- In "More than This" (270), David Kirby juxtaposes a story of a woman at the grave of her college friend with a fairy tale about an old cowboy and heaven and hell. Why does he do this? Also, why does Kirby write this as a conversation between the speaker and someone he refers to as "you"? Or, put another way, why is it written in 2nd person, why not just tell the two stories w/out complicating it like this?
- "Elk" (44): I think this is an incredible poem. It's horrifying and beautiful. I really see this poor elk, imagine him suffering unbelievably as he's being eaten alive. How about you? Why do you think the speaker decides not to take "the rack" (his antlers)?
- "The Revolt of the Turtles" (114): This is a playful poem, but is it also serious? Why or why not? When the oldest sea turtle claims that "whoever was in control of the stories / controlled all the shoulds and should-nots" what is he arguing? Why do the turtles chant "Only fairness, only decency"?
- "Hurricane Song": Do recent current events regarding Hurricanes Harvey and Irma affect your reading of this poem (which was written and published before either event)?
- All of these are what I would call nature poems (maybe not "More than This," but definitely the other three). Can you make other connections between these poems? What do they say about living and death? What do they say about nature?
Monday, September 11, 2017
Poems week of 9/12
Some questions I have about the poems in no particular order:
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I noticed that "Elk", "The Revolt of the Turtles", and "Hurricane Song", all mention something about animals. In these three poems, I think that they're admiring nature because they talk about animals extensively and the hurricane that is going on in "Hurricane Song".
ReplyDeleteI agree with you about these three poem are mention something about animals or about nature. these three poem are explain that how nature work.
DeleteYes, they express the nature and what is surrounding them, which are the animals.
Delete"The Revolt Of The Turtle" (114) It is a serious poem. It is serious because the person speaking is very upset to what the humans are doing to the water because they need to live with it. " the men and women poisoning the water" stated the author. This is also a symbolization of how humans are treating the water. There not actually putting poison in the water but there keeping it dirty that its like poison for the sea turtles. This is also a serious poem because the sea turtle are having a committee about this situation.
ReplyDeleteI did not think it was a serious point. I personally thought it was more of a comedy. After reading it once more I can see your point of view. In a way they are mimicking the actions of humans when we don't like something.
DeleteI think all the poems could be connected through the ideas of life and death, rather nature. While "Hurricane Song," "Elk" and "The Revolt of the Turtles" do reflect on nature itself and objects/animals/circumstances that revolve around nature itself, "More Than This" doesn't, and that is why I tried to find connections elsewhere. I think all the poems reflect different aspects of nature, basically saying that they can all be personified through different surroundings. Meanwhile, I believe that all the poems reflect life and death, with uncertainty (Hurricane Song), Power (The Revolt of the Turtles), Death (Elk) and the circumstances of balancing life and death (More Than This).
ReplyDeleteGreat connection to aspects elsewhere; beyond the face of the page.
DeleteI totally agree with your statements.
DeleteI agree with the connections. "The Revolt of the Turtles" are like the power and birth of life while "Elk" is the end of life.
DeleteAfter reading these poems,I conclude that these poems are revolving around the imagination which creates beautifully.All poems based on nature, environment, and animals which supposed to be inhumanity and empathy.These are the simple poems which shows the pain and thoughts of nature born creatures.They want to live with peace,hopeful and pollution free environment.Due to the risk factors of pollution and weather, the animals are endanger and they think to help them in this living world.In "ELK"[44], and "The Revolt of the Turtles"[114], speakers create an imaginary thoughts which wants to connect the world closer to safe wetlands,wildlife and think about endangered animals.Normally we think about our perceptions and rights but forget the empathy to endangered animals.We want to support them for a natural habitat and wetlands to raise their voice against endangered.
ReplyDeleteIn the poem "More Than This"[270] I really enjoy the imagination of life in heaven because every person has perceive to know about the life after death.And this aspects connects the poem "Hurricane Song" in which the nature distract by hurricane or the natural disaster wipe the beauty of nature and left more stories behind them.Every person has to wish to live in secure and peaceful environment therefore I do not like hurricane and neither the current hurricane couldn't left good impact in my thoughts.However these events teaches us to live with empathy,humanity, and respect to give hope for others and make their lives happy.
Really nice, in-depth readings of these poems, Aliya.
Delete"More Than This" by David Kirby (270) is evidently the only poem of the four that does not have an element of nature prominent in its body. What the other poems are trying to do - to anthropomorphize things found in nature that reflect human-nature - is the main plot of this poem. Because death is an unfortunate part of nature we will at some point have to cope with, we deal with it in various ways. In the scene at the graveyard, there are two characters that are dealing with the death of a loved one in very different ways. There is anger and frustration from the woman toward the guy on the tractor because of what he is doing on a solemn place and moment of hers (possessive presumptuousness). She begins to have thoughts of the dark sadness of war, highlighting how intensely painful death could be and then equates it to his "ugliness" and contrasts it by the beauty of humanity in these dark moments. When the reality was that the guy was also dealing with his own loss, weightier and likely for longer than hers.
ReplyDeleteDo we tend to jump to conclusions and become indignant at someone when we don't fully understand? Do we care enough to try to understand?
"she turns to confront the man who's making all the noise, to beg him to leave her alone with her grief" (271)
My question in reality is: how did she find out that this was his son's grave?
An interesting last question. We have to assume that she knew somehow, but the poet doesn't tell us how. Good point.
Deletemaybe she had a short conversation with the man and found out but excluded that part in the poem
DeleteI believe that "elk" and "Revolt of the turtles refers to the unfairness of the world as we know it today. We kill innocent animals,cut down trees . The rich takes over more so the poor barely gets anything. There's unfairity and selfishness all around us. These poems overall shows us the true nature of us to the nature itself.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your point of view. In "Revolt of turtles" at the end of the poem it stated "all the sea turtles began to chant, Only fairness, only decency" it's clearly representing how nature are asking us to respect and be fair with them
DeleteThe poems "Elk" and "Revolt of turtles" talk about animals under some form of duress. In "Elk" we are told of an animal whose carcass was left in a frozen pond of some sort. It died a hurendous death at the hands of predators. "Revolt of turtles", though takes a more humorous approach of the horrors, still shows these acts being done. They show turtles being subjected to terrible things like being eaten and environment being destroyed. Even the poem hurricane song follows this message (if you consider humans animals and not something more). This poems portrays humans during a hurricane where their environment is destroyed and they too may have suffered terrible deaths. Yet in this poem they explain this in a tone that's borderline harmonic. Ultimately I believe these 3 poems shows us that death can be expressed as sudden like "Elk", comical like "Revolt of the Turtles" or beautiful like "Hurricane Song"
ReplyDelete"Revolt of turtles" I think it was a funny poem . it think they are tried to send a massage from the poem " men and women try to poison the water" I think it really clearly mentioned that how turtle is doing a meeting about water pollution and that how dirty water effecting them.
ReplyDelete"The Revolt of the Turtles" is a serious and playful poem. In my opinion, the poem is nature challenging God’s power. The first paragraph “sea turtles would gather in the shallow waters of the Gulf” in nature sea turtles will swim across the ocean to lay their eggs on same island where it was born. That’s the rule of nature, they must do it. God is perfect spirit “If there were a God would he have a hard shell … importance to a good swimmer” the younger turtles are questioning if God even existed if he does, then god must have a body and must be able perform a necessary skill to survive. In the second paragraph, the parents are teaching their children how live in a cruel world in a funny but hard way. Fourth paragraph, God is saying that the turtle are the one that made the (the turtles’) world a horrible place. However, oldest sea turtle are the wise, believes that God is real and it’s trying to argue that it is not the turtles fault that its world is cruel. Its God fault, God is playing with his power and controls animal’s destiny. At the end, turtles chant "Only fairness, only decency" to tell God to stop with his madness and be fair with the nature’s (turtles metaphor as nature) lives.
ReplyDelete