"The Man He Killed"

This poem is a perfect way to show the effect that a war has on people that are often very similar. Many times the men and boys, and women fighting the war are just every day, live next door Joe's and Jane's. They are also fighting an enemy that is somebody else's father, brother, sister, just like they are. It's nothing personal, it's war. Even their reasoning for the war might have been the same, " "He thought he'd 'list perhaps off-hand- just like I" ( lines 13-14). They fought for the same reasons, because it would support their family. They were so much alike that they could have even " should have set us down to wet right many a nipperkin!" ( lines 3-4 ). They would have shared a drink at a bar and now they were sharing the same burial ground, the same place that they could share a ground where they would lose their lives and ambitions. In fact the only reason he fought back was "I shot him dead because- because he was my foe." ( lines 9-10) Neither of them would want to harm the other, but the fear of the unknown, of the fact that the other person is just as scared that you would pull the trigger, would cause the enemy to pull the trigger just as quickly.

My Papa's Waltz

I really enjoyed this poem and it was probably my favorite i've ever read. I picture a little boy trying to build a relationship with his alcoholic father(The whiskey on your breath could make a small kid dizzy, Line 1). They care for eachother and are trying to find something in common or things they enjoying doing together I believe personally. The boy has a hard time waltzing (But I hung on like death, Line 3) but he is starving to get close with his father and get his attention.They danced and danced til the little boy finally went to bed (Then waltzed me off to bed, still clinging to your shirt, Line 15) I really liked this one the most because I remember being a little boy and trying to be like my father and trying to be around him all the time. This poem was written beautifully and I would recommend it to everybody I can

Dulce Et Decorum Est

This was a top 3 favorite poem for me because I am interested in war and it was a very raw poem in my opinion and portrayed the sick things that some people endure while in war. I liked the metaphors and they really set the tone of the poem (the cloud of gas was a sea) It wasn't what I expected because normally in war stories the people involved usually escape death or get hurt and pull through. But this one was different and showed the reality of fighting. The poem was well written and I was very pleased and it was worth the time spent reading and discussing it

Dulce et decorum est

This poem is so beautiful in so many ways. The notion that these men are fighting for honor and pride and putting themselves through a literal hell, is just so beyond respectable that I can't even really find words to express it. I appreciate what the soldiers are doing now, but in comparison to the soliders of the time in this poem, they have it just a -little- bit easier. The men in these poems got, "drunk with fatigue" (line 7) instead of any other substances. They see their enemy face to face, which some soldiers never get to experience due to our advances in technology. War wasn't just a game with people calling shots on both ends, it was people in the ground getting very serious. That's how beautiful this poem is. That's what I thought until reading the last two lines. "The old Lie; Dulce Et Decorum est pro patria mori" (lines 27-28). Those words mean that it is sweet and right to die for your country. Those two lines have more impact than the rest of the poem. The way they phrase those last two lines,..starting off with the old Lie. It shows that they know that they are being lied to, that they are being treated like hell but still going through something because they are being told it is right and honorable, they still do it. Those two lines will stick with me.

Porphyria's Crazy Rhyming Lover

This is one of my favorite poems that I have ever read,
It's crazy to imagine all of the things that Robert Browning said,
But what I really want to know is what's going on inside of Porphyria's man's head,
Wanting her dead,
Trying to strangle her with a piece of yellow thread
Wrapping it around her head Three times (16-17),
Showing his love through nothing but a selfish crime
"At that moment she was mine, mine..." (15)
Is that what he was thinking as he strangled her by her neckline?
Wow Einstein, you just messed up your love as you leave your one and only lay supine.

Stinky Fish!

I love this poem because it's straight to the point, really. We can't be someone we're not. Simple as that. As the father is pictured in this way, it's his eye's that give him away. "But the eyes give him away..."(11). The narrator (boy or girl we don't know for sure) has found this out about his father. That in his 22nd year, he tried to be someone he wasn't. He was trying to figure out who he was. That's something we all do, some find out right away, for some it takes a little while. We need to find our personal identity in this world. So often I've seen this in my life. Someone trying to act, think, look, talk, or be like something that isn't natural. Yet, in a way, I understand how they can do that because like I said, they're still testing the waters to see what fits them just right. It seems the person telling this little story is sad that their father isn't able to hold a beer and string of fish. "yet how can I say thank you..."(14), this person wishes that their father was different, I suppose because he or she wants him to like in the picture. How the father is now has passed to the son or daughter and they are not happy with that. But really, it shouldn't matter to much because the son or daughter, even thought they are flesh and blood and will have some qualities passed down, will still be their own self. They, too, are going to have to find their personal identity. "All his life my father wanted to be bold"(10) Why is being bold such a big deal? I'm sure there are tons of other things the father is good at, I hope he was able to figure them out.

Do not go gentle into that good night

This poem is very interesting. I think that because I believe in an eternal life after death here on earth, I do not totally agree with this poem. I am not scared to die because I'm excited to meet my King in heaven. Yet I can see the other side too, because death is scary and no one really wants to die, they want to fight with everything they've got. "Rage, rage against the dying of the light."(4) There is a rage against death, an unexplainable anger that makes people want to fight till their last breath, till their last drop of sweat, until they finally have to say "it's over", and give in. I don't quite see what's wrong with wanting to die, I don't mean this in any weird way, as in I want to die or anything. But when my time comes, I'll just have to except it because really there is nothing I can do to change it. I have a better place waiting for me on the side, so quite frankly, I could go anytime. It saddens me because the people talked about in this poem don't have anything to look forward to when they die. They must not know God as their personal savior because otherwise they would not be afraid and not want to die. "Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight" (13) These people are blind to what could await them on the other side. Because they haven't a clue of what to expect, and because of this, they don't want to. It makes sense, when you don't know what's going to happen, you don't want to go there. Can this be changed?

My Papa's Waltz

I really liked this poem. I imagine a little boy who doesn't see his father much because he works a lot and hard, "The hand that held my wrist/Was battered on one knuckle"(9-10). I picture him anxiously waiting for him to come home so he can spend time with him. How beautiful for the two of them to waltz together in the evening, bonding together as they move around the floor. The boy adored his Papa, "But I hung on like death"(3). This waltzing was not easy for the boy, "Such waltzing was not easy"(4), yet he was willing to go through it all so he could spend the time with his father. This was a sacrifice for the boy, I'm sure he knew how much it meant to his Papa to dance, waltzing was probably something the Papa has done all his life and wanting to pass it one to his son. And because of this tradition, the boy was willing to even go through pain "My right ear scraped a buckle"(11). This all leaves a beautiful scene in my mind. "Then waltzed me off to bed/Still clinging to your shirt"(15-16)

Dulce et Decorum Est

Wilfred Owen sure made a detailed description that war isn't all it's cracked up to be. "Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge"(2). It's just amazing how many people have fought in war, all the things they must endure and for what? Do we really appreciate what the people have done over the years, and over the many wars? I think it takes a lot of courage, beyond what we'd be able to think of without actually doing it, to get up every day and defend our country. Courage, strength, bravery, and endurance. Just think about it: "If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood/Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs" (21-22)

Dulce et Decorum Est

In this poem by Wilfred Owen, the title is known as, "Sweet and fitting it is to die for one's country." It is about the way that people live to fight for the country they love and being heroic. Honoring the heroes that have fallen is something that I have always done and hope everyone else does too. The poem explains how going into war defending your country is a very heroic thing to do for the people in your country and for the love of your country. Wilfred wants everyone to honor our fallen and serving soldiers in battle.

Photograph of My Father in His Twenty-Second Year

In this poem by Raymond Carver, the child notices that his father, "would like to pose bluff and hearty for his posterity." (line 8) The child who knows his father better than anyone knows that he has always tried to be bold. Although the father always wanted to be bold, "The Eyes give him away, and the hands that limply offer the string of dead perch." He was just a loving father who wanted to be good with his kids and make memories with his child.

Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night

This poem by Dylan Thomas is a very good poem. At first I couldn't figure out exactly what it was suppose to mean, but after reading it a couple of times I realized it talks about someone who passed away with ease into the night. I for one do not want to go gentile into the night because I want to fight for my life. Fighting for my life that is already too short is the only thing that I would want to do. Giving up is something I have never done and will never do. A little bit of confusion came when line 3 said, "Rage, Rage against the dying of the light." At first I didn't know what this meant and I still might not, but I believe it's saying to fight for your life and never give up. The lesson for this poem is to not give up on life and when death comes fight for the life you live.