REELY'S POETRYBLOG

Here’s a comment that was left on the poll page for Fueled by Marcie Hans:

One of my primary school teachers forced every single class she encountered not only to learn this poem, but to repeat it in an affected voice and use over-exaggerated mannerisms. She also declined to enter into any meaningful discussion of it. And for some strange reason never showed or discussed other poetry. The result of her inadequate teaching skills (I will speak of myself only) was a hatred of poetry of any form which in my adult years I tried to address. Even to this day when I read this particular poem I feel angry and this is not how I want to view this poem.

I’m not going to defend our presentation — I rather like it and you just can’t please everyone. This particular poem is being read by an 11-year old boy. Nobody sent us one they think is better and even if they did, I appreciate and enjoy this 7th grader’s efforts.

I’m awful sorry Carroll had such a bad introduction to poetry in primary school. No doubt a great many of us have had encounters with teachers who made learning some particular subject less than an ideal experience. In my case, math was not my strong suit. Got my first F in fifth grade and I recall the teacher calling me “dumb” in front of the entire class, which was pretty mean. But not as mean as the fact that she actually had a “dumb row” where she made all the students who were doing poorly sit and she stuck me in it that marking period. I had just skipped a grade as, a matter of fact, was a year younger than everyone else in the class. If I had any say, maybe I could have pointed out to her that I had missed a half year of math and it was her job to help me. But it never occurred to me. I was very easily embarrassed. Talking back was certainly not allowed. The humiliation spurred me to study math much much harder until I brought my grade up to a C. But these things sting and stay with you a long time.

For many, poetry is a boring subject that they don’t get in the first place, so I can’t understand why a teacher would take the approach she did in Carroll’s class, unless she was a frustrated actress who saw it as an opportunity to perform.

I think that even if you don’t like a particular poem or style of poetry, you can still learn to appreciate it if you try to look through the eyes of the poet and think about what they were trying to convey through the poem, and the skill with which they communicated that message.

April is National Poetry Month and the Academy of American Poets has a number of tips to help teachers make poetry come alive throughout the entire year.

Reely

We’ve got an audio of Alfred Noyes’ The Highwayman , although our version is a little different than you will find on most sites. We got it out of a book from 1912.

Honestly, I am not really looking for these little differences, it’s more like they jump out at me when I’m reading a poem. Some poems I know or recall in a different way in the first place. Some just don’t make sense to me so I investigate further to see if I’m right. Such was the case with The Highwayman.

Reading it on Wikipedia, I get to the part where Bess, the landlord’s daughter, the landlord’s black-eyed, red-lipped daughter (some online versions leave out her red lips), gets her finger on the musket’s trigger. After the struggle she went through to get hold of the musket’s trigger, it just didn’t make sense for the line to say “… The trigger at least was hers.” I thought it should be “at last.”

‘At least’ conveys something entirely different - a sense of resignation - when the next part makes it clear that just getting hold of the trigger was in fact Bess’s intention. If the red-coats heard Bess, she must’ve strongly doubted they’d shoot her. She surely knew they fully meant for her to watch them kill her lover. No, they would not be the ones to fire a shot and only a shot would warn the highwayman away.

The tip of one finger touched it; she strove no more for the rest!
Up, she stood up to attention, with the barrel beneath her breast,
She would not risk their hearing; she would not strive again;

Off I went to investigate and I found it in a digitized book, The Home Book of Verse, American and English (1580-1912).

I’d like to say “I was right, I was right,” but who knows, maybe it’s in another book the other way. So allow us to present to you the version of The Highwayman from The Home Book of Verse:

http://www.reelyredd.com/english-0308thehighwayman.htm

We are of course very interested to know whether “least” or “last” makes more sense to you and why.

Reely

Added at least half a dozen poems in the last week that struck my fancy, two have audio readings:

Why So Pale and Wan. First learned this poem in high school in English lit and I’ve always liked its very amusing and practical observations on the topic of unrequited love. “Will when looking well won’t win her, looking ill prevail?” Good point!

English author, Sir John Suckling, died when he was only 33 years old and no one really knows how, although it is generally accepted that he ended his own life by ingesting poison. Another theory goes that a servant put a razor in his boot!

The Deacon’s Masterpiece tells the story of the “wonderful one-hoss shay” that lasted one hundred years. Another Oliver Wendell Holmes poem, “Old Ironsides”, contributed to the preservation of the frigate USS Constitution. It was saved from being decommissioned, and is now the oldest commissioned warship in the world still afloat. We don’t have that one yet.

We hope to get an audio on Little Breeches by John Hay, a quaint and appealing account of the survival of Little Gabe in a sudden blizzard. According to his entry on wikipedia, Hay knew Sarah Helen Whitman, who was later a romantic interest of Edgar Allan Poe. Hay worked as a secretary during the Lincoln administration and went on serve as Ambassador to Great Britain and Secretary of State.

Author and poet, Bret Harte, well known for his accounts of pioneering life in California, was often given credit for “Little Breeches.” A fan of the poem approached Harte one day, declaring: “My dear Mr. Harte, I am so delighted to meet you. I want to tell you how much I loved reading ‘Little Breeches.’”

“Thank you, madam,” Harte replied, “but I have to tell you that you have put the little breeches on the wrong man!”

Two serious offerings:

The Female Convict by Letitia E. Landon (aka L.E.L.) is poignant and haunting.

“And her future held forth but the felon’s lot, —
To live forsaken, to die forgot!”

There’s the beginning of an article on the poem page that delves into the reasons that after a time, Ms. Landon fell out of public recognition. However, she was much admired in her lifetime: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, wrote “L.E.L.’s Last Question” in homage. Christina Rossetti, published a tribute poem entitled “L.E.L” in her 1866 volume “The Prince’s Progress and Other Poems”.

Lament of the Irish Emigrant. Lady Dufferin was actually English, that’s why I categorized it in English poems, though many people think of it as Irish. Audio reading here too - from librivox.

Librivox is a great resource if you have the time to wade through their catalog. Wikipedia has been putting some librivox readings in wikisource poems. I know I could conceivably find more readings in there and use them since they are in the public domain. (note - I always link back to the download), but quite honestly, I don’t very often hear the poem in my head the same way as some of the recordings. Then there are ones that I don’t even see the same poem — the librivox reading chosen by Wikisource of “The Bells” actually starts out by saying: “Hear the sleighs with the bells.” Say what?

So we’ll go no more a-roving
So late into the night,
Though the heart still be as loving,
And the moon still be as bright.

For the sword outwears its sheath,
And the soul outwears the breast,
And the heart must pause to breathe,
And love itself have rest.

Though the night was made for loving,
And the day returns too soon,
Yet we’ll go no more a-roving
By the light of the moon.

~ George Gordon, Lord Byron

Seems at least one woman came close to losing her marbles because Lord Byron didn’t want to go a-roving with her anymore.

Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know
Lady Caroline’s description of Lord Byron has often been turned upon her. Learn more about her life and career as a writer here.

More Links: Kris Delmhorst on YouTube

We have an enormous soft spot in our hearts for Caribbean music and, particularly, the Calypso album by Harry Belafonte. Matilda isn’t on that album, but here’s an awesome live performance from youtube. So worth watching not only for Harry, but I always love the girls’ dresses and the backup singers really get to do their thing in this one.