Comments on: http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/ Sat, 21 Nov 2009 23:33:18 +0000 http://lyceum.ibiblio.org/?v=0.34 by: Eddie Poff http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-28295 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 16:52:08 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-28295 It almost seems naive that Dickensen suggests that hope, "the thing with feathers" has "never in extremity asked a crumb of me". Is that really accurate of the thing we refer to as hope? It seems to me that hope is the only thing that keeps humanity alive most of the time. In a situation like Jews starving in a concentration camp during WWII, hope would literally be the only thing worth living for, and once it was gone, life would be ending soon. To me, this kind of hope, in extremity, requires sincere diligence, and asks everything of a person. It is the waking up every day and choosing to view life optimistically instead of realistically. It nearly violates human nature to be hopeful in situations of extreme hardship. For Dickensen to suggest that hope has ever asked anything of her makes me think that maybe her "in extremity" is not the same as other peoples' hardships. Wild Nights!, Wild Nights! seems to have a dual meaning, at least. First it describes a heart (a soul?) in port, so, I guess a sea-faring person who is currently not at sea. It also seems to be talking about wild nights like a way to get away from problems or an outlet to frustration, much the way that people use alcohol to self-medicate and distract from real problems. The poem ends with the narrator asking "might I but moor to'night in thee" which either refers to wild nights like a person, or as a way to distract a person from reality. It almost seems naive that Dickensen suggests that hope, “the thing with feathers” has “never in extremity asked a crumb of me”. Is that really accurate of the thing we refer to as hope? It seems to me that hope is the only thing that keeps humanity alive most of the time. In a situation like Jews starving in a concentration camp during WWII, hope would literally be the only thing worth living for, and once it was gone, life would be ending soon. To me, this kind of hope, in extremity, requires sincere diligence, and asks everything of a person. It is the waking up every day and choosing to view life optimistically instead of realistically. It nearly violates human nature to be hopeful in situations of extreme hardship. For Dickensen to suggest that hope has ever asked anything of her makes me think that maybe her “in extremity” is not the same as other peoples’ hardships.

Wild Nights!, Wild Nights! seems to have a dual meaning, at least. First it describes a heart (a soul?) in port, so, I guess a sea-faring person who is currently not at sea. It also seems to be talking about wild nights like a way to get away from problems or an outlet to frustration, much the way that people use alcohol to self-medicate and distract from real problems. The poem ends with the narrator asking “might I but moor to’night in thee” which either refers to wild nights like a person, or as a way to distract a person from reality.

]]> by: Eddie Poff http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-28295 Mon, 03 Mar 2008 16:52:08 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-28295 It almost seems naive that Dickensen suggests that hope, "the thing with feathers" has "never in extremity asked a crumb of me". Is that really accurate of the thing we refer to as hope? It seems to me that hope is the only thing that keeps humanity alive most of the time. In a situation like Jews starving in a concentration camp during WWII, hope would literally be the only thing worth living for, and once it was gone, life would be ending soon. To me, this kind of hope, in extremity, requires sincere diligence, and asks everything of a person. It is the waking up every day and choosing to view life optimistically instead of realistically. It nearly violates human nature to be hopeful in situations of extreme hardship. For Dickensen to suggest that hope has ever asked anything of her makes me think that maybe her "in extremity" is not the same as other peoples' hardships. Wild Nights!, Wild Nights! seems to have a dual meaning, at least. First it describes a heart (a soul?) in port, so, I guess a sea-faring person who is currently not at sea. It also seems to be talking about wild nights like a way to get away from problems or an outlet to frustration, much the way that people use alcohol to self-medicate and distract from real problems. The poem ends with the narrator asking "might I but moor to'night in thee" which either refers to wild nights like a person, or as a way to distract a person from reality. It almost seems naive that Dickensen suggests that hope, “the thing with feathers” has “never in extremity asked a crumb of me”. Is that really accurate of the thing we refer to as hope? It seems to me that hope is the only thing that keeps humanity alive most of the time. In a situation like Jews starving in a concentration camp during WWII, hope would literally be the only thing worth living for, and once it was gone, life would be ending soon. To me, this kind of hope, in extremity, requires sincere diligence, and asks everything of a person. It is the waking up every day and choosing to view life optimistically instead of realistically. It nearly violates human nature to be hopeful in situations of extreme hardship. For Dickensen to suggest that hope has ever asked anything of her makes me think that maybe her “in extremity” is not the same as other peoples’ hardships.

Wild Nights!, Wild Nights! seems to have a dual meaning, at least. First it describes a heart (a soul?) in port, so, I guess a sea-faring person who is currently not at sea. It also seems to be talking about wild nights like a way to get away from problems or an outlet to frustration, much the way that people use alcohol to self-medicate and distract from real problems. The poem ends with the narrator asking “might I but moor to’night in thee” which either refers to wild nights like a person, or as a way to distract a person from reality.

]]> by: Cimone Phillips http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-26241 Sun, 17 Feb 2008 16:42:04 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-26241 Please forgive me for the tardiness of my entry. Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I found Emily Dickinson's work slightly un-nerving. Her poetry is a bit more complex than Walt Whitman. As a reader, I felt confused but intrigued. I wanted to keep reading to see if a more clear understanding would unfold...but it didn't. This poem and "Hope" seemed to be the only two that I could even grasp into my mind. In my search for a deeper understanding of her poem "Wild Nights" I ran across a few questions that seemed worthy of acknowledging. 1. Is the "Thee" in line 2 the same "thee" found in line 12? After taking careful consideration to the uses of that word, I realized that there were two different meanings. In line two she is addressing herself as a being; a human. In line twelve, "thee" is a metaphor of something that can be embraced, and indulgent such as the sea that is previously mentioned. While reading over this poem, I noticed that alliteration was not contained within this text, but could be noticed as part of the "big picture." I also noticed that the first and third stanzas made use of rhyme while the second one did not. This poem inspired me to know more about Emily Dickinson's personal life. Who was she speaking of in this poem? Who was the love of her life? As important as social acceptance is becoming, it makes me wonder how someone like Emily could live in perfect solitude for so long. Please forgive me for the tardiness of my entry.

Wild Nights! Wild Nights!

I found Emily Dickinson’s work slightly un-nerving. Her poetry is a bit more complex than Walt Whitman. As a reader, I felt confused but intrigued. I wanted to keep reading to see if a more clear understanding would unfold…but it didn’t. This poem and “Hope” seemed to be the only two that I could even grasp into my mind. In my search for a deeper understanding of her poem “Wild Nights” I ran across a few questions that seemed worthy of acknowledging.

1. Is the “Thee” in line 2 the same “thee” found in line 12? After taking careful consideration to the uses of that word, I realized that there were two different meanings. In line two she is addressing herself as a being; a human. In line twelve, “thee” is a metaphor of something that can be embraced, and indulgent such as the sea that is previously mentioned.

While reading over this poem, I noticed that alliteration was not contained within this text, but could be noticed as part of the “big picture.” I also noticed that the first and third stanzas made use of rhyme while the second one did not.

This poem inspired me to know more about Emily Dickinson’s personal life. Who was she speaking of in this poem? Who was the love of her life? As important as social acceptance is becoming, it makes me wonder how someone like Emily could live in perfect solitude for so long.

]]> by: Cimone Phillips http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-26241 Sun, 17 Feb 2008 16:42:04 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-26241 Please forgive me for the tardiness of my entry. Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I found Emily Dickinson's work slightly un-nerving. Her poetry is a bit more complex than Walt Whitman. As a reader, I felt confused but intrigued. I wanted to keep reading to see if a more clear understanding would unfold...but it didn't. This poem and "Hope" seemed to be the only two that I could even grasp into my mind. In my search for a deeper understanding of her poem "Wild Nights" I ran across a few questions that seemed worthy of acknowledging. 1. Is the "Thee" in line 2 the same "thee" found in line 12? After taking careful consideration to the uses of that word, I realized that there were two different meanings. In line two she is addressing herself as a being; a human. In line twelve, "thee" is a metaphor of something that can be embraced, and indulgent such as the sea that is previously mentioned. While reading over this poem, I noticed that alliteration was not contained within this text, but could be noticed as part of the "big picture." I also noticed that the first and third stanzas made use of rhyme while the second one did not. This poem inspired me to know more about Emily Dickinson's personal life. Who was she speaking of in this poem? Who was the love of her life? As important as social acceptance is becoming, it makes me wonder how someone like Emily could live in perfect solitude for so long. Please forgive me for the tardiness of my entry.

Wild Nights! Wild Nights!

I found Emily Dickinson’s work slightly un-nerving. Her poetry is a bit more complex than Walt Whitman. As a reader, I felt confused but intrigued. I wanted to keep reading to see if a more clear understanding would unfold…but it didn’t. This poem and “Hope” seemed to be the only two that I could even grasp into my mind. In my search for a deeper understanding of her poem “Wild Nights” I ran across a few questions that seemed worthy of acknowledging.

1. Is the “Thee” in line 2 the same “thee” found in line 12? After taking careful consideration to the uses of that word, I realized that there were two different meanings. In line two she is addressing herself as a being; a human. In line twelve, “thee” is a metaphor of something that can be embraced, and indulgent such as the sea that is previously mentioned.

While reading over this poem, I noticed that alliteration was not contained within this text, but could be noticed as part of the “big picture.” I also noticed that the first and third stanzas made use of rhyme while the second one did not.

This poem inspired me to know more about Emily Dickinson’s personal life. Who was she speaking of in this poem? Who was the love of her life? As important as social acceptance is becoming, it makes me wonder how someone like Emily could live in perfect solitude for so long.

]]> by: Nick Martin http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25912 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:33:42 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25912 Hope is a Thing With Feathers definitely struck me on a deeper level than Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I have always been a sucker for stories, poems, and movies that focus on hope. A great example would be that one of my favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption for that specific reason. This poem immediately made me think of a direct quote from that movie that doesn’t directly tie in, but makes sense in my own symbolically ignorant head. Towards the end, Morgan Freeman (Red) is narrating about how he misses his friend but knows that Tim Robbins (Andy) was not meant to be in prison because of his beauty as a person. Morgan says “Some birds are not meant to be caged, their feather are just too bright.” I thought this really worked with the poem because throughout the movie, Andy gets beaten down over, and over. Yet after all of the injustices that were performed against him, he kept striving to do the right thing and to press on with his life. So I thought it was very relevant how Andy is looked at as a bird of hope that cannot be brought down. I could be seriously off here haha, but it made a lot of sense to me. Hope is a Thing With Feathers definitely struck me on a deeper level than Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I have always been a sucker for stories, poems, and movies that focus on hope. A great example would be that one of my favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption for that specific reason. This poem immediately made me think of a direct quote from that movie that doesn’t directly tie in, but makes sense in my own symbolically ignorant head. Towards the end, Morgan Freeman (Red) is narrating about how he misses his friend but knows that Tim Robbins (Andy) was not meant to be in prison because of his beauty as a person. Morgan says “Some birds are not meant to be caged, their feather are just too bright.” I thought this really worked with the poem because throughout the movie, Andy gets beaten down over, and over. Yet after all of the injustices that were performed against him, he kept striving to do the right thing and to press on with his life. So I thought it was very relevant how Andy is looked at as a bird of hope that cannot be brought down. I could be seriously off here haha, but it made a lot of sense to me.

]]> by: Nick Martin http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25912 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:33:42 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25912 Hope is a Thing With Feathers definitely struck me on a deeper level than Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I have always been a sucker for stories, poems, and movies that focus on hope. A great example would be that one of my favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption for that specific reason. This poem immediately made me think of a direct quote from that movie that doesn’t directly tie in, but makes sense in my own symbolically ignorant head. Towards the end, Morgan Freeman (Red) is narrating about how he misses his friend but knows that Tim Robbins (Andy) was not meant to be in prison because of his beauty as a person. Morgan says “Some birds are not meant to be caged, their feather are just too bright.” I thought this really worked with the poem because throughout the movie, Andy gets beaten down over, and over. Yet after all of the injustices that were performed against him, he kept striving to do the right thing and to press on with his life. So I thought it was very relevant how Andy is looked at as a bird of hope that cannot be brought down. I could be seriously off here haha, but it made a lot of sense to me. Hope is a Thing With Feathers definitely struck me on a deeper level than Wild Nights! Wild Nights! I have always been a sucker for stories, poems, and movies that focus on hope. A great example would be that one of my favorite movies is The Shawshank Redemption for that specific reason. This poem immediately made me think of a direct quote from that movie that doesn’t directly tie in, but makes sense in my own symbolically ignorant head. Towards the end, Morgan Freeman (Red) is narrating about how he misses his friend but knows that Tim Robbins (Andy) was not meant to be in prison because of his beauty as a person. Morgan says “Some birds are not meant to be caged, their feather are just too bright.” I thought this really worked with the poem because throughout the movie, Andy gets beaten down over, and over. Yet after all of the injustices that were performed against him, he kept striving to do the right thing and to press on with his life. So I thought it was very relevant how Andy is looked at as a bird of hope that cannot be brought down. I could be seriously off here haha, but it made a lot of sense to me.

]]> by: Kyle Hey http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25910 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:32:31 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25910 I really enjoyed the poem hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson. She uses an analogy of hope being a bird. I find this analogy great because it does not specify what type of bird it is. For some people the bird may be a roaring eagle while for others the bird could be a small field sparrow, depending on the level of hope an individual maintains. Also the metaphor of hope being a bird gives hope the imagery that it can fly and be free. Also in this Poem Dickinson reveals that hope exists and comes from the soul. I really appreciate the line “and sings the tune without the words”. I feel that this means that hope does not always require reasoning. Sometimes people hope beyond reason and hope without ration on their side. I do however disagree with the final few lines of this poem. I feel that hope askes much more then a crumb of the individual. Hope can encompass the human soul and requires more thought and energy then a single crumb. I really enjoyed the poem hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson. She uses an analogy of hope being a bird. I find this analogy great because it does not specify what type of bird it is. For some people the bird may be a roaring eagle while for others the bird could be a small field sparrow, depending on the level of hope an individual maintains. Also the metaphor of hope being a bird gives hope the imagery that it can fly and be free. Also in this Poem Dickinson reveals that hope exists and comes from the soul. I really appreciate the line “and sings the tune without the words”. I feel that this means that hope does not always require reasoning. Sometimes people hope beyond reason and hope without ration on their side. I do however disagree with the final few lines of this poem. I feel that hope askes much more then a crumb of the individual. Hope can encompass the human soul and requires more thought and energy then a single crumb.

]]> by: Kyle Hey http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25910 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:32:31 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25910 I really enjoyed the poem hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson. She uses an analogy of hope being a bird. I find this analogy great because it does not specify what type of bird it is. For some people the bird may be a roaring eagle while for others the bird could be a small field sparrow, depending on the level of hope an individual maintains. Also the metaphor of hope being a bird gives hope the imagery that it can fly and be free. Also in this Poem Dickinson reveals that hope exists and comes from the soul. I really appreciate the line “and sings the tune without the words”. I feel that this means that hope does not always require reasoning. Sometimes people hope beyond reason and hope without ration on their side. I do however disagree with the final few lines of this poem. I feel that hope askes much more then a crumb of the individual. Hope can encompass the human soul and requires more thought and energy then a single crumb. I really enjoyed the poem hope is the thing with feathers by Emily Dickinson. She uses an analogy of hope being a bird. I find this analogy great because it does not specify what type of bird it is. For some people the bird may be a roaring eagle while for others the bird could be a small field sparrow, depending on the level of hope an individual maintains. Also the metaphor of hope being a bird gives hope the imagery that it can fly and be free. Also in this Poem Dickinson reveals that hope exists and comes from the soul. I really appreciate the line “and sings the tune without the words”. I feel that this means that hope does not always require reasoning. Sometimes people hope beyond reason and hope without ration on their side. I do however disagree with the final few lines of this poem. I feel that hope askes much more then a crumb of the individual. Hope can encompass the human soul and requires more thought and energy then a single crumb.

]]> by: Joanna Hendrick http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25909 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:27:39 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25909 So when i read "Wild nights" the first time, before the discussion of its sexual nature, i had not even thought of it as being a poem about wild passion. In my opinion this poem is about a sailor who is wishing he was at sea. I took the line "Wild nights should be our luxury" to mean that the sailor wants to have the excitement of being at sea during a storm or just the anticipation of adventure at sea. I can however, see how sexuality can play into this poem as well, turning the wild night into something erotic rather than an adventure at sea. Given that intepretation then, the poem seems to be longing for something. The "I" in the poem is longing to have a wild night with maybe a forbidden lover just as the sailor is longing for a wild night at sea. So when i read “Wild nights” the first time, before the discussion of its sexual nature, i had not even thought of it as being a poem about wild passion. In my opinion this poem is about a sailor who is wishing he was at sea. I took the line “Wild nights should be our luxury” to mean that the sailor wants to have the excitement of being at sea during a storm or just the anticipation of adventure at sea.
I can however, see how sexuality can play into this poem as well, turning the wild night into something erotic rather than an adventure at sea. Given that intepretation then, the poem seems to be longing for something. The “I” in the poem is longing to have a wild night with maybe a forbidden lover just as the sailor is longing for a wild night at sea.

]]> by: Joanna Hendrick http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25909 Fri, 15 Feb 2008 21:27:39 +0000 http://blogs.messiah.edu/poetry_class/2008/02/08/1880/#comment-25909 So when i read "Wild nights" the first time, before the discussion of its sexual nature, i had not even thought of it as being a poem about wild passion. In my opinion this poem is about a sailor who is wishing he was at sea. I took the line "Wild nights should be our luxury" to mean that the sailor wants to have the excitement of being at sea during a storm or just the anticipation of adventure at sea. I can however, see how sexuality can play into this poem as well, turning the wild night into something erotic rather than an adventure at sea. Given that intepretation then, the poem seems to be longing for something. The "I" in the poem is longing to have a wild night with maybe a forbidden lover just as the sailor is longing for a wild night at sea. So when i read “Wild nights” the first time, before the discussion of its sexual nature, i had not even thought of it as being a poem about wild passion. In my opinion this poem is about a sailor who is wishing he was at sea. I took the line “Wild nights should be our luxury” to mean that the sailor wants to have the excitement of being at sea during a storm or just the anticipation of adventure at sea.
I can however, see how sexuality can play into this poem as well, turning the wild night into something erotic rather than an adventure at sea. Given that intepretation then, the poem seems to be longing for something. The “I” in the poem is longing to have a wild night with maybe a forbidden lover just as the sailor is longing for a wild night at sea.

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