"My Papa's Waltz" Poem Analysis Class Discussion

           The first time I read this poem I thought it was about a father abusing his child from him under the influence of alcohol. This is from the use of the author's language that makes it contradictory from their being more than one meaning people can interpret. The "waltz" in this poem is referring to the harsh dancing the father is forcing on the child. In the first stanza, there is a forceful tone from the child having to hang on like death to stay in motion with his dad. The child is also dizzy from the strong whiskey on his dad's breath and it is hard for him to stay up while his dad is also sloppy from being drunk. Then comes the part in stanza two, where the pans are falling from the kitchen shelf and the mother is frowning. It sounds like the child is being banged into the shelf from the father swinging him around. The mother's expression exemplifies the tone of harshness more by her facial expression being frowned from her mind also being frowned, or in disbelief. Her being in disbelief suggests that what has been done can't be undone and she is in total anger and or frightened from this happening. The tone of the father's appearance helps better understand the speaker's experience by the "hand caked hard by dirt" being kind of threatening to make it seem like this child was frightened by this and went along with the dance routine to get less abused. If the father would miss a step, then the child would slip and hit his ear on the dad's belt buckle. The belt buckle could be expressing the whipping a child gets for being naughty and be used in the poem as a hint for abusing by the father. Also the beating time over the child's head with a palm caked hard by dirt could be a hint for the dad beating the kid over the head from being so drunk. The palm caked hard by dirt could also be a hint of threat the dad holds.
           When I found out that the author's dad died when he was 14, I interpreted the poem in a whole new way. Now I see it as the father coming home from an exhausting day of work and sitting down to eat dinner. He has some whiskey as he eats and get drunk from drinking too much. Then the child comes out wanting to play with his father and they start dancing around the kitchen. They are kind of rough housing as they dance and slip occasionally from the father losing balance, or the kid being dizzy. When they slip, they hit into the kitchen shelf and made pans slid down onto the floor. The mother is frowning from this from the fact that they are making a mess of the kitchen, but she also finds this dancing amusing. Every once in a while the father would miss a step and make the child hit his ear on the father's belt buckle. This beating time on the child's head with a palm caked hard by dirt is referring to the father taking time out of the child's play time with him to be out working. Then once the father is too tired to go on, he dances the child along into bed while the child is gripping on his shirt. The child does this while pleading to stay up longer to have fun, but the father makes him go to bed.

Poem Analysis of "Early in the Morning" by Li Young Li

           This poem shows a mother who gets up early before the birds do to prepare breakfast for the family. The son's father carefully watches as his wife brushes an ivory comb through her hair, heavy and black as calligrapher's ink. She is sitting at the foot of a bed as she does this while the father watches and listens for music the comb makes as it goes against the hair. As the mother has done for half a hundred years, she puts her hair back in a bun and the father likes this look and thinks it is kempt. The son knows that his father enjoys the hair like this the most because of the way it falls out like a curtain when unpinned.

           The ivory comb going through the calligrapher's ink colored hair is a contrast between how dark the hair is compared to the color of the comb. The calligrapher's ink shows that the family has knowledge and love for each other, from the ink being contrasted with the hair and the hair symbolizes the family. Calligraphy is the art of beautiful hand writing, so it makes sense that it would mean the family is inteligent and loving from it being contrasted with it. The music of the comb against the mother's hair shows great level of attention from the dad since the comb doesn't actually make music. Putting back the mother's hair shows a ritual in the family as time goes on. The rituals are liked and worthy of doing from the family's perspective. As the pins are being pulled out of the hair and it falls down like a curtain, it symbolizes the family being open to each other and helping each other out. The poem "Early in the Morning" by Li Young Li, portrays a father carefully examining his wife's hair with it's calligrapher's ink color and music it makes when an ivory comb goes through it and reveals that knowledge and loving families help each other out and keep rituals to be organized and efficient.

Sheet of Connections

Small, but amazing.

I stare now curiously

with thoughts on my mind.

With its crystal like

structure falling slowly down.

Each one is unique.

When looked at for long

you go into a daze like

faze and stand inert.

Such small structures can

combine together to make

a sheet on the ground.

I step on the sheet.

It leaves an imprint of me.

We are connected.

Comparisons in King Dork to the Catcher in the Rye

           In the book, King Dork Tom Henderson related many things to Catcher in the Rye through his eyes in his own life. One thing that really annoyed Tom was the fact that teachers always made their students read the Catcher in the Rye. The reason was that Tom didn't like the way that Holden Caulfield portrayed himself as a character and the world around him. Also that every English teacher in his school was so fond of Holden and found him very inspiring. The thing that is ironic about this is the fact that Tom is very similar in the ways that Holden is as a character. An example is both of their views of the society around them. Tom feels inferior to others and isolates himself from mostly everyone from him feeling that they are threats to him by bullying or treating him with lower rank. Holden isolates himself from the world from him feeling that mostly everyone around him are phonies and stays away from growing up to not become corrupt in adulthood. Tom has a difficulty of connecting with peers because of him having a reputation of a "King of all dorks", so he feels like he can't talk to others from the inferiority. Holden has a difficulty also because of the isolation he has put himself in by not wanting to get sucked into the phoniness and the curruptness of being an adult. Tom's younger sister hasn't shown much fondness to Tom until he entered the Festival of Lights, which she supported him by making posters and praising him to become more noticed. Holden's sister has always been very passionate and caring for Holden to help him overcome the fear of becoming an adult and open up to society. Tom's mom hasn't really been there for him very much by not telling him the truth behind his fathers death and relating to his problems to help him out. Holden's parents have barely been there for him to help encourage him to do well in school and sent him off to schools that he didn't want to attend.

Theodore Roosevelt Quote Analysis

"In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing, the next best thing is the wrong thing, and the worst thing you can do is nothing."

-Theodore Roosevelt

           The big idea within this quote is the good and bad decisions that one makes throughout life. Anytime someone is in a position of making a decision for themself or others, go for the one that you feel is the best one worthwhile. Sometimes it is difficult to decide on something, but people should go with the first decision that pops up in their mind. This is because it is people's first thought that comes to mind about a certain situation and is probably the best from it being the first thing thought of. Then people naturally start to think of other possible decisions that could be better and start to over think it to much. People might then pick a different decision than the first one, from them being under pressure and it not being as well thought out as the first. This causes the wrong decision to be made, making it the bad decisions that people make throughout life. Then there is the worst decision made by not making any decision at all. If nothing is decided, then nothing will happen and further cause worse things to occur.

Cite:

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/t/theodorero403358.html#W7bIdESXhiuBQ103.99

Great Skyscraper

           Standing before me is like a skyscraper with its tower like structure. It has grayish and brown coloring surrounding the surface. Its surface is bumpy and is solid when touched. The body of this great structure varies within the diameter and height. Some are about a foot or more in diameter. Some vary in height, but most have staggering heights that appear to be brushing against the clouds. When looked at from any side view, this structure appears to have a cylinder shape that connects at the bottom to the ground. To ensure that these immense structures can withstand staying up, considering their height, long roots travel beneath ground level to give extra support. The roots also act as a mechanism to give nutrients to the structure from the ground to stay healthy and strong. Above the surface, long structrues can also be seen coming out of the main structure that can extend pretty far distances. Within those structures that extend out, there can also be smaller structures that extend out to the sides of it. Within the main structure itself, there is kind of a defense shield around it that is bumpy and is very solid. Overall, this great structure has beauty of its own with its great features and can help out life as a whole.

The Circle

As fast, as fast can be.

Goes by like the strike of lightning.

Seen by many as the cheers fall into a roar.

Around and around, the blur comes and goes.

The image can almost be seen, 

but it appears as an illusion to the eyes.

People try to keep up, but they fall behind and get lapped.

This merry go round goes on forever,

making it a mystery that may never be solved.

Me Against The World Poem Analysis

           The main point of this poem is trying to say that people that think different tell others ideas, but they put them down because they think they know everything. Everyone asks questions even if they are smarter then everyone, so no one should be criticising other people for their thoughts. Even if people try and tell you that you are wrong, listen to yourself and block them out because it is a world of everyone against each other. I feel that the poet is using someone as a speaker that feels inferior to others from them putting the person down from expressing their own thoughts. The speaker is trying to tell everyone that it is okay to express your own thoughts and to not let others tell you what you are doing wrong. I feel that the poet wrote this poem to give people an understanding of how normal it is to disagree with others from the fact of everyone being brought up differently. Everyone has different minds and will react to things differently than others will, so just let others think the way they want and deal with it. The title gives a better understanding of the poem because when others argue with you about your view, you feel against people, or the world in general. I feel that this poem gives a big impact to anyone that reads it because it shows that it is okay to think differently, because everyone does. The poem made me feel better because now when I hear people arguing about something, I will know that it isn't a big deal from it being a normal occurence. Overall, the poem conveys a strong message to the world and explains the reason for people feeling inferior to others.

Parallels Between Holden Caulfield and Will Hunting

           Will Hunting parallels Holden Caulfield in some ways. He doesn't look for success in his academic life. He is resentful towards his family for them being abusive and not encouraging, while Holden doesn't like the fact that they are pushing him to go to schools he doesn't want to go to. Will makes life unnecessarily hard for himself by trying to avoid relationships with people because he is afraid to get hurt again by somebody else. On the other hand, Holden isolates himself from people by making up excuses for them being phonies or hotshots to make him feel better about himself. Will pushed his girlfriend away when she tried to get too close, pushed his mentor away, pushed his job he got offered away, anything that would make him happy he pushed away, just so he wouldn't become emotionally involved with them. Holden pushed his chances to become successful or keep relationships with people by failing out of prestigious high schools, throwing away his relationship with Sally, making up excuses to not call Jane up, isolating himself from the so called "phonies", and not listening to the people trying to motivate him. A major difference was at the ends of the novel and movie from Holden not being ordered by the court to go to a therapist, but instead having a mental breakdown. Will at the end had a successful ending from realizing he can try new things without having the fear of getting hurt again. He realized this after Sean kept saying "it's not your fault" over and over to him.

The Race to Victory

           "Junior division for the second heat, please get into your designated lanes for the race", said the announcer. I walked over to the 6th lane and looked around to see my opponents. Three of them were on my team, with their maroon and gold tanks and maroon shorts on. They appeared to be excited for this 200 meter dash, but I knew myself that inside they were worried about the outcome of it, just like I was looking at our opponents. Our rival, Noble had expressions on their faces like we were going to be a piece of cake to demolish. "Ready up fellow sprinters, the race is going to commence shortly." I set my hands just before the white line and stretched out my legs till my feet fell flush with the fronts of the blocks. I took a few heavy breaths to relieve myself and looked ahead at the finish line. It looked to be about a mile away. "Runners on your mark", said the guy with starting gun. At this point I could feel my heart pounding against my chest. "Get set, bang." I launched myself forward from the blocks with a mighty force and thrusted my arms back and forth. At this point from what I could see in front of me, there were only three people ahead of me. I started breathing heavily and could feel the exhaustion coming on. All I told myself is to keep pushing and I will be successful as long as I try. Already half the race has gone by and I have only passed one Noble runner. I started picking up my speed, confident in myself to win this race. I passed another Noble runner and only had one runner left to pass, one of my teammates. 30 meters left and I was golden to win this race. My heart was pounding even harder now and I was having a very difficult time breathing. My teammate wast only about three feet ahead of me and I kept telling myself that I can do it. 10 meters left and I was even closer this time with about a foot gap between the runner and I. 5 meters, 4 meters, 3 meters. Only half a foot to go and I would pass him. 2 meters, 1 meter, and we both passed the finish line side by side. On the scoreboard it showed, Spencer, first place. To me at that moment, all I cared about was that I gave it all I got.

The cloud

I stare at one cloud.

Painted with a creamy white,

high above my head.

It soars past others

like a glimmering airplane,

and fades far away.

I try to follow,

but it is to fast for me

to catch up with it.

I still try, myself.

To search the unknown

for that far gone cloud.

Character Changes from the Catcher in the Rye and Good Will Hunting Analysis

The Catcher in the Rye

In the end of the Catcher in the Rye Holden dramatically changed his whole view of becoming an adult. His belief was that innocence should be preserved throughout life and he was scarred of becoming corrupt when becoming an adult from this loss of innocence. The moment that Holden realized that is okay to grow up is when he saw Phoebe going around and around on the carrousel. This symbolized the journey to and from innocence throughout life while still having maturity. Also, Phoebe trying to grab the golden ring symbolized the risks you take throughout life to try and reach goals to become successful.

Good Will Hunting
In the end of Good Will Hunting Will dramatically changed his view of being able to make relationships with people and trust others. When he was a young kid he got abused and wasn't loved by his parents. He then went off to two other foster homes and got abused there also. He could never then trust to be close with anyone other than his friends again from the fear of being abused again. His view of this changed when after being able to trust his therapist, Sean after building a good relationship with him. Sean told Will over and over again that "it's not your fault", and at this moment he realized that is okay to make relationships with people because not everybody is abusive.

Last Sentence of Catcher in the Rye Analysis

Last sentence in Catcher in the Rye: "Don't ever tell anybody anything. If you do, you start missing everybody."

These last two sentences from the Catcher in the Rye are very revealing considering the way that Holden has acted throughout the whole novel. He has had his mishaps with other characters like disliking them for their bad habits, like Ackley clipping his fingernails on the floor or popping his pimples in Holden's dorm. He dislikes Stradlater's secret slobiness from him not switching razor blades off shaving his face. He thinks that Sally is pain in the ass from her being a phony herself by talking to other phonies and disagreeing with him. Also he was ver angry at Maurice, the elevator man at the Edmont Hotel for trying to get more money out of him than he said and then punched Holden in the stomach. From Holden saying that he misses these people after he doesn't like them is a pretty strange thing for him to say and makes me think that he has changed for forgiving phonies.

Going to and From Innocence Diamante Poem

Innocence

Nice, guiltless

Caring, advancing, helping

Being a child, losing innocence 

Working, changing, losing

Corruption, phony

Adulthood

Albert Einstein Quote

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.                    

                                                                           -Albert Einstein

I feel that this quote is trying to explain the meaning of life. When it says "One is though nothing is a miracle." I think this would be a life that has no excitement or happy times in it. When it says "The other is though everything is a miracle." I think this would be a life filled with excitement and many happy times. Altogether this quote tells one big idea of everyone should live their life to the fullest so they don't feel that their life is pointless and you only live once, so live it.

The End

Over here I stand

in thy desolate world, us.

It is our fault, no?

It has spread to us.

With its cruel structure, takes us

to a place far gone.

Is there a way out?

For now there are still thoughts, but

we may never know.

Weeping Willow by the River

Weeping Willow tree—

Dark green dangles from its limbs.

Standing tall, it does.

As I walk toward it,

I see the beauty it holds

with its great structure.

Stands by the river.

It's reflection is vivid

showing intense green.

I feel like staying.

Forever I be standing,

standing by that tree.

Acrostic Poem About Me

Sensible for what is wrong and what is right.

Passionate for satisfactory work and grades.

Envious for my whole family and the success of it.

Nonchalant most of the time.

Challenging myself everyday to be successful.

Experienced runner for the track team.

Representative for who is a responsible and caring person.

Holden Caulfield's View on Phonies

The biggest motif that appears in the Catcher in the Rye is the word phony. Holden's use of the word phony is used in many different ways throughout the novel. Holden uses it to describe people that are different than him, people he doesn't like, people that like things he doesn't like, or things that he doesn't enjoy. I think that Holden just calls people phonies from them acting different than him because he feels that everyone should act the way he does. If they don't act like him then then they are fake. This is pretty much everyone around Holden, except the people that he looks up to from them being intelligent or moving far in life. These people include his brother that died, Allie, his kid sister Phoebe, Mr. Antolini, his brother D.B., and his friend Jane Gallagher. I feel that Holden's use of phony is an excuse for him to stay the way he is and isolate himself from mostly everyone. I also feel that the author, J.D. Salinger is trying to show how someone can keep themself from ever moving on if they can't accept the people around them and they also can't accept themself if they do that.

Holden's Concern for the Ducks

The ducks in Central Park are a great example of a motif in the Catcher in the Rye. The topic of ducks keeps appearing throughout the story from Holden's continued worry about where they go off to when the lagoon freezes over during the winter. He usually thinks about them when he has nothing on his mind or when he is wandering around New York not doing anything to advance in life. I feel that he thinks about the ducks because he likes to see other things move on in life rather than do it himself. I also feel that this is an excuse for Holden to not move on in life by keeping his concern on how the ducks are going to move on in life. The idea here is the big question of how do humans advance in life. Do they do it on their own or do they need help from an outside source? I feel that Holden is trying to answer this question himself from keeping his mind on the ducks throughout the story, but never actually tries to apply it to himself to move on.

Alcohol, Cigarettes, and Clubs

Holden drinks alcohol, smokes, and goes to clubs probably from the feeling of being more mature and trying to fit in with other teenagers his age. Proof of his fascination is Holden saying "It was pretty early when I got there. I sat down at the bar-it was pretty crowded-and had a couple of Scotch and sodas before old Luce showed up. I stood up when I ordered them so they could see how tall I was and all and not think I was a goddamn minor. The purpose of this quote is to show what Holden does just so people will think he is older and let him order alcohol. The statement is important because it is most likely a true statement considering the fact that most other teens his age during that time did those things trying to feel cool and more mature. Also the laws in that time period weren't very strict on underage drinking, smoking, and clubbing, so it was probably pretty easy for Holden to get away with these things. Readers care about these kind of actions because it fascinates them to read about how teenagers were able to obtain these illegal things for minors so easily and feel very mature while doing it. Holden most likely did these three things so he would feel more superior and not have to worry about people telling him what and what not to do.

What is Holden's fascination with the Museum of Natural History?

Holden's fascination with the museum is that everything always stays the same, except the people that visit. Proof of his fascination is Holden saying "The best thing, though, in that museum was that everything always stayed right were it was. Nobody'd move. You could go there a hundred thousand times, and that Eskimo would still be just finished catching those two fish, the birds would still be on their way south, the deers would still be drinking out of that water hole, with their pretty antlers and their pretty, skinny legs, and that squaw with the naked bosom would still be weaving the same blanket. Nobody'd be different. The only thing that would be different would be you." The purpose of this quote is to emphasize on the point that you would always see the same old museum with the same old stuff in it every time. The statement is important from it being one of the very few things that Holden really enjoys. Since Holden is usually negative and is always complaining about the things around him, the reader gets to experience some joy in him and realize he is not just a negative person. There are very few parts in the book that aren't negative thoughts by Holden, so these parts must be highlighting something important to the reader.