Notes #8

All Day Long by: Carl Sandburg (1878-1967)

All day long in fog and wind, The waves have flung their beating crests Against the palisades of adamant. My boy, he went to sea, long and long ago, Curls of brown were slipping underneath his cap, He looked at me from blue and steely eyes; Natty, straight and true, he stepped away, My boy, he went to sea. All day long in fog and wind, The waves have flung their beating crests Against the palisades of adamant.   Carl Sandburgs poem "All Day Long" represents the actions of a teenage boy against his fathers wishes. When it says, "the waves have flung their beating crests against the palisades of adamant" it means the father tried time and time again but, yet failed in attempting to sway his sons decision. His son is described as "adament" which means he is very stubborn.

Notes #7

After the Sea-Ship

After the sea-ship, after the whistling winds, After the white-gray sails taut to their spars and ropes, Below, a myriad myriad waves hastening, lifting up their necks, Tending in ceaseless flow toward the track of the ship, Waves of the ocean bubbling and gurgling, blithely prying, Waves, undulating waves, liquid, uneven, emulous waves, Toward that whirling current, laughing and buoyant, with curves, Where the great vessel sailing and tacking displaced the surface, Larger and smaller waves in the spread of the ocean yearnfully flowing, The wake of the sea-ship after she passes, flashing and frolicsome under the sun, A motley procession with many a fleck of foam and many fragments, Following the stately and rapid ship, in the wake following. "After the Sea-Ship" by Walt Whitman uses imagery to describe the wake left behind after a ship passes by. Metaphorically this can be related to life and the impact that is left behind after something or someone passes. There's kind of a sense of excitement and then let-down.  This poem is also a metaphor of how people tend to blindly follow those who are more powerful, especially in the last two lines.

Notes #6

The bright essence displayed in the picture help idealize the importance of Earth. The droplet of water, containing the image of a tree, is dangling on the vibrant green leaf that is focuses in the center of the screen. The perfect shade of sky blue background containing a tree are blurred out to call attention to the droplet of water on the leaf. The image inside the drop of water contain a utopia of nature, which symbolizes the source of beatiful nature: water. The vegetation is healthy and bright in its' colors even with the intense sun rays that shine upon it everyday. Water is the source of all growth and it is the perfect remedy for life.

Notes #5

I am a goldfish; I am swimming around this bowl. It is getting dizzy.

A goldfish I am; It is getting dizzy. Swimming around this bowl I am.
Am I a goldfish? I am swimming around this bowl. It is getting dizzy.
It is getting dizzy, swimming around this bowl, I am a goldfish. I am.
Around this bowl I am swimming. It is getting dizzy. I am a goldfish
I am a goldfish. It is getting dizzy around this bowl, I am swimming.
I am swimming around this bowl; I am a goldfish. It is getting dizzy.
Around this bowl, it is getting dizzy. I am a goldfish; I am swimming.
I am a goldfish. It is getting dizzy. I am swimming around this bowl.
I am a goldfish. Bowl this around: it is getting dizzy. I am swimming.
I am swimming around this bowl. Am I a goldfish? It is getting dizzy.
Am I a goldfish bowl? It is getting dizzy. Am I swimming around this?
It is getting dizzy. I am a goldfish. Am I swimming around this bowl?
Am I a goldfish? Around this bowl am I swimming? It is getting dizzy.
Am I a goldfish? I am. It is getting dizzy, swimming around this bowl.
Am I a goldfish? It is getting dizzy. I am swimming around this bowl.
Am I a goldfish swimming? Around this bowl, I am. It is getting dizzy.
Am I a goldfish? It is getting dizzy. Around this bowl I am swimming.
Am I swimming? I am a goldfish around this bowl. It is getting dizzy.
Am I swimming? Is it getting dizzy? Around this bowl I am a goldfish.
It is getting dizzy. Am I swimming? Am I a goldfish around this bowl?
Am I a-swimming? I am a round goldfish. This bowl, it is getting dizzy.
This bowl: It is getting dizzy. I am a goldfish I am swimming around.
Am I a bowl? It is getting dizzy. I am a goldfish swimming around this.
It is getting dizzy. Am I a round bowl? I am this goldfish a-swimming.
I am a goldfish I am swimming around. Is this bowl getting dizzy? It is.
Is it? I am getting a goldfish. I am swimming around this dizzy bowl.
I am. I am swimming around this goldfish bowl. Dizzy it is a-getting.
I am a dizzy goldfish swimming. I am a round bowl. Is it getting this?
Is this bowl around a dizzy, swimming goldfish? I am. I am getting it.
Is this getting dizzy? Am I a round goldfish? Am I a swimming bowl?

I am a goldfish; I am swimming around this bowl. It is getting dizzy.      
"Thoughts of a Goldfish" by Richard Miles takes the classic elementary school pet and puts a quirky spin on it. The repetition and personification of a goldfish emphasize that daily thoughts that race through the head of a goldfish. The exclusion of stanza's add to the cluster which represents the compact bowl of life the goldfish can never escape from until death. The repetition of phrases and words convey the same confusion that the goldfish is feeling; Richard makes this poem relatable. While reading the poem, the words start to scramble and it all becomes a blur which is comparable to the racing thoughts of a goldfish as it swims around and around in a never ending circular motion. The personification took this average childhood pet to something that can relate to the average humans life, except humans experience this on a much bigger scale.

Notes #4

Fibonacci - Water (Variation 1)

Water
Water forms
Weeds in water
Weeds in water form patterns
Patterns form of weeds in water over stones
Over stones and weeds water forms patterns reflecting
sunlight and soul of water

Forrest Hainline

The poem "Fibonacci - Water" by Forrest Hainline depicts the simplicity of water in a complex way. The repetition of phrases throughout the poem convey beautiful qualities of water in a stream. The poem begins with one simple word "water" and the next line adds to it. This helps with the understanding of the poem by plainly laying it out. It is comparable to reading directions. The third line adds "weeds" to the two previous lines to form the phrase "weeds in water." The poem's blatant words have a complex meaning and they gradually incorporate the earthy setting. The number of words in each line are comparable to the number in the Fibbonaci sequence. This is unique because the Fibbonaci sequence is constantly said to be found within nature. By composing the poem with this structure, it looks like a wave in the weedy stream. The water is gently sweeping over the stones exactly as the words describe. The poem itself can compare to water; complexity and simplicity in one.

Notes #3

4. Elements – Water

Water an elemental
Water a fundamental
Building block of life
Water of Life
Water of Death

Water in all religions
Water in all living things
Water in all countries
Water also used for barter

No life without water
No rife with water
No respect for water
Willful neglect of water

Water, for cooking
Water, for cleaning
Water, for drinking
Water, for living
Water, for dying

Water is the same
In all languages
Water is the same
To all living beings

Anand Dixit

The simplistic and literal quality of Anand Dixit’s poem “Elements – Water” serves as a type of figurative language that creates a deeper meaning. The simplistic four stanza poem relates one simple element, water, to multiple purposes in different countries, languages, and cultures. The poet does this as a way to relate everything together no matter what differences there seem to be. Anand reiterates this in the last stanza, “water is the same to all living beings”. Even though water is used for a plethora of different things, it is always viewed the same. The poem, in itself, represents water, a simple but yet complex part of the universe.

Notes #2

Chris Jordan’s newest painting “Gyre” represents the negative view of the ocean by the materials from which it was made and the dull colors. This image was created from the millions of pieces of plastic that are found in the ocean every day. The plastic adds to the grainy texture that is similar to sand or dirt. The colors the painter chose to portray create a dreary monochromatic feel to the picture. Although the picture is held steady mid-wave, it has a lifeless feel due to the lack of vibrant colors that are generally associated with the ocean, a thing of beauty. The painter is trying to imbed the message that pollution can lead to the destruction of something once beautiful.