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Candice Dionysus
05-24-2007, 07:15 PM
I was thinking to myself today about some of my favorite poems, and poets, and why I like them so much... And I thought "Hey! There's a good discussion!"

So, who's your favorite poet and why? I would start off, but I have trouble choosing just one.

What the hell, I'll start off anyways. I have to say Robert Frost (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Frost), Edgar Allen Poe (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_Allen_Poe), and Dame Edith Sitwell (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edith_Sitwell) are my favorites.

Frost because of his imagery, Poe because of his skillful wording, and Dame Edith because of her sometimes seeming lack of sanity and harsh perspective.

Poe's poem Alone, in particular, really grabs me. And with Frost is was Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening. With Dame Edith, I couldn't be forced to choose, because I find none of her work to be better than any other piece.

I'm particularly fond of the imagery in Alone, the sun in its "Autumn tint of gold" and the cloud "when all the rest of heaven was blue"... It clings to me, and it gets into my minds eye. The words are skillfully chosen, and artfully pieced together.

The undertones of death and desolation I seem to pick up in Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening really seem to stick with me, as well. Frost was able to put the whole Winter scene in my mind, his descriptions and imagery really doing the trick. It could be because I have an overactive imagination, but I could really envision the woods, and the snow, and the harness bells shaking as the snow swirls down around the horse and the person, whom I always seem to envision as myself, and the frozen lake behind me...

So, again I ask:
Who is your favorite Poet? And why?

OchrisO
05-24-2007, 07:28 PM
I'm actually a big Emily Dickinson fan. When I was in highschool, I didn't like her very much, but that was mainly because her stuff wasn't taught to me properly. Basically, she was kind of punkrock for her time period. She lived among a calvanistic society, but she held very different views on sexuality and spirituality. I have a couple papers that I wrote for American Lit classes that sum up a lot of my I enjoy Dickinson. Here is one of them:


There has been much speculation on the sexuality of Emily Dickinson. From her poetry, it can be supposed that she loved men and women in much the same way. Like much of Dickinson’s personae, this was very unconventional for her time, especially growing up among a strongly Protestant community. In her poem “I showed her Hights she never saw—,” she expresses sentiments of love, lust, and a desire to be with the other woman in the poem. Changes to the poem by Dickinson suggest equal feelings about both men and women.

The version of the poem printed in “The Heath Anthology” is written to a female from the poet’s perspective. This was originally sent to her sister-in-law Susan. In the first line, “I showed her Hights she never saw—” (Dickinson 3060), she seems to be making an allusion to the joys of sex. This could be making reference to the culmination of sex in orgasm, often referred to in such terms. The next line jumps back chronologically to the courtship. The line “’Would’st Climb,’ I said?”, could be a reference to the narrator asking her love interest to have sex with her, “climbing” to the “Hights” of pleasure, as it were.

The next line deals with the woman’s refusal, as would be a common thing in those times: “She said— ‘Not so’—” (Dickinson 3061). In the next line, the author pleads with her: “‘With me—’ I said— With me?” (Dickinson 3061). This seems to set up a feel of the author implying that she loves the woman, and why wouldn’t she want to be with her? One can imagine that, during the time of Dickinson’s life, this would be a common sort of disagreement among two women who care deeply for one another. Homosexuality was deeply frowned upon by a primarily Christian society at the time. Dickinson knew this, as she knew most of her ideas were not popular ones at her time. It many cases, as we learned in class, she was often cryptic, and beat around the bush on many issues. In this case though, she seems to be very straightforward.

The next two lines seem to speak of the author proving how she cares for her love: “I showed her Secrets— Morning’s Nest—/ The Rope the Nights were put across—” (Dickinson 3061). This would seem to make references to her love spending the night with her, and being shown her love, and perhaps even sharing intimacy, as referenced by the phrase “showed her Secrets.” The phrase “Morning’s Nest” would then be the two waking up together the next morning. A nest is generally a small, enclosed, intimate place, evidenced by the common term “love nest.”

In the next two lines, it would appear that the other woman still has reservations: “And now— ‘Would’st have me for a Guest?’/ She could not find her Yes—” (Dickinson 3061). Here, the author seems to be saying that, now that the other woman has seen what their love can be, perhaps she should invite her over, and perhaps they should continue things. The woman’s refusal seems definite, as evidenced by the next few lines: “And then, I brake my life— And Lo, / A Light, for her, did solemn glow, / The larger as her face withdrew—” (Dickinson 3061). This can be seen as the other woman walking away from the possible relationship. The author stopped her life for this woman, and then she just walks away from her.

In the last line of the poem, Dickinson expresses disbelief at the rejection. “And could she, further, ‘No’?” (Dickinson 3061). She seems to be incredulous as to why the woman could still say no after all that she had shown her. She gave her all to this woman, and she just walked away from it.

Another version of this poem, as shown in the footnotes of “The Heath Anthology,” changes the pronouns, and also the author’s position in the relationship. The lines “I showed her Hights she never saw—/ ‘Would’st climb,’ I said?” becomes “He showed me Hights I never saw— / ‘Would’st climb?’ He said?” The use of this very same poem, with the pronouns changed seems to lend to the fact that Dickinson felt much the same about female to female relationships as she did about male to female relationships. Both are a passionate poem about two very different types of relationships.

So, while Dickinson was often cryptic about many of her unorthodox ideas, and merely hinted around at them in her poetry, she seems to attack this one head on. This could mean that she felt more passionately about this idea, because it was closer to her heart. One can never know for sure, but when looking at this poem, it seems obvious that she cared deeply for women, as she did men.

I have another paper that touches on spirituality on her writing. I can post it as well if anyone wants to see it. I'm also a big of of Whitman for similar reasons involving his unconventional for the times thoughts, and the fact that he was brave enough to advance free verse in a time when people were very big on rhyme and meter.

Jack Kerouac is another of my favorite poets because of his tying the feel of his poetry to jazz music.

The_Nameless
05-24-2007, 07:32 PM
I don't have a favourite, really. I don't read a lot of poetry, so I don't know alot of poets and their works. I wasn't a fan of poetry growing up, I just wrote down thoughts and what came to mind, and, over time, it formed itself into poetry, of sorts.

But, if I had to pick, I'd go with Stephen Crane.

I like Crane for his simplicity and brevity. I adore his ability to say so much, without having to use many words. He also leaves somethings to the imagination.

I am sure there are more - perhaps even many more - but like I said, I don't know of alot of poets and their works.

Candice Dionysus
05-24-2007, 07:37 PM
Thank you for that, Chris! I'd love to read more! You've got me interested in Poets I had only heard of, and never read, now. I'll definitely be checking out Dickinson as soon as I get a chance, to be sure.

For a while, Danny, I wasn't into reading poetry. Around the time I started to take my writing seriously, which was age 15, I started to read more poetry, since I'd been only reading novels to that point. You should really get into some more poems, there are a lot of great poets out there.

OchrisO
05-24-2007, 07:42 PM
Thank you for that, Chris! I'd love to read more! You've got me interested in Poets I had only heard of, and never read, now. I'll definitely be checking out Dickinson as soon as I get a chance, to be sure.

Awesome. I, myself love finding new poets that interest me. She was avery interesting person over all, and most people have a very different idea of her than what she was actually like. She most likely wasn't a recluse like most people tend to think, because her family was wealthy and they constantly had company over. She just didn't like to leave home. Here's the paper that I did on the spirituality in some of her works. I find it very interesting considering the time period that she lived in.


The spirituality of Emily Dickinson is very complex. This is partly due to the little that is known about her personal life, but also due to her somewhat conflicting personae. The life and poetry of Dickinson bring forth the question of what defines spirituality, and challenges the idea of the time that spirituality was a matter of being Christian, or not. Using New Criticism, and taking into account what is known about her life, and giving context to her verse, we can paint a picture of her complex, and for the time, unconventional thoughts and feelings on spirituality.

Dickinson came from a community of Calvinists and Protestants, but didn’t seem to hold with their beliefs. “Though she reflects her community’s Protestant and Calvinistic frames of reference, religious terminology in her poetry does not indicate that she held orthodox religious beliefs”(McIntosh 3045). We can gather, from her letters, that she was not a fan of churchgoing. One could assume that this was because of her reclusive nature, except that she explains otherwise in a letter. According to the introduction in our text, “Of her family’s habits of traditional prayer and churchgoing, she wrote, ‘[They] are religious—except me—and address an Eclipse, every morning—whom they call Father’”(Mcintosh 3042). The text goes on to elaborate on how she felt about the afterlife, in saying, “Her letters indicate that she found life exhilarating and sufficient, if only it would last, and that for her, heaven was embodied in familiar surroundings, in nature, in love, and in the power of thought”(McIntosh 3042). This form of thought seemed to have more in common with the spirituality of the Native American peoples that it did with the popular thoughts of the Calvinists and Protestants of her time. And while her letters speak of these things, some of her verse can be contradictory. “I reason, Earth is short—/ And Anguish—absolute—/ And many hurt, / But, what of that?”(Dickinson 3053). This verse seems to speak of time on Earth as a short and painful one, seeming to contradict her idea that life is sufficient and exhilarating. However, the last line seems to say “but, who cares?” This could be an embracing of life, in its ups and its downs.

An instance of her taking joy and spirituality from everyday life comes in this verse: “There came a Day at Summer’s full, / Entirely for me—/ I thought that such were for the Saints, / Where Resurrections—be—.”(Dickinson 3055). This verse speaks of the heavenly bliss of a normal summer day alone. It compares it to what saints are supposed to experience during the rapture. This lends spirituality to the nature and joy of a day spent to one’s self.

One of her poems speaks of her dislike of going to church, but her still being interested in keeping the Sabbath holy. “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church—/ I keep it, staying at Home—/ With a Bobolink for a Chorister—/ And an Orchard for a Dome—” (Dickinson 3056). This expresses the idea that, while some people need to go to church to observe the Sabbath, she is perfectly happy with observing it from home. Rather than being under the roof of a church, she sits among her family orchards with birds as her choir. This is more unconventional thought, and most churches today, feel that you need to regularly go to Church in order to be in touch with God. Dickinson seems to feel that the churches, and even the actions in the churches, are unnecessary.

Dickinson also puts her belief in a higher power into writing, and expresses the idea that God doesn’t interfere in the day to day life of humans. “I know that he exists. / Somewhere—in Silence—/ He has hid his rare life/ From our gross eyes.”(Dickinson 3057). There is a definitive declaration of the existence of God in the first line. The idea that he is somewhere “in silence” suggests the idea that God does not directly interact with people on a day to day basis. She then goes on to imply that this is because the human race is not fit for seeing him in making reference to “our gross eyes.”

In one of her more popular verses, she comments on immortality, the eventuality of death, and the afterlife. “Because I could not stop for Death—/ He kindly stopped for me—/ The Carriage held but just Ourselves—/ And Immortality.”(Dickinson 3071). Here, she personifies Death, lending spirituality to it, and making reference to dying as a journey. She speaks of Immortality at the end, thus implying an afterlife.

One poem is laden with her thoughts on God. “‘Heavenly Father’— take to thee/ The supreme iniquity/ Fashioned by thy candid Hand/ In a moment contraband—/ Though to trust us— seem to us/ More respectful— ‘We are dust’—/ We apologize to thee/ For thine own Duplicity—” (Dickinson 3079). This verse admonishes God for being duplicitous in making people of a wicked nature, and then holding them accountable for it. She makes an apology for it, but it has a very ironic tone. This speaks of her problems with orthodox thinking about religion. The introduction text says that “her letters suggest that she refused to profess a sense of sin; such a refusal requires an astonishing degree of originality and courage” (McIntosh 3043). This is very true. She lives in a time where such ideas would not be well accepted at all. However, the previous poem backs up the idea that humans are not responsible for their sin, and that God, in his duplicity, is.

In her poem “The Bible is an antique volume—,” she speaks of her feelings on The Bible. She seems to think that it is an outdated book, as shown in her referring to it as antique. She also refers to it as being written by “faded men” (Dickinson 3079). That phrase evokes the idea of the authors of The Bible being gone, and irrelevant to modern man. The last two lines of the poem say “Orpheus’ Sermon captivated—/ It did not condemn—” (Dickinson 3079). Orpheus was an important figure in Greek religion. He was said to be a priest of Dionysus, the god of wine, agriculture, and theatre. He was also a musician. This verse hints at the nature of the bible. Orpheus used music to captivate his audience, but The Bible is very didactic, and often leaves readers, and one can assume, Dickinson among them, feeling alienate and rebuked.

So, through her poetry and her letters, we can see that Emily Dickinson was a very complex, unorthodox person. However, she still held a great deal of spirituality. She was very vocal about her beliefs in her poetry and letters, no matter how far it set her apart from her peers. Looking back from our perspective, this is very admirable, though it probably wasn’t seen as such during her time.

Candice Dionysus
05-24-2007, 07:55 PM
She sounds like I have a lot of similar ideas as hers, Chris. Things in common, so to speak.
I shall have to read up on her, and her poems, and her letters. You've snared me into being interested.

Erin
05-24-2007, 08:16 PM
I have always loved Shakespeare's sonnets personally.

Candice Dionysus
05-24-2007, 08:18 PM
Shakespeare's a classic, to be sure. Though I don't think I could say much, being as I don't know too much of his work in general. There's someone else I should look into reading...

OchrisO
05-24-2007, 08:22 PM
I like Shakespeare as well, as evidenced by all of my nerdy Shakespeare shirts. :)


I have this shirt:
http://www.bustedtees.com/shirt/prose

And this one:
http://www.marriedtothesea.com/gallery-shake.php


And I plan to get this one:
http://www.threadless.com/product/548/Shakespeare_Hates_Your_Emo_Poems

Candice Dionysus
05-24-2007, 08:25 PM
I love the last one, and I want it tooo! Thats awesome! <3 "Shakespeare hates your emo poems." Brilliant. <33

Letti
05-25-2007, 12:32 PM
All of my favourite poets are Hungarian. If I have time and courage I will translate some of my favourite poems for you. :wub:

Erin
05-25-2007, 06:22 PM
I'd love that Letti.

Cutter
05-30-2007, 04:26 PM
Besides Poe, Ray Bradbury is the only other poetry that I've really read. I've enjoyed his poetry a lot.

I'm just curious if anyone has read his poetry, is it considered good? I'm not an expert, I just know I like it.

Frunobulax
05-30-2007, 06:51 PM
I like T.S. Eliot, Emily Dickinson, Poe, Frost, Yates, Langston Hughes and a handful of others. Usually, if it's poetry I'll like it.

razz
04-18-2009, 06:32 PM
*ahem*
necropost :evil:

As with music, I'm not usually a fan of a single artist.
I'll look into other poetry by a poet, but it's usually the poem that will get me.

Ever hear a song by a band that you hate, but you for some reason want to listen to the song over and over? Then you know what i mean.

Munchausen
04-19-2009, 07:43 AM
TS Eliot, William Blake, Ogden Nash, Shelley and Yeates

Lily-sai
04-20-2009, 07:39 PM
There's so many to choose from.. But this time I'll just mention a Finnish poet, Saima Harmaja (1913-1937). Her life was sadly short, but she wrote undying poetry, and Finns still love them to this day. I don't know if I'm able to honour her with my translation, but let's give it a try.

The Spring

I come from the land of shadow of Death.
I walk into the fair eve.
Speechless, I see: a green veil
has come and wrapped the earth.
And there is wind and gentle scents,
and birdsong,
- when there is a dying heart
in my chest, wailing.

Oh no! This land is beautiful!
This is and will stay and will last.
This what has struck me,
cannot shatter this.
This bright, moist mud,
this never-ending lightness,
it doesn't care, care,
though a heart has broken.

flaggwalkstheline
04-20-2009, 07:54 PM
for me there are a few writers that I adore
TS elliot
Allen Ginsberg
Octavio Paz
Frederico Garcia Lorca
Pablo neruda
Bukowski
but my favorite poet is Gregory Corso, hes one of the lesser know Beats but I think he's even better than ginsberg, corso bridges the gap between 19 century structured keats like narraratives and psychotic 20th century freeform

blaineworshipper
04-30-2009, 07:21 PM
I love Shakespeare's sonnets, William Blake, TS Elliot and Yeats. There are loads of others, too - but the list would be very long, and my fingers are too tired!

PedroPáramo
05-05-2009, 12:42 PM
I haven't give me the change to read a lot of poets, but lately I'm reading Fernando Pessoa and holy shit! He was capable of write like 4 different personsxD!