Unit 2: Poetry

Before we begin… Most of you are groaning in your seats, and thinking inappropriate words about this poetry unit. – So go ahead… give it your best shot. Why do you not enjoy poetry? – If you like it then YIPEEEEE!!!! Tell me why.

I Wanna Hold your Hand… I know that you are saying, "Oh my God, this is so simple"; but it is brilliantly simple. The song held the number one position longer than any other Beatles song -- about 15 weeks -- and sold millions of copies. It has no hard words, the topic is universal-- a young man is trying to tell a woman he loves her, it sort of rhymes, it is not hard to understand, and it says everything there is to know about why so many people write poetry.

The young feller wants to tell her that he loves her, but he can't find the words, so he wants to hold her hand. What would happen if he was talking on the telephone or writing a letter? He would have to tell her in words. He could just say "I love you". BUT…. We say "I love you"; then we say "I love ice cream,” and, "I love my dog" --it somehow loses its sincerity. When you listened to the song -- the music and the singing change abruptly when he gives the greatest definition of love -- "when I touch you I feel happy inside". Therefore he wants to hold her hand to try to express what words can't -- an emotion. A poem is just a way for a person to try to express an emotion in words because he or she can't touch you, or hold you, or kiss you, or maybe even see you. And you have to say it in words that are better than "I love you".

Teaching Poetry There is one overwhelming argument in favor of teaching poetry: it is a form of communication and part of an English teacher's job is to teach communication skills. Keep the following in mind as we embark on this journey! 1. Everyone has an opinion about poetry, either favorable or not.

2. Everyone listens to huge amounts of poetry everyday -- the last time that I looked, most lyrics were written as poems. Poetry is probably the most practiced creative exercise in the world; not everyone writes a short story, a novel, or paints a picture, but everyone has written a poem (remember some of you are love struck teenagers?). 3. Poetry may be the least understood of any creative enterprise; you only have to start into a study of sonnets, metaphor, and rhyme to realize how complex good poetry can be. Every word, no matter how seemingly insignificant, holds meaning.

Well….…. What is Poetry? Thoughts adapted from T.S. Eliot A poem means very different things to each reader. All of these meanings may even be different from what the author thought he meant. For example, the author may have been writing about a personal experience, which he saw unrelated to anyone/thing. However, for the reader, the poem may become the expression of their own situation, as well as of a private experience.

The reader's interpretation may differ from the author's, and even be equally valid-- it may even be better. There may be much more in a poem than the author was aware of. The different interpretations are all formulations of one thing: the ambiguities occur because the poem means more, not less, than ordinary speech can communicate.

Well….…. Who is a Poet? Thoughts adapted from E.E. Cummings A poet is somebody who feels, and who expresses his feelings through words. This may sound easy. It isn't. A lot of people think or believe or know they feel -- but that's thinking or believing or knowing; not feeling. Poetry is feeling -- not knowing, believing, or even thinking.

Almost anybody can learn to think or believe or know, but not a single human being can be taught to feel. Why? Because whenever you think or you believe or you know, you're a lot of other people; but the moment you feel, you're NOBODY-BUT- YOURSELF.

What is meant when asked for meaning… "Meaning" is the total effect. A work may have made a didactic point or not, but you responded to it. “Meaning" is how the poem acts on you -- what it is that you feel. As you understand more about a work, its meaning will change – it will have more effect, or there is also the possibility that you will realize that the work did not mean what you thought it did.

For Example: The movie Friday the 13th, Take 23, may be an inspiration for the beginning film maker, a triumph of wise investment for the producer, a boring waste of time for the person who has seen the previous 22, and a terrifying experience for the poor spectator who has seen none of the others. For each of them, the experience, the interpretation, and ultimately, the meaning, will be different.

The study of literature is not an attempt to "pick apart" great works, but rather the attempt to understand yourself and your feelings better and to be able to explain those feelings. After all, literature is just a collection of words. Your ability to “get” it is often just the matter of understanding yourself, and the world around you.

And now for the good news… Many times with poetry, grammar rules get tossed aside. They are left behind in hopes to communicate a deeper symbolic and emotional meaning, rather than an eloquently written piece of literature. Fragments, run-ons, missing commas, and jumbled parts of speech are all acceptable in the world of poetry. Because of this, we will be focusing our vocabulary and grammatical aspects for the poetry unit on poetry terms, poetry writing, etc. We will have a final unit test and assignment, but NOT any vocabulary/ grammar assignments until the completion of this unit.