SLAM! Writing vs Reading Poetry
Hello Dear Reader,
Welcome back to Gracious Thoughts! Did you miss me? I hope you’re doing well:)
Last Friday was Valentine’s Day, a day meant for celebrating love. I like Valentine’s mainly because two of my favorite colors are everywhere— pink and red. So cute! Other than that, I don’t get too crazy about it; I prefer not to go out because I am not fond of crowds, so we normally go for a drive-in movie or stay in. It also serves as a social media off-day for me because I prefer to opt-out of a feed full of…endearment. How did you spend yours?
Inspired by the Valentine’s theme, I worked with John Donne’s love poem, “The Good Morrow” for a recent explication. Completing that project allowed me to appreciate the poem more, as I pondered the potential layers of intentionality intertwined between the words. Reading into Donne’s life and career made his work that much more poignant to me, as I learned that he and his family struggled through hardships including several unsuccessful pregnancies and a long period of unemployment that made family life a struggle for him. These experiences, combined with his educational background and spiritual background, brought forth his fabulous works of poetry and led to his later recognition as the leading metaphysical poet in addition to his love poems. Though it was easy for me to fall for Donne as a writer, the explication required a level of coldness as to break down the poem as a unit at work and not just settle into the luminosity of its lyricism. I enjoyed it though— it showed me the varied means of bringing a poem to life that a poet can choose, which was welcomed in advance of me writing my own loving lamentation.
In crafting my own poem, the experience was softer. This was my first time working with a “poem frame” of sorts, which included three different prompts that were combined into one work. I found this very engaging and enjoyable as I found myself thinking about variations in voice and tone between stanzas based on each prompt and how they all worked together to tell a story. I found this structure hugely implementable for students because it gives them a bit of momentum to get started but enough room for freedom of expression. While many students enjoy writing poetry, many do not or struggle with in-class writing, so utilizing a tool like this frame may increase engagement and writing confidence for students. Even for seasoned poets, experimenting with a new approach can be a fun way to challenge writer’s block and create something new.
I had the opportunity to share my work with my colleagues over pizza on Tuesday. It was my first time reading any poetry I’ve written to anyone other than my husband, so I was very nauseous in advance but wound up almost enjoying it? Something about sharing something of myself with others and having it received, having that energetic response, was really cool. My peace is important to me so I can’t share my work here, but I will share this, a challenge, with you: write a poem of your own, constructed of three stanzas from three different perspectives on the same subject matter, and observe your own experience with the changes in voice and tone. I hope you find it as fun as I did!
Until next time, stay gracious!
Hi Grace,
ReplyDeleteTo answer your first question, my Valentine’s Day was busy. I did not celebrate it that day but I was able to celebrate the following by ordering some take out and spending time with the people I love. I did not get the chance to read your explication but I went through the same thing. I did my explication on Emily Dickinson’s “Because I could not stop for Death,” and while I really enjoyed her writing, I also realized that I had step back. I couldn’t just approach the poem as a reader, I had to be a poet. More specifically, I had to be Dickinson herself. I needed to get into her mind when analyzing the choices she made. After writing that explication and attempting my own poem, I realized how much effort goes into it. There were so many things that I had to consider but I did have fun with it. I do think I will be using this activity that we did together in class for my middle schoolers. They are full of creativity so I think this will be a challenge that they will enjoy.
All the best!
Natalia May
Hello Grace!
ReplyDeleteI also am not fond of crowds, but I actually closed at the restaurant I work at, so I was able to make money on Valentine's Day and just had some wine after work to wind down. This was also my first time working with a “poetry frame” of sorts, and it actually turned out better than I expected. At first, I thought the final result wouldn’t make any sense, but it turned out to be a great poem! I am definitely going to incorporate exercises like that in my classroom because I feel like it takes away the intimidation that poetry possesses when analyzing it and helps create a more engaging atmosphere in the classroom as well. I have to say, your challenge sounds so fun and I will definitely be partaking. It's exercises like that, that I feel will be fun and engaging for students, and help them find confidence when it comes to poetry.
Hi Grace!
ReplyDeleteMy Valentine’s Day was fun! I went to get seafood boil (Boiling crab was closed), and then I saw Tyler, the Creator at the Crypto Arena right after. I also appreciate how this holiday consists of my favorite colors; it is the prettiest combination ever. I also chose a love poem for my essay, which led me to write a (platonic) love poem to read aloud in front of the class. By the way, you did a wonderful job of presenting your poem. You are a natural speaker, which is a very admirable quality. It was also clear how personal it was, so kudos to you! You pointed out how many students struggle with in-class writing, and I am definitely one of them. It was worse in high school; I would think, “Can’t I do this at home?” It’s not that I didn’t see the purpose of the assignment; I just simply felt more comfortable at home. Finding new approaches to make poetry fun will be so useful within the classroom!
Hey Grace,
ReplyDeleteI really liked your post for this week’s blog!! I love how you connected Valentine’s Day to your love for poetry, and your thoughts on John Donne’s work were really interesting. It’s cool how learning about his life made his poetry even more meaningful to you. I enjoyed the "poem frame" structure for class a lot too. I think it was a super creative way to introduce poetry and have us write our own poems. I totally get you on being nervous about reading our poems to the class. I was anxious too but decided to go second just to get it over with. Honestly though when we went up to present the projector made it hard to see,so I guess in a way it helped calm my nerves lol. But overall, I think it was a great experience, and it was really cool to hear everyone’s different takes on the prompts.