Eng 125 Week 1 Assignment
ENG/125
8/6/2012
A Poem Poetry is not something that I would normally be interested in. I’ve tried writing poetry only to end up a dismal failure. I’ve tried to read poetry only to end up bored halfway through. I’ve always wanted to be one of those soulful poetic types who walk around with a serene look on their faces, snapping their fingers when something tickles their fancy but I’ve never quite made that transition. Poetry, to me, seems to be a fanciful, ethereal pursuit that has somehow always gone over my head no matter how hard I’ve tried. Since I’ve failed miserably at being a poet or even enjoying poetry, you can imagine my surprise when I read “Dog’s Death” and not only enjoyed it but it touched my heart. A good poem knows how to grab not only the reader’s attention but will snag the reader’s emotions and take them on a roller coaster; whether it has a happy or a sad ending the poem should keep the reader’s interest until the end. The poem “Dog’s Death” is a poem about a dog that has become a part of a family only to later be injured and die a slow death from a liver laceration. The author talks of how the dog learned to use the bathroom by going potty on newspapers and then moves on to being potty trained. The author talks of how the family plays with the dog though the dog is hemorrhaging the whole time. The author talks of how they finally saw that there was a problem and rushed the dog to the vet but the dog died on the way and, finally, the author talks of how the dog, in the last hours of her life, has diarrhea in the house but has found a discarded newspaper to go on so as not to soil the floor. The tone that the author uses is a ton of wistfulness and sadness. One might expect the author to use a tone of urgency as they rush the dog to the vet but the poet is remembering the event and the tone has been glazed over with a sadness that downplays the urgency. The author also uses a poignant metaphor [Definition. (2005-2010)] when he says “As
8/6/2012
A Poem Poetry is not something that I would normally be interested in. I’ve tried writing poetry only to end up a dismal failure. I’ve tried to read poetry only to end up bored halfway through. I’ve always wanted to be one of those soulful poetic types who walk around with a serene look on their faces, snapping their fingers when something tickles their fancy but I’ve never quite made that transition. Poetry, to me, seems to be a fanciful, ethereal pursuit that has somehow always gone over my head no matter how hard I’ve tried. Since I’ve failed miserably at being a poet or even enjoying poetry, you can imagine my surprise when I read “Dog’s Death” and not only enjoyed it but it touched my heart. A good poem knows how to grab not only the reader’s attention but will snag the reader’s emotions and take them on a roller coaster; whether it has a happy or a sad ending the poem should keep the reader’s interest until the end. The poem “Dog’s Death” is a poem about a dog that has become a part of a family only to later be injured and die a slow death from a liver laceration. The author talks of how the dog learned to use the bathroom by going potty on newspapers and then moves on to being potty trained. The author talks of how the family plays with the dog though the dog is hemorrhaging the whole time. The author talks of how they finally saw that there was a problem and rushed the dog to the vet but the dog died on the way and, finally, the author talks of how the dog, in the last hours of her life, has diarrhea in the house but has found a discarded newspaper to go on so as not to soil the floor. The tone that the author uses is a ton of wistfulness and sadness. One might expect the author to use a tone of urgency as they rush the dog to the vet but the poet is remembering the event and the tone has been glazed over with a sadness that downplays the urgency. The author also uses a poignant metaphor [Definition. (2005-2010)] when he says “As
References: Definition. (2005-2010). Retrieved from http://www.poetryarchive.org/poetryarchive/glossaryItem.do?letter=M&id=8079 Clugston, R. W. (2010). Journey into literature. San Diego, Ca: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.