Read the two poems "Your World" and "Acquainted with the Night." Either on the paper with the poems or on a separate sheet of paper, answer our three big poetry questions: Who is the speaker? What is going on? What is unusual?
Then, here on the blog, share your analysis with the class! Write a one paragraph analysis explaining your understanding of the poem's meaning and the different figurative or stylistic elements that are present. Remember, when we are referring to figurative or stylistic elements, we are referring to any sound elements (alliteration, assonance, consonance, rhyme), repetition, framing, or comparisons (metaphors, similes, extended metaphors, personification).
Just in case, I am posting the poems here, too. If you lost your paper, make sure you have written your answers to our three big poetry questions (Who's the speaker? What's going on? What is unusual?) for each poem on a separate sheet of paper, as I will be collecting it!
Be sure to check back on the blog frequently to "virtually" study with everyone!
Acquainted with the Night
ReplyDeleteBy Robert Frost
I have been one acquainted with the night.
I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain.
I have outwalked the furthest city light.
I have looked down the saddest city lane.
I have passed by the watchman on his beat
And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.
I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet
When far away an interrupted cry
Came over houses from another street,
But not to call me back or say good-bye;
And further still at an unearthly height,
O luminary clock against the sky
Proclaimed the time was neither wrong nor right.
I have been one acquainted with the night.
Your World
ReplyDeleteYour world is as big as you make it.
I know, for I used to abide
In the narrowest nest in a corner,
My wings pressing clsoe to my side.
But I sighted the distant horizon
Where the skyline encircled the sea
AndI throbbed with a burning desire
To travel this immensity.
I battered the cordons around me
And cradled my wings on the breeze,
Then soared to the uttermost reaches
With rapture, with power, with ease!
Written by Georgia Douglas Johnson (1880-1966)
Hello Ms Gelso and fellow classmates,
ReplyDelete“Your World”
In the poem “Your world” by Georgia Douglas Johnson, there are included many sound elements, as well as comparisons. First of all, the speaker is in first person and as we can see, the poet uses continuously the word “I”. The speaker feels like she is a bird that wants to escape from its nest and “travel this immensity”. She also feels powerful and strong, ready to explore the whole world. As I mentioned above, there are many sound elements. Firstly, there is rhyme (abide-side and breeze-ease). Then, we can see assonance (in the sentence “where the skyline encircled the sea,” there is repetition of the letter “e”). Moreover, there is consonance (“I battered the cordons around me”, there is repetition of the letter “d”). Finally, in one sentence, we can find both alliteration and extended metaphor. In the sentence “Your world is as big as you make it,” the sound of “w” is repeated, but also it is a metaphor, because you cannot make the world.
“Acquainted with the Night”
In the poem “Acquainted with the Night” by Robert Frost, we can find as well many sound elements. The speaker is in first person, describing his walk in the night, on the streets of his town. He walks by himself, explaining whatever he watches or hears. As for the sound elements, I found six of them. There is line framing of the sentence “I have been one acquainted with the night”, something that I find really useful because it’s also the title of the poem. There is many times rhyme (night-light, lane-explain, feet-street, bye-sky and right-night), as well as repetition of words (rain, walked). There is also alliteration (in the sentence “I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet”, there is repetition of “s”), and assonance (“O luminary clock against the sky” has the sound of e repeated). Finally, there is consonance (in the sentence “I have been one acquainted with the night” the sound of “n” is repeated).
Stavros brought up the use of metaphor in "Your World." He mentioned that there is an extended metaphor present, but didn't go on to fully explain. He's right, though, there is an extended metaphor. Can anyone explain the extended metaphor?
ReplyDeleteStavros, you did a good job pointing out the sound elements in both poems!
ReplyDeleteAgain, something interesting was brought up, this time with "Acquainted with the Night." Stavros pointed out that the poem is framed by the line "I have been one acquainted with the night." The poem both starts and ends with that line, leaving it very stressed in our minds. Why might that be the line to be repeated and used to frame the poem?
Hello Ms Gelso and classmates,
ReplyDeleteMs Gelso I will answer to your questions as for my comment.
The poem "Your World", includes one extended metaphor that is used to say that the way you "act" to the world, that good it will become. That means that, if you do something nice, the world will be better.
The poem "Acquainted with the Night" has line framing, which is maybe used to emphasize the things that you can learn about the night while exploring it by yourself. The speaker, all alone, heard and saw many things in his walk on the streets of the town (things that you probably wouldn't see and hear in daytime), knowing it better.
Thank you for reading (and I want extra credit for using one of the vocabulary words)!
Good answers, Stavros! I think there is more to the extended metaphor in "Your World", too. Throughout the whole poem, the speaker likens herself/himself to a bird. I think that maybe the speaker is not literally a bird, but is using the characteristics of a bird in a metaphor to explain his or her beliefs about how one should act. At first, his or her "wings [are] pressing close to [his or her] side," meaning he or she was timid about taking chances in his or her life. Then, the speaker says he or she has "a burning desire" to go out and experience what the world has to offer. When he or she takes flight and "soar[s] to the uttermost reaches" it means he or she finally decided to take flight and find new things. The idea of a bird deciding to take flight during the entire poem is an extended metaphor for someone who is deciding to take chances in his or her life and experience the world.
ReplyDeleteDoes anyone think that the night has a metaphorical meaning in "Acquainted with the Night"?
ReplyDeleteHi
ReplyDeletein the poem "your world" the meaning is that you can shape how your life could be which is saying the same thing as your world is as big as you make it because your life and your world are the same things. for example in the poem she said that she used to abide in the narrowest nest in a corner which could mean she usually didn’t try new things, but then she decided to try something new and she left what she usually did and tried something new. The speaker in the poem is in first person so probably the author. Something unusual is that how she describes something she wants as a "burning desire". Some sound elements are in the poem such as repetition like "with rapture, with power, with ease", abide, side and breeze, ease.
In the poem "acquainted with the night" the meaning is that it is impossible to be acquainted with the night, for example it said that the "the time was neither wrong nor right" this means that the time was the correct time but it wasn’t night, the other example is that it is impossible to walk in and out of rain. Something unusual is that the speaker says the same line in the beginning and at the end of the poem. The speaker is first person explaining what he saw during his walk. Some sound elements are repetition such as I have and rhyme such as: night, light, lane, explain, feet, street, bye and sky.
Bye
"Your World"
ReplyDeleteThe poem written by Georgia Dougias Johnson is really intresting.This is because she uses alliteration and describes in a vivid way. She also uses othe Literary elemants. We can see that she uses metaphors and extended metapgor for example "Your world is as big as you make it" which is the first line and first metaphor. We can also see that the poem is written as a first speaker because the various "I" she has used throghout the poem. An example of alliteration in this poem could be "With rapture, with power, with ease.
"Aquainted with the Night"
The poem "Aquainted with the Night" is written by Robert Frost. This poem is written in first person and is clear because the various use of the word "I" which is reapeted variously. We can see how he starts with a sentence and ends with the same "I have been aquainted with the night" this makes the poem in a way diffrent from others. We can also notice how he uses metaphors and extended for example "I have walked out in rain"
Hello everyone
ReplyDeleteIn the first poem “Acquainted with the Night” by Robert Frost, Frost uses symbolism and rhythm to convey a message of loneliness and isolation through the speaker. The speaker describes his walk through his city showing activities he notices during the night while taking his stroll in deep thought. There are different figurative or stylistic elements that are present in the poem. The words “I have” is used repetitively through out the poem, using it to describe the speaker and also this is a first speaker singular. Other sound elements seen in the poem are an example of alliteration “I have stood still and stopped the sound of feet” the repetition of the “s “sound creates a sense of quiet, reinforcing the meaning of the line. The symbol of the moon is hidden behind the metaphoric image of the "one luminary clock”. This is" is the impartial time keeper for the poet. The "time is neither right nor wrong" for him. I think the line used to frame the poem noted by Stavros was used at the beginning and end of the poem because the night symbol shows the sufferings and mood of the speaker which grants his attempt to ponder in his thoughts, though no one hears, he is depressed and he becomes acquainted with the night.
In the poem “Your World” by Georgia Douglas Johnson, the speaker used is also a first speaker singular. This shows a person that wants to be free to explore the world and is locked up in a place and wishes that his desires to explore will be fulfilled. In the opening sentence of the poem, Simile can be seen as the sound element used in the introductory line with the sentence “Your world is as big as you make it”; the comparison in the sentence shows this. Also further down the sentence “Where the skyline encircled the sea” is personification in use, as the skyline line is a non living thing, giving the characteristics of a living thing by saying it is encircling the sea. This really makes the poem come alive in the mind of the reader. The characteristics describing the speaker like wings, breeze, soared signifies that the speaker is seen as a caged bird.
Talking about the extended metaphor in Your world, I believe that the speaker using the characteristics of a bird is showing a situation where there is a burning desire to create our own world of what we want, but there are fears and obstacles that keep us away from it and it depends on how strong we are driven by our desires to move ahead or be caged in our fears and just remain as we are. So the power of who we want to be or what our lives should be is controlled by the steps we take which is illustrated by taking a flight and soaring high in the poem
In the poem “Acquainted with the Night”, the author, Robert Frost, talks in first person and describes his walk in the night under the rain. He decribes what he sees and hears by using sound elements. The poem is full of repetitions, (“I have”;“rain”;“night”), alliterations, (“stood-still-stopped-sound”), and finally rhythms (“night-light” “lane-explain” “feet-street” “bye-sky”). The unusual things I found in the poem are found for in the last verse, that is composed of only 2 lines, either that 4 lines, like in the other verses. Also, always in the last verse, the author doesn’t include a rhythm...
ReplyDeleteIn the poem “Your World”, Georgia Douglas Johnson, throught the numerous sound elements, explains how she, as a bird, wants to escape from the nest. The author talks in first person, using the repeated “I”. She begins the poem with a simile, but continues without, (unusual thing). The poem is ful of alliterations (“To Travel This immensity.”), consonance (“I battereD the corDons arounD me”), and finally many rhytms found in each verse in the second and fourth line (“abside-side; sea-immensity; breeze-ease!”).
The poem analysis the real meaning of the greatness of life. It made me understand that, as the poet underlines , life is as big as the world.This poem doesn't have a second meaning even though the writer feels a great energy and wants to affront the beauties of life!
ReplyDeleteLet's talk a little more about "Aquainted with the Night." As some of you pointed out, the language is very vivid and really helps us to visualize someone walking through a street at night. Words like "dropped my eyes," "saddest," and "stopped the sound of feet" give the poem a very sad tone and lonely mood. My question is this: Is the night metaphorical for anything else? I think you could read this poem two different ways. You could say that the speaker is simply painting a picture of how lonely night can be. Yet you could also say that taking a walk at night is a metaphor for how the speaker is living his or her life: alone, but independent and in control. If it is a metaphor, it would be extended because the same comparison is maintained and expanded upon using other words and images. Also interesting about this poem is the framing: "I have been one acquainted with the night." This emphasizes the importance of the line. Also in this line is an example of personification. Typically one does not say that he or she is "acquainted" with something inanimate; it is usually just used in reference to people. This makes the night seem almost like a friend to the speaker, which is somewhat ironic given the overall sad tone and lonely mood.
ReplyDeleteHello Ms Gelso and fellow classmates,
ReplyDeleteIn the Poem, “Acquainted with the Night,” by Robert Frost, I feel that the speaker in the poem is feeling guilty about something, or is feeling invisible. When the speaker says, “I have passed by the watchman on his beat And dropped my eyes, unwilling to explain.” It Shows that the speaker was feeling guilty and felt uncomfortable about explaining something. The speaker probably made a mistake and when he or she finally got out of it, they slipped their way back in without knowing, hence the sentence; “I have walked out in rain -- and back in rain.”
The speaker is in first person and in my opinion, the speaker is the author of the poem. He is talking about a stroll that they had in the town at midnight. He or she describing what he saw and heard. Another thing that the speaker is describing is how he feels. The speaker is practically saying that he has spent so many nights walking under the rain, that he felt like he was invisible and that he was just part of the night.
The Poem, “Your World,” by Georgia Douglas Johnson is expressing freedom. The speaker is talking about her life. At first she was probably very shy, and closed up. Afraid to open her eyes, stand up and speak. In all she was afraid of being noticed. Then one day, she discovered how beautiful the world and life is and lived it to the fullest. She broke herself free from any criticism, and “flew away”.
The speaker is in first person and is the author of the poem, who is, Georgia Douglas Johnson. Like the poem, “Acquainted with the Night,” the speaker is describing what she is feeling, and what she is seeing. The message in this poem is: Don’t close up and be terrified of the world, you don’t know what you are missing. What I find unusual but yet meaningful in this poem, is how the speaker portraits freedom as a bird.
Have a nice day!