioux Native American, John Trudell.  Trudell writes these really poetic songs about the mistreament of Native Americans, women, and his own personal grief.  He does have quite a reason to grieve, because it 1979, his house burned down, killing his wife, three children, and mother-in-law.  It is very possible that the FBI set the fire to retalliate against his cultural activism.

My faviorite song by him is called Doesn't Hurt Anymore, and it is about the death of his family, and also the gross mistreatment of Native Americans.  The lyrics are below:

Doesn’t Hurt Anymore

From the album Bone Days

I think about how I’m doing

But I don’t know what I’m thinking

Shattering into shadowlight

Reflecting thoughts I can’t relieve

Refrain: 

My heart doesn’t hurt anymore

But my soul does, maybe

That’s what souls are for, to

Take the hurt the heart can’t take

Distance playing tag playing tricks

With whatever it is I can’t find

My weaknesses are my bandaids

Covering for how I don’t bleed

In all the stones I threw

Some were for flinging

Some were for bringing

And some I never knew

Refrain

Living painted into a picture

Dripping off all these paintings

The colors of emotion

Seeking any kind of devotion

Some things are private

Between me and the dead

And some of the rest

Is better off left unsaid

Refrain

More Than Just Common Words

This is just a Common song that I really liked and thought it deserved to be on the blog!!

I never knew a luh, luh-luh, a love like this
Gotta be somethin for me to write this
Queen, I ain't seen you in a minute
Wrote this letter, and finally decide to send it
Signed sealed delivered for us to grow together
Love has no limit, let's spend it slow forever
I know your heart is weathered by what studs did to you
I ain't gon' assault em cause I probably did it too
Because of you, feelings I handle with care
Some niggaz recognize the light but they can't handle the glare
You know I ain't the type to walk around with matchin shirts
If relationship is effort I will match your work
I wanna be the one to make you happiest, it hurts you the most
They say the end is near, it's important that we close..
.. to the most, high
Regardless of what happen on him let's rely
There are times.. when you'll need someone..
I will be by your side..
There is a light, that shines,
special for you, and me..
Yo, yo, check it
It's important, we communicate
and tune the fate of this union, to the right pitch
I never call you my bitch or even my boo
There's so much in a name and so much more in you
Few understand the union of woman and man
And sex and a tingle is where they assume that it land
But that's fly by night for you and the sky I write
For in these cold Chi night's moon, you my light
If heaven had a height, you would be that tall
Ghetto to coffee shop, through you I see that all
Let's stick to understandin and we won't fall
For better or worse times, I hope to me you call
So I pray everyday more than anything
friends will stay as we begin to lay
this foundation for a family - love ain't simple
Why can't it be anything worth having you work at annually
Granted we known each other for some time
It don't take a whole day to recognize sunshine
There are times.. when you'll need someone..
I will be by your side, oh darling
There is a light, that shines,
special for you, and me..
Yeah.. yo, yo, check it
It's kinda fresh you listen to more than hip-hop
and I can catch you in the mix from beauty to thrift shop
Plus you ship hop when it's time to, thinkin you fresh
Suggestin beats I should rhyme to
At times when I'm lost I try to find you
You know to give me space when it's time to
My heart's dictionary defines you, it's love and happiness
Truthfully it's hard tryin to practice abstinence
The time we committed love it was real good
Had to be for me to arrive and it still feel good
I know the sex ain't gon' keep you, but as my equal
it's how I must treat you
As my reflection in light I'ma lead you
And whatever's right, I'ma feed you
Digga-da, digga-da, digga-da, digga-digga-da-da
Yo I tell you the rest when I see you, peace
There are times.. when you'll need someone..
I will be by your side..
There is a light, that shines,
special for you, and me..
(I'll) take my chances.. before they pass..
.. pass me by, oh darling..
You need to look at the other side..
You'll agree..

Poetry's Significance in Music

After reading Melvin's post I decided to put up this song written by Lupe Fiasco that I believe has a very similar message, but more importantly takes the perspective of a young man in a situation that is very significant to the times of today.

He said, I write what I see
Write to make it right, don't like what I be
I like to make it like the sights on TV
Quite the great life so nice and easy,
See, now you can still die from that
But it's better than not being alive from straps.
Agreed, a Mead notebook and a Bic that click when its pushed and a whack ass beat.
That's a track thats weak that he got last week
'Cause everybody in the studio's like that's that heat
A bass-heavy medley with a sample from the 70s with a screwed up hook that went "Stack that cheese"
Somethin somethin somethin "Stack that cheese"
Mother sister cousin "Stack that cheese"
He couldn't think of nothin' "Stack that cheese"
He turns down the beat, writter's block impedes
Cryin' from the next room a baby in need of some pampers and some food and a place to sleep
That plus a black Cadillac on D's
Is what keeps him on track to be a great emcee.

Chrous:
One you never heard of I,
Push it hard to further the
Grind, I feel like murder but,
Hip Hop just saved me
One you never heard of I,
Push it hard to further the
Grind, I feel like murder but,
Hip Hop just saved my life

Reps North side so he rocks them braids
Eleven-hundred friends on his Myspace page
"Stack that cheese" got seven-hundred plays
Producer made him take it down, said he had to pay
Open mic champ 2 weeks in a row
Ex D boy with a B Boy flow
Glow like LeRoy you should see boy go
Got a daddy servin' life and a brother on the 'row
Best homie in the grave, tatted up in the cage
MinuteMaid got his momma workin like a slave
Downed baby momma who he really had to honour
Cause she was his biggest fan even let him use her Honda
To drive up to Dallas went to open up for amatuers
Let him keep her debit card so he could put gas in it
Told her when he get on he gon' take her to the galleria
Buy her everything but the manicans, ya dig

Chrous

His man called said your time might be now
They played your freestyle over "Whipe me down"
They played it 2 times, said it might be crowned
As the best thing out the H-Town in a while
He picked up his son with a great big smile
Rapped every single word to the new born child
Then he put him down and got back to the kitchen
Put on another beat and got back to the mission
To get his momma out the hood, put her somewhere in the woods
Keep his lady lookin' good, have her rollin' like she should
Show his homies there's a way, other than that flippin' yay'
Bail his homie out of jail, get a lawyer on his case
Throw a concert for the school, show the soldiers that its cool
Throw some candy on the Caddy, chuck the deuce and act a fool
Now it feels good when it happens like that
2 days from goin' back to sellin' crack, yessir

Missing Out

I feel like we're missing out on a lot of really excellent poetry that's worth discussing in Sound & Sense because we don't have the time. How long did we spend on this unit before the paper? Two weeks? How long did we spend on Beloved? Light In August? I understand that the novels are much longer and have character development and intricate plots to deal with and they take a long time to discuss, but I feel like poetry is much more satisfying. I mean, honestly, I stopped caring about Joe Christmas and Sethe long before we finished discussing them, but poems are much more accessible and keep changing pace, which I like. A lot of my favorite poems are in here (pg. 6-7, 121, 350-2 for example) and I've read a lot of stuff that I liked just flipping through the book during study hall (pg. 88, 250, 265). I really feel like I'm missing out on a lot of good stuff because of the pace we've set ourselves at.

On a completely unrelated note, this made me smile:
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89164759

2Pac's Appeal to the Masses

Some say the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice
I say the darker the flesh then the deeper the roots
I give a holler to my sisters on welfare
Tupac cares, and don't nobody else care
And uhh, I know they like to beat ya down a lot
When you come around the block brothas clown a lot
But please don't cry, dry your eyes, never let up
Forgive but don't forget, girl keep your head up
And when he tells you you ain't nuttin don't believe him
And if he can't learn to love you you should leave him
Cause sista you don't need him
And I ain't tryin to gas ya up, I just call em how I see em
You know it makes me unhappy (what's that)
When brothas make babies, and leave a young mother to be a pappy
And since we all came from a woman
Got our name from a woman and our game from a woman
I wonder why we take from our women
Why we rape our women, do we hate our women?
I think it's time to kill for our women
Time to heal our women, be real to our women
And if we don't we'll have a race of babies
That will hate the ladies, that make the babies
And since a man can't make one
He has no right to tell a woman when and where to create one
So will the real men get up
I know you're fed up ladies, but keep your head up

Keep ya head up, oooo child things are gonna get easier
ooooo child things are gonna get brighter [2x)

Aiyyo, I remember Marvin Gaye, used to sing ta me
He had me feelin like black was tha thing to be
And suddenly tha ghetto didn't seem so tough
And though we had it rough, we always had enough
I huffed and puffed about my curfew and broke the rules
Ran with the local crew, and had a smoke or two
And I realize momma really paid the price
She nearly gave her life, to raise me right
And all I had ta give her was my pipe dream
Of how I'd rock the mic, and make it to tha bright screen
I'm tryin to make a dollar out of fifteen cents
It's hard to be legit and still pay tha rent
And in the end it seems I'm headin for tha pen
I try and find my friends, but they're blowin in the wind
Last night my buddy lost his whole family
It's gonna take the man in me to conquer this insanity
It seems tha rain'll never let up
I try to keep my head up, and still keep from gettin wet up
You know it's funny when it rains it pours
They got money for wars, but can't feed the poor
Say there ain't no hope for the youth and the truth is
it ain't no hope for tha future
And then they wonder why we crazy
I blame my mother, for turning my brother into a crack baby
We ain't meant to survive, cause it's a setup
And even though you're fed up
Huh, ya got to keep your head up
And uhh
To all the ladies havin babies on they own
I know it's kinda rough and you're feelin all alone
Daddy's long gone and he left you by ya lonesome
Thank the Lord for my kids, even if nobody else want em
Cause I think we can make it, in fact, I'm sure
And if you fall, stand tall and comeback for more
Cause ain't nuttin worse than when your son
wants to kno why his daddy don't love him no mo'
You can't complain you was dealt this
hell of a hand without a man, feelin helpless
Because there's too many things for you to deal with
Dying inside, but outside you're looking fearless
While tears, is rollin down your cheeks
Ya steady hopin things don't all down this week
Cause if it did, you couldn't take it, and don't blame me
I was given this world I didn't make it
And now my son's getten older and older and cold
From havin the world on his shoulders
While the rich kids is drivin Benz
I'm still tryin to hold on to my survivin friends
And it's crazy, it seems it'll never let up, but
please... you got to keep your head up

I believe this is poetry just from the tone and the feeling you get from it. It is evident that the speaker is going through tough times and encourages the listeners of the poems to look beyond whatever your going through and keep your head up! This mostly targets the black community because of the artist 2pac rough past growing up in the streets of East Harlem, New York. He uses several metaphors and has strong imagery to give the listeners a sense of how harsh life really was. I believe the message was written well enough for some sort of realization to be made. Music is something people cling to to relate, or to escape! 2Pac was a music legend and poet and appealed to thousands!

Stop Kiss

It occurs to me I should have wrote this post yesterday, after I had seen Stop Kiss, to tell you all to see it. Unfortunately, its run is over. So I hope I don't bum out anyone who didn't get a chance to see this play when I say it was real good. Not that that's a surprise, pretty much everything from Studio 200 is excellent, but this one I liked even more than most.

I could talk about how the acting was superb, the set design was neat given the limited space, or any of that technical stuff, but that's par for the course and besides not that productive. The most interesting part of Stop Kiss is the development of relationship of the two main characters. Considering that this is the basis of the entire play and almost every scene, I found that Callie and Sara's continual awkwardness around each other, even once it was clear that they were pretty much romantically involved, was hard to watch. I mean, I suppose that's true of any romance; you're waiting the entire play or novel or whatever for the two characters to get together for real, but it was a unique situation in Stop Kiss. The contrast between Callie's nervousness with Sara and openess with George is particularly curious, but it feeds well into what I believe to be the primary theme of the play.

Most of Callie's failiure to act on her feelings for most of the play is because of the stigma attatched to an open lesbian relationship. Although the main event of the play, the bigotted attack on Callie and Sara, opens up the discussion on homosexual intolerance, Callie's reaction to the entire thing serves as the primary force of the conversation. She fears stigma even when her fear is completely unwarranted, such as when she is confronted by George, or when it is harmful, as when she is reluctant to tell the detective the truth. Her eventual willingness to embrace the possibility of her homosexuality could be accounted for with the explination "it took time," but that's lame. The final scene in the hospital seems to indicate that once Callie was faced with Sara's imminent departure, she realized the triviality of some societal intolerance in the face of living life to its fullest. Ultimately, I think the message is that the damages of societal intolerace pale in comparison to the benefits of a fulfilling, authentic life.