"beware: do not read this poem" by Ishmael Reed

Reed is an American poet born in 1938. He is known for writing satirical poems and novels about cultural oppression and political culture.His works are often portrayed as being specifically about the oppression of African Americans in the United States, but many of them can be expanded to include all oppressed people.

"Beware : Do Not Read This Poem" by Ishmael Reed

tonite, thriller was
abt an ol woman , so vain she
surrounded herself w/
          many mirrors

it got so bad that finally she
locked herself indoors & her
whole life became the
          mirrors

one day the villagers broke
into her house , but she was too
swift for them . she disappeared
          into a mirror
each tenant who bought the house
after that , lost a loved one to
          the ol woman in the mirror :
          first a little girl
          then a young woman
          then the young woman/s husband

the hunger of this poem is legendary
it has taken in many victims
back off from this poem
it has drawn in yr feet
back off from this poem
it has drawn in yr legs

back off from this poem
it is a greedy mirror
you are into the poem . from
         the waist down
nobody can hear you can they ?
this poem has had you up to here
          belch
this poem aint got no manners
you cant call out frm this poem
relax now & go w/ this poem

move & roll on to this poem
do not resist this poem
this poem has yr eyes
this poem has his head
this poem has his arms
this poem has his fingers
this poem has his fingertips

this poem is the reader & the
reader this poem

statistic : the us bureau of missing persons re-
         ports that in 1968 over 100,000 people
          disappeared leaving no solid clues
          nor trace     only
a space     in the lives of their friends
 

"beware: do not read this poem: has a clearly evident unusual structure to it. From the seemingly randomly chosen indents to the misspelling of words, Reed appears to have just written down a poem with his eyes closed. Each unique structural element has a purpose, however, whether it is highlighting a crucial detail, or forcing ambiguity in a word. From the start, the spelling of the word "tonite" sets the tone as being rushed as "tonite" is a frequently used abbreviation of tonight. This leads the reader to think that the poem will serve as a warning of some kind as the title has the word "beware" and the poem is written in a hasty fashion. This style of abbreviating words is evident throughout such as "abt" for about and "w/" for with. While this element helps to establish a tone, it also leaves a bit of ambiguity in the interpretation of the abbreviations. 

As for the structure of the poem, many of the indentations are placed in spots that have specific details or important information about the disappearances. This may be so that the warning is easily seen even at a glance due to the singling out of these lines such as the emphasis on "mirrors." These mirrors are the manner in which the old woman takes people, so it makes sense that these lines would be emphasized the most. Additionally, the statistic given at the end is indented as it is crucial that the reader notices how enormous of a problem these disappearances have become. In the last line the space surrounding the phase "only a space" helps to develop a visual as the space surrounds the phrase talking about the space that the disappearances leave behind. In all, the structural elements that seem to be randomly placed within the poem help to emphasize the warning that the author is trying to convey. He even taps into human nature by commanding the reader not to read the poem in the title. knowing that this only makes someone want to read it more.

"Fireflies in the Garden" by Robert Frost

Robert Frost was an early twentieth century American poet. He is regarded as one of the most influential poets of his time and has won several awards including four Pulitzer Prizes. Frost frequently focused on rural life in America and displayed this throughout most of his works in his colloquial language.

Fireflies in the Garden

BY ROBERT FROST

Here come real stars to fill the upper skies,

And here on earth come emulating flies,

That though they never equal stars in size,

(And they were never really stars at heart)

Achieve at times a very star-like start.

Only, of course, they can't sustain the part.

In "Fireflies in the Garden," Frost compares the light of a firefly to that of a star. The speaker states that the fireflies are capable of achieving "a very star-like start," although they are so small in reality. The perspective of the viewer sees the two as the same until the fly "can't sustain the part." Frost uses the fireflies as a metaphor to humanity and the stars to the universe in that humanity pales in comparison to the size of the universe, but our flashes of brilliance can make it seem as if we are significant enough to make an impact in more that just our immediate vicinity. In being like the fireflies, however, humanity tricks itself into thinking that it is more important than it really is. In the grand scheme of the universe, humanity is nothing but a small piece of dust that could be blow away without even being noticed. In our achievements, humanity becomes "star-like" for a moment as someone can truly believe that what they do matters, but in truth, that moment will burn out as we "can't sustain the part," in order to make a real impact. We are secluded in our little world with so much out of reach, but as long as we can continue to pass on the "star-like" quality, humanity can live on. Other people can look to the stars to see what lies beyond and accept our role, or fool ourselves into thinking that we are more important than anything that lies in the infinite universe. Either way, the fact remains that we will "never equal the stars in size" and never will.

Slim Cunning Hands - Walter de la Mare

"Slim Cunning Hands" by Walter de la Mare

Walter de la Mare was a British short story writer and poet. He is best known for his children's stories, but has also written some psychological horror stories.

Slim Cunning Hands - Walter de la Mare

Slim cunning hands at rest, and cozening eyes-
Under this stone one loved too wildly lies;
How false she was, no granite could declare;
Nor all earth's flowers, how fair.

 In this poem, de la Mare writes about a man thinking back on a woman he loved while he stands over her grave. He recalls her "slim cunning hands" and "cozening eyes" specifically and then goes on to use metaphors to describe her beauty. The obscurity of the second half of the poem creates a sense that the speaker is unable to describe what made the woman as beautiful as she was, but is able to quickly and distinctly recall her hands and eyes. Additionally, diction such as "fair" and "lies" are vague and can be taken in either a positive or negative way based on how the poem is read. This obscurity is continued in the first three lines as it is clear that the man loved her, but all of the characteristics described are ambiguous. 

In the fourth line, however, the speaker states that the woman is fairer than "all earth's flowers," and this creates a definite sense of beauty. This last line gives the previous three context as to how the vague words are meant to be taken. The delay could be to create a sense that the speaker is still unsure and confused about what the woman's death will mean for his life, but by the end he comes to the realization that she was his true love and he will love her even while she is gone. This is reflected in the way that the speaker refers to how not even the "granite could declare" that she told lies because the rest of her is so perfect that it does not make sense. Overall, the shift from ambiguous to specific helps to create a sense of epiphany within the speaker that happens in unison with the audience. 

"Welcome to Hiroshima" by Mary Jo Salter

Mary Jo Salter is an American poet originally from Grand Rapids Michigan. She has written poetry along with writing textbooks and teaching classes at Johns Hopkins University.

Welcome to Hiroshima

is what you first see, stepping off the train:
a billboard brought to you in living English
by Toshiba Electric. While a channel
silent in the TV of the brain

projects those flickering re-runs of a cloud
that brims its risen columnful like beer
and, spilling over, hangs its foamy head,
you feel a thirst for history: what year

it started to be safe to breathe the air,
and when to drink the blood and scum afloat
on the Ohta River. But no, the water’s clear,
they pour it for your morning cup of tea

in one of the countless sunny coffee shops
whose plastic dioramas advertise
mutations of cuisine behind the glass:
a pancake sandwich; a pizza someone tops

with a maraschino cherry. Passing by
the Peace Park’s floral hypocenter (where
how bravely, or with what mistaken cheer,
humanity erased its own erasure),

you enter the memorial museum
and through more glass are served, as on a dish
of blistered grass, three mannequins. Like gloves
a mother clips to coatsleeves, strings of flesh

hang from their fingertips; or as if tied
to recall a duty for us, Reverence
the dead whose mourners too shall soon be dead,
but all commemoration’s swallowed up

in questions of bad taste, how re-created
horror mocks the grim original,
and thinking at last They should have left it all
you stop. This is the wristwatch of a child.

Jammed on the moment’s impact, resolute
to communicate some message, although mute,
it gestures with its hands at eight-fifteen
and eight-fifteen and eight-fifteen again

while tables of statistics on the wall
update the news by calling on a roll
of tape, death gummed on death, and in the case
adjacent, an exhibit under glass

is glass itself: a shard the bomb slammed in
a woman’s arm at eight-fifteen, but some
three decades on—as if to make it plain
hope’s only as renewable as pain,

and as if all the unsung
debasements of the past may one day come
rising to the surface once again—
worked its filthy way out like a tongue. 

The title of the poem "Welcome to Hiroshima" immediately implants in the mind of the audience that the poem will be solemn due to the dropping of the atomic bomb in World War II. This thought is swiftly stripped away in the whimsicality of the first stanza such as when Salter writes, "a billboard brought to you in living English by Toshiba Electric." Salter continues this style throughout the majority of the poem, creating an ironic tone, while the setting and situation within it deal with the deaths of thousands of people. The pragmatic manner in which the speaker discusses such details as the time on the watch of the woman creates a sense that Hiroshima itself has moved on. With the poem seeming ironic, Salter may be trying to hint that the rest of the world needs to see Hiroshima as more that just the site of an explosion, but a city that has recovered from complete devastation and is now flourishing. 

The manner in which the speaker describes many of the artifacts from the blast is downright disturbing at times. In describing the skin of one of the bodies, "like gloves of a mother clips to coatsleeves, strings of flesh hang from their fingertips," the speaker almost seems detached from the entirety of the situation and it is as if the speaker is just watching a movie or a video of science fiction. There is a lack of reverence throughout, while maintaining knowledge of the situation such as when the speaker states that, "a shard the bomb slammed in a woman's arm at eight-fifteen," which leads me to the conclusion that it is in fact an ironic piece, but it comes across as morbid due to the gravity of the context.

"The Changeling" by Judith Ortiz Cofer

Judith Ortiz Cofer is a Puerto Rican author who was born in 1952. She has written poems and short stories with an emphasis on woman's rights and the Latino culture. Cofer frequently uses her own experiences in combination with her imagination in order to create a unique perspective.

The Changeling
Judith Ortiz Cofer

As a young girl
vying for my father's attention,
I invented a game that made him look up
from his reading and shake his head
as if both baffled and amused.

In my brother's closet, I'd change
into his dungarees -- the rough material
molding me into boy shape; hide
my long hair under an army helmet
he'd been given by Father, and emerge
transformed into the legendary Ché
of grown-up talk.

Strutting around the room,
I'd tell of life in the mountains,
of carnage and rivers of blood,
and of manly feasts with rum and music
to celebrate victories para la libertad.
He would listen with a smile
to my tales of battles and brotherhood
until Mother called us to dinner.

She was not amused
by my transformations, sternly forbidding me
from sitting down with them as a man.
She'd order me back to the dark cubicle
that smelled of adventure, to shed
my costume, to braid my hair furiously
with blind hands, and to return invisible,
as myself,
to the real world of her kitchen.


In "The Changeling" by Judith Ortiz Cofer, Cofer appears to use herself as the speaker and writes from her childhood growing up in Puerto Rico. Her desperate attempts to gain the attention of her father are only outweighed by her mother's disapproval her the way she goes about it. Cofer uses role playing in order to grab attention of her father by taking on a persona of a Cuban revolutionist. In this way Cofer serves as a model for how many young girls must act in order to feel like they truly belong in the world. Her father fails to acknowledge her even on a basic level without her feigning the identity of something more amusing than herself. 

In being from the perspective of Cofer, it is made evident that she has figured out who she has to be around the different members of her family. Her father only will recognize her when she takes on other figures while her mother refuses to serve her dinner until she removes her latest costume. The internal conflict that Cofer experienced is similar to what many young girls feel on a daily basis, having to act like someone other than themselves in order to be treated with respect from certain people. In my opinion, I believe that the mother in the poem recognizes this trend and tries to set her straight by making her remove the outfit. She has lived through that situation before and gives her best attempt to try and keep her daughter on the path of being herself. "The real world of the kitchen," is what lies beyond the walls of childhood and Cofer's mother is only trying to prepare her daughter for what is to come while Cofer has to invent "a game that made him lift up from his reading," in order to illicit a response from her father.

"Barbie Doll" by Marge Piercy

Marge Piercy was born in Detroit in 1936 into the Jewish faith during the end of the Great Depression. She wrote and sold novels in order to pay for college and continued to write afterwards expanding into poetry. She has written primarily feminist works and currently resides in Massachusetts.

Barbie Doll

This girlchild was born as usual
and presented dolls that did pee-pee
and miniature GE stoves and irons
and wee lipsticks the color of cherry candy.
Then in the magic of puberty, a classmate said:
You have a great big nose and fat legs.

She was healthy, tested intelligent,
possessed strong arms and back,
abundant sexual drive and manual dexterity.
She went to and fro apologizing.
Everyone saw a fat nose on thick legs.

She was advised to play coy,
exhorted to come on hearty,
exercise, diet, smile and wheedle.
Her good nature wore out
like a fan belt.
So she cut off her nose and her legs
and offered them up.

In the casket displayed on satin she lay
with the undertaker's cosmetics painted on,
a turned-up putty nose,
dressed in a pink and white nightie.
Doesn't she look pretty? everyone said.
Consummation at last.
To every woman a happy ending.

The speaker in "Barbie Doll" appears to be a heavy-set, Jewish woman that is desperate to receive approval of her body from other people. Her "great big nose and fat legs," are the main culprits of the criticism she receives. In order to meet the criteria that other people expect she tries diet and exercise, but nothing was working so she resorted to the logical option of killing herself by cutting off her nose and legs so that people would no longer mock her.

The speaker develops this scenario in a way so that the whole ordeal seems like it is just another typical life of a woman. The speaker talks about how "[t]his girlchild was born as usual" and how she "was healthy, [and] tested intelligent," in order to characterize her as an archetype of a woman. This tone continues as the speaker begins to speak of her death and funeral in the same manner stating that, "she cut off her nose and legs and offered them up," as if it is a perfectly normal thing to do.    

As for the structure of the poem, it is written in such a way that each distinct section of her life is divided into different stanzas: one for childhood, one for her young adult years, her suicide, and finally her funeral. Each stanza is starkly different in content while maintaining a flippant tone about acceptance and suicide. The speaker's choice of a carefree tone adds to the mildly dark satire about the high standards of today's society from a aesthetic perspective and the affects that this can have on someone's life, culminating with suicide. The tone provides the speaker a path to satirize such a grave topic while making sure not to offend to great of a percentage of the population.

"Introduction to Poetry" by Billy Collins

Born in 1941, Billy Collins is often spoken of as the most famous modern poet. He was named the United States Poet Laureate from 2001 to 2003. Now he resides in New York teaching university classes at Stony Brook Southampton.

Introduction to Poetry

BY BILLY COLLINS

I ask them to take a poem   

and hold it up to the light   

like a color slide

or press an ear against its hive.

I say drop a mouse into a poem   

and watch him probe his way out,

or walk inside the poem’s room   

and feel the walls for a light switch.

I want them to waterski   

across the surface of a poem

waving at the author’s name on the shore.

But all they want to do

is tie the poem to a chair with rope   

and torture a confession out of it.

They begin beating it with a hose   

to find out what it really means.

The poem "Introduction to Poetry" encapsulates the essence of how to analyze a poem. Collins stresses that it is important to look at some of the underlying messages within a poem, but only so far as to gain a better understanding of the message. In the last lines Collins writes, "They begin beating it with a hose to find out what it really means," emphasizing the fact that over-analysis can lead to making assumptions about the importance of certain details of the poem. Additionally this can take away from the readers enjoyment of the poem on a superficial level. This section of the poem is further emphasized by including as the last two lines so that it remains ingrained in the reader's mind. 

Earlier in the poem he writes about enjoying the poem through a variety of metaphors. He uses a comparison of "waterski[ng] across the surface of the poem,"  to communicate to the reader that perusing poetry should be a entertaining experience rather than a laborious act. Collins contributes to his argument about how poetry should be analyzed by leaving his poem straightforward and brief. This makes it so the reader is able to take his message to heart starting with his poem.

Billy Collins use of colloquial language as well as several couplets makes the poem an easy read. The details provided create a sense of imagery such as "waving at the author's name on the shore." Overall Collins created an easily accessible poem detailing the process for reading poetry that uses imagery to give it a lasting impression.