This year, in our language art's class, we did a unit on poetry. At first I was expecting to be reading and writing long complex pieces of poetry with words I didn't even know how to pronounce. However, as time progressed on, I realized that poetry is actually an escape and quite easy to make. As we read Bronx, and created poems as assignments, I found a love for the poems I created. Somehow I felt connected to them.
This brings me back to one question, how did poetry affect my life? The answer is not that simple, I have a love-hate relationship with poetry. In a way, I have learned to accept it and make it the best it is as I can. Yet, I also couldn't wait for the unit to be over. Poetry has also made me open my mind more. Poems like Sideyard, have had a huge impact with their vague sentences. Phrases from the that poem such as this one, "Just like they love this timber house and hardly care if anybody knows.", have made me catch on to the fact that not everything is going to be right there for you to see and understand. The character, Tyrone, from Bronx Masquerade has taught me to not judge anyone from what you see on the outside. He showed us that he judged people wrongly, but after listening to their poems appreciated much more about them. One person he definitely learned to stop judging was Jenelle. The same thing that happened to Tyrone, has happened to me too. Overall, poetry has effected me in many ways. It has taught me more about what is not seen, more about emotions, more about rhythm, and more about purposes.
Poetry can effect anyone, or at least I'd like to think it can. However, I don't think poetry belongs to everyone. I believe everyone and anyone has a special talent in something having to do with writing, wether it be with writing essays, creating articles, etc. They don't necessarily have to be good at poetry. I know some of my classmates had trouble creating some of their poems, especially with rhythm and putting meaning and emotions into them. How do I know? I know because I have talked to people about creating poetry. Every time I have talked to these people they would talk negatively about it. I assume they aren't really fond of it and don't like it. This leads me to the thought that some things just don't belong to everyone, in this case, it's poetry.
Life experiences can effect poets in many ways. Take Edgar Allen Poe as an example, growing up he had a rough life. He even had to set a couch on fire to stay warm. Look at his poetry, and you'll notice it has sadness, madness, and hatred incorporated in them. Those are all negative thoughts, but what is there to expect from a man who grew up with a bad past. In class, when we had open mike fridays and some of my classmates performed there would always be a couple of students who's poems were deep and dark. They must've got their inspiration from their hidden past. In a way, I think poetry helps people express themselves. Their expressions could be having to deal with past experiences, thoughts, ideas, etc. When they write it down, a poem is born. Someone with a happy life might not right something dismal. Same goes for a person who has a horrible life, they might not write something happy and cheerful. Overall, life and experiences a poet goes through affects their poetry is many differs ways, especially word choice and plots.
A poem's structure and form contributes to it immensely. Take my letter poem for example. My poem, in a way, was limited. It's structure didn't allow the poem to be set up how an average poem would be, which is in stanzas. It's rhyming was also different and instead of having just phrases, there was full sentences. Not only that but the shape of the poem inspires and shows what it is going to be about. My poem was a letter E, for my name, meaning the poem was going to be about me. Another poem, Zorro, from Bronx Masquerade was shaped as a Z. Since it was shaped this way it symbolized what the poem was going to be about. The poem Zorro also had sentences, and didn't follow the same procedures as a normal poem would. A poem's structure and form, is what identifies it in a way.
Poems are also impacted by the use of literary devices. Certain words and phrases can affect a poem greatly based on the 'intensity of it'. Phrases especially play a big part because they can help develop the poem more, but they can also confuse it more. Words are incorporated to make the poems stronger and to show more emotion. In a poem, rhyme can affect it by adding humor to it, or making it easier to understand. Alliterations can influence the poem on the topic, and the word choice it's going to use. Repetition also can add humor, and can affect the poem by giving something more value. Lastly, figurative language can affect a poem by making it more complex and giving it more emotions, ideas, and thoughts.
Overall, I have learned that poetry isn't all that bad. I have to say, when I was told we were going to be doing this unit soon I would've never expected to actually like it. Poetry has taught and showed me things that books or articles won't show you. I appreciate that.
Poems Created in this Unit:
* Nonfiction Poem
* Bio-Poem of a Literary Character
* Where I'm From Poem
* Spine Poem
* Found Poem
* Nonsense Poem
* Picture Poem
* Those Who Don't
* If Poem
* Letter Poem
* Dream Poem
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