My Poems Analysis
Preface to a Twenty Volume Suicide Note
Lately, I’ve become accustomed to the way
The ground opens up and envelopes me
Each time I go out to walk the dog.
Or the broad edged silly music the wind
Makes when I run for a bus…
Things have come to that.
And now, each night I count the stars.
And each night I get the same number.
And when they will not come to be counted,
I count the holes they leave.
Nobody sings anymore.
And then last night I tiptoed up
To my daughter’s room and heard her
Talking to someone, and when I opened
The door, there was no one there…
Only she on her knees, peeking into
Her own clasped hands
(By Amiri Baraka)
The first poem i chose was “Preface to a twenty volume suicide note”. The main voice voice in this piece is a parent’s. I’m not very sure whether it’s a woman or a man, but I know it’s a parent. In the poem the character is speaking to whoever is willing to listen, but mainly just herself. The main thing that is happening is the parent is thinking of committing suicide. The plot is that they won’t commit suicide, but there stuck between a rock and a hard place. I believe the intended meaning of this poem is to show the readers that there’s depression inside this parent, but there’s one thing that’s holding them to this earth. In this story there is a parent, a child, and GOD. The parent is saying to herself and GOD she doesn’t want to be alive. The child is probably praying that her mother is okay, and the child is also telling her mother that no matter how she feels she has one reason to stay alive. The child didn’t actually say any words , but through her presence and body language it tells it all. I chose this poem, because it brings back memories of when i felt as the parent felt, but my main hope is and was my little brother.
This Is For The Best
a boy sat in his chair
picked up a gun
as he ran his fingers through his hair
he sat and cried as he thought
everything that’s happened
has all been my fault
he said if I was gone
this would all be better
and he told her
“I love you now more than ever”
he said “trust me
this is for the best
you will see
cause after I’m gone
no more fighting, you’ll be free”
he grabbed a bullet
an put it in the gun
said, “I love you so much
but now I have to run”
he said “I’m sorry I can’t take this no more.
I’ve let down so many people
I wish I could go back to before”
he hung up the phone
and pulled the trigger
looked down at his chest
as the pain grew bigger
his eyes filled with tears
they started to pour
as soon as his family ran in
he fell to the floor
The second poem i chose was titled “This is for the Best” by Coty Hoggle. The main voice in this poem is that of a young boy getting ready to commit suicide. In the poem the young boy is speaking to a girl. The main thing happening in this story is a young boy is telling a girl how he feels before he dies. The plot is the boy killing himself. I believe the intended meaning of this story is to show how the burdens of the world on a person’s shoulders can make them feel as if they have to much happening and that it would be best if they were gone. In this story there is a boy, a girl, and a family.The boy is telling the girl he is going to leave earth so everything can be easy for her and everyone else. The specified characters that aren’t really mentioned is the family and the girl. They are important because the girl was the last straw in his death decision and the family because they have to deal with the grief of the boys death. I chose this poem because it relates to the first poem, and because I can relate to the feelings.
Peace my heart…
Peace, my heart, let the time for the parting be sweet.
Let it not be a death but completeness.
Let love melt into memory and pain into songs.
Let the flight through the sky end in the folding of the wings over the nest.
Let the last touch of your hands be gentle like the flower of the night.
Stand still, O Beautiful End, for a moment, and say your last words in silence.
I bow to you and hold up my lamp to light you on your way.
~Rabindranath Tagore
The last poem I chose was “Peace My Heart”, by Rabindranath Tagore. The main voice in this poem is unclear to me. In this poem the main character is speaking to a person that has passed away, or perhaps a person that has already died or is about to die is speaking to someone that is living or about to die. The main thing happening in this poem is someone is getting ready to die and someone is telling them to let their death be peaceful. I believe the intended meaning of the story is to let the person that is dying know that they don’t have to be afraid to die and that everything will be okay because there will be someone leading them on the way. I chose this poem because it relates to my other choices, and it also shows that death isn’t always painful.
semajamcclain 