Extra Credit Quote Essay

A man by the name of Oscar Wilde once said, “Man is least himself when he talks in his own person give him mask and he will tell you the truth.” I chose this quote because I think it most applies to the world we have today. Many times people are seen wearing metaphorical masks all over the internet and in some cases, in person too. There are many reasons that people wear these masks, whether it's to cover up the insecurities they have, emotions they don’t want to express, or just making up a persona to become the person they wish they could be. In my opinion, wearing a “mask” isn’t very healthy and is also sad to see.

To elaborate, I don’t think that wearing a mask is very healthy because instead of always concealing feelings, people should be able to talk to someone about how they feel. People should be able to have someone they are comfortable enough around and actually talk to them about how they feel so they won’t have to hide their true feelings or feel judged for being themselves. Seemingly, most wear masks out of fear they will be judged if they show who they truly are. In this circumstance, the quote applies when you “give him a mask and he will tell you the truth.” In my words, this means that they will only express their true emotions to you if you give them a mask instead of telling a person who they feel comfortable around. Also meaning, the individual will not express their feelings should they not be given a mask.

In other situations, having to give people a “mask” in order for the person to tell the truth creates a sad situation. Why do I say this? I say this because no one should have to wear a mask in order to tell the truth. I think people should be able to express their opinions without feeling judged or insecure. Today, many people feel the need to wear these “masks” to be able to tell the truth because of these problems. This is sad to see in the world we have today because one would think that problems as these would eventually die out, but instead, these problems have continued to create complications for those who really want to tell the truth without a mask. Because people still have these dilemmas today, I feel deeply saddened by the judgement as well as insecurities people feel today causing the wearing of masks.

In conclusion, as seen, masks have been given many purposes throughout time. In this time period, the mask is used to hide the true person in order to be able to tell the truth. By using the mask, these people are able to tell the truth and the person feels it is easier to talk to others by wearing the mask out of fear they will be judged for who they are and also wear the mask to hide their insecurities. By wearing this metaphorical mask, the person is able to create a “new person” or a “new persona”  to make it easier to tell the truth. This teaches us how hard it is for some people to show their true selves to other people because of the judgements and insecurities throughout their lives. So if you ever wear a mask, just think about the hundreds of thousands of other people who do the same, and you will truly see how it feels to wear a mask a someone who feels the need to hide to tell the truth.

Snow Precis

In the poem, "Snow," by David Berman, Berman uses similies to create a childish tone, looking bac on a memory of his, or a relatable character. Berman first uses a simile when he writes, "the ice looked like a photograph of water," thus creating the image of the cold day he had been playing around in. He then uses one last simile stating, "when it's snowing, the outdoors seem like a room," thus creating a sense of comfort in the outdoors as most children find nature fun and comfortable to play in.  By using these similes in his writing, Berman was able to create that childlike sense that he was looking for in his writing.

Driving to Ton Late to Mail a Letter Precis

In the poem, "Driving to Town Late to Mail a Letter, by Robert Bly, Bly uses imagery to create a satisfied tone with a straightforward message. In the poem, Bly first uses imagery saying, "cold and snowy night,"  thus recalling the night he was in town alone. He again uses imagery saying, "swirls of snow" and "cold iron." Though the night may not be ideal for another, Bly finds that he feels a sense of privacy and that he would probably stay out and "waste more time" in order to keep the privacy with him. By using imagery within his poem, Bly was able to convey a very straightforward message about how he feels traveling alone to town.

Hand Shadows Precis

In the poem, "Hand Shadows," by Mary Cornish, Cornish uses imagery to create a childish tone in her poem She uses imagery as a message about her past childhood, or an imaginary character's childhood.  Of the many times Cornish used imagery in her writing, there are few in particular that really bring back a childish sense. The first she uses is that her father "put his hands in the white light of the lantern," thus creating an image of a child and their father making shadow puppets together. Cornish then continues, "his palms became a horse that flicked its ears and bucked," again creating a childlike image in the reader's mind. Then lastly, she continues later on again, "my father's hands became two birds, linked by a thumb..." again creating that sense of childlike humor. By using imagery in her poem, Cornish was able to create a childlike poem for many to relate to.

Publication Date Precis

In the poem, "Publication Date," by Franz Wright, Wright uses metaphors to create a dreadful tone and a message all writers want their audience to know. The first metaphor that stood out to me was the line, "National I Hate Myself I Want to Die Day." This is a metaphor for the dread the publication date for the writer's works creates, while waiting for their work to come out. The next metaphor is, "the forecast in Boston calls for a cold night all morning and all afternoon. Once again, the author uses this metaphor to repeat the dread the authors go through waiting "all morning" and "all afternoon" for their works to be published. By using these simple metaphors in his poem, Wright was able to create a sense of dread within his work.

One Morning Precis

The poem, "One Morning," by Eamon Grennan, is a detailed, yet meaningful poem about Grennan's, or an imaginary character's morning. The poet is able to set a somewhat negative tone, yet the character seems to see the good in life after having few sad events take place through the imagery the poet uses. The poet uses words such as "rotting by the timeline" and "savage valediction" to describe the dead otter he had found that day, creating a  small sense of negativity put on the character's life.  The poet also writes in one line, "this was the morning after your dream of dying," creating yet another sense of negativity in he character's life, followed by detailed descriptions of what the character thought was comforting. Things such  as a couple sitting in their camper smoking, as well as the peace he felt with the sun coming off the water. By using imagery, Grennan was able to create a negative, but peaceful poem.

Before She Died Precis

The poem, "Before She Died," by Karen Chase, is a poem about dying with a depressed tone. The poet uses one single simile in the poem, but the simile is what helps create a powerful image of understanding. Chase writes about her dying friend, possibly a lover, explaining to them she has began to slow down in life and look at all the small things. The simile is stated in the very last line saying, "like a dog's lifetime--long--multiplied by sevens."  She writes this hoping to create the powerful image of appreciation for life. To ask of her audience to take a minute and slow down because you never know what could happen to yourself, or your loved one, and you would want their life to be lengthened so you could appreciate every moment with them. By using the simile in her poem, Chase was able to create a depressing, but appreciating poem in a deep and meaningful way.

Prometheus Poem

Angry at Prometheus Zeus became,
For stealing money to give to some man.
For ignoring to explain the child’s name,
Which would replace him as the businessman.

Deception is what made Zeus feel hatred.
Dismissing Prometheus as sanction.
With no job and feeling far from sacred,
He wished he were far away in Tangshan

Regretting all that he had done to Zeus,
Wishing a creature drag his insides out.
Wishing instead he be hung on a noose,
Everyday putting his own life in doubt.

One day hired by a man named Hercules,
Once again able to live life with ease.

Remora, Remora: Precis

In the poem, "Remora, Remora," by Thomas Lux, Lux uses metaphors to set a helpless or maybe even a hopeless tone as the shark represents the lower classed people. The author uses the shark and sucker sharks as metaphors for the higher classed or yet, higher powered people, while the lower classed people are represented by the metaphorical "nick of gauze" for they are called the "morons," "idiots," "imbeciles," or "nincompoops." The poet seems to feel helpless when he calls himself "the invisible point of the pyramid," meaning he feels as if he has no power or authority because people think of the lower class as "idiots" or "morons." Lux sets a helpless tone when each shark metaphor creates a smaller and smaller feeling of authority for the lesser classed/lesser powered. By using sharks as his metaphors, Lux was able to convey a feeling of helplessness in his poem.

Wheels: Precis

In the poem, "Wheels," by Jim Daniels, the poet sets a reflecting tone as he uses repetition to display his brother, or an imaginary character's, milestones in life. Each vehicle the character acquires, is the metaphorical milestone that he achieved. The poet uses repetition in his poem to convey reflection when he uses the word "waving," as if to say goodbye to the milestone and to welcome the milestone into the past. By putting the milestone in the past, the character welcomes a new milestone with a new vehicle. The poet also repeats the words "in his" or "on his" to reflect on his life by describing the vehicle he acquired as a metaphor of his new milestone, such as getting married and having a child. By using repetition in his work, Daniels was able to perfectly depict his image of reflection.

Radio: Precis

In the poem "Radio," by Laurel Blossom, Blossom uses an annoyed or frustrated tone by using repetition. By using repetition, Blossom was able to write an informal message to her culprits. The first example of repetition she used was the word "no." By using the word "no," blossom was able to convey that she does not have anything for the culprits to steal, therefore, they should not break in. Another example of repetition is when Blossom says, "radio." By repeating the word "radio," Blossom hopes to give the culprits the idea that her radio had already been stolen, along with everything else so that they should not try to break in anymore. Blossom then repeats herself again when saying "nothing" in order to convey the message of emptiness into her valuables. By using repetition, she hopes that the culprits will finally get the message she is sending them and will no longer use her as a target. By using repetition to write her poem, Blossom was able to convey her frustrated tone and message to her culprits.

Dorie Off to Atlanta: Precis

In the poem "Dorie Off to Atlanta," by Mark Halliday, the poet conveys an exciting message of finding "the one" using the literary device "point of view."  The point of view comes from a woman named Dorie, who sets an excited and almost persuading tone in the poem. Dorie conveys her message through this tone many times throughout the poem, but there are three examples that I would like to point out. The first example where she displays love is when Dorie  speaks about a woman named Marcie who is hesitant to see a guy saying, "from what you've said, Jason sounds different." This quote points out the deeper emotion that Dorie feels that the man named Jason is "different from other guys," and that Marcie should give him a chance. The second quote I would like to point out is when Dorie defends her case of finding "the one"  fro Marcie when she says, "this is a guy who understands, y'know?" She uses this in her defense of finding love because Dorie feels as if this man might actually be the one for Marcie. Lastly, Dorie uses her point of view in her point when she says, "if you don't give this guy like a serious chance, somebody else-y'know?" This shows how hard Dorie is trying to persuade Marcie to be with the guy and how he feels they would rule out together. By using point of view as his literary device, Halliday was able to convey his message of finding "the one"  perfectly.

Did I Miss Anything Precis

The poem,"Did I Miss Anything?," by Tom Wayman, is a childlike poem about a teacher writing to a student about he consequences of missing class. Wayman was able to display his childlike humor by using repetition. The childlike humor conveys a deeper idea to the poem where missing class is actually  a huge loss to you. "Nothing" is one of the main words that the teacher uses repeatedly to remind the child of their loss. The other word that the author repeatedly uses is "everything," as the student missed their chance to be at school, whether they just didn't show up, or they were sick. Wayman also shows a pattern or repeated sarcasm. Every stanza in the poem contains sarcasm, especially in the stanzas first containing the word "nothing." This creates a deeper message to any student to misses school, they if they miss school, that is an opportunity missed. By using repetition to convey his idea, Wayman was able to create an image of consequence perfectly.

Neglect Precis

The poem, "Neglect," by R. T. Smith, Smith clearly shows that he is full of regret and sadness due to the fact that he had lost his apple tree. Smith is able to convey loss throughout the poem by using imagery. Smith uses imagery in his poem to convey the loss when he says "I should have" repeatedly. This act of repetition shows just how full of regret Smith was by this loss. Smith displays his loss and regret through the words "too callow to believe that death's inevitable," meaning he was too immature to ever know that the tree would need as much attention as it did. Though it was just an apple tree, Smith repeatedly expresses his sadness by creating images of regret about how he should have treated the tree and how he should have taken better care of it. This reveals the deeper side to how neglect to an object can affect the result. In this case, Smith's tree had died. Smith could also be conveying the message that one should pay more attention to something they care about whether it is a tree or a person because, like Smith, the object could whither away. Just as Smith had regretted it, "through this lesson in winter regret," we should also pay close attention to valued objects. By using imagery, Smith was able to conduct his idea of loss and regret through his images.

Numbers Precis

"Numbers," by Mary Cornish, is a childlike poem, where Cornish expresses her fondness towards numbers by using imagery and metaphors. Cornish is able to bring out her childlike side when she uses imagery such as, "whose silver bodies breed" and "add two cups of milk and stir." Cornish expresses her joy in numbers by adding images of math problems she creates using numbers. Cornish also uses metaphors in her poem to create a childlike feeling when the audience reads. One example of her childlike metaphors would be, "I never fail to be surprised by the gift of an odd remainder." She uses another metaphor saying, "an amplitude to long division as it opens Chinese take-out." She uses metaphors such as these to display her childlike but memorable way in how she loves numbers. By using imagery and metaphors, Cornish was able to create a poem easy enough for a child to understand as well as be childlike herself while writing.

The Cord Precis

"The Cord," by Leanne O'Sullivan, is a reflective poem about how the author, or an imaginative character, would enjoy the days where they could sit around and just talk on the phone all day. Leanne teaches us how she remembers her younger days, by using many metaphors and imagery to  create an image for her audience. One example of a metaphor that Leanne uses is "each sentence is a new territory." She continues, "the glass shattering with delirium, with knowledge and fear." She uses these metaphors to express her comfort and enjoyment of talking on the phone, each conversation a new idea. Leanne also uses imagery in her poem to reflect on her routine, "a plate of cold rice to my left, my school books to my right." She gives another example saying, "stay where I can reach you, dim room, dark earth." This seems to show the comfort she and her mother felt, her mother allowing her to use the phone. By using metaphors and imagery, Leanne reflects her young days perfectly by being able to describe in clear detail, her routines.

The Blue Bowl

The poem, “The Blue Bowl,” by Jane Kenyon, Kenyon expresses grief over her cat who had passed. Kenyon writes about her cat using imagery and similes. By using these devices, Kenyon creates a somewhat dark, but sad tone for the reader. She expresses grief using imagery when Kenyon describes the “long red fur” and “white feathers between the toes” of the cat as they bury it. Kenyon also uses similes such as, “like primitives we buried the cat” to describe the pain she felt while burying the cat.  Kenyon also used a sound device when she wrote, “they fell with a hiss and a thud on his side.” This creates a sudden, darker tone for the poem as she writes in the sound the dirt made as it fell onto the cat. Kenyon was able to create a grieving tone in her poem by creating images out of similes and sound devices.

The Summer I was Sixteen Precise

In the poem,  “The Summer I was Sixteen,” by Geraldine Connolly, Connolly writes in a reflective manner. In the poem, Connolly uses imagery and metaphors when creating vivid images of her summer when she was sixteen. Connolly looks back on her summer by throwing in detailed imagery when she says, “the turquoise pool” and the slide a “silver afterthought.” Connolly also uses the sense of hearing when she says they had danced to the “low beat of Duke of Earl.”  Connolly further reflects her summer eagerly when she uses metaphors and similes such as “cotton candy torches” that were “sweet as furtive kisses.” By using her many literary devices, Connolly was able to create imagery and metaphors in order to reflect on her sixteenth summer.