Elegy for My Father, Who is Not Dead (Pattern Blogs)

"He's ready. I am not."

In this poem, the speaker is talking about his dad, saying that he is near death. The quote above is a key point in the theme of the poem. The father is ready to die and move on, but the speaker is not ready for him to die at all. The father is a strong believer in the afterlife. He has "an itch to see new worlds" and "in the sureness of his faith" and "he thinks that when I follow him" are examples of the father's belief in life after death. The speaker on the other hand is not so sure that this is the case. In fact, the speaker is not really sure about anything. The tone of the poem is somber and subdued with not much energy. It seems like the speaker hopes that his father is right, but at this point he just can't bring himself to believe that he will ever see his father again.

Delight in Disorder (Pattern Blogs)

"I see a wild civility."

This poem contains two oxymorons. The first one is, "sweet disorder" which is seen in the first line, and the second one is the quote above, seen in line 12. These two oxymorons are somewhat opposites, but still serve the same purpose. The speaker explains that he prefers women who dress disorderly. I happen to agree with his stance. I would much rather prefer a woman who does not care how she looks and still looks beautiful, rather than a girl who tries to be perfect. The oxymorons support the them that being "wild" or "disorder[ly]" actually looks better. In the final couplet of the poem, the speaker makes it sound like he really is explaining his view of art. He prefers abstract art over precise, perfect creations.

Edward (Pattern Blogs)

"O I have killed my father dear,/ Mother, Mother,"

I found this poem to be very interesting, but also confusing. For this poem, I'm going to do something different and re-write the poem using modern English and using my interpretation, which could be wrong.

Mother: "Edward, why do you have blood on your sword? And why are you so sad?"
Edward: "Oh, I killed my hawk, mom. It was my only one.
Mother: "Your hawk wouldn't bleed that much. Tell me what happened."
Edward: "I actually killed my horse, mom. It was such a good horse."
Mother: "That horse was old, and you have more horses anyways. There is something else that is bothering you."
Edward: "I killed dad!"
Mother: "What are you going to do to make up for that?"
Edward: "I'm getting on a ship and leaving for forever."
Mother: "What are you going to do with your house and possessions?"
Edward: "I'll just leave them. I just can't stay here."
Mother: "What are you going to do with your children and wife? What will you leave them?"
Edward: "They will manage. They can beg and take care of themselves. I can't see them ever again."
Mother: "What are you going to leave for me?"
Edward: "I'm going to damn you to hell, because this is all your fault. You told me to kill him."

Edward and his family are clearly upper class people. I assume, based on, "Such counsels you gave to me, O." that his mother told him to kill his dad. It is still unclear though, because she acts like she has no idea, and says he needs to do penance.

Lonely Hearts (Pattern Blogs)

"Can someone make my simple wish come true?"

This poem is referring to the Personals section in a newspaper, where people with "lonely hearts" advertise themselves, and give a brief description of themselves or what type of person they are looking for. The author is satirizing these people who are trying to find love through a newspaper. The people say that their wish is simple, but in their descriptions they are somewhat specific. There is a lot of diversity in the Personals. There is a male biker, a gay vegetarian, an executive looking for a bisexual woman, an attractive Jewish lady with a son, and a Libran looking for a slim non-smoker under twenty-one. However, they all live in the same city and are all looking for the same thing - love. The villanelle allows for the repetition of the effective lines, "Do you live in North London? Is it you?" and the quote above. The different people are each looking for a specific person, who they think will complete their lives.

That time of year (Pattern Blogs)

"This thou perceivest, which makes thy love more strong,/ To love that well which thou must leave ere long."

This poem by William Shakespeare is a sonnet, which has three quatrains followed by a couplet. The quote above is the couplet at the end. In the first quatrain the image of fall is emphasized in the line, "yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang." The second sunset is describing the twilight just before night. The image of the third quatrain is of death. These images all seem to support the ending of life and the loss of hope. However, based on the final couplet and the 4th question in the book, I realize that he is addressing his lover. He is saying that since death will come soon, their love should be even stronger. They must love each other now, before death comes.