EdwardMckenna

Edward Mckenna 7-29-09 Final Project “Poetry” Stephen Dunn It makes no difference where one starts, doesn't every beginning subvert the tyrannies of time and place? New Jersey or Vermont, it's the gray zone where I mostly find myself with little purpose or design. An apple orchard, an old hotel when I introduce them I feel I've been taken somewhere I've been before; such comfort, like the sound of consecutive iambs to the nostalgic ear. Yet it helps as well here in the middle, somewhat amused, to have a fast red car and a winding, country road. To forget oneself can be an art. "Frost was wrong about free verse," she said to me. "Tear the net down, turn the court into a dance floor." She happened to be good looking, too, which seemed to further enliven her remark. It always makes a difference how one ends, aren't endings where you shut but don't lock the door? Strange music beginning, the dance floor getting crowded now. Vertical Thinking My first impression of the poem is negative because the line, "it does not matter where you start" (Dunn) is not an idea that I agree with. I couldn't get over that idea and spent my time contemplating that as I finished the poem. After reading it for a second time I enjoyed it because I do agree that the ending of someone’s life and how and where you end your life are far more important things that how you started it. So on first impression I enjoyed the poem and its ideas. I believe the poem is a blank verse because it appears paternally structured but it does not have a rhyming scheme. The whole metaphor of a court being turned into a dance floor is way over my head but engaging with just the text I feel as it is a metaphor for the game of life. Once you get through the competition of the game which is played on the court it doesn't matter where you start as long as you get through that you’re free to dance at the end, and as stated in the poem the end is more important. So although it helps to be rich or have fancy things life they say in the poem, I think the poem is telling us that those are not as important as other things. The things the poem talks about metaphorically are the most important things and the things depicted as concrete in the text are the simple concrete things that are nice but really do not matter. The form of my poem is written in one long organized stanza. There is no rhyming scheme and the form is written in a constant message. I believe that the form that the poem is written in, as narrative poetry as the narrator seems to be telling a story that ends with him dancing. I think that by narrating a story while portraying the author's meaning is paralleled by his metaphor of life compared with poetry. Like his story in his poem it does not matter where he starts, just like in life, the author thinks that the end is what is most important. The form of the poem as a narrative story parallels that by ending with a scene in where the author is dancing. In Dunn's poem he uses a metaphor to compare life to that of a country road. He states, "Yet it helps as well/ here in the middle, somewhat amused, / to have a fast red car/ and a winding, country road."(Dunn). I believe this is an indirect metaphor because Dunn does not state that he is making a direct comparison, but I believe one exists. I believe that the winding country road is being compared to life and its winding never straight path. The red car is what we always thinks helps to have in life, like a well paying job, a big house, things that you don't necessarily need to travel down the road but we think that they will get us there faster. I think that since the theme of the poem is that it doesn't matter where you start in life or on the metaphorical winding country road this metaphor is that it helps to have an easy fast path down the road, but does it really help. The poem stresses that where we end up in life is what is most important. The red car is symbolic of things that make life easier and thus we drive down the road more carefree. While it helps to have this leisure it is definitely not essential, nor should it be given more value than because even a beat up old car can still take you down the road and get you to the same ending. This metaphor connects with the overall theme of the poem of the ending in life being the most important place. It does not how you travel down the long road of life, whether in style or not, but it does matter where you are in the end. The poem stresses that it does not matter where on the road of life you start, or how you travel down the road, but where you end up in the end is what makes all the difference. The setting in Dunn's poem "Poetry" takes place in what seems to be a dance floor. The first 26 out of 28 lines is simply narrative and describes settings. The actual setting is revealed in the last two lines. The narrator tells us that he is on the dance floor, which is slowly getting more crowded with people. This setting reflects the main theme of the poem in that the author does not believe it matters where in life you start, but where you end is important. The image of a person standing in a crowded dance floor gives us the image of simplicity, how one person can blend in so well with others. This reflects the idea we are all just simple people and it doesn't not matter where we are now, but it matters most where we end up. The point of view of this poem is told in the narrative first person point of view. It is told from the standpoint of a speaker who is expressing his thoughts and feelings. We are not sure of the identity of the person telling the story, and it is not important to the theme of the poem. By not knowing the personality of the person we cannot judge them or discriminate based on who they think they are as a person. This allows us to accept their advice and judge the information based solely on what the narrator says. The complexity of this poem is moderate. I feel that my interpretation is at least accurate to a degree. What makes it difficult is that the author writes almost the entire poem with metaphors. This makes it difficult to interpret because many metaphors are used when we already have some understanding of the concrete ideas in the literature. However since there is limited concrete text used in this poem we are forced to interpret and unpack the figurative language almost solely to attempt to understand the literature. Because of the doubts I have from basing my interpretation almost solely on figurative language the ambiguity in this poem is great. Overall the complexity of the poem is no too difficult once you think you have a decent understanding of the theme and how it relates to the figurative language. I think there is some merit to the idea that this poem could be added to the canon. It fits the category of literary poetry because of its usage of imagery and metaphors. I think the poem is a lyric poem, because there is no real story being told, but it seems to be the thoughts of one single speaker. The figurative language in the poem relates to my idea of the poems theme which is the race of life, and why it does not matter where you start. Because the idea of life as a concrete, and as a malleable idea it attracts much interpretation. I cannot speak of the cultural values or the aesthetics of the poem, however since it is included in my reading for a college Literature course, there must be some strength in this piece of literature. Horizontal Thinking In the authors biography found in the Gale Literary Database it notes how Stephen Dunn, grew up in a middle class family, played professional sports, was in the army, and worked in advertisement before he attended Syracuse university to study writing (Contemporary Authors). This is interesting to note because one of the main themes our authors tries to push across is that it does not matter in life where you start. This I believe is reflective on how his start as a writer began. After fulfilling what most people would call a successful life as a professional athlete he then moved to poetry where he went on to win numerous awards. It didn't matter where in his writing life he started, but it is where he ended up that has made all the difference. Stephen Dunn was born in 1939 (Poets.org). This was a time period in America where World War II was beginning. Being too young to understand the war, and not alive for the depression he entered his life in the peak of American prosperity. He experienced the 50's and 60's a time of increased optimism among the American people. This attitude may have led to his positive theme on life. Where the start you get doesn't matter. This attitude of being able to make a great life, no matter where you start, could possibly be reflective on society’s positive attitude. In reading Brown and Yarbrough’s chapter on critical theory they introduce psychoanalytic criticism (Brown & Yarbrough 214), which has the potential to be applied to my poem "Poetry" by Stephen Dunn. My author's narrative is told in the first person point of view. The poem describes the narrator's feelings on life, and describes a few things that they think they understand about life, such as, "It always makes a difference/ how one ends, aren't endings where you/ shut but don't lock the door?"(Dunn). After completing the statement the author kind of zooms out on the scene and portrays the narrator as standing on a dance floor with the music beginning. The imagery gives me the feeling that the poem is narrated by a man who is standing kind of in a daze thinking these things about life to himself. He gives no reason why it matters only where one ends in life, and not where one starts. In applying the psychoanalytical theory I would say that Freud would believe the narrator is repressing a memory. It is possible that the narrator perhaps sinned, or did something wrongful earlier in life, and now he is attempting to ease his conscience by explaining to himself that it is the end in life that matters, not where one starts or the mistakes they have made along the way. This theoretical criticism may be a stretch but it is possible the narrator is speaking out and defending his unconscious, by convincing himself of certain theories, such as in life it only matters how you end. Brown and Yarbrough explain the importance of cultural studies and new historicism as theories in critical analysis (Brown & Yarbrough 234). The New Historicists approach understands that it is impossible to deduce from literature one correct meaning (Brown & Yarbrough 234). When looking at the cultural and historical background of Stephen Dunn's Poetry, I noticed that the poem was written in 1996 and that Dunn was born in America in 1939(Poets.org). The majority of Americans, especially white Americans were Christians of some denomination. Perhaps Dunn's motivation for this poem stems from the belief in the forgiveness of sins in the Christian Religion. The ability to repent and have a God forgive your sins is an important aspect of Christian religion. The poem theme that the most important part of life is where you end up may be paralleled with that Christian philosophy. Like the spiritual journey of life, it is not so important in the Christian religion where you go along that journey, the important part is that by the end of your life you learn to accept God and repent your sins for his forgiveness. If Dunn were a Christian this poem could perhaps mirror this philosophy that the most important part of life is where you end up, not where you started. Stephen Dunn’s “Poetry” is a relatively new piece of literature, only 13 years old. This piece of literature presented itself as a tough challenge for me to analyze, but by using my skills I learned, and following the 13 ways guideline, I feel that I have accurately interpreted it. This poem is relatively short, consisting of only 27 lines, and written without any stanza separation. My first impression of the poem’s meaning stayed relatively true throughout all the exercises, and I feel my interpretation strengthened with the competition of all the individual components of this project as the class progressed. Because of this poem’s lack of a rhyming scheme, but apparent organization I decided that it was written in the free verse style. The poem was also written in a narrative style from the first point of view. By unpacking the figurative language I found metaphors and symbols that related to the overall theme of the poem. This poem’s difficulty was moderate, as far as the actual text the reading was simple. The poem presented a few ambiguities, but my original interpretation still remained similar. One of my favorite exercises in the 13 ways project were ways 11 and 12, in which I was instructed to do theoretical application. This really opened my eyes to the possibility of different meanings, and perhaps the motivation behind the theme that I already identified. I interpreted this poem as window into the author’s opinion on life, and possibly religion. Before reading the section on theoretical application my interpretation of the poem remained focuses on the idea that Dunn was representing his viewpoint on journey of life. He states bluntly in the first line that, “It makes no difference where one starts” (Dunn), which I believe is the author’s opinion. The rest of the literature I think he uses figurative language to explain why he feels this way. After applying the theoretical application in relation to the historical and biographical context of the author I came to my final interpretation. In general I believe that this piece of literature is written from a religious point of view, by a man who is approaching his later years in life. I think the narrator is expressing the author’s opinion that spiritually, and physically in life, the start you get is not something you can control, and therefore does no matter. Where you go, and how you handle obstacles and challenges in life to arrive at a point to where your life is coming to an end, is what really matters. In Christianity at any moment in a persons life they can chose to ask God for their forgiveness of sins, and from that moment on can be accepted by God. From this standpoint in comparison to what I explained in way 12, and with the knowledge of the author’s biographical and historical context, I came to the conclusion that this poem represents this religious theme. Doubled with the fact that Stephen Dunn was born in 1939 (Poets.org), a time in which it is understood that you are way past the “start” of your life. He wants to portray the idea that no matter where you start in life, and what you have done up to are not nearly as important as how you end up. Works Cited Brown, James S., and Scott D. Yarbrough. //Practical introduction to literary study//. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2005. Print. Dunn, Stephen. “Poetry” //Poets.org - Poetry, Poems, Bios & More//. Web. 25 July 2009. . "Stephen Dunn." //Contemporary Authors//. Galenet, 17 Nov. 2006. Web. 11 July 2009. .
 * Way One: First Impressions **
 * Way Two: Engaging with the text **
 * Way Three: Form and its relationship to content **
 * Way Four: Unpacking Figurative Language **
 * Way Five: Analyzing the Setting **
 * Way Six: Identifying and Analyzing Point of View **
 * Way Seven: Analyzing complexity, ambiguity, difficulty **
 * Way Eight: Considering Canocity **
 * Way Nine: Considering biographical content **
 * Way Ten: Historical and Cultural context **
 * Way Eleven: A theoretical application **
 * Way Twelve: Another theoretical application **
 * Way Thirteen: Overall, unifying, coherent interpretation **