¶ … Night the Crystals Broke
Write where you got inspiration from?
The inspiration from this poem comes from my grandmother and her family, who lived through the pogroms and just before the Nazis took over Hungary. The title refers to the Kristallnacht, the event in which the Nazis burned synagogues and their religious items, and broke the windows. They also broke the windows of the local businesses. This poem also refers to the journey that was scary and arduous, over the Atlantic in the ship to Ellis Island. The statue at the end of the poem is the Statue of Liberty, which welcomed the "poor" and "hungry" masses, like my grandmother's people.
(2) Which author and poem did you refer to when writing this poem?
There is no one author or poem I referred to here. This is a completely original work. However, it is written in the form of a ballad. The ballad type of poem is appropriate for use when speaking of a historical person or event. Because I was writing about the events of the Nazi era and of my grandmother and great grandmother, this is in a ballad form.
(3) What did the poem mean to you personally? Did you enjoy it? Why or why not? How does this poem relate to your world and your life?
This poem means a lot to me personally, because it is about my heritage. I have spoken with my grandmother and she has told me some stories that made me angry and sad, which is why I wanted to write about this poem. This poem was enjoyable to write, because I felt I was doing something for my grandmother. It felt cathartic. Also, this poem relates to my world and my life because it mentions the experience of immigration and prejudice.
(4) What techniques did you use for this poem and do you think your readers understand what you are trying to convey to them?
The techniques I used included metaphor, imagery, repetition, and diction. For example, I repeated some words like "faster faster" to convey a sense of suspense, and also "quick quick" to describe the sense of urgency in needing to leave the old country.
(5) How effective do you think your poem was? How did you find the whole process of writing each poem?
I believe this poem is effective, because I showed it to my sister and she appreciated it. I found the process of writing this poem to be enjoyable because I did not have to make rhymes or count the meter.
(6) How is the structure and voice of the poem?
The type of the poem is a ballad, and is told in third person voice.
II. "Tough Love"
1) Write where you got inspiration from?
I got this inspiration from two places: both my own mother and my aunt's experience raising my nephew. The experience of raising a child is complex and difficult, which I tried to capture here. This poem is divided into sections, to refer to the stages in the child development. The inspiration for the theme comes from the fact that like all teens, I distanced myself from my mother. My cousin is doing the same to his mother, and it is causing her frustration and sadness. The inspiration for this poem was therefore from personal experience.
(2) Which author and poem did you refer to when writing this poem?
I did not refer to any other poet or author when writing this poem, it is all original and about my personal life.
(3) What did the poem mean to you personally? Did you enjoy it? Why or why not? How does this poem relate to your world and your life?
I enjoyed writing this poem precisely because it means a lot to me: the relationship between my mother and me. Actually, all relationships between mothers and their children are important for me to write about. We will all experience similar emotions as parents: having our children pull away from us at certain times, after they are grown up. But teenagers also still need their parents, even if they want more independence. They might not be as dependent as the young children are, but they still need love, support, guidance, and attention.
(4) What techniques did you use for this poem and do you think your readers understand what you are trying to convey to them?
I used the technique of dividing the poem into two uneven stanzas. I wanted it to be free verse, so that there was an open structure and sense of tension. The reader...
These are two contradictory phrases, rendered as the same grammatical structure. It shows that the child is both dependent and independent.
(5) How effective do you think your poem was? How did you find the whole process of writing each poem?
I believe this was a very effective poem, because it captures the complex emotions of motherhood. No one is being blamed. It is not as if the mother or the child are to blame for the distance between them.
(6) How is the structure and voice of the poem?
The voice of the poem is sad, and it is told from first person perspective. The mother is the speaker. She is speaking to her child. The poem is structured in free verse, to give the mother a free voice. She is here to say what is in her heart and mind, and she speaks freely.
III. "Shoe Sonnet"
(1) Write where you got inspiration from?
I got the inspiration from this poem first from walking through a shoe store that I liked, and feeling like I wanted to buy everything. There were so many pairs on the wall, with different colors and functions. Although at the time I was only shopping, later I realized that the shoes and the store experience could be a metaphor for a poem. It occurred to me that shoes symbolized diversity. There are so many shoes in the world, just as there are so many different people. All the different types of people can be compared with shoes, because of different shapes, sizes, and colors. Therefore, shoes were the primary inspiration for the poem, but diversity was the secondary inspiration that allowed me to use shoes as a metaphor.
(2) Which author and poem did you refer to when writing this poem?
I did not refer to any specific author, but I used the sonnet format. This format was widely used by Shakespeare. Therefore, I paid homage to Shakespeare when writing this poem.
(3) What did the poem mean to you personally? Did you enjoy it? Why or why not? How does this poem relate to your world and your life?
From the standpoint of shoes alone, the poem was fun to write because I like shoes. Also, I like writing about diversity. It was also fun to use an extended metaphor and try to work a lot with it in the sonnet. I also enjoyed using the structure of the sonnet to guide my writing. The poem relates to my world and my life because I am surrounded by diversity every day.
(4) What techniques did you use for this poem and do you think your readers understand what you are trying to convey to them?
The technique of an extended metaphor, plus iambic pentameter, and rhyme scheme makes the poem enjoyable for readers. I think most readers can relate to the subject matter.
(5) How effective do you think your poem was? How did you find the whole process of writing each poem?
I believe this was one of my most effective poems, because I stayed with the structure of the sonnet. I also found that using the extended metaphor kept my thoughts in order.
(6) How is the structure and voice of the poem?
The structure of the poem is a sonnet, which uses a set meter and rhyme scheme. The voice is third person.
IVa. "Haikus Celebrate"
(1) Write where you got inspiration from?
The inspiration for this poem was the form of the haiku itself, which I find fun to write. I also drew on the theme of using the poem to eliminate the sense of seriousness that usually pervades writing exercises. We should have fun when we write, which is the primary theme of the poem.
(2) Which author and poem did you refer to when writing this poem?
I referred to no one, but I respect the Japanese poetic form of the haiku.
(3) What did the poem mean to you personally? Did you enjoy it? Why or why not? How does this poem relate to your world and your life?
This particular haiku means a lot to me, because I have seen so many "dour" people in my life. I believe that poetry can uplift these people and show that haikus "celebrate" life. I enjoyed writing this very much, because I appreciate the haiku form. They are fast,…
