Elegy for my Father, Who is Not Dead

This poem outlines the feelings of a living man toward death. The speaker is not very comfortable with the thought of death; however, his father couldn't be more comfortable with the idea. The speaker's has no fear for what will eventually consume us all, death. He realizes that it is going to happen regardless, so he has a realistic or even an optimistic attitude toward death. I think that the poem represents many older people's attitude toward death. They know that it is coming soon and have coped with the idea. Their death may not be so comforting to the ones around them, such as the speaker in this case, but they know that everyone is going to die eventually. The father of the speaker is not necessarily waiting for death to fall upon him, but he is certainly fearful of the final day of his life.

Delight in Disorder

In this poem, the speaker is describing a girl he likes. The speaker is saying that perfection isn't that important. Things look better when they're not too precise. The poem also includes an oxymoron, wild civility. The oxymoron demonstrates that the theme of the poem seems to be backwards just as wild civility seems to be backwards. The speaker also mentions the word wantonness which means without restraint or indulgence. The poem itself and the title are paradoxes. One may not think that there could be delight in disorder or that its better not to be perfect, but the speaker supports his idea with solid points.

Edward~#17

This poem is full of pattern. The poem is based off a question-answer pattern. First, the mother poses a question, and then the son responds with an answer. At the beginning, the son continuously lies to his mother, which his mother senses. Eventually, the speaker gives in and tells his mother the truth. This occurs after the mother pokes and prods through various questions. This pattern gives the impression of a mother's intuition. The poem's pattern is effective in that it embodies the idea that a mother always knows when her child is lying.

Lonely Hearts~#13

This poem includes irony and allusions. The speaker is desperate to get a date. He has very low standards for the person that he would date because he is so desperate. The poem brings out the irony of dating ads. Today, there are so many dating ads and companies including: eharmony, match.com, and many more. This poem is satirizing these ads. The speaker also makes an allusion to Shakespeare. The speaker lives in North London and is desperately searching for a person that will date him.

The Apparition

This poem outlines a man's plans of vengeance on his former lover. When he dies, he will come back to haunt her. The speaker has been rejected; therefore, he seeks revenge on the woman who betrayed him. The tone of the essay fluctuates from bitter to a sort of satisfaction that she will have to live with her bad decision. "Jilted lover" means that one has been rejected by someone who's clearly inferior. The speaker wants her to feel his pain. "Solicitation" means pleading and "quicksilver" signifies mercury. The speaker is sophisticated in his language, which proves his superiority to his former lover's new man.

Crossing the Bar

This poem represents life and death. The pilot symbolizes God. I think that the poem is told from the perspective of a boat. The boat is an extended metaphor for a person. The speaker is accepting toward death because he knows that we will all eventually die. The "boundless deep" represents death, the bottom of the ocean. When the speaker says "turns again home," it symbolizes heaven. The speaker desires a peaceful death rather than a harsh and painful death.

Getting Out~#10

This poem includes a lot of imagery. The imagery is showed through flashbacks throughout the poem. The speaker describes the way a couple's life use to be like and how it ends up turning out in the end. From "swimming those laps until the first light relieved us" to listening to "FM and full-blast blues" the speaker gives a sense that the couple was in love, but couldn't stay together. The imagery allows the reader to relate to and understand the characters and the poem. The imagery discusses the trials and tribulations of a failing marriage as well as the heartache that comes with it. The lovers have "matching eyes and hair" which gives the reader the impression that the couple have a deep connection and closeness. Imagery allows the reader to interpret the poem through the tone that the speaker intends.