My Poetry

“Love at First Sight”

At 9:30 A.M. when I had my first class at CSUN.

Feeling exhausted and slumberous,

 I was not looking forward for the remaining day.

After taking a ten minute nap in class,

I see an attractive boy sitting next to me.

I get up rapidly and my heart is beating fast as a timer.

He turns and looks at me and gives me a charming smile with a “hello”.

His voice was so warm and comforting,

His lips looked soft as a cotton ball.

His dressing was impressive,

Simply his eyes made me melt.

It only took one conversation and one date.

It was love at first sight.

Today, he still remains my boyfriend.

“Today”

As everyday goes by I realize I am only getting older,

I have to enjoy life to the fullest.

So from now on I will live with no regrets, what “ifs” or “buts”.

Today, I’m going to be adventurous,

Today. I’m going to be wild,

Today, I’m going to create long lasting memories.

Today, I’m only living for today.

 Tomorrow is not guaranteed.

And the future is not predicted.

Class Exercise

1. Alliteration and Assonance Lists

Create a list of word pairs and phrases that are built around alliteration or assonance. Remember, alliteration is when words in close proximity start with (or contain) the same consonant sound (as in pretty picture). Assonance is when words in close proximity echo vowel sounds (bent pen). Try to come up with at least ten of each. 

Crazy/cat, red/robin, fat/bag, full of food, feeling foolish, sassy/classy, strong/soldier/, chocolate/crumbs /seven/squirrels, /write/words

2. Make a list of significant life events – birth, death, graduation, marriage, having children, starting your own business. Next, come up with a metaphor for each of these events. Remember: a metaphor is when we say one thing is another thing. A simile is when we say one thing is like another thing.

Metaphor: Life is a dance.

Partying is crazy. He is awful. Love is painful.  Gave Over. It’s the end of the universe. Marriage is a knot.

3. Lyrics and Musicality

Choose a catchy song that you enjoy and rewrite the lyrics, but stick to the rhythm and meter. Try to go way off topic from what the original lyrics were about. You can play the song while you work the exercise or search for the lyrics online and use those as your baseline. The idea is to get your mind on the musicality in your writing.

LYRICS

 Leave me its ok, I can handle it

You’ve do it on the past, it’s not the first time

Before I would always take you back

But now guess what?

 Not this time.


I hate that you never cared.

Boy, I can do it on myself from now on, I’m only looking forward now.

Not back.

I don’t know why but you always do this

Knowing all the pain I have, you do it again

I can’t feel my heart; it’s broken into millions of pieces

I hate that you never cared.

In life sometimes you win and sometimes you loose

You can’t have it all in this world

But today I lost.

While I hate it, you love it.

I hate that you never cared.

Hey! You know what?

Someone will be waiting for you soon.

But it ain’t me do you know who?

That well known Karma.

I hate that you never cared.

What goes around comes around.

But life moves on, doesn’t  it?

This time I don’t want you back

And you better believe it

I hate that you never cared.

Today, I’m erasing you from my life,

This time it won’t be for only one day, or one week.

But for the rest of my life,

You will never exist again.

Today, it's the end of you and I.

I hate that you never cared.

 

Poem Analysis Essay

Lizbeth Hernandez

September 13, 2012

English 495

Professor Wexler

                                                             Poem Analysis Essay

            Alfred Edward Housman was born in Fockbury, Worcestershire, England on March 26, 1859. Housman was a noted British Latin scholar whose poems combined simplicity and craft in a manner that found favor with both critics and the reading public.  Housman published only two volumes when he was alive which were A Shropshire Lad (1896) and Last Poems (1922). “To an Athlete Dying Young” is one of A.E. Housman’s most popular poems from his collection “A Shropshire Lad”. My first impression when I read the title of the poem it made me believe that it was a very sad poem and that I would start feeling sympathy for the young athlete who died at a very young age. However, after reading it, my thoughts changed about this poem. “To an Athlete Dying Young” is an elegy poem that the speaker tries to give the audience an alternative view of death. Through literary devices like alliteration, and metaphor gives us a better understanding of the poem and although death is a mournful time, does the speaker try to make the audience understand through literary devices that for this athlete to die young is not unfortunate but rather see it as an escape from seeing this athlete’s life forgotten and faded?

            “To an Athlete Dying Young” consists of seven stanzas. Each stanza consists of two pairs of end-rhyming lines. Many of the lines are in iambic tetrameter, which have four feet that each consists of an unstressed syllable followed by a stressed syllable,  “The time you won your town the race, We chaired you through the market-place”(1-2). 

According to Michael J. Cummings this piece of work is considered an apostrophe poem because the speaker of them poem addresses a deceased person which in this case was an athlete. On the first stanza, the speaker shows a remembered image of the young athlete who is a runner and that day he won a race in his own townhome. After been victorious in his race his town people carried him home on their shoulders.

            On the second stanza, again the athlete is been carry on the town people’s shoulders but not because he won again but because he is in a casket on his way to the cemetery. In the sentence “ To-day, the road all runners come”(5), not only is an example of alliteration but also according to Gage’s article it emphasizes the speaker’s awareness of the morality of people. In Line 7 “ And set you at the threshold down” symbolizes that this is where the athlete will spend his life eternally. Also, “Townsman of a stiller town”(8), not only is alliteration but also a metaphor because stiller town is a cemetery and its compared to a town.

            On the third stanza, we see a shift on the language compared to the first two stanzas. In this stanza we see that is more of a lyrical format. Also, it describes how the athlete’s death was a good thing that happened because his fame was very high and people would definitely remember him. On the other hand, if he would have grew and lived longer then his fame would have faded. Line 10 “From the fields where glory does not stay” represents a metaphor because it is making a comparison of glory to a person or thing that leaves the fields. Also, on line 11, “And early though the laurel grows” laurel shows a representation as a symbol of victory and that life can be short. The athlete received a laurel, which symbolizes great works, according to Cummings, “Today the phrase to win one’s laurels is often used figuratively to indicate that an athlete, scholar, or stage performer has earned distinction in his or her field”.

            There have been many famous people that died and after hardly anyone remember them. At the beginning of the fourth stanza, “Eyes the shady night has shut”, is a metaphor because its comparing death to night. In this stanza the speaker tells the audience that the athlete eyes are now closed forever and that he will not be able to experience or witness the victorious moments he had and records he set when he was alive.

            The following stanza describes how many athletes that lived forever their fame only lasted for a small amount of time because they were no longer able to perform. No one remembered them anymore.  According to Cummings these athletes’ names died before their bodies. However, for the athlete in the poem because he was at his highest peak of fame and died young then people are going to remember him. Also, in line 19,“Runners whom renown outran”, is a metaphor because it is comparing renown to an athlete.

            Next stanza is when the young athlete is about to be put on the tomb. In the first line of this stanza, “So set, before its echoes fade” the speaker makes an usage of the word “set” which is important. The speaker makes “set” an important word because the speaker wants the townspeople to direct the death body down the grave as quickly as possible. Because if it is not quickly as possible, the speaker does not want the athlete’s running steps echoes to fade away. If the footsteps were to fade away then he will become forgotten like the other forgotten athletes.

            In the last stanza, it gives the audience an image of the young death athlete that passed through the threshold into the world of the death. The young athlete is wearing a laurel wreath because it signifies that he was victorious when he was alive. Also, it says that it was good that the athlete passed away because he was young. In addition on the last line of the poem “The garland briefer than a girl’s”, Gales article states that behind the meaning of that sentence is that the garland usually in the natural world withers more quickly than the rose in line 12, but that here it will live forever as a symbol of glory and that will not fade away.

            In today’s society if we have someone famous die at a young age, we feel sympathy right away and question ourselves why. Also, we can’t accept it. However, their families might spend the rest of their lives question why they died so young. But what about their fans, are they still going to remember them? Maybe within the first weeks fans will still remember them but what about a year from then most likely no because their fame has faded away. Housman definitely tries makes his audience understands that for this athlete is was good that he died at a young age. The reason for been well is because he was at his highest peak of fame. Townspeople will still remember because he was young. I he would of lived longer then his fade would have faded very soon.

            In conclusion, “To an Athlete Dying Young” by A. E. Housman, is a eulogy poem because is about a young athlete died at a very young age. This athlete was very victorious before he died and because he died at a young age his fame will never faded as oppose if he would have lived longer. With literary devices used in the poem the audience can better understand the meaning the speaker is trying to convey.

Works Cited

Cummings, Michael J. "To an Athlete Dying Young." To an Athlete Dying

Young.Cummings Study Guides, n.d. Web. 17 Sept. 2012.

<http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/Guides3/Housman.html>.

"Overview: “To an Athlete Dying Young”." Poetry for Students. Vol. 7. Detroit: Gale

Group, 2000. Literature Resource Center. Web. 13 Sep. 2012.

Rough Draft

“To an Athlete Dying Young” by A. E. Housman

Going back few years ago, I remembered reading “To an Athlete Dying Young” in high school. I thought it was great poem but I didn’t find much interest maybe because I had no connection. It wasn’t until a good friend of mine passed away about two years ago when I showed interest to this poem. He was in the track team and while running couple miles he had an instant heart attack and died. He was one of the most outstanding runners, almost everyone knew him in school by name. In the beginning everyone showed sympathy and sadness but as time flew people forgot about him. There are many outstanding athletes in this world that unfortunately die very young. Unfortunately, no one has control over when will our last day be. In “ To an Athlete Dying Young” poem by A.E. Housman, a victorious young athlete dies at a young age. Although it may be sad this young man died, Housman is trying to state that it was better for him to dye before his fame fades and people forget about him.

 

"When You Look Me In The Eyes"

On a Tuesday evening, I was working at my retail job. Usually it’s always so busy that we have to multi task with customers and making sure our department looks neat. But that evening we hardly had any customers. For the first time I was actually paying attention to the music they play at work and their lyrics. After listening to several songs, there was one specific song that really opened my ears and that was “When You Look Me In the Eyes” by the Jonas Brothers. It took me several days to figure what artist sang that song. Luckily, it was played again and I asked my coworker if she knew who sang that song.

I felt in love with this song because it reminded me of my significant other. When things are going the right path, I always feel complete and happiness in my heart. But when we go through our break ups my heart feels empty.

My thoughts about “When You Look Me In The Eyes” are that definitely this is a love song and that he cannot find peace or happiness in his heart if he is not with that special someone. In the moment both of them are apart from each other and he is impatiently waiting and hoping they can be together soon. Because as soon as they are together he wants to let her know how much he loves her and he can no longer be without her anymore. On the other note, when they are together and she looks at him and tells him she loves him, he feels fulfillment in his heart. In fact the use of hyperbole is used, “When you look me in the eyes, I catch a glimpse of heaven. I find my paradise, when you look me in the eyes.”

Introduction

Welcome to my Blogger! 

My name is Lizbeth and I am currently pursuing a B.A. in the English single subject matter at California State University Northridge. In May 2013 I will be graduating. After graduation, I’m hoping to enter CSUN’s credential program. I would really prefer to work for the LAUSD either at a middle or high school. My main goal and motivation to teach is to make a difference in students lives by educating them. 

I definitely have to admit that I am very impressed of how rapid technology is advancing. In fact this is my first time I have to use a social networking website for a course where I can share my works. Personally, I feel that teachers should apply media technology into their teaching starting in middle school and so on. I feel that by that age students should be prepared to use this kind of advance technology. Many students may have great talent in art, writing, etc and are afraid to share it in their classroom; however, websites like Tumblr gives them the opportunity to share their special talents. So, if teachers use this they can definitely make students benefit from. 

It was not until I was in college when I experienced the use of media technology. For one of my courses we were assigned to use Facebook to discuss or make comments on topics that the professor wanted to discuss. Because the discussion was outside of class we were free of expressing our on thoughts. I personally liked this idea because people who hardly participated in class would participate on Facebook and they had great thoughts and opinions. I was able to gain more knowledge by seeing different point of views and more participation from the quiet students.