Poetry is Fun Following a Model by a Master

Model to Follow Poem Portrait VIII Buffalo Bill’s defunct who used to ride a watersmooth-silver stallion and break onetwothreefourfive pigeons justlikethat Jesus he was a handsome man and what i want to know is how do you like your blueeyed boy Mr. Death - e e cummings The poem at left was written by a master of the free verse form of poetry e e cummings broke the rules of grammar to make every letter, every word, every space within his poem have meaning He often played with language, making the images on the page force the reader to experience the poems physically, not just mentally (as in his concrete poem about the grasshopper which you experienced earlier) Look at the poem and list the parts of it that demonstrate his playfulness with words, and identify WHAT effect his tinkering has on the way we read the poem

Model to Follow Portrait VIII 1/2 e. e. someone buried by busy ones used to wish yes aprils with a you and a me and write onetwothreefourfive poems justlikethat by dong and by ding he was a perceptive man and what i want to know is where is he now when we need him Mister Death - Bill Irwin They say that imitation can be the sincerest form of flattery Bill Irwin took the pattern of e e cummings poem and paid tribute to the poet by using some of cummings own poetic devices and words in the poem at left Look at the poem and see if you can identify the techniques Irwin used that are specifically copied from the original poem by cummings

Model to Follow Portrait VIII 1/2(b) Arnold Schwarzenegger “Guvernor” but used to make action films “I lied” and pump up onetwothreefourfive villains justlikethat Conan he was steroid man and what I want to know is how do you like your women now Predator - Richard Morrell January 2007 At left, you see my newest attempt to follow the model of cummings, by employing the borrowed techniques that Irwin chose. Notice that the layout is the same, and certain passages from the original have been lifted exactly from the original text. Now, you will write your poem following the model of cummings. You may break writing convention, and can smash words together as cummings did. Some of the structure of the models must be retained. Where that occurs, the lines are typed in and in italics… You begin by choosing someone famous to write about

Portrait VIII 1/2 (a) Michael Jackson Trapped but used to make the girls swoon “A B C” And spin onetwothreefourfive times justlikethhat “Thriller” He was a black man and what I want to know is and what I want to know is How do you like your mask now Elephant Man Richard Morrell Fall 2003

Portrait IX by Antonio T Beyonce Dreamgirl Who used to Say my name, say my name B’Day And shake onetwothreefourfive times justlikethat Irreplaceable She was destiny’s child and what I want to know is Can you pay my bills?

Poem Einar who works now But used to work at greasy Mcdonald’s But then onetwothree quit his job justlikethat DAMN He was a stressed man and what I want to know is Why did you “quit” Mr. Fatman -Ignacio A

Poem # 5 Mr. Morrell who works at the school But used to work for the ARMY But then onetwothree quit his job justlikethat DAMN He was a lost man in careers but what I want to know is Why did you make us write these poems!! Mr. Funnyman -Ignacio A, not bad huh?

Portrait

Portrait IX T.I. Rapper Who used to be a bag boy Paper or Plastic And sack onetwothreefourfive groceries justlikethat “What you know about that” King Of the South and what I want to know is What does he really know about what? -Karissia S, 2006

Portrait by Igor K Borat The movie star Who used to make his peers laugh and me And make onetwothreefourfive jokes justlikethat He was a funny man and what I want to know is How you gonna deal with all the lawsuits Funny man

PORTRAIT IX 50 cent Rapper who used to say I got shot nine times “Ja rule” And got famous onetwothreefourfive times in the U.S just like that G-Unit Shot to fame And whatt I want to know is how you came about being so rich in a short amount of time? Hustler By George N

Model to Follow Format Portrait IX _______________________ [name of person] _______________________ [current status/situation of person] but used to (or) used to (or) who used to (or variation of these) _________________________________ ___________ _______________ onetwothreefourfive ________________ justlikethat ___________ [strong expression/expletive] ____________________________ [a one-time quality of individual] and what i want to know is _________________________________________ [ask some question] ___________________ [create an apostrophe (a reference to the individual that captures a quality about them)] USE THE HANDOUT TO COMPLETE THIS… IT WILL HELP YOU FORMAT YOUR POEM

YOUR TURN Create your own Portrait poem (Model to Follow) then add it to your power point poetry portfolio