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Join me in my journey with poetry...

Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Without words what would there be?

"Without words then there are only letters and images.
Without words, these letters and images do not come to life.
If these letters and images do not come to life because there are no words,
then there is no life."
-Reliann Viray

The quote was made by: Reliann Viray on October 5, 2010. 
The image can be found by clicking HERE

Without Words

Without Words


I write for the same reason I breathe
If I didn't I would die
Without words to express myself
Life is a broken winged bird that can't fly

I write my soul down word for word
I write things I could never say
Without this method of expression
I would cry every day

I try to forget all the regret
Or else life is mine to miss
Without saying what I truly feel
Then I'll always stay like this

So I write for the same reason I breathe
It's so that bird can fly up to the sky
I need to rise higher and higher
And finally stop asking why

Some days in our lives we just need to express ourselves even though it may be very hard, and even though we don't always know what the outcome will be. Whether we are expressing our feelings emotionally, verbally, or through writing, these are all filled with words. Obviously, we wouldn't be able to talk and converse with one another without words, and we cannot write without words, or else we would just end up write the alphabet over and over again in different orders. You may ask though, how can emotions be filled with words? Well, as a matter of fact emotions are filled entirely with words. Emotions themselves are words, and the reasons we achieve all these emotions is because of words, and because of thoughts, which all require words. In this poem, the poet chooses to incorporate these thoughts into the production of his poem.

The poet starts off the poem very strong with the words "I write for the same reason I breathe". That is a very intense way of thought! Breathing is a necessary part of our lives for survival. Without breathing, the result will be death. The poet conveys that words are an essential part of our lives by comparing words to breathing. The second line is also just as intense and strong since the poet states that without words, death really does happen. The poet then uses a simile to compare like to a bird with a broken wing, but doesn't necessarily state why this has been used for comparison. All these elements create such a grabber. 


The first stanza greatly introduced the poem to the reader very well and causes the reader to want to continue reading the poem. The first two lines of the second stanza are very complex and artistically composed. It caused me to look deeper into meaning to try to understand exactly what the words are trying to say. Yet, once I finish reading the stanza, everything becomes clear. The third stanza talks about what will happen without words, which greatly transitions into the last stanza that talks about mostly the opposites of what has been stated earlier. The last stanza restates the first line of the first stanza once again, creating a feeling of resolution within the poem. The second line of the last stanza then talks about how because of writing and because of words, the bird can fly. Which represents how through words we are able to live our lives. Then the last two lines state what must be done and the very last line greatly caught my attention. The last line sates "And finally stop asking why". I find that to be very true that in order to rise higher and higher in life, sometimes it's necessary to stop asking why. It's important to ask why in life but it's not very healthy to start asking "why" when it comes to how life treats us and how life goes. When things start dealing with how life is, it just truly is how it is and asking why won't change anything.

This poem is found HERE

What does discrimination look like?

This image was found on: Don't Label Me!

 This image was found on: Racial Discrimination
This image was found on: Discrimination on Sexual Orientation

Discrimination

Discrimination

Walk through the hall
With every eye on me
Surrounded by four walls
As far as I can see

Snickers, sneers and laughter
Discrimination too
Taunted from on after
Because I'm not like you

I'm different so you shun me
Leave me standing in the rain
You hurt me though you see
That I am in pain

I hate discrimination
Among the world I see
If we are all one nation
Why discriminate against me

By Janet S. Watford

This poem focuses on such an intense topic. This poem is based on the subject of discrimination through the first person view. This poem's is based on the "A,B,A,B" structure. The last word from every other line rhymes with the last word from the other line. So, the last word of the first and third lines would rhyme, while the last word of the second and fourth line rhyme with one another as well. Most poems are based on this structure. 

There are four stanzas that brings the attention of the reader to a specific direction. In my opinion, I believe that the first stanza is quite a grabber. It describes what can be seen through the eyes of "discrimination". In the eyes of discrimination, or in the eyes of a person being discriminated many eyes seem to be ablaze towards the person being discriminated. This brings the reader to attention because it causes curiosity on why exactly this is occurring. The second stanza deals with the sense of hearing instead of sight. Two other synonyms are presented for the word laughter in the first line of the second stanza creating the perception that the idea of laughter was very essential into how discrimination is like. By having three words presented to express one thing, it brings the idea that the laughter was not just any normal laughter that is heard in our daily lives, but is a different laughter. 


The last line of the second stanza "because I am not like you" is such a turning point from describing what is seen and heard through the use of senses, to the transition and transformation of starting to describe the reason for discrimination as well as the feelings one may be able to feel because of discrimination. From that line on, the whole poem becomes so much more intense. The words used are extremely dramatic and really create the feeling of tension and pain that discrimination brings into one's life. The words such as different, shun, leave, hurt, pain, hate, one nation, and even just the word discriminate itself creates such an uncomfortable and tense mood. Also "leave me standing in the rain" creates a feeling of fear and sadness that greatly represents and symbolizes exactly what can be felt because of discrimination even without the need to say the exact words of how discrimination feels like. The poet uses descriptions in her poem to bring forth how discrimination feels, rather than stating the actual feeling and listing the feelings directly in her poem.


This poem can be found HERE

More Examples of Haikus

The sun shines warmly 
The dragonfly watches me 
planting my basil 

avenging plow purrs
madly, hooked angel captures
hazily, hoping

desolation howls
deafly, green demented goats
giggling yearning preys

Poverty tumbles.
A vegetable belches.
Crawling thirst cavorts.



These Haikus can be found by clicking this LINK
 A more serious imagery formulated in the Haiku.
This is found on: Paper Boats
A more comedic type of Haiku.
This is found on: Winter

A Haiku

A Haiku is a type of poem derived from Japan. Haikus can be about almost anything, and are mostly about things that occur in life, every single day. Haiku tends to be a poem where the poet chooses to contemplate on elements and objects in nature as well as the experiences one faces through everyday life. Experiences, nature, or feelings are common themes that are included in Haikus. Haikus are usually made with words and grammar that are quite easy. The most usual form of Haiku is composed of three lines of poetry. The first line is usually produced with five syllables. The second line usually consists of seven syllables, while the last, or the third line, is composed of five syllables again. So, the structure of a Haiku would be "5,7,5", based on the number of syllables per line.

Rhyming isn't necessary in the composition of a Haiku. Rather than the goal of rhyming like how most poems are usually perceived as, a Haiku focuses more on the goal of creating an image based on the words of the poem. Through a Haiku, one is to expect to be able to think or imagine a specific image after reading it's content. This is because a Haiku uses the technique of the poetic device called imagery. Because a Haiku requires the use of imagery which creates a certain task that needs to be accomplished for the poet. An even bigger task to fulfill is having to create this imagery, or picture into someone's mind, within only 17 syllables. Within three lines, a poet is expected to have accomplished trying to create that picture for the reader through his or her words.

Most Haiku's are written or typed on paper with the image or a picture that represents that main gist and essence that the poet is trying to portray in his or her Haiku. 

For more information please click: Haiku
The image was found on: Penguin