Reading Response 1-22-2015

What I found interesting about our readings this week was the Ted Berrigan Sonnets. I found his use of crude language and repetitious phrases to be unusual. He uses phrases like "belly to hot belly we have laid", "baffling combustions are everywhere", and "massive as Anne's thighs" multiple times. He also was seemingly very comfortable using crude language to deliver his point. Like by claiming that "fucking is so very lovely" when comparing poetry to sex. 

Berrigan talks about how "everyone's suddenly pregnant and no one is glad" and "teeth that you've never dreamed could bite". I think this is in reference to how a poem can reveal things about yourself that you did not know before. I believe he is referencing the power poetry has to teach us. Poetry has the power to change our opinions and our emotions. Depending on the tone of it, it could evoke any emotion the poet desires.

I also found the way Berrigan formatted his poems interesting. For example, in sonnet XV, the first line, logically, should be followed by the last, the second, the second to last. Yet that is not how he did it. He arranged it as a collage, putting the line "and the sonnet is not dead" in the middle.

Reading Response 1/15/15

            The poem I chose to respond to is Still Life by Minoru Yoshioka. It struck me because at first it seems simple and peaceful, as with a still life painting, however, it turns into a dark message. It made me think about how all of us are moving toward the same end as everyone else. We are all part of a world that is bigger than us. No matter who we are, one day, we will face death and decay as the fruit in this poem did.

            The language used is interesting. At first, the fruit swells with brightness, but then extends into darkness. It almost seems as if in the first half, the language implies expansion, using words like swelling, larger, and extending. Yet in the second half, it is contracting, using words like inclines and decomposition. I feel like the poem invokes a relaxed feeling. It starts off bright and warm, then gradually calms down and relaxes. It almost lulls the reader into a relaxed state, despite the grim message that it carries.

            Of course, this is just my way of interpreting it and the emotional response I had from it. I really liked this piece because it is not something I typically would have read. I do not mind Shakespeare, but otherwise I don’t really read poetry. But this piece was really intriguing. 

Introduction

Hello! My name is Anna-Marie Van Every. I come from a military family, so I have moved around a lot. I love writing, music, drawing, and reading. I love to travel and try new things. My favorite place I have been is Arizona. I absolutely loved the desert, the mountains, and seeing my boyfriend. The most important things in my life are my family, my hamster (named Bella), and school.  My major is currently Elementary Education, but I’m keeping an open mind in looking for something else. I am taking Creative Writing so that I can learn how to write better and on more topics. I am looking forward to this class and the experiences I will gain from it.