Countee Cullen
What is Cullen’s message?
I believe the message is that born a slave, die a slave.
How would you characterize the tone of this poem? Wrathful? Amused?
Amused.
Doo Wop
What is the tone of this poem-comic? Seruiys? Both at once?
I think this tone is comical.
How many instances of plays on words, and playing with the sounds of words, can you find in the poem?
Three
Beyond the author’s exuberant delight in language, what do you think “Doo Wop” is about?
I think this poem is about a man talking about his girlfriend, who he is in love with. Then at the very end of the poem he’s been duped. I think it also shows that the man had gotten over his girlfriend because the tone seems too light hearted to be about someone mourning the loss of a relationship.
For My Daughter
How does the last line of this sonnet affect the meaning of the poem?
I think this last line affects the poem by changing the tone from sad to disgust and hate.
“For My Daughter” was first published in 1940. What considerations might a potential American parent have felt at that time? Are these historical concerns mirrored in the poem?
Absolutely. It was not proper for a young girl to be promiscuous . Most parents would be embarrassed and want to ship their child away. I do think these concerns are mirrored in this poem. The line that reads “Bride of a syphilitic or a fool” shows discontent.
Donald Justice has said that “Kees is one of the bitterest poets in history.” Is bitterness the only attitude the speak reveals in this poem?
I think there is despair and grief in this poem. Despair because the parent knows he/she is going to lose his/her child and there is nothing that can be done. Grief because death is inevitable for their child.
Luke Havergal
Who is the speaker of the poem? What specific details does the author reveal about the speaker?
I think the speaker is God. I think the details would be that he says to go the western gate. I interpret this to mean the sunset, which is bright. Go to the light. Many people claim to see the light before they go to Heaven. The line that speaks of “out of a grave I come to tell you this” would also lead me to believe God is the speaker.
What does the speak ask Luke Havergal to do?
I think the speaker is asking Luke to kill himself. But then again if it is God speaking, he would never ask someone to commit suicide. I guess the speaker could also be the Devil.
What do you understand “the western gate” to be?
It could be a church.
Would you advise Luke Havergal to follow the speaker’s advice? Why or why not?
No. I think this poem can be interpreted in two ways. God or the Devil speaking. I am leaning more toward the Devil speaking. He speaks of crimson vines and being struck like flying words. I think the Devil is trying to entice Luke to commit suicide and I would never advise that.
Monologue for an Onion
How would you characterize the speaker’s tone in this poem? What attitudes and judgments lie behind the tone?
Resentment is the tone I see in this poem. I see the onion making accusatory statements to the person chopping the onion. The onion interprets the chopper person to be heartless and uncaring.
“I mean nothing” (line 2) might be seen as a play on two senses of mean – “intend” and “signify.” Is the statement true in both senses?
Yes.
Suppose someone said to you, “The whole point of the poem is that vegetables have rights and feelings too, and humanity is being rebuked for its arrogance and insensitivity toward other species.” How would you argue against that view?
First I would laugh and then say “are you serious?” Vegetables come from a seed and need nothing more than water and oxygen to grow. Unlike humans, we need more than a “seed.” Vegetables do not have a brain and they cannot feel anything.
The speaker is obviously one tough onion, cutting humanity little or no slack. To what degree do you think the speaker represents the author’s views? Explain your response.
I think the speaker represents the author’s view by crying while chopping the onion. Also by peeling away the onion layer by layer may show some compassion on the part of the chopper.
A Glass of Beer
Whom do you take to be the speaker? Is it the poet? The speaker may be angry, but what is the tone of this poem?
I don’t think the speaker is the author, but a disgruntled drunken man. The tone is annoyed.
Would you agree with a commentator who said, “To berate anyone in truly memorable language is practically a lost art in America”? How well does the speaker (an Irishman) succeed? Which of his epithets and curses strike you as particularly imaginative?
I don’t believe berating anyone is a lost art. It is however, memorable to say the least. The Irishman succeeds very well. The most imaginative line would be “The High King of Glory permit her to get the mange.” Who would wish that upon anyone?
Her Kind
Who is the speaker of this poem? What do we know about her?
The speaker is a witch who has passed on. We know that she has the same experiences as the witch she is speaking of.
What does the speaker mean by ending each stanza with the statement, “I have been her kind?”
I think the speaker is reiterating that she knows what it is like to be a witch and wants the reader to know that she truly understands the witch.
Who are the figures with whom the speaker identifies? What do these figures tell us about the speaker’s state of mind?
The speaker identifies the worms and the elves. The state of mind would be very magical and dark.
The Unknown Citizen
Read the two-line epitaph at the beginning of the poem as carefully as you read what follows. How does the epitaph help establish the voice by which the rest of the poem is spoken?
The voice is nostalgic. It sets the tone of compassion.
Who is speaking?
I think the child of the deceased citizen is speaking.
What ironic discrepancies do you find between the speaker’s attitude toward the subject and that of the poet himself? By what is the poet’s attitude made clear?
In the phrase “The Unknown Soldier” (of which “The Unknown Citizen” reminds us), what does the word unknown mean? What does it mean in the title of Auden’s poem?
To me the word unknown means an unsung hero. A person that was an upstanding citizen and did he duty to society and his family. One that didn’t seek attention or glory. In the title, unknown means a person without a name. A person that isn’t particularly famous.
What tendencies in our civilization does Auden satirize?
We take for granted life and accomplishments people can achieve by just being a normal person.
How would you expect the speaker to define a Modern Man, if a CD player, a radio, a car, and a refrigerator are “everything” a Modern Man needs?
Today, a “modern man” would need a laptop, cell phone and microwave.
Rite of Passage
What is ironic about the way the speaker describes the first-grade boys at her son’s birthday party?
She describes them as older than six year olds. She looks at them like they are grown up and getting ready to fight.
What other irony does the author underscore in the last two lines?
That even though the boys are kids they are acting like grown men.
Does this mother sentimentalize her own son by seeing him as better than the other little boys?
No I don’t think so. I think she is just reflecting on the day.
What is Cullen’s message?
I believe the message is that born a slave, die a slave.
How would you characterize the tone of this poem? Wrathful? Amused?
Amused.
Doo Wop
What is the tone of this poem-comic? Seruiys? Both at once?
I think this tone is comical.
How many instances of plays on words, and playing with the sounds of words, can you find in the poem?
Three
Beyond the author’s exuberant delight in language, what do you think “Doo Wop” is about?
I think this poem is about a man talking about his girlfriend, who he is in love with. Then at the very end of the poem he’s been duped. I think it also shows that the man had gotten over his girlfriend because the tone seems too light hearted to be about someone mourning the loss of a relationship.
For My Daughter
How does the last line of this sonnet affect the meaning of the poem?
I think this last line affects the poem by changing the tone from sad to disgust and hate.
“For My Daughter” was first published in 1940. What considerations might a potential American parent have felt at that time? Are these historical concerns mirrored in the poem?
Absolutely. It was not proper for a young girl to be promiscuous . Most parents would be embarrassed and want to ship their child away. I do think these concerns are mirrored in this poem. The line that reads “Bride of a syphilitic or a fool” shows discontent.
Donald Justice has said that “Kees is one of the bitterest poets in history.” Is bitterness the only attitude the speak reveals in this poem?
I think there is despair and grief in this poem. Despair because the parent knows he/she is going to lose his/her child and there is nothing that can be done. Grief because death is inevitable for their child.
Luke Havergal
Who is the speaker of the poem? What specific details does the author reveal about the speaker?
I think the speaker is God. I think the details would be that he says to go the western gate. I interpret this to mean the sunset, which is bright. Go to the light. Many people claim to see the light before they go to Heaven. The line that speaks of “out of a grave I come to tell you this” would also lead me to believe God is the speaker.
What does the speak ask Luke Havergal to do?
I think the speaker is asking Luke to kill himself. But then again if it is God speaking, he would never ask someone to commit suicide. I guess the speaker could also be the Devil.
What do you understand “the western gate” to be?
It could be a church.
Would you advise Luke Havergal to follow the speaker’s advice? Why or why not?
No. I think this poem can be interpreted in two ways. God or the Devil speaking. I am leaning more toward the Devil speaking. He speaks of crimson vines and being struck like flying words. I think the Devil is trying to entice Luke to commit suicide and I would never advise that.
Monologue for an Onion
How would you characterize the speaker’s tone in this poem? What attitudes and judgments lie behind the tone?
Resentment is the tone I see in this poem. I see the onion making accusatory statements to the person chopping the onion. The onion interprets the chopper person to be heartless and uncaring.
“I mean nothing” (line 2) might be seen as a play on two senses of mean – “intend” and “signify.” Is the statement true in both senses?
Yes.
Suppose someone said to you, “The whole point of the poem is that vegetables have rights and feelings too, and humanity is being rebuked for its arrogance and insensitivity toward other species.” How would you argue against that view?
First I would laugh and then say “are you serious?” Vegetables come from a seed and need nothing more than water and oxygen to grow. Unlike humans, we need more than a “seed.” Vegetables do not have a brain and they cannot feel anything.
The speaker is obviously one tough onion, cutting humanity little or no slack. To what degree do you think the speaker represents the author’s views? Explain your response.
I think the speaker represents the author’s view by crying while chopping the onion. Also by peeling away the onion layer by layer may show some compassion on the part of the chopper.
A Glass of Beer
Whom do you take to be the speaker? Is it the poet? The speaker may be angry, but what is the tone of this poem?
I don’t think the speaker is the author, but a disgruntled drunken man. The tone is annoyed.
Would you agree with a commentator who said, “To berate anyone in truly memorable language is practically a lost art in America”? How well does the speaker (an Irishman) succeed? Which of his epithets and curses strike you as particularly imaginative?
I don’t believe berating anyone is a lost art. It is however, memorable to say the least. The Irishman succeeds very well. The most imaginative line would be “The High King of Glory permit her to get the mange.” Who would wish that upon anyone?
Her Kind
Who is the speaker of this poem? What do we know about her?
The speaker is a witch who has passed on. We know that she has the same experiences as the witch she is speaking of.
What does the speaker mean by ending each stanza with the statement, “I have been her kind?”
I think the speaker is reiterating that she knows what it is like to be a witch and wants the reader to know that she truly understands the witch.
Who are the figures with whom the speaker identifies? What do these figures tell us about the speaker’s state of mind?
The speaker identifies the worms and the elves. The state of mind would be very magical and dark.
The Unknown Citizen
Read the two-line epitaph at the beginning of the poem as carefully as you read what follows. How does the epitaph help establish the voice by which the rest of the poem is spoken?
The voice is nostalgic. It sets the tone of compassion.
Who is speaking?
I think the child of the deceased citizen is speaking.
What ironic discrepancies do you find between the speaker’s attitude toward the subject and that of the poet himself? By what is the poet’s attitude made clear?
In the phrase “The Unknown Soldier” (of which “The Unknown Citizen” reminds us), what does the word unknown mean? What does it mean in the title of Auden’s poem?
To me the word unknown means an unsung hero. A person that was an upstanding citizen and did he duty to society and his family. One that didn’t seek attention or glory. In the title, unknown means a person without a name. A person that isn’t particularly famous.
What tendencies in our civilization does Auden satirize?
We take for granted life and accomplishments people can achieve by just being a normal person.
How would you expect the speaker to define a Modern Man, if a CD player, a radio, a car, and a refrigerator are “everything” a Modern Man needs?
Today, a “modern man” would need a laptop, cell phone and microwave.
Rite of Passage
What is ironic about the way the speaker describes the first-grade boys at her son’s birthday party?
She describes them as older than six year olds. She looks at them like they are grown up and getting ready to fight.
What other irony does the author underscore in the last two lines?
That even though the boys are kids they are acting like grown men.
Does this mother sentimentalize her own son by seeing him as better than the other little boys?
No I don’t think so. I think she is just reflecting on the day.
