Archive for April, 2010

Investigating A Style of Poetry

While reviewing the other day, I came across a poem that had, to me, no sense of rhyming pattern. As I went to critique the poem, I doubted myself. I thought, what if there is a poetry style such as this, and I just don’t KNOW about it.

 One style of Poetry which I love: becuase I understand it is Lyric Poetry.

Lyric Poetry consists of a poem, such as a sonnet or an ode, that expresses the thoughts and feelings of the poet. The term lyric is now commonly referred to as the words to a song. Lyric poetry does not tell a story which portrays characters and actions. The lyric poet addresses the reader directly, portraying his or her own feeling, state of mind, and perceptions.

However the few questions which still remain in my mind regarding lyric poetry are : 

a. It is often short in stature and sounds as though it could be sung or could go to music, so could a lyric poem go to music? 

b. If a lyric poem expresses the emotions and feelings of a poet, can the poet use phrases such as We, us, them, they?

c. whats the difference between lyric poetry and lyrics then, musical lyrics. (they rhyme too)

I discovered thath the difference between lyric poetry and musical lyrics is that as long as the poetry or song expresses emotions and feelings of the poet its a lyric poetry. If the song is about the girl, the bar, the club, money , drugs etc., and the song is not expressing how the composer feels then the song is not a lyric poem.  

Investigating A Poem

Having to investigate a Poem, I decided to investigate my own poem which i posted on my blog earlier. This was actuallt one of my first poems which I actually put thought and effort into to creat. And I was actually satisfied with what I created, it felt good to creat a poem which I liked.

  My inspiration started off with my own views on the abused phrase “love” and the list of words I was given which would help me create the poem. When I started off I realized that my poem didn’t sound the way I wanted it to, it sounded very serious and emotional. I then flipped through the dictionary to find words to replace the ones I had and i ended up changing my entire poem becuase I decided to use all these funky words which I never saw in my life to date. The words just sounded more attractive and better to me. I could hear the sounds and feel the words when I read them.

 My favourite words out of the entire poem were : Aphrodite, **POLLYWOPUS**, Heebie-Jeebies!!!!!

…..& Hustle and Bustle =)

Investigating A Poetic Author

Investigating an Poetic Author

Michael Ondaatje

            I was looking through the set of books on the table till the hard cover book:

“The Cinnamon Peeler” by Michael Ondaatje caught my eye. It was actually the name Michael Ondaatje. I had read his book “In The Skin Of A Lion” in my English class and didn’t know the author also wrote poetry. So I found that very interesting and decided to read his poetry as well and find out more about him.

            I found it quiet shocking when I searched Michael Ondaatje’s   profile, to find that Michael Ondaatje was born in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He then moved to England with his mother in 1954 and then to Canada in 1962, becoming a Canadian citizen. 

            Although he is best known as a novelist. Ondaatje has also worked on autobiographies, poetry and film. A semi-fictional memoir of his childhood in Sri Lanka is called Running In The Family (1982).

            If I ever got a chance to meet Michael Ondaatje in person there are three questions I would love to ask him:

1.      What was his inspiration for the two books:

a.       In The Skin Of A Lion

b.      The Cinnamon Peeler

2.      What is it that draws him to English literature?

3.      What three words would he describe his poetry and English literature in?

4.      What his favorite English word is?

…LOVE & POLLYWOOPUS….

A BUNCH OF POLLYWOOPUS!

At first, love starts off by giving the HEEBIE-JEEBIES.

… Fake promises & commitments

… true feelings & emotions

… and a bunch of POLLYWOOPUS!

Soon enough …

Love begins to feels like the falling wood of a house on fire.

And none can dim the fires fierce and special glow

Or change its destiny.

They say true love speaks in tender tones

And hears with gentle ears.

I say, love speaks with DEVASTATING HORRIFIC tones

And listens with BLASTING ear drums.

Like entwining the heart of an APHRODITE

In long THORN stems,

But none could be blamed other than the heart of

A condemned CASANOVA

In which, no shame or pity casts over INAMORATA.

The best and most beautiful thing in the world cannot be seen nor touched.

They must be felt with the heart.

Love no longer becomes the HEEBIE-JEEBIES in your stomach,

Nor the HUSTLE and BUSTLE in your heart

..love..

            ….just a bunch of

                                    …POLLYWOPPUS!

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