Reflection - Week of 3/18

Ali and I were supposed to present this week but unfortunately the projector was not working, so we couldn't go. When I say unfortunately, I really mean it. I was ready to go and get it over with. Presenting is not my favorite thing to do--at school and also at work--so I was just ready to be done. However, I guess it's also good to have some more time to fine tune the presentation. I'm sure it will go fine next week.

We briefly went over New Media by looking at Professor Wexler's PowerPoint on our own computers. I think new media is a very relevant and interesting topic. It's great that we have all these ways of learning and sharing information, however, I feel like it's almost too easy. When I younger I had to learn how to go to a library and find the information. It really was a skill. Now you can just google whatever you want. Google has even become a verb know. Don't know something? Google it. Another issue new media brings up is the way in which we interpret the information. I feel like the internet conditions us to skim read. Typically to understand an article you need to read the first two paragraphs and the last. The stuff in the middle is extra information, but to get a quick idea, that's all you need. There are debates if this is transferring over to books. I find myself skim reading most of everything I read. I really have to train myself to stop skimming. I wonder if this is an effect of the internet. I've been using it since I was about 8 years old, whereas my older siblings didn't use it as young and don't seem to have the same problem. Who knows!

Reflection - Week of 3/11

This week in class we had the first group presentations. I thought they did really well, so I'm definitely nervous for mine. Everyone had a lot of useful information in their presentations. I also liked the stories they chose. They really helped outline the myth and why it fit into certain categories. Ali and I were supposed to go but there was not enough time, so now we have another week to do our presentation.

I thought the activities were actually fun. I'm not much a "on the spot" creative thinker but it's not impossible. Having a group with me to make up the stories is definitely what made it easier. Ali is hilarious with her ideas sometimes!

I would say my favorite type of myth so far are the Trickster myths. The stories are a little more fun and clever, which is why I enjoy them.

Hopefully when we go next week it will go well!

Reflection - Week of 3/4

This week in class we were able to start working on our Myth presentations. Ali and I were assigned sacred places. Sacred places was not our first choice, but it doesn't seem to be a bad choice. My only concern with this is I'm not sure how exactly we are going to make our presentation 30 minutes. By only focusing on one myth, it doesn't give us much to work with. I think we will figure it out though.

I hope our presentation will go well. I haven't had much time to work on it this week. With work and three midterms next week, it's definitely been a busy week for me. Luckily though, I've made some headway on my portion of the presentation today, and we will be able to go over it tomorrow before class.

I know this is a short reflection, but I don't really have much else to write about...more to come next week! :)

Reflection - Week of 2/25

This week in class we had to turn in our poems. I was so glad to finally get this finished and over with. I was also very excited that I did not have to present my poems to the class. I'm a very outgoing person normally, but for some reason when it comes to school/class I prefer not to be...outgoing. I can't really explain why. Maybe I don't want to be wrong. Maybe I have nothing to say. Maybe I feel like I have nothing useful to contribute...I'm not sure. In this class, I do feel a little more confident because I've gotten to know some of my classmates. But sharing poetry? Bah...that's hard! It's already on my blog :)

I really enjoyed the poems that we did hear in class. I'm glad some people are much braver than I am when it comes to that. Their poems were very well written and captivating. I loved the messages they had, and I still can't believe how well done they were. They seemed professional!

We also moved onto our myth group presentations/picked our groups. I'm working with Ali on Sacred Places. I'm very excited to work with her! She always seems so happy and excited for class, so I know our presentation is going to be awesome.

Poems

Here are my poems. I chose to write two haikus.

My inspiration for this haiku was basically my struggle with poetry. Why do we write it? Why does it matter? So, I tried to think of why people write poetry. I came up with the fact that people write poetry to be heard. Writers want to express a feeling and through poetry do so:

"Poetry"
Captivating them
With words, poetry is made
To always be heard

This was inspired by my drive to work in the morning. I start work rather early and I always get to see the sunrise. Haiku's are traditionally related to nature, so I figured it would be a good theme for the poem. Here it is:

"Morning Light"
Petals dripping dew
Sun rises every morning
From beautiful blue

Reflection - Week of 2/18

Well, this week's reflection is going to be a little short. I was not in class this week because I wasn't feeling well at all, and making the hour drive to CSUN and back was just not going to work.

This week I have been working on the two poems that are due tomorrow. It's been...hard. I'm really not sure what to write, or why (other than my grade). The inspiration is just not there for me right now. I spend pretty much all of my week focused on technical work. It can be tedious sometimes, and I feel like it sometimes blocks my creativity. Creativity...that's what the weekend is for, right?

Anyway, I've been browsing my classmates blog's and reading some of their poetry. That almost makes it harder for me. So far, all the ones I've seen have been so creative and so well done. Since I am far from a poet, mine will probably be much shorter. I've been looking into writing more of a haiku-style poem, or something even inspired by the poem I did my analysis on. Maybe I'll a take hint from imagism and use an economy of words. That doesn't make it easier though. Doing that requires a careful consideration of words, as well as their arrangement.

Well, that's all for now. I definitely wrote a bit more than I expected when I started this reflection. We'll see tomorrow how these poems turn out...

Poetry Analysis Essay

Michelle Rehberger

Professor Wexler

English 495ESM

18 February 2013

Poetry Analysis Essay

            William Carlos Williams is one of many modernist writers who used imagism as his primary method in his poetry. Arguably his most famous poem, “The Red Wheelbarrow” focuses on just one image: a wheelbarrow in the rain. The poem is incredibly short. It has just 16 words and is only 8 lines, but it represents much more than those 16 words. Imagism is not about the object, it is about the subject. Likewise, imagist poems are written from a subjective point of view, rather than an objective point of view. In this case, the subject would be the red wheelbarrow and it is written from the way that Williams sees it. This helps make the image strong and universal for most readers. It lets the reader see the wheelbarrow, but every reader will see a different wheelbarrow. It is a specific subject, yet it can be seen in many different ways. In fact, imagism is described as a “direct observation of individual objects” (Morgan). This fits right in with Williams’ poem. It is a direct observation of the wheelbarrow. Through his use of the tenets of imagism, which include lack of detail or simplification and reduction of the image, the literal shape of the poem, and the use of an economy of words, Williams is able to succeed in making a concrete, universal image for his reader.

            Imagism is one of the many strands and forms of modernism. It is dated back to about 1912 to Ezra Pound (Poets). Imagism was in many ways a response to Romanticism. As the article, “A Brief Guide to Imagism” says, “imagist poetry aimed to replace muddy abstractions with exactness of observed detail, apt metaphors, and economy of language” (Poets). To accomplish this, imagist writers had to follow three basic tenets. These tenants were:  Direct treatment of the "thing," whether subjective or objective, the use of an economy of words, to make sure to use musical phrase (Poets).  These are the three tenets that Williams followed when he wrote “The Red Wheelbarrow”.

            This poem lacks detail, but that is exactly how Williams makes his image so strong and so visible for every reader. Williams describes the wheelbarrow as “red” and “glazed with rain water” (Smith 87). Though this description is vague, the reader is still able to imagine the wheelbarrow. It becomes special because every reader will imagine the wheelbarrow differently due to the lack of detail. That’s what makes this poem subjective—only the writer can see it exactly how he has described it and every reader will have their own experience with it. The only part of the poem that Williams’ gives his personal input on is the first stanza. Williams writes, “so much depends/upon” (Smith 87). It is here that Williams’ gives his subjective view. The reader doesn’t know what it depends upon, only Williams does. However, that doesn’t mean the reader can’t put their own twist on the poem. That’s the whole point of imagism. The simplification of the image is what makes it visible to everyone. By not using multitudes of details, the image has become universal. Part of William’s style and lack of detail also lead to his ability to make the physical view of the poem itself reminiscent of the shape of a wheelbarrow. Williams organizes the poem so that there are three words on the top line and only one on the bottom line to create a silhouette similar to that of a wheelbarrow. This is just another way in which Williams creates a concrete image for the reader, but with so little detail.

            Williams also reinforces his image in this poem through the poem’s actual form. The form of each stanza of the poem creates the image of a wheelbarrow. This can be seen by looking at the actual poem itself:

so much depends

upon

a red wheel

barrow

            glazed with rain

water

beside the white

chickens (Smith 87)

Every stanza forms the shape and silhouette of a wheelbarrow, which helps make the image more concrete. The use of white space could also indicate more in the image. Is the wheelbarrow in an open field? Is the wheelbarrow by a barn? It seems to represent what the reader fills in the space with their own picture and imagination, which again helps the image become universal. The form is also very structured. The first line of each stanza is exactly three words and the second line is only one. Another way that he separates the images through form is by using contrasting colors to help clearly differentiate the two concrete images—the wheelbarrow and the chickens.  Morgan writes, “Williams places great reliance on color, particularly in the earlier poems, to define the object…” (Morgan). The colors help the reader identify the object. The wheelbarrow is red. The chickens are white. They have both been clearly defined.

            Another part of Williams’ imagist style is shown in his word choice—or lack thereof. Imagists would say that Williams uses an economy of words in “The Red Wheelbarrow”. As previously mentioned, one of the three main tenets of imagism is the economy of words, which is essentially picking your words carefully and sparingly. In this instance, less is better. Imagists believe that the poet should discard all words that do not directly contribute to the poem, creating an almost Haiku-like poem. A haiku can only be so long because it depends entirely on the amount of syllables in each line, thus limiting the poet to a small amount of words.  Likewise, imagist poets must only use words that are necessary to the description of the poem. By using only a small amount of words, the poem is simplified and reduced.  Williams definitely succeeds in this, seeing as his poem is merely 16 words long. He definitely used the economy of words and chose his words carefully.

            Williams’ poem “The Red Wheelbarrow” is an imagist poem that creates a concrete and universal image for the reader. The image will be different for everyone, but that is part of what makes the poem so unique. Williams uses imagist principles when he writes the poem, including the use of an economy of words. He creates the image through lack of detail and reduction, but also through the physical form of the poem itself.  This poem fits the characteristics of an imagist poem, and is recognized as such. The poem is subjective, for both the reader and the writer. And also through its subjectivity, it becomes universal.

Works Cited

"A Brief Guide to Imagism." Poets.org. Academy of American Poets, n.d. Web. 18 Feb. 2013. <http://www.poets.org/viewmedia.php/prmMID/5658>.

Morgan, Frederick. "William Carlos Williams: Imagery, Rhythm, Form." The Sewanee Review 55.4 (1947): 675-90. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Web. 10 Feb. 2013. <http://www.jstor.org/stable/27537788>.

Smith, Philip. 100 Best-loved Poems. New York: Dover Publications, 1995. Print.