If this was my poetry exam, I would
1) Read the poem enjoyably (to try to get into the moment)
2) I would then read it again and note down all elements (structure, imagery, diction, syntax, setting, tone, alliteration, personification) that the author uses.
3) From there I choose the specific elements that I believe I could expand on.
a. Diction (focused throughout the poem and will be touched on in every element) and Tone
b. Imagery (this would cover personification and setting)
c. Structure
d. Meaning
4) I will first highlight all words I think contributes to the overall meaning of the poem.
5) Then I would look at the first stanza.
6) This includes many descriptive words (blue mountain, white snow gleam, pine bulk, hemlock half, ragged rocky, single, clear, flat etc.)
7) What do I notice? – COLORS. “blue”, “white” Most of the words are descriptive to describe the atmosphere, the scenery.
8) I would then note the effectiveness of alliteration – “hemlock half”, “ragged rocky” – How does this affect the poem? What is its main purpose? - Perhaps to slow down and exaggerate the imagery.
9) Now I move on to the second stanza
10) What words are there? “Biggest little” – Interesting, what does this mean? – Oxymoron?
11) What are the colors used? – “Brown”, “white” (again)
12) What words associate certain colors? – “water” (blue), “naked”” (skin tone)
13) What do I notice about the tone? How does the diction create certain tones? I believe the first stanza has an amazed tone because of the imagery created with the diction. The tone in the second stanza however is rather disgusted.
14) NOW let’s focus specifically on to imagery
15) How does this diction contribute to the imagery created? All the diction in the first stanza creates a beautiful fantasy mountain image in my mind. Whereas the second stanza relates more to the title of the poem “Old Pond” Perhaps this is the reason for the authors interesting structure? RELATE IT TO THE TONE
16) NOW let’s note the structure and how it contributes to imagery.
17) If I draw a line around the right side of the poem and turn it 90 degrees to the right, I see two mountains. Does this have any purpose?
18) The sentence structure: Short, incomplete sentences. What is the effect? – To allow the reader to imagine and create own perception.
19) The structure of the poem itself. The first stanza and second stanza have the same structure. The word time in the middle of these stanzas perhaps means that we are looking at the mountain but at different time periods.
20) The meaning. Let’s combine all my observations to create one overall meaning.
21) “a naked bug
with a white body and brown hair” – I think this is a person not a bug because of the description: “white body” and “brown hair”. A bug would not have HAIR. - reminds me of Gregor.
22) Then the next line “dive” – a bug would jump or hop. I don’t think it would dive.
23) Look at all elements now; see if my observation above means anything.
24) Try and find a meaning.
After reading the commentary on "Old Pond", I became aware to many things I had not previously noticed in the poem. However, I am proud to say that I did acknowledge some very key points such as the meaning, tone, syntax, color, and more! The author of the commentary acknowledged the difference in both stanzas of which the first stanza was about the beauty of the mountain snow scape and the second was about the impact of a dive into the glacial lake. I was able to note this difference and recognize it through the difference in tones.
The author of the commentary recognized the repetition of colors. Colors are used to create a clearer picture of the atmosphere to the reader and Snyder had the intention of "hitting the eye before the mind can organize them logically". I think Snyder was able to do this very effectively!
This author then goes on to talk about some metaphorical phrases. I was very interested to read into this because I did not note any metaphors. The "needle-sprays"metaphorically means "the pines are spraying or scattering their needles in the endless cycle of birth and death, where waste and fertility are often indistinguishable." - This statement confused me - "endless cycle of birth and death"? Not once did I think about this idea when I was reading through the poem.
What I did notice is the author of this commentary did define certain words in his own way by making assumptions. This relates to the article we previously read "Expressive Language" in which we understood the power of words. The author says that the mountains "would usually be called jagged, a ruggedly masculine word. Notice the word usually. He/she is making an assumption about the mountains which is perfectly acceptable because it is his/her interpretation of the poem. I will make sure to analyze certain words and defining them in relation to the poem and its theme.
I realize that this author also stated that "a naked bug" was relating to a human. WOO! I also took note of this by the description of "a white body and brown hair" (12) However, I just stopped there I did not dig in like this author did who said that the "white" color suggested his innocence (color symbolism) - again another assumption about color - and he stated this statement signified his race. These assumptions that are made give a more insightful approach which I plan on using in my commentary. I also like how the author is able to make a universal judgement on it. For example, when he mentions that Snyder "strives to quiet the mind, often pictured in Buddhist teaching as a still pond." The author is connecting the title of the poem to culture. I think this is fascinating.
There was something that was bugging me when I read the poem. I didn't understand the ending: "Splash!" The theme about life overall was incorporated well into his analysis. The author said that the "Splash!" signified the clearing of any "cobwebs, trivialities and false ideas". He/she also observed that it was a jokey finale compared to the Zen-like ambiance of the poem. I liked this annotation of the ending.
After reading the commentary on "Old Pond", I became aware to many things I had not previously noticed in the poem. However, I am proud to say that I did acknowledge some very key points such as the meaning, tone, syntax, color, and more! The author of the commentary acknowledged the difference in both stanzas of which the first stanza was about the beauty of the mountain snow scape and the second was about the impact of a dive into the glacial lake. I was able to note this difference and recognize it through the difference in tones.
The author of the commentary recognized the repetition of colors. Colors are used to create a clearer picture of the atmosphere to the reader and Snyder had the intention of "hitting the eye before the mind can organize them logically". I think Snyder was able to do this very effectively!
This author then goes on to talk about some metaphorical phrases. I was very interested to read into this because I did not note any metaphors. The "needle-sprays"metaphorically means "the pines are spraying or scattering their needles in the endless cycle of birth and death, where waste and fertility are often indistinguishable." - This statement confused me - "endless cycle of birth and death"? Not once did I think about this idea when I was reading through the poem.
What I did notice is the author of this commentary did define certain words in his own way by making assumptions. This relates to the article we previously read "Expressive Language" in which we understood the power of words. The author says that the mountains "would usually be called jagged, a ruggedly masculine word. Notice the word usually. He/she is making an assumption about the mountains which is perfectly acceptable because it is his/her interpretation of the poem. I will make sure to analyze certain words and defining them in relation to the poem and its theme.
I realize that this author also stated that "a naked bug" was relating to a human. WOO! I also took note of this by the description of "a white body and brown hair" (12) However, I just stopped there I did not dig in like this author did who said that the "white" color suggested his innocence (color symbolism) - again another assumption about color - and he stated this statement signified his race. These assumptions that are made give a more insightful approach which I plan on using in my commentary. I also like how the author is able to make a universal judgement on it. For example, when he mentions that Snyder "strives to quiet the mind, often pictured in Buddhist teaching as a still pond." The author is connecting the title of the poem to culture. I think this is fascinating.
There was something that was bugging me when I read the poem. I didn't understand the ending: "Splash!" The theme about life overall was incorporated well into his analysis. The author said that the "Splash!" signified the clearing of any "cobwebs, trivialities and false ideas". He/she also observed that it was a jokey finale compared to the Zen-like ambiance of the poem. I liked this annotation of the ending.
No comments:
Post a Comment