I think I like close reading. Even though the reading materials are relatively harder, I enjoy the inspiration generated by close reading.
We were discussing about the world of fairies in the play. The queen and king of the Fairies were the main focus today. In the play, the king and queen address each other differently. The king is gotten his name as Jealous Oberon, whereas the queen is called Proud Titania. The fight between them is the origin of the rest of the disorders developed throughout the play.
There are some reasons or issues they are fighting for:
Child “Changling Boy”
Not faithful to each other
She is not meeting his needs
Jealous of Theseus
Power struggle “Who is in control”
She is sick of fighting
Not doing her job (she is in charge of season changing)
Not doing his job (to be a good husband)
She is inserting herself into humanity
Titania seems to be an angle; Oberon is a demon. Angle should be higher position than the demon, but in the society, male is higher than female.
The order is very important in the conflict. The order is the great chain of being. Supposedly, the boy should be taken by the king, Oberon. However, the queen insists to keep the boy in her site. Under the the order, the woman should obey what the male mate says; as a result, the king is saying, "Am not I thy lord?" which gives a sense of control. However, the relationship between Titania and Oberon is different because Titania is an angle and Oberon is a devil. In the great chain of being, the position of an angle is sightly higher then devil. Titania is unnecessary to obey what Oberon tells her to do.
The themes of Oberon are:
Jealous of child (Motherly affection)
Jealous of her affections
Jealous of Theseus (sexual affection)
Insecure
Jealous of emotion
Mother envy
He is being like a girl
Role reversal
Cuckold
He envies that he may lose both motherly and sexual affections from Titania. Being a stepfather could make him feels be cuckold.
The themes of Titania:
Noble and responsible
Loyalty
Logical
Equality
Autonomy
We can discover that role reversal is occurring. The man acts like a girl, and the woman has more male characteristics.
Who is the target person?
We all know that from Sonnet 1 to 126 are dedicate to the young man. However, what is about the young man. Is he a close friend or even a lover of Shakespeare or not?
What is the purpose?
The "outcast state" may indicate to some setbacks in his life.
According to Shakespeare online
However, an examination of Shakespeare’s life around the time he wrote Sonnet 29 reveals two traumatic events that may have shaped the theme of the sonnet. In 1592 the London theatres closed due to a severe outbreak of plague. Although it is possible that Shakespeare toured the outlying areas of London, it is almost certain that he left the theatre entirely during this time to work on his sonnets and narrative poems. The closing of the playhouses made it hard for Shakespeare and other actors of the day to earn a living. With plague and poverty looming it is expected that he would feel "in disgrace with fortune" (1).
Moreover, in 1592 there came a scathing attack on Shakespeare by dramatist Robert Greene, who, in a deathbed diary, warned three of his fellow university-educated playwrights: "There is an upstart Crow, beautified with our feathers, that with his Tygers heart wrapt in a Players hide, supposes he is as well able to bombast out a blanke verse as the best of you; and, beeing an absolute Johannes fac totum, is in his owne conceit the onely Shake-scene in a countrey."
These incidents may cause Shakespeare's distress.
For me, I think the sonnet may be a breaking up poem, and here I assume the target person is a lover for Shakespeare which no matter is he or she. The great sadness in the first quatrain may show the suffering of separation from the love one. "Curse" and "fate" may tell people that there were something unchangeable to Shakespeare, or something is not allowed at the society. For example, homosexuality.
The envy in the second quatrain may be caused by the love one is unfaithful to Shakespeare, or Shakespeare is not as good as the lover of Shakespeare's love one.
The third quatrain recalls the sweet memory of the relationship.
The last couplet shows Shakespeare is willing to choose the love one instead of something important.
Sonnet 73
There are three possible interpretations.
When, in disgrace with fortune and men's eyes,
I all alone beweep my outcast state
And trouble deaf heaven with my bootless cries
And look upon myself and curse my fate,
Wishing me like to one more rich in hope,
Featured like him, like him with friends possess'd,
Desiring this man's art and that man's scope,
With what I most enjoy contented least;
Yet in these thoughts myself almost despising,
Haply I think on thee, and then my state,
Like to the lark at break of day arising
From sullen earth, sings hymns at heaven's gate;
For thy sweet love remember'd such wealth brings
That then I scorn to change my state with kings.
The themes of the sonnet may be jealousy and difficulty in life. In the first quatrain, it shows a great sense of distress, hopeless, and helpless. An "outcast" man cries out for help but there is no one to assist or to comfort. "Curse" and "fate" show how helpless he is.
The theme of jealousy comes in at the second quatrain.
The sonnet makes a turn at the third at the third quatrain which is kind of wire. Even though at the despising time, I feel happy because of you. And the last couplet concludes in the same concept.
That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruin'd choirs, where late the sweet birds sang.
In me thou seest the twilight of such day
As after sunset fadeth in the west,
Which by and by black night doth take away,
Death's second self, that seals up all in rest.
In me thou see'st the glowing of such fire
That on the ashes of his youth doth lie,
As the death-bed whereon it must expire
Consumed with that which it was nourish'd by.
This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong,
To love that well which thou must leave ere long.
I think the themes of the sonnet are afraid of aging and mortality. In the first quatrain, the yellow leaves represent the season of autumn. It also show the life clock for people. Autumn indicates the life is toward the end. "None" may mean no sign of life which means death. "Few" gives the sense of dying which means even though you are not die, but it is only about time. The "cold" wind is going to shake you down to the ground. The second and third quatrains reinforce the idea of aging and dying. "twilight," "sunset," and "west" are all about dying. They are all very beautiful but only last for a short time. "Black night" and "rest" work as the symbol of death. The passion of youth is fading as the "glowing fire." The ashes will be very hot shortly but cold down rapidly as the quick time the young time will pass away.
The last couplet makes a turn from the issue of aging and death toward the love and relationship. Because of the shorten life people have, the love and relation they have become more treasure.
It was glad to listen to peers' perspectives about these sonnets.
Sonnet 18
Eternal Summer is kind of saying that you are always "hot." The reason that the beauty of the beloved can remain forever is the credit of the writer because the beauty of a human can fade as the season changes. Because of this poem, the beauty becomes immortal.
Sonnet 116
Some folk mention that it is a breaking up poem because it gives a bitter feeling to people. The true love should not fade or change, but the love seems to fade toward the last couplet. The word "error" may indicate some implicit meanings of a broken relationship. On the other hand, some hold their position that they still considered this sonnet is a real love poem. And, some thought if you try to visualize the images in the sonnet, you can get a lot of sexual imageries.
Sonnet 130
It is the best true love poem amount these three voted by the entire class because people think it is a model of a longterm relationship.
So, if we put these three sonnets in a chronological order, we can get a very interesting outcome. Sonnet 18 represents the status of young people's love or the beginning of the relationship. The enthusiastic emotions is an upsurge of love feeling. As the season mentioned in the poem, summer, it is so hot.
When the love or the relationship last longer, the status develops into sonnet 116. At this time, Lovers need to "admit impediments," and "Love is not love." Love is still the most important reason keep each other accompany.
Sonnet 130 is a model of a longterm relationship because as soon as each other's shortcomings are not able to bother each other, the relationship can last longer. By admitting all shortcomings of a person is just a part of a person, the lovers do not argue that that much.
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date:
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimm'd;
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance or nature's changing course untrimm'd
But thy eternal summer shall not fade
Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest;
Nor shall Death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou growest:
So long as men can breathe or eyes can see,
So long lives this and this gives life to thee.
In this sonnet, Shakespeare compares the beloved to the summer. Shakespeare praises the beauty of the beloved which has already surpassed the summer. Summer is sometimes too hot, and it is short. However, the light of the Sun sometimes can be blocked up by the clouds. The beauty of the beloved can only day fade away because of the time. Even the death cannot own your beauty. The beloved's beauty and love becomes eternal due to this poem. The poem can last longer time then human life. The poem will record the beloved's beauty to the future.
Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no! it is an ever-fixed mark
That looks on tempests and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come:
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
If this be error and upon me proved,
I never writ, nor no man ever loved.
This sonnet is describing what the true love is. Love is unchangeable because Shakespeare defines that love is a eternal value or truth. When something could be changed or be removed, it will not be fit in the definition of the true love.
In the second quatrain, true love is like the North Star which can guide the sailors toward proper direction in order to escape from the storm. The height of the star could be known, but the the value of the true love is unmeasurable. The love would not change although human's life is limited. Love is also timeless. It can be tested throughout a long time even toward the end of the world. Love is still love.
The most interesting lines are the last couplet: "If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved." It seems is a paradoxical conceit. It says that if there is no a such thing what the true love is or there is no one has experienced that, he is not going to write it down. However, since the writer has already written the poem down which means what he has said about what the true love is is true.
My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips' red ;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damask, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
I grant I never saw a goddess go;
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground:
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.
This sonnet is definitely a love poem because the poem is dedicate from the writer to his mistress. However, instead of describing the beauty of the lover, Shakespeare is saying the imperfection of her appearance. For example, people always describe their love ones with the beautiful metaphors from the nature. Shakespeare goes totally opposite way. He mentions the appearance of his mistress is not able able to beat the beauty of the sun, snow, coral, and rose. At the last couplet, the writer mentions that even though the mistress has so many shortcomings, his true love is still with her.
The sonnet may reveals two idea. First, maybe the writer is really arguing about his mistress. Secondly, it may tell us the true love requires compassion and tolerance. By understanding and accepting a person has both good and shortcoming sides, the true love can be accomplished.
Barnes, Jessica. "UniversalJournal/AYJW - Articles, Papers, Essays - Association of Young Journalists and Writers." The Association of Young Journalists, AYJW - News Media, Travel, Games, and More - College and Media Directory. Web. 21 July 2011. http://www.ayjw.org/articles.php?id=552452
Meyer, Michael, ed. Literature to Go. Bedford/st Martins, 2010. Print.
Miner, Paul. "Blake's 'Tyger' as Miltonic beast." Studies in Romanticism 47.4 (2008): 479+. General Reference Center Gold. Web. 24 July 2011.
"I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died." Web. 27 July 2011. <http://academic.brooklyn.cuny.edu/english/melani/cs6/fly.html>.
"Poe's Life by Edgar Allan Poe Museum." Edgar Allan Poe Museum : Poe's Life, Legacy, and Works : Richmond, Virginia. Web. 20 July 2011. <http://www.poemuseum.org/life.php>.
"Wake Me Up When September Ends." Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 26 July 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wake_Me_Up_When_September_Ends>.
I heard a fly buzz－when I died－
The Stillness in the Room
Was like the stillness in the air－
Between the heaves of storm－
The Eyes around－had wrung them dry－
And breaths were gathering sure
For that last onset－when the king
Be witnessed－in the Room－
I willed my Keepsakes－Signed away
What portion of me be
Assignable－and then it was
There interposed a Fly－
With blue－uncertain stumbling buzz－
Between the light－and me－
And then the windows failed－and then
I could not see to see－
Comment:
The poem is written by Emily Dickinson, and the title of the poem is the first line of the poem because lack of title is one of features of Dickinson's poems.
The most significant element in this poem is the fly. Why does Dickinson not use other insects like bee or gnat in the poem? Compared to bee or gnat, fly is more associated with death because they are easy to be found around dead bodies.
There are four stanzas in the poem. The first stanza describes the moment before death.
I heard a fly buzz－when I died－
The Stillness in the Room
Was like the stillness in the air－
Between the heaves of storm－
The word "Stillness" has two different implications. First, "stillness" means calmness which shows the dying person is relatively calmer. However, "stillness" could also mean death because stillness has the feature of coolness and no moving. From the watchers' perspective, the word "stillness" could use to describes the death of the person because death body could not move any more and just quietly stay there. The fly makes buzzing sound in the room. The stillness in the room and the buzzing sounds become a strong contract between life and death. Even though the stillness and calmness are in the room, something is going to come. "The heaves of storm" may depict the struggles just right before death. The chest raises and fails in order to obtain more air to keep the dying life.
The second stanza:
The Eyes around－had wrung them dry－
And breaths were gathering sure
For that last onset－when the king
Be witnessed－in the Room－
This stanza is still from the dying person's perspective or angle to observe the surroundings. The friends or family members are sad. The breaths of the dying person is getting rapid and short. Getting more air become the "last onset." However, facing death there is nothing can win. In my own interpretation, I think the king is the king of the death. While the dying person is struggling to get more air, the king of the death is watching her in order to witness the death.
The third stanza
I willed my Keepsakes－Signed away
What portion of me be
Assignable－and then it was
There interposed a Fly－
All the possessions become useless and meaningless when one is dying because one bares one's hands enter the world, and one will be leave with a bare hands as well. The lines tell the readers that the dying person is willing to cut her attachments to this world. However, instead of the kind of the death, a fly appears before she dies. It may represent that the fly is the king of the death. Or, the appearance of the fly reveals the certain death is going to come.
The final stanza
With blue－uncertain stumbling buzz－
Between the light－and me－
And then the windows failed－and then
I could not see to see－
I really like the last stanza of the poem. With the buzzing sound, the dying person is gradually losing her life. The buzzing sound is fading out, and the light is getting feebler. The windows are always used to represent the eyes, and when the windows failed, the eyes are close, which indicates the end of the life. The most emotional line is the last line of the poem: "I could not see to see－" I think there have two totally different meanings. First, it shows Dickinson believes there is no more life after death because the windows is closed, and there is dark and no one can see. However, there are some hopes because "I could not see to see" for me is stilling seeing and watching. "I could not see" means the function of the body is failed, so she is not able to see. Yet, "to see" gives people a feeling that even though is not able to see, people still can see after death, even just seeing darkness.
I think it is the most profound poem I have ever read. Or, maybe I just have read too few.
Keep reading.
Summer has come and passed
The innocent can never last
wake me up when September ends
like my father's come to pass
seven years has gone so fast
wake me up when September ends
here comes the rain again
falling from the stars
drenched in my pain again
becoming who we are
as my memory rests
but never forgets what I lost
wake me up when September ends
summer has come and passed
the innocent can never last
wake me up when September ends
ring out the bells again
like we did when spring began
wake me up when September ends
here comes the rain again
falling from the stars
drenched in my pain again
becoming who we are
as my memory rests
but never forgets what I lost
wake me up when September ends
Summer has come and passed
The innocent can never last
wake me up when September ends
like my father's come to pass
twenty years has gone so fast
wake me up when September ends
wake me up when September ends
wake me up when September ends
Commands:
I do not know that many American song, but "Wake Me Up When September Ends" is one of my favorite song. It is a song by American rock band Green Day released as the fourth single from their seventh album, American Idiot.
At first, I was thinking the meaning of song is about September 11 attacks because setting of the the song is in September, and the song is also used to commemorate losing love ones. Another coincidence, according to WiKipedia, "In the liner notes, the song is dated September 10, and it is track 11 on the album."
However, the songwriter, Billie Joe Armstrong has clarified that the song is a memorial song to his father who was a jazz musician. The father died in September 10, 1982 when Armstrong was only ten years old. Armstrong mentions that the song was also dedicated to the guitarist, Johnny Ramone because Ramones has a great influential power to Green Day.
Little Lamb who made thee
Dost thou know who made thee
Gave thee life & bid thee feed.
By the stream & o’er the mead;
Gave thee clothing of delight,
Softest clothing wooly bright;
Gave thee such a tender voice,
Making all the vales rejoice!
Little Lamb who made thee
Dost thou know who made thee
Little Lamb I’ll tell thee,
Little Lamb I’ll tell thee!
He is called by thy name,
For he calls himself a Lamb:
He is meek & he is mild,
He became a little child:
I a child & thou a lamb,
We are called by his name.
Little Lamb God bless thee.
Little Lamb God bless thee.
Comment:
First of all, the poem, "The Lamb," was published with William Blake's collection Songs of Innocence. This poem is contrasted with his another poem, "The tyger," which was collected in Songs of Experience.
The poem has two stanzas which seem to be arranged in a question and answer format. Similar to "The Tyger," "The lamb" is also asking about the creation of God. The lamb is a common metaphor for Jesus Christ because he is also called the "The Lamb of God" in John 1:29. Moreover, the image of child is also related to Jesus in the Gospel.
This poem Blake seems to have more positive aspects of conventional Christian belief. However, it avoids to depict or mention the suffering and evil in the world.The language usage of this poem and the rhyme of this poem are very childish, which match the characteristic of innocence.
Even though "The Lamb" describes more positive images of conventional Christian, it reinforces the question asked in "The Tyger" when people analysis "The Lamb" and "The Tyger" together. Child and innocence could embody pure and origin of creation, but child and innocence could also mean immature and lack of knowledge. Blake did not give people an answer, but he left a space for people to think from the perspectives of innocence and experience to observe their faith and belief.
