The Final Exam is on Thursday, December 17th, from 9:00 to 11:00 in room 305.
The exam contains four sections, A to D.
Section A: Sound & Meaning concerns musical devices, including rhythm, rhyme, and so on. The focus will be on poems by Langston Hughes. There are two questions, the first counting three (3) points, and the second six (6) points.
Section B: Meaning & Idea focuses on poems by Wallace Stevens, concerning prose meaning and total meaning, idea, tone and theme. There are three questions, counting six (6), four (4), and three (3) points respectively.
Section C: Imagism will focus on one Imagist poet. There are three questions. The first two questions will focus on poetic devices, counting eight (8) points and five (5) points respectively. The third question requires an explication of an imagist poem and counts five (5) points.
Section D: Race & Gender focuses on two poems by Maya Angelou. There are three questions. The first and second questions each counts five (5) points and will be on poetic devices. The third question requires a comparative paragraph of the two poems in which you discuss the issues of race and gender; it counts ten (10) points.
The exam is an open book exam, so please bring your textbook, notes, and the photocopies of poems that are not in the textbook. You may also use a dictionary. Please remember that most of the questions require your own answers – don’t merely copy material from the textbook or other sources. Give your personal answer and then quote from the poems and use the textbook or other material to augment and motivate your answer.
Good luck.
Gwendolyn Brooks (1917-2000)
(Image Source: Famous Poets & Poems)Gwendolyn Brooks was born in Topeka, Kansas, and raised in Chicago, Illinois. A graduate of Wilson Junior College, she studied modern poetry with Inez Cunning Stark Boulton at Chicago’s Southside Community Art Center. After becoming a writer, she ran workshops for underprivileged youths and taught her craft at various schools, including City College in New York. Brooks’s primary subject was the African-American experience: her first book, A Street in Bronzeville (1945), took its title from the name journalists applied to Chicago’s black ghetto. Like Langston Hughes, Brooks depicted the lives of “ordinary ” people; without succumbing to sentimentality, she celebrated their vitality in the face of hardship. After 1967, when Brooks’s “Blackness..[confronted her] with a shrill spelling of itself,” her work grew more militant and political. Her poetry relies on strong rhythms, and its textured diction derives in part from gospel preachers and from street talk. She increasingly moved away from closed forms to open, improvisational ones. (Biographical Summary from Norton's Anthology of Poetry, 4th Edition.)
Form
Apart from a poem’s internal structure—organization of ideas, images, metaphors, etc.—it also has an “external” structure, or form. When you look at the poem, how does it look? Is it one long strip of lines, or is it broken into stanzas? (A stanza, as you know, is a group of lines that go together.) Are the stanzas different in length or the same? Are the stanzas connected with the same metrical pattern, or is the meter different in different stanzas? These questions may help you to discover the form of the poem.
When no special form is visible, the lines merely flow one into the other with no stanzas to break them apart, we can reform to it as continuous form, for example “The Widow’s Lament in Springtime,” by William Carlos Williams. In Arp & Johnson’s glossary continuous form is described as “That form of a poem in which the lines follow each other without formal grouping, the only breaks being dictated by units of meaning” (p. 422). Similar to continuous form is free verse. This type of form is also without any formal grouping. Arp & Johnson explains it as “Nonmetrical poetry in which the basic rhythmic unit is the line, and in which pauses, line breaks, and formal patterns develop organically from the requirements of the individual poem rather than from established forms” (p. 424). In other words, there are no infringements made on the poem – no specific rhythmic or stanza requirements.
Often poems are structured into stanzas. Arp & Johnson explains that in “stanzaic form the poet writes in a series of stanzas; that is, repeated units having the same number of lines, usually the same metrical pattern, and often an identical rhyme scheme” (p. 244). While modern poetry may make use of stanzaic form, the do not always exhibit precise stanzas with specific metrical patterns or identical rhyme scheme. Modern poets tend to experiment more with the older forms. Nonetheless, it is still necessary to know the basic types of stanzas. Following are some types of stanzas:
Couplet: Two successive lines, usually in the same meter, and often linked by rhyme.
Tercet: A three line stanza.
Quatrain: A four-line stanza. The quatrain can sometimes be part four-line division within a sonnet and identifiable through its rhyme scheme.
Sestet: A six-line stanza. The sestet can also be part of an Italian sonnet – the last six lines.
Octave: An eight-line stanza. The first eight lines of an Italian sonnet is often an octave.
A Fixed form is a traditional pattern that applies to whole poem. The most common fixed form in English poetry is the sonnet, which is a poem that contains exactly fourteen lines and usually in iambic pentameter. There are three types of fixed forms, namely the Italian (or Petrarchan sonnet), the English (or Shakespearean sonnet) and the Spenserian sonnet. The diagram below depicts these sonnets with their individual rhyme schemes and stanzaic structures.
Jon Stalworthy. 1983. “Versification” p. 1416. (In The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 3rd Edition.)
While many modern poets use the sonnet, they often do not stick to the fixed tradition. An example is “Harlem Hopscotch” by Maya Angelou.
The basic forms outlined above is adequate for this course; however, for those of you interested in more types of forms in poetry, refer to the essay “Versification” (p. 1403-1422) by Jon Stallworthy in The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 3rd Edition, specifically the part on “Form” (p. 1431-1422).
When no special form is visible, the lines merely flow one into the other with no stanzas to break them apart, we can reform to it as continuous form, for example “The Widow’s Lament in Springtime,” by William Carlos Williams. In Arp & Johnson’s glossary continuous form is described as “That form of a poem in which the lines follow each other without formal grouping, the only breaks being dictated by units of meaning” (p. 422). Similar to continuous form is free verse. This type of form is also without any formal grouping. Arp & Johnson explains it as “Nonmetrical poetry in which the basic rhythmic unit is the line, and in which pauses, line breaks, and formal patterns develop organically from the requirements of the individual poem rather than from established forms” (p. 424). In other words, there are no infringements made on the poem – no specific rhythmic or stanza requirements.
Often poems are structured into stanzas. Arp & Johnson explains that in “stanzaic form the poet writes in a series of stanzas; that is, repeated units having the same number of lines, usually the same metrical pattern, and often an identical rhyme scheme” (p. 244). While modern poetry may make use of stanzaic form, the do not always exhibit precise stanzas with specific metrical patterns or identical rhyme scheme. Modern poets tend to experiment more with the older forms. Nonetheless, it is still necessary to know the basic types of stanzas. Following are some types of stanzas:
Couplet: Two successive lines, usually in the same meter, and often linked by rhyme.
Tercet: A three line stanza.
Quatrain: A four-line stanza. The quatrain can sometimes be part four-line division within a sonnet and identifiable through its rhyme scheme.
Sestet: A six-line stanza. The sestet can also be part of an Italian sonnet – the last six lines.
Octave: An eight-line stanza. The first eight lines of an Italian sonnet is often an octave.
A Fixed form is a traditional pattern that applies to whole poem. The most common fixed form in English poetry is the sonnet, which is a poem that contains exactly fourteen lines and usually in iambic pentameter. There are three types of fixed forms, namely the Italian (or Petrarchan sonnet), the English (or Shakespearean sonnet) and the Spenserian sonnet. The diagram below depicts these sonnets with their individual rhyme schemes and stanzaic structures.
Jon Stalworthy. 1983. “Versification” p. 1416. (In The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 3rd Edition.)While many modern poets use the sonnet, they often do not stick to the fixed tradition. An example is “Harlem Hopscotch” by Maya Angelou.
The basic forms outlined above is adequate for this course; however, for those of you interested in more types of forms in poetry, refer to the essay “Versification” (p. 1403-1422) by Jon Stallworthy in The Norton Anthology of Poetry, 3rd Edition, specifically the part on “Form” (p. 1431-1422).
Sound & Meaning
In poetry the music quality of words is used to great effect. The purpose is not merely ornamental, but also meaningful. Sound & Sense explains that “Rhythm and sound cooperate to produce what we call the music of poetry. This music, as we have pointed out, may serve two general functions: it may be enjoyable in itself, or it may reinforce meaning and intensify communication” (p. 224). What is important for you is to be able to identify when and how sounds in a poem convey or reinforce meaning in the poem.
The musical quality of a poem is achieved “by the choice and arrangement of sounds and by the arrangement of accents” (p. 181).
Rhyme
When same-sounding (rhyming) vowels are placed in close proximity it is known as assonance. The repetition of initial consonant sounds is known as alliteration. When the consonants repeat at the end of syllables it is called consonance. “Rhyme,” explains Arp & Johnson “is the repetition of the accented vowel sound and any succeeding consonant sounds” (p. 183). Rhyming, therefore requires the repetition of both an accent vowel sound and a consonant sound. You can read more about assonance and alliteration here.
When the rhyme involves only a single syllable it is called masculine, for example “fat” and “cat.” If more than one syllable is involved, like “spitefully” and “delightfully,” it is known as feminine rhyme. You can learn more about masculine and feminine rhyme, as well as end rhyme and approximate (imperfect) rhyme here.
Rhythm
As already mentioned, an important part of the music in poetry is rhythm. Rhythm is concerned with the accents, or stresses, in words. In English, certain syllables in words usually gets stressed more during pronunciation than other syllables. For example we say WONderful, not wonderful, or wonderFUL. The arrangement of such stresses in poetic lines creates a rhythm, known as the lines “Meter.” The meter is made up of a number of feet – each foot is one basic rhythmical unit of syllables. Read more about rhythm and the different types of feet and meter here.
Onomatopoeia
An interesting musical device in poetry is onomatopoeia, which refers to a word that mimics the sound it describes. For example “cock-a-doodle-do” refers to the crow of a rooster, or “woof-woof” to the barking of a dog.
Phonetic Intensives
In many Western languages certain sounds seem to indicate similar ideas.
For example:
The initial fl sound depicts moving light, e.g. flame, flicker, flash. An initial gl sound depicts unmoving light: glow, gleam, glint, glare. Or the initial str sound refers to long lines: street, stream, stripe, streak. For more, see Arp & Johnson, p. 225 and 226.
Euphony & Cacophony
Some sounds are pleasing (euphonious) and other sounds are non-pleasing (cacophonous). A poet can use this to emphasize the meaning in a poem. For example in the poem “Spring and All” by William Carlos Williams, the dead plants are described with words that contain many strong (plosive) consonants: “brown with dried weeds,” “forked, upstanding, twiggy / stuff of bushes.” These cacophonic sounds give emphasis to ugliness of the dead plants. Generally long vowels are more euphonic than shorter vowels, and smooth sounding consonants, like the liquids (l, m, n, and r) and other soft consonants like v, f are more euphonic than the plosives (b, d, g, k, p, and t), which are usually more cacophonic.
The musical quality of a poem is achieved “by the choice and arrangement of sounds and by the arrangement of accents” (p. 181).
Rhyme
When same-sounding (rhyming) vowels are placed in close proximity it is known as assonance. The repetition of initial consonant sounds is known as alliteration. When the consonants repeat at the end of syllables it is called consonance. “Rhyme,” explains Arp & Johnson “is the repetition of the accented vowel sound and any succeeding consonant sounds” (p. 183). Rhyming, therefore requires the repetition of both an accent vowel sound and a consonant sound. You can read more about assonance and alliteration here.
When the rhyme involves only a single syllable it is called masculine, for example “fat” and “cat.” If more than one syllable is involved, like “spitefully” and “delightfully,” it is known as feminine rhyme. You can learn more about masculine and feminine rhyme, as well as end rhyme and approximate (imperfect) rhyme here.
Rhythm
As already mentioned, an important part of the music in poetry is rhythm. Rhythm is concerned with the accents, or stresses, in words. In English, certain syllables in words usually gets stressed more during pronunciation than other syllables. For example we say WONderful, not wonderful, or wonderFUL. The arrangement of such stresses in poetic lines creates a rhythm, known as the lines “Meter.” The meter is made up of a number of feet – each foot is one basic rhythmical unit of syllables. Read more about rhythm and the different types of feet and meter here.
Onomatopoeia
An interesting musical device in poetry is onomatopoeia, which refers to a word that mimics the sound it describes. For example “cock-a-doodle-do” refers to the crow of a rooster, or “woof-woof” to the barking of a dog.
Phonetic Intensives
In many Western languages certain sounds seem to indicate similar ideas.
For example:
The initial fl sound depicts moving light, e.g. flame, flicker, flash. An initial gl sound depicts unmoving light: glow, gleam, glint, glare. Or the initial str sound refers to long lines: street, stream, stripe, streak. For more, see Arp & Johnson, p. 225 and 226.
Euphony & Cacophony
Some sounds are pleasing (euphonious) and other sounds are non-pleasing (cacophonous). A poet can use this to emphasize the meaning in a poem. For example in the poem “Spring and All” by William Carlos Williams, the dead plants are described with words that contain many strong (plosive) consonants: “brown with dried weeds,” “forked, upstanding, twiggy / stuff of bushes.” These cacophonic sounds give emphasis to ugliness of the dead plants. Generally long vowels are more euphonic than shorter vowels, and smooth sounding consonants, like the liquids (l, m, n, and r) and other soft consonants like v, f are more euphonic than the plosives (b, d, g, k, p, and t), which are usually more cacophonic.
Langston Hughes (1902-1967)
Langston Hughes was born in Joplin, Missouri, and raised in Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, and Ohio. He attended Columbia University from 1921 until 1922, then traveled extensively in South America and Europe before moving to Washington, D.C., in 1925. The next year Hughes published his first collection of poems, The Weary Blues, to great acclaim. In 1929 he received a B.A. from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania, but from 1928 until 1930 he lived in New York City and was a prominent figure in the Harlem Renaissance. In addition to poetry, he wrote fiction, drama, screenplays, essays, and autobiography. Because of his journalistic work in support of the Republican side during the Spanish Civil War and his sympathies for the American Communists, in 1953 he was called to testify before Senator Joseph McCarthy’s committee on subversive activities, and for many years following he worked to restore his reputation. Always concerned “largely … with the depicting of Negro life in America,” Hughes – like Whitman, Sandburg, and Dunbar – populated his poems with urban figures, such as busboys, elevator operators, cabaret singers, and streetwalkers. He documented their troubles in social-protest poems, drawing his meters and moods from street language, jazz, and the blues. (Biographical Summary from Norton's Anthology of Poetry, 4th Edition.)
Assignment:Themes in "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock"
Write an essay in which you identify and discuss three themes in the poem "The Lovesong of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T. S. Eliot.
Your essay should have a clear introductory paragraph with a thesis statement that gives a scope of the three themes you will discuss. It should have three body paragraphs, each discussing one theme; and finally, a concluding paragraph that reviews what you discussed. In all, five paragraphs.
Your essay should have a clear introductory paragraph with a thesis statement that gives a scope of the three themes you will discuss. It should have three body paragraphs, each discussing one theme; and finally, a concluding paragraph that reviews what you discussed. In all, five paragraphs.
T.S. Eliot (1888-1965)
T(homas) S(tearns) Eliot was born to a distinguished New England family, raised in St. Louis, Missouri, and educated at Havard University, the Sorbonne, and Oxford University, where he wrote his Ph.D. dissertation on the English logician and metaphysician F.H. Bradly. The critic Arthur Symons’ work on the French symbolists was a seminal influence on Eliot, as was the poet Ezra Pound, who encouraged him to stay in Europe. From 1917 until 1925 he worked in the International Department at Lloyd’s Bank, after which he joined the publishing the work of W. H. Auden, Stephen Spender, Louis MacNeice, and other young poets. He also edited the Egoist magazine and founded the influential Criterion. In 1927 Eliot took British citizenship and joined the Church of England. In his later years, he wrote compelling critical studies on literature, culture, society, and religion, ad generally is considered the most influential critic of the century. In addition, he dismissed The Waste Land, which he wrote largely while hospitalized for a breakdown in 1921, as “the relief of a personal and wholly insignificant grouse against life,” his generation considered it a definitive explication of its distress. Eliot intended to amalgamate the disparate “fragments” in the poem- taken from classical, English, and European literature, Hindu texts, and popular culture, and spoken by multiple voices and characters – into a new whole offering a form of spiritual renewal. The Waste Land (which Pound helped edit), like “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” (which Pound helped publish) and other early poems of Eliot’s, comments on the barrenness of modern civilization and displays a rich complexity of tone, which ranges from satiric to lyrical and elegiac. Eliot’s later work documents his conversion to Christianity and culminates in Four Quartets, which he considered his masterpiece. (Biographical Summary from Norton's Anthology of Poetry, 4th Edition.)
William Carlos Williams (1883-1963)
William Carlos Williams was born in Rutherford, New Jersey. In 1906 he earned an M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania, where he met the poet Ezra Pound and H.D. and the painter Charles Demuth. In 1910 he opened a pediatric practice in Rutherford, where, except for a year’s “sabbatical” in Europe, he lived and practice medicine for the rest of his life. Although strongly established in Rutherford, Williams was hardly provincial. He moved in New York’s avant-grade circles- along with the poets Marianne Moore and Wallace Stevens and the artist Marcel Duchamp- and was affiliated with several short-lived but influential journals. In addition to poetry, he wrote fiction, drama, and essays. Influenced by Pound, Williams was an early proponent of imagism, a movement he valued for its stripping away of conventions that obfuscated the true significance of things. Later he regretted that imagism had “dribbled off into so called ‘free verse’ ” and declared himself an objectivist, valuing the rigor of form. Williams called on his contemporaries to create a distinctly American art, arising out of the materials of the place, responding to contemporary necessities, firmly rooted in particulars: “No ideas but in things,” he insisted time and again. These edits find their culmination in Williams’ masterpiece Paterson (1946-58), a five-volume poem that recounts the history of Rutherford and nearby Paterson and transforms the locale into the embodiment of modern humanity.(Biographical Summary from Norton's Anthology of Poetry, 4th Edition.)
Topic, Idea, Theme
When I ask you what a poem is about, you can answer me by giving me the topic, the main idea, or a theme.
The topic is the subject(s) discussed in the poem. For instance, in “The Anecdote of a Jar” the topic is a “jar” placed upon a hill.
We already covered idea, in a previous post. The (main) idea of the poem tells us about the purpose of the poem. By figuring out the idea, we are figuring out the message that the poet or the narrator (speaker in the poem) is conveying to the reader. An idea in “Anecdote of the Jar” may be the interrelation between man, art, and nature. Man creates art using material from nature; therefore the artist (man), the artifact (in this case the “jar”), and nature (the “clay” used to make the jar) are all connected. Another idea in this poem can be man’s dominion over nature, with the “jar” becoming a symbol for man; or man’s domestication of nature: "the wilderness rose up to" the jar, "no longer wild" (lines 5 & 6).
A theme is any broad idea which is common in literature. There are many themes in literature and with a little practice and lots of reading you will start to recognize them easily. For instance a popular theme is the Forcefulness of Love (think for example of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”), the Inevitability of Death (Wallace Steven’s “The Death of a Soldier”), or Man versus Nature which is the theme in “Anecdote of the Jar.” Another theme, related to Man versus Nature, is Natural versus Artificial. A poem may have more than one theme. Whenever you want to discuss the contents of a poem, it is important to figure out what its themes are.
The idea of a poem is usually based on a theme, but is more specific than a theme. In "Anecdote of the Jar" the theme may be Man versus Nature; but more specifically, the idea is Man's Domestication of Nature. The theme tells us that there is a figurative battle between man and nature, and the idea tells us who is winning this battle. In the context of this poem it is man who is winning, as the jar, which is a symbol (metonomy) for man, takes "dominion everywhere" (line 9).
The topic is the subject(s) discussed in the poem. For instance, in “The Anecdote of a Jar” the topic is a “jar” placed upon a hill.
We already covered idea, in a previous post. The (main) idea of the poem tells us about the purpose of the poem. By figuring out the idea, we are figuring out the message that the poet or the narrator (speaker in the poem) is conveying to the reader. An idea in “Anecdote of the Jar” may be the interrelation between man, art, and nature. Man creates art using material from nature; therefore the artist (man), the artifact (in this case the “jar”), and nature (the “clay” used to make the jar) are all connected. Another idea in this poem can be man’s dominion over nature, with the “jar” becoming a symbol for man; or man’s domestication of nature: "the wilderness rose up to" the jar, "no longer wild" (lines 5 & 6).
A theme is any broad idea which is common in literature. There are many themes in literature and with a little practice and lots of reading you will start to recognize them easily. For instance a popular theme is the Forcefulness of Love (think for example of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet”), the Inevitability of Death (Wallace Steven’s “The Death of a Soldier”), or Man versus Nature which is the theme in “Anecdote of the Jar.” Another theme, related to Man versus Nature, is Natural versus Artificial. A poem may have more than one theme. Whenever you want to discuss the contents of a poem, it is important to figure out what its themes are.
The idea of a poem is usually based on a theme, but is more specific than a theme. In "Anecdote of the Jar" the theme may be Man versus Nature; but more specifically, the idea is Man's Domestication of Nature. The theme tells us that there is a figurative battle between man and nature, and the idea tells us who is winning this battle. In the context of this poem it is man who is winning, as the jar, which is a symbol (metonomy) for man, takes "dominion everywhere" (line 9).
Prose Meaning, Idea, Total Meaning, and Tone
It is possible to get a meaning of a poem by writing a prose paraphrase of the poem. Through this summary of the poem one gets what is known as the prose meaning of the poem. If one is to summarize the poem even further, into a single thought, or in one or two sentences, one is left with the main idea of the poem.
The prose meaning, however, loses much of the original poems richness. The richness of the poem is contained in the specific words chosen and their connotative meanings, the various images, the poetic devices used, the sound quality of the poem when read, and so on. The prose meaning does not convey these truly poetic qualities of the poem. To really understand the poem in all its richness, one need to do an explication (detailed explanation) of the poem, which take into account all the poetic elements in the poem. Such an explication will give us the total meaning of the poem.
Such an understanding of the poem may also give as a prominent feeling, an emotional quality that seems inherent in the poem. This feeling is known as the poem’s tone.
Exercise 1: Explain how a poem that expresses an idea with which you do not agree may, nevertheless, be a source of appreciation and enjoyment. (From “Reviewing Chapter Nine,” Sound & Sense, p. 152.)
Exercise 2: How is tone conveyed in spoken language? How is tone conveyed in written language?
Exercise 3: Tone is usually identified by an adjective. With what adjectives would you describe the tone in Wallace Stevens’ poem “Snow Man”?
Assignment: Read Wallace Steven’s poem “Anecdote of the Jar.” In a paragraph explain the prose meaning of the poem (in other words, give a summary of the poem.) Also indicate the main idea and the tone of the poem.
The prose meaning, however, loses much of the original poems richness. The richness of the poem is contained in the specific words chosen and their connotative meanings, the various images, the poetic devices used, the sound quality of the poem when read, and so on. The prose meaning does not convey these truly poetic qualities of the poem. To really understand the poem in all its richness, one need to do an explication (detailed explanation) of the poem, which take into account all the poetic elements in the poem. Such an explication will give us the total meaning of the poem.
Such an understanding of the poem may also give as a prominent feeling, an emotional quality that seems inherent in the poem. This feeling is known as the poem’s tone.
Exercise 1: Explain how a poem that expresses an idea with which you do not agree may, nevertheless, be a source of appreciation and enjoyment. (From “Reviewing Chapter Nine,” Sound & Sense, p. 152.)
Exercise 2: How is tone conveyed in spoken language? How is tone conveyed in written language?
Exercise 3: Tone is usually identified by an adjective. With what adjectives would you describe the tone in Wallace Stevens’ poem “Snow Man”?
Assignment: Read Wallace Steven’s poem “Anecdote of the Jar.” In a paragraph explain the prose meaning of the poem (in other words, give a summary of the poem.) Also indicate the main idea and the tone of the poem.
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