My Opinion about "Doing the dirty work"

I think that time has really changed. People now do different kind of jobs. There is not discrimination as there used to be before.  Women and men work on cleaning houses,hospital, school; moreover, the percentage of women and men doing these kind of job has increased within the years. On the 1900's forty percentage of women work on cleaning and in 2007 it increased to 87 percentage.
I think that cleaning is not a easy job for women either for men because it is a  job that requires a lot of energy. People get tired very fast and stress out. Some of them have to finish their work in certain amout of time which is not easy.
In addition some people who do not work doing the dirty work make think that cleaning is a job only for women and therefore men should not do it. Many people who live here are undocumented and the first job easy to find is cleaning houses. It doesn't require so many documents but it involves all the household duties.

Question after reading "Doing the Dirty Work"

It talks about the nurturant care work. "The association of nurturant care with women is historically contingent rather than inevitable".(113)  Is this the thesis of this article?

No class on Thursday, Nov. 1!!!

Hello English102.0869 and English 102.0850,

Classes are cancelled tomorrow, Thursday, November 1.

See you all on Tuesday, November 6 for the Midterm.

Will update and e-mail you the revised syllabus by the evening of Friday, Nov. 2

Happy Halloween :)

Miss B

Happy Halloween!!!

For those who did not share with me, in GoogleDrive, Part I of Research Paper#1: Preliminary Thesis and Annotated Bibliography

The Part 1 of Research Paper #1: Preliminary Thesis and Annotated Bibliography was due before midnight on Tuesday, Oct. 23. 
If you have not shared it with me in GoogleDrive by that date, nor by midnight of Thursday, Oct. 25, you have lost 4 points, or 2 points for every class day.

*I'm not penalizing this assignment this week due to the storm- so Tues. Oct. 30 and Thurs. Nov. 1, do not count. If you do not share Part 1 of Research Paper #1: Preliminary Thesis and Annotated Bibliography before midnight on Tues. Nov. 6, you will lose another 2 points.

Doing the Dirty Work...

  As I was reading Mignon Duffy's, "Doing the Dirty Work," I was able to relate to how there is a hierarchy for staff in hospital's and nursing homes. I am currently interning at a nursing home and everyday that I am there I see the inequalities that the workers face. Each staff member has their assigned tasks to complete and there is an order to which staff member are assigned to. The people who think they are above other staff members will not help their co-workers complete their tasks if asked because that is not their job or because they're on a higher level. Personally, I think this is a terrible way to treat another person. Everyone needs a helping hand from time to time and we all should there for each other. I do realize that this is not the way the world works and that everyone is out for themselves.
   A janitor is a male cleaner and just listening to the sound of the word it sounds more masculine than the female version of cleaning lady or housekeeper. Both titles include similar chores but are viewed very differently. Visually when I think of a janitor I think of a man sweeping and mopping a school hallway and when I think of a cleaning lady I visualize a lady sweeping and mopping an office building. They are both are the same jobs just different titles.
  What this story and the storm that is brewing outside has got me thinking about is where does a doorman  or doorwoman fit into this domestic labor? They care and attend to the needs of the residents in a building, taking care of your mail, packages, deliveries when you're not home and so forth. They also have demanding jobs that they have to sacrifice their won personal time to be better at their jobs. Especially yesterday, today, and tomorrow. In my building, my doorman was on his shift when they evacuated Zone A in Manhattan, now all the trains, buses, and subways are suspended and he cannot leave his job until someone can come relieve him. This is not his choice and his work is spilling over to his personal time.

Midterm postponed until Tuesday, Nov. 6, and revisions of Paper #1 extended until Nov.6

Hello English 102.0869 and English 102.0850,
Hope all of you are safe and warm at home.

Due to the storm and LAGCC being closed tomorrow, Tuesday, Oct.30, our midterms are postponed to Tuesday, Nov. 6.

Please check you e-mail as I've sent further information relevant to each section, 0869 and 0850, as well as what we will do in class on Thursday, Nov. 1 (do check LAGCC website to see if the college will be open on Thursday and if classes will be in session).

Since the internet may not be too reliable today and tomorrow, and revisions of Paper#1 (only those which received C- or below may revise their papers) which may be submitted via GoogleDrive (WITH APPROPRIATE TITLE: Last Name, First Initial Eng102. Your Section Revision Paper#1) or as hard copy, were due on Tues. Oct. 30, I'll accept these until Tuesday, Nov.6. Remember that in order for me to assess your revisions, you need to submit the original hard copy of Paper#1 with my comments so that I can see what changes you have made. You may submit the hard copy of the original Paper#1 with my comments once school reopens, but you MUST submit the revision of Paper #1 by Nov. 6 (*if school does not reopen by then, share it with me in GoogleDrive)

Hope to see you all on Thursday, Nov. 1
Miss B

Revisions of Paper# 1(only those which received C- or below) due Tuesday, October 30

English 102.0869 and English 102.0850,

Revisions of Paper #1 must be submitted on Tuesday, October 30. Only those papers which received a grade of C- or below may be revised (if you received a split grade, and one of the grades is a C-, you may revise your paper).

You can submit your revision via GoogleDrive (make sure the document has an appropriate title: Last Name, First Initial  0869 or 0850 Revision of Paper #1) or as a hard copy. Also, you must return the original, hard copy of Paper#1 with my comments so that I can assess what changes you've made to your revision.

No late revisions will be accepted.

In both of these poems the authors talk about love being endless. Something that will continue on no matter what. it is similar to when a person break up with their first love even though they are not together at some point and time you think about the person and a passionate way.

Shakespeare & Millay

In Shakespeare's poem Sonnet 116 you can see the admiration Shakespeare has towards love and its meaning for him. As he expresses that love can not change even though it confronts many issues sometimes, it still remains something eternal. Using a metaphorical term he shows us that love seems to be like the north star. Its there but we can never explain it. In "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why" the sonnet seemed to be much more in depth. The author portrays a sort of loneliness feeling as she thinks alone in the rain. This poems also includes love but in a sexual more aggressive way as she remembers when she wasn't  alone and had company in her past with men. Both poems are fascinating, actually my favorites out of all we've read. The authors truly capture your heart and make you wonder off to their worlds as you read.

Shakespeare and Millay

In the sonnets by William Shakespeare and Edna Millay, I believe portray that love is a rare thing. Also that love is not always gonna make you happy and can become a very complex situation. Meaning that just because u love someone doesn't mean that they will love u back which will show that love may not always be true.

Sonnets

Shakespeare's sonnet 116 he explains the factors of true love. He spends the whole poem telling us that love is this immovable object that follows no rules but it's own. That love doesn't even stop for death, it "bears it out even to the edge of doom." Millay however is talking about a different kind of love. Shes talking about past love or even one night stands. The woman in the story could even be a prostitute and we know is that she is alone in the wake of a quick fling.

Poems 10/23

Both poems are very interesting for their simplicity and honesty. Shakespeare's concerned what most people would define as love for its consistency and Millay's poem was what I believed to be a person missing the intimacy of another person for a very long time. Not one specific person but just that human touch in general. Both had very simple ideas about romance that were expressed very artistically.

Two sonnets

While Shakespeare's "Let me not to the marriage of true minds." talks of love that's created from trust and understanding, Millay's "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why" speaks of a lustful love that is full of passion and adultery. I was expecting it to be the other way around considering Shakespeare had multiple mistresses. But that being said, I don't think one type of love can exist without the other. Shakespeare talks of a love that conquers all "Love is not love.. Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken." (2-8 Shakespeare)  and can be easily redirected (the boat) or saved, if need be, if there are any circumstances that could threaten it. Millay's poem speaks of someone that has already lost their love and deeply regret and miss their past romances and because of that there's a sweet sorrow reading Millay's poem. They are two very different poems, speaking of the same topic: love.

"Sonnet 116" and "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why"

Let me not to the marriage of true minds (Sonnet 116)

William Shakespeare's "Sonnet 116 talks about true love that never weathers away. Several lines from the poem read, "Admit impediments; love is not love Which alters when it alteration finds, Or bends with he remover to remove. O, no, it is an ever fixed mark" (2-5). I translated this to love isn't lost when tough times arise. Love is permanent, "bears it out even to the edge of doom" (12) and won't change no matter what situation comes between the two individuals who are in love or have love for each other.



"What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why"

Edna St. Vincent Millay's "what lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why" also deals with the issue of love but in a different light. The speaker reflects on her past romantic experiences but she questions herself of who they were with and for what reason. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but how can you not remember who you slept with unless you had a lot of partners. Maybe she's a lot older and those partners were in her youthful years. While she is reminiscing, the speaker talks about how lonely she is. A portion of the poem reads, " Thus in the winter stands the lonely tree, Nor knows what birds have vanished one by one" (10). The speaker is by herself and all her meaningless memories of romance are nothing but memories now.

Rap of Shakespeare's Sonnet 141

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eUzslPhNP6M

SONNET 141

In faith, I do not love thee with mine eyes,
For they in thee a thousand errors note;
But 'tis my heart that loves what they despise,
Who in despite of view is pleased to dote;
Nor are mine ears with thy tongue's tune delighted,
Nor tender feeling, to base touches prone,
Nor taste, nor smell, desire to be invited
To any sensual feast with thee alone:
But my five wits nor my five senses can
Dissuade one foolish heart from serving thee,
Who leaves unsway'd the likeness of a man,
Thy proud hearts slave and vassal wretch to be:
Only my plague thus far I count my gain,
That she that makes me sin awards me pain.

http://www.shakespeare-online.com/sonnets/141.html

Poems

In the first poem "Let me not to the marriage of true minds" the speaker is talking about love and what does it mean to this person. The speaker believes love is not to change the lover when there is problems in the relationship , love is to keep trying to fix the wrongs. The last two sentences are very significant because it shows that he is confident about his meaning of love and if he is wrong he shall never write again and no man will ever be loved again.
In the second poem "What lips my lips have kissed and where, and why" it also talks about love. The difference is that the speaker talks about his past lovers. The speaker states that he forgot about them but the "ghosts" of them are still lingering around. He feels lonely and his heart is still in pain because every winter he realizes he is still all alone.

Shakespeare and Millay

Both the poem by Shakespeare and the poem by Millay, deal with love and time affecting it. Shakespeares however, seems to be talking about how elements such as time, do not affect or get in the way of true love. He further establishes his position on love by saying, "If this be error, and upon me prov'd, I never writ, nor no man ever lov'd." In other words, he is comparing undeniable truths such as him being a writer and man having been in love, with something he additionally feels to be an undeniable truth, to establish it as such. Millay's poem on the other hand, carries an entire sense of loss. For instance, throughout the poem she uses terms such as "where and why", "I have forgotten", "lonely", etc. In her poem she compares the seasons change to love and love lost. To illustrate, she speaks of a winter's "lonely tree" in contrast to the summer "that sang in me". So it is evident that these two poems speak of love however, Shakespeare's is more optimistic while Millay's describes a forlornness.

Vargas

Let me not to marriage of the true minds

In the sonnet of William Shakespeare “Let me not to the marriage of true minds “ I believe he describes that love is eternal. He indicates that loves is eternal and no matter what happen love is forever until death comes to you. He also believes that if he is wrong that then no men has ever loved. It is really beautiful to understand how he describes what true love should be and how a true love is unconditional.

What lips my lips have kissed, and where and why

In this sonnet Edna St Vincent Millay she writes about how sad she is for all the men that she forgot because not only she cant remember all the men she has kiss but she also realizes how lonely she is now. She compares herself to seasons and how she is like a tree in the winter, bare with no leaves and no birds.

I believe both sonnets are different because William Shakespeare sonnet speaks about how true love is eternal and in the Edna St Vincent Millay sonnet speaks of past relationships of whom she can not remember to me this two sonnet cant no be more opposite.

Shakespeare

I believe Shakespeare Sonnet's 116 is describing unconditional love. "Love is not love/

Which alters when it alteration finds" (2-3) which is saying love isn't changed by a different impression you may have. Love is unconditional. He goes on to say that if love isn't unconditional then it doesn't exist. Although as a reader it is important to know he is speaking of true love and not in a shallow sense.  I think this is one of Shakespeare more straight forward works. I think if you just pick the language line by line you can translate what hes saying. For example "Let me not to the marriage of true minds/ Admit impediments" (1-2) is basically saying that two people who are meant to be together should not accept any reason or excuses to not be together. I think this is a really beautiful piece of writing that doesn't destroy the idea of true love but enlightens it.

The Sonnets

Let me not to the marriage of true minds--
The sonnet describes love as endless and is not subjected to the life of a normal human being that ages and withers away with time.

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why--
 The poem also references time going rapidly by from winter to the summer, "I only know that summer sang in me. A little while, that in me sings no more" (13-14). And while things change with the seasons, memories of love always remain.

Two Poems

The first poem by Shakespeare from what i understood is speaking about love between two people and that its not easily broken or can be easily. That in a way is undoing " between the marriage of two minds ". That although people get old love cannot change and shall not whither away in " brief hours and weeks".

In the second writing by Millay, i believe its a women speaking about her past loves and relations but how now she has none of what she use to. Probably did something wrong and is now all alone wishing she could have that lost love. Something about her must be seriously wrong if all those past loves are just gone now

Love: Expectations and Reality

The two poems by Shakespeare and Millay are centered on the concept of love, with the speakers of each poem possessing different perspectives on the subject.

The speaker in "Let me not to the marriage of true minds" takes the prescriptive approach as he dictates what love is. The speaker has a romanticized perspective of love as he makes declarations on the supposed infallibility of love with statements like "O, no, it is an ever fixed mark That looks on tempests and is never shaken" and "Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, But bears it out even to the edge of doom" (Shakespeare 5-6, 11-12). Based on these statements, the speaker possesses what I consider to be a naive view of love, similar to the unrealistic depictions that's fed to little girls' expectations today through media such as Disney fairy tales and music. Naive might not the right word to describe this perspective, I would even go as far as to call it childish, as the speaker asserts the irrefutable infallibility of love with the statement "If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man ever loved" (Shakespeare 13-14). Considering that Shakespeare had a mature understanding of human nature and relations, it is a wonder why the speaker in the poem is in love with the notion of love.

The speaker in "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why" is a stark contrast to Shakespeare's speaker in tone and perspective. The speaker here speaks with a tone that I would describe as either world-weary or disillusioned as she reflects on what seems to be the failure of the reality of love to meet her expectations of love. While it is never outright stated, it is implied that the speaker has been through many relationships that have ended in failure with the lines "In my heart there stirs a quiet pain For unremembered lads that not again Will turn to me at midnight with a cry" and "I cannot say what loves have come and gone, I only know that summer sang in me A little while, that in me sings no more" (Millay 6-8, 12-14). While the poem is more difficult to decipher, it lends credence to the interpretation of the speaker reflecting on her past experiences of pursuing love and becoming disillusioned with the notion of love since the beginning of the poem makes direct references to this. The line "The rain is full of ghosts tonight, that tap and sigh Upon the glass and listen for reply" is very telling, for the rain can be an indication of the speaker's disposition and ghosts can be referring to past lovers (Millay 3-5). With this in mind, the line suggests that the speaker is trying to reflect on previous relationships but can't remember her lovers, since the "ghosts are listening for her response" with could mean recognition or acknowledgement of them by her.

The two poems compliment each other as one is able to examine love through the lens of an idealist and a jaded veteran. What's notable in comparing the poems and their speakers is that the male is the one who is obsessed with the idea of love, which isn't the norm in how relationships are depicted today. While there's no way find out this information, it would be interesting to know the ages of both speakers, since it would help inform their perspectives.

 "Let me not marriage of the true mind" and " what lips my lips have kissed.and where. and why.

 In this poem the author talks about the true love. So he is saying that if couple do something wrong in their  relationship they should not to fixed.  In certain way, the mark as he say it won't disappear from them.  In  Milley poem I think she talks about the  love when she was young how the physical contacts bring her good memories. Both of the author are showing different meaning of love for them. As Shakespeare  say if you break hearth some one you love  that can not be fixed but in Miley  she states that moment of when  they were together its remarkable of them.

Shakespeare and Millay

Shakespeare’s 116 th sonnet is all about true love, in the sense that true love must be considered pure, universal and unwavering in order for it to be considered true love. Shakespeare romanticizes and structuralizes true love in the sense of creating a formula for it: This is how it must be in order for it to occur. It must be unwavering, throughout time and forever, through good times and through the bad. The interesting thing about this sonnet, however, is that Shakespeare vows to renounce love should he be proven wrong. Shakespeare has always been known for his plays of love (Romeo and Juliet for example) and his love sonnets, so for him give the possibility of his renouncement of love is a huge deal.

Millay’s poem holds a stark contrast to the Shakespearean one, one may argue, however, we cannot be sure that she is actually talking about true love. She may be admitting, in this poem, to have being a slut, or that she may never have felt the kind of love that Shakespeare was describing. It definitely seems to be that she is describing lust and calling it love, but that may just be what I’m taking from it…

My opinion about the two poems. Diana Barbecho

Let me not to the marriage if true minds (Sonnet 116)

In my opinion the speaker in the poem seems to be talking to another man. He is comparing how love make people act irrationally, "Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks", (line 9).
 Love is hard once it gets tied to the minds of two people because it also can married their minds making them believe that they really love each other even after death.
The speaker wants to explain that sometimes love can cause death and therefore that it can be the end of that love which does not truly exists.


What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why

I think that the speaker is remembering the loves she had when she was young. She also is remembering how much she like the physical contact, "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why", (line 1).
She knows that she is not young like before so she cannot attract young loves anymore.
When she says, "Thus in the winter stands the lonely tree",(line 9) she refers to the end of her young years and the beginning of her adult life. She just knows now that she cannot not join the passionate love of her youth either. 
The speaker has good and bad memories of her youth, "And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain",(line 6).
I she remembers all the years that have already passed around her whole life.

The Two Sonnets

There are a couple of things I noticed about these two sonnets. Both of them emphasize love and much it imprints on the mind of the person. Shakespeare's sonnet is about how love is resilient; he casts a bit of doubt with the first three lines, but then goes to use metaphors about how enduring love is. Millay's sonnet is the opposite in that it describes how fleeting love is and how easy it is to forget the things you love.

Shakesphere's sonnet follows a straightforward rime scheme where it rimes every other line. Except for the last three. Here he lays out his feelings about everything he stated with the rest of the work  "But bears it out even to the edge of doom" (12). The last two lines are separated from the rest of the sonnet on purpose for extra effect.

Millay's sonnet as stated follows the typical rime scheme of the Italian sonnet for the first eight lines, in this case abab. The following 6 lines bring a little more depth to what Millay is saying by using birds and seasons as a comparison for lost loves. But I can't seem to figure out the rime scheme if there is any. Can anyone clue me in about it?

After Reading two poems

Two poems express two different love views of authors. In "Let me not to the marriage of true minds", Shakespeare thinks that love is eternal and unforgettable. In "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why", Millay thinks that love is as transient as a fleeting cloud, it is forgettable.

Shakespeare & Millay

In the Shakespeare poem i believe that love is describe both in good and bad. I believe he is trying to say that loves is not a game. He mention that love alters the emotion of the ones whom are in loved. In his error upon me proved (13)  i believe that he says this because he thinks that love can be tricky hurtful in some cases.
In the Millay poem i believe the author is talking about a heart break.  I have forgotten , and what arms have lain (2). This line shows us that their once was a time that she once was in love, However her lover has left she doesn't remember laying in his arms. I sense some form of sadness almost life she has lost hope to love again.

Shakespeare & Millay

 This sonnet presents the extreme ideal of romantic love it never changes, it never fades, it outlasts death and admits no flaw. This sonnet  define love, by telling both what it is and is not. In the first quatrain, the speaker says that love ”the marriage of true minds”is perfect and unchanging; it does not “admit impediments,” and it does not change when it find changes in the loved one.. 

what i found most interesting about Edna "what lips My Lips have Kissed" is the fact that she is warning young people, especially women to make more long term plans instead of jumping into short term relationships that ultimately means nothing.

Shakespeare and Millay

In the Sonnet by Millay, I think the character is a women. I think this because she said "... what arms have lain under my head till morning..." normally the woman will lay on the man at night. I think the character had many relationships in the past. When she said "And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain For unremembered lads that not again Will turn to me at midnight with a cry. Thus in winter stands the lonely tree...", She is referring to the men that she was with in the past.  As time goes on, it appears that she is getting older and she is now lonely and she can't remember them.

In Shakespeare's Sonnet I believe he is simply saying what love it, and what it is not. He just describes in a very different way. For example when he said "Love is not fool's time, though rosy lips and cheeks" I think when he said Fool's time, I think he probably meant that love is not a game. and when he said said though rosy lips and cheeks, he is saying that love is beautiful. I think this because rosy lips and cheeks paints the image of a women, and with the descriptions given of her one may get the idea that she is beautiful.

Both poems. - Kerry

The first sonnet by Shakespeare describes a vision of love. The narrator could possibly be a women in this sonnet putting into consideration of how women today see love, or at least want to see love. Everlasting, flourishing, etc. The sonnet talks about how love has no time limit, that it is an "ever-fixed mark" (Shakespeare, 5).

The second sonnet completely opposes Shakespeare's. Love is now distant to this narrator. Although it was once there, with many different lovers at that. The narrator describes being lonely and starts to reminisce of time past times. The narrator can pass for a female. It could possibly be the descriptive tone of the sonnet that would deem the narrator a female. 

The two sonnets contrast each other's ideas. Although I do not support Shakespeare's sonnet. Love is not always everlasting and in some situations, it is timed. The sonnet may be portrayed through a feminine POV, I can relate to this sonnet more than Shakespeare's. It's usually how many heartbroken people feel like.

Both poems.

After reading both poems I prefer Shakespeare's poem over Millay's. Shakespeare talks about the strengths of love and that it should come naturally without a person having to change who they are. He also talks about when you love someone you are there for them through the rough times. I understand this from the line, "That looks on tempests and is never shaken," (6). For me it signifies that love will be standing tall through the rocky times that every relationship faces. That you can count on the person you love being there for you.

    Millay's poem was a little different, it talks about how time has past and that the lady's beauty has faded. She misses all the attention that she used to receive by many a man. So many that she can't remember them all. What surprises me about this poem is that she is so open about being promiscuous given the year that the poem is set in. In 1923 I thought that ladies were supposed to behave like ladies  and that their sexual encounters were not supposed to be talked about in public. 

Analysis of Sonnets, Shaquesha Smith

Let me not to the marriage of true minds By William Shakespeare
This sonnet is about marriage and love. How love/marriage isn't perfect as seen is line 6. The narrator is expressing what he believes what love is as seen in line 13. This sonnet is written is first person. I think the narrator is a man.

What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why By Edna St. Vincent Millay
This sonnet is about someone reminiscing about their life during a rain storm as seen in lines 2-3. The person is reminiscing about past loves as seen in lines 6-7. Her (I assume it is a woman) memories about her youth and past loves makes her sad. I think the "lonely tree" is the woman is the and the birds are the men she can't keep. The sonnet is written in first person. I believe the narrator is a woman.

The first sonnet I read made me feel happy and excited about love. The first sonnet makes me hopeful that maybe love/marriage is different for everyone and it doesn't have to be bad. The second one is fulled with so much sorrow and sadness I just feel sad and cautious about love. The second sonnet doesn't leave you with any hope for the narrator to find or be in love.

Sonnets

    I believe the theme of both poems is how one percieves love.
    In Shakespeare's poem, the narrator has a clear idea of what love is. Love overcomes obstacles and it never dies. Love does not depend on time, and it is often taken for granted. The couplet at the end expresses his strong belief in the existence of true love and expresses the loss he will feel if its existence is proven otherwise. The narrator is probably in love.
   In contrast, the narrator in Millay's poem is unsure of what love is. This is shown when the narrator says "I cannot say what loves have come and gone". The speaker has had a lot of partners, without fully developing a romantic relationship with them. I believe that might have been the partners' decision and not the speakers' because the speaker is clearly yearning for love. In addition, the speaker refers to his/her partners as birds that are with him/her during the summer and away during the winter, when he/she feels lonely. This is probably a reference to bird migrating during the winter.

Shakespeare and Millay

"Let me  not to the marriage of true minds"
This poem speaks about true love. Marriage should be unbreakable. Couples should not try to fix something when alterations are found. 'love is not love which alters when it alteration finds,' This means you should not look for another partner because one changes. 'O, no, its an ever fixed mark' Implies that its something you can't delete (divorce) its always capable of being fixed. "Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, but bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me proved,' I understand about that the problem between the couple of whom he/she is speaking of is that the partner spend too many hours working, and he/she says it can be worked on. I don't know if the speaker is male or female. The person speaking is the one who works a lot and is trying to convince his/her partner to not be upset that this problem can be fixed.

'What lops my lips have kissed, and where, and why'
I believe that the speaker can be a women because 'and what arms have lain under my head till morning;' usually women lay on men arms while in bed. She is pondering thoughts during a rainy night. 'For unremembered lads that not again will turn to eat midnight with a cry.' I believe speaker is talking about the men that she's had sex with presumably one nights stands. 'Thus in the winter stands the lonely tree,' 'I only know that summer sang in me' I believe speaker has gotten older and is not as attractive as before, which is probably why she is not so sexually active.

Edna St. Vincent Millay: What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why

What i understood about this poem is that Millay describes how  a person is lost without his/her other half. That person feels lonely  and feels unremembered . "Upon the glass and listen for reply/and in my heart stirs a quiet pain" (654).  This line means to me that the person awaits a voice or someone to speak to that person because that individual feels empty inside which refers to "my heart stirs a quiet pain".

William Shakespeare: Let me not to the marriage of true minds

This poem is a little advanced with such word structure that its hard to understand. What i understood  in the last few lines, "Love's not Time's fool". Im guessing that this means that when it comes to false love, it uses up valuable time to the persons findings of true love.

Poems

In Let me not to the marriage of  true minds, takes me back to Corinthians 13:1-13 in the bible. The verse talks about love and this poem also talks about love. Deep down inside I know everyone wants that ideal love in a marriage or relationship. The kinda love that can survive whatever hardship life may dish out. A love that can't be tempest or shaken., meaning no one can come between or even try to end that love. He stated that, "it is the star to every wand'ring bark." I think the star is a guide for lovers, it may also represents love. Love can make couples do and feel things they never thought they could feel for another. In the end love never change, people change. They died or that love dies.

In What lips, my lips have kissed, and where and why,right away I feel as thought the speaker is a man trying to remember past sexual encounters. Towards the middle I picture a woman. She speaks of a time when it was raining and she would hear a tap outside. Maybe when she was younger guys would come to her window and the tap on it. That tap means she should come outside or to let them in. She compares herself to a tree. A tree stands alone, birds come and go not before doing their business. Probably that's how men treated her. It's hard for her to remember, because she might be older and summer is the only time she can remember. That may have been her time, when men were after her the most.

Shakspeare and Edna St. Vincent Millay

In Shakespeare's "Let me not to the marriage of true mind", and Millay's "What lips my lips have kissed, and where, and why", both address how love is immortal.  In Shakespeare's poem he speaks of love as constant despite the power of time and chance. When he says " Love's not Time's fool", he shows how true love beats the hands of time, and can never die. In Millay's poem, the speaker of the poem reminisces on their numerous lover affairs of their younger days. The speaker shows how love lives on " lips my lips have kissed" by recalling joyful times of intimidate love affairs. When the speaker says "And in my heart there stirs a quiet pain for unremembered lads", these powerful words show how emotion lasts even though memories fade going back to the concept of time. Both poems show that time has no sense of control over love. Love does not deteriorate or grow old, it remains powerful against its greatest destroyer time. 

both sonnets

Edna St. Vincent Millay's "What Lips My Lips Have Kissed, and Where and Why" is an effective short poem, which feeds on the dissonance between the ideal of love and its reality, heartbreak. Both poems revolve around the consistency of love, whether existent or not, though their discrepancies are valid, it is these discrepancies, which provide readers with the conception and comprehension of what true love really is. These two writers truly have differentiating concepts of love, which compliment the personas pertaining to the creation of these poems.

3 poems

"Mother to son" i agree that mother to son was most clear to me as well .... the poem is based on this one metaphor. The metaphor in this poem relates life to a staircase. "Well, son, I'll tell you life ain't been no crystal stair."(Lines 1-2). The mother, who is talking to her son, is saying life is not just something you can walk through with ease. It is a long and hard journey... this reminds me of my other and the way she conveys life to me and my younger sister

"For My daughter"  surprsed me at the end when she reveals she doesn't have a daughter and don't desire to have any children. at the same time i can relate. Being a woman with no children i often wondered what it would be like to have a child. what if my child was sick? what if it was health? what would i name it? i even dreamt about having a child. 

"The Chimmney Sweeper" was a little sad.  can u imagine being sold before u even kno who your parents are? and to basically be a slave??? 

For My Daughter

after reading all 3 poems i think the one i understood the most was "For My Daughter" In the beginning of the poem, the guy/girl is talking about his daughter and how she is sick. Weldon says " concealed, hinting of death she does not heed" i think he didn't know that she was dying from a sickness but the smell made him realize that something was wrong. The last two sentences of the poem Weldon says "these speculations sour in the sun. I have no daughter. I desire none. " I think he doesn't have a daughter and was just speculating what would happen if he did have one. but he doesn't desire one at all.

Death becomes us all.

"The Chimney Sweeper" was a great poem. The rhyme scheme works very well. The words painted clear images of what Blake wanted to show us. I got that this is about child labor in the mid-late 1700's. This child was sold to work before it could speak. This becomes clear in the beginning when you read, "And my father sold me while yet my tongue
Could scarcely cry 'weep! 'weep! 'weep! 'weep!"
These children in the poem are chimney sweepers who seem to be somewhat aware of the health risks of their job. When Tom dreams about the "coffins of black," I pictured the coffins covered in soot. Maybe throughout his time sweeping chimneys, Tom has seen many people die. Tom does however find comfort in his dream that when all is said and done, he will be with god and the angels.

"Mother to Son" sounds like it may be taking place on the mother's deathbed. She tries to tell her son that her life hasn't been easy but she has persevered. Trying to send the message that no matter what he faces, no matter how hard it gets, he can pull through.
Considering the time of this piece and the language, I get the impression that the mother is an african american woman. She has dealt with oppression, "boards torn up," and poverty, "places with no carpet on the floor."

In "For My Daughter" the poem takes a wicked turn in the last two lines. Almost like a twist. As you read the poem you are pulled in one direction and then, just when you think you have it figured out, the speaker says, "I have no daughter. I desire none."
So this poem could mean many things. One of the ways I looked at it after rereading it over and over again was this.
The speaker (we don't know if it is a male or female) could be analyzing ("These speculations in the sour sun.") the state of the world (widespread syphilis, impending war) and coming to the conclusion that having a child at this time may be a bad idea. This person doesn't want their child to grow up in a time like this.
Although I am in no position in life to plan to have a child, this is a thought process I myself have faced when thinking about becoming a father. The condition of the world today is not a burden that I would want my child to bare.

3 poems

Each poem with the exception of For My Daughter were essentially stories of hope in dark yet realistic situations. The ominous over tones of For My Daughter I believe only dealt in the dark and negative side of reality. The person whose thoughts we are reading in this poem seems to have given up hope in a bad situation where as the people in the other two poems found specific motivation to carry on.

"For My Daughter", "The Chimney Sweeper", 'Mother to Son"

From what I understood, all three poems shared the same theme, a message from a parent to a child saying life is dreadful and death is immanent. Moreover, all three poems seem to convey some sort of oppression which is why life is meaningless for them and they almost rather die.  The job of a chimney sweeper, especially from the young age of 5, is a short lived, peasantry life style in 18th Century England, where most of the workers die at a young age, most likely from a cardiovascular related issue. Its almost as if death would set him free. "For My Daughter" talks about how if the author had a daughter  her life was gonna be troubled by misfortune from her husband anyway. Out of all three poems, "Mother to Son" had the most positive, although still gloomy, message of the three poems. The mother is telling her son that life was hard, empty and oppression filled but stay positive, dont get down and keep striving hard to be successful     

Nancy Vargas

The Chimney Sweeper”

In William Blake poem we read the story of a young kid that was sold by this father. His job condition was horrible and his life was sad. His mother died and he work cleaning chimneys. His friend had a dream that they were free and that everything was different but after he woke up even thought he knew that it was only a dream they felt different and they felt that one day thing were going to change.

“Mother to Son”

After reading this poem I felt a connection with the first poem. In this story we have a mother telling the son how horrible her life was when she was growing up. I feel that this could be and example of what the boy in the “The Chimney Sweeper” poem would feel when he grows up. At the end the mother tells the son not to give up  even thought things are bad which is a great message for everyone.

“For my Daughter “

This poem has different emotions. In the beginning I thought that the speaker was taking about her daughter dying but after reading the last line of the poem I realize that the speaker didn’t had a daughter and that she was writing a poem to a hypothetical   daughter that was born sick and die.Is really interesting how this poem shows you one side but at the end it changes all your thoughts .

Response to the 3 poems

 The three poems are dark and grim, but in a way "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes and "Chimney Sweeper" both try to console and/or give hope to the reader. "Chimney Sweeper" by William Blake reveals to the observer/reader the oppression of his time that was mainly directed towards children. During this time there weren't many or any labor laws that supported children so children ended up working instead of going to school. Many children died and it caused great concern. In the poem, the speaker tells us of a dream, lines 11-20. In my opinion, this poem is saying that when they die they will feel better and be "naked and white" (line 17) as opposed to being covered in black soot. "Mother to Son" is a mother speaking to her son of how tough life is and that life is going to suck but he needs to keep going and strive. The tertiary poem "For my daughter" by Weldon Kees is the poem I found most interesting. It was kind of confusing almost like he's speaking of something that happened another time or maybe never at all. In the last line he says "I have no daughter. I desire none." which I think means he's never had a daughter and he's basically just listing the reasons why he wouldn't want to have one. In the penultimate line he says "These speculations sour in the sun." he calls it speculations so he never had a daughter because if he did he thinks she would just die of an illness or ended up with a fool or with syphilis.
Oppression, bleak opportunity due to the racism in your time, death and hysteria. How awesome.

TAP 3poems response

Out of the 3 poems the "Mother to Son" poem was the most clear to me. I grew up in a single parent household so I know what it's like to get advice from my mom who raised me. You can tell the mother was very strong minded and she only wanted her son to be strong and to know when he fall he can get back up.

3 poems , kelly billares

"The Chimney Sweeper" by William Blake
      The poem is a bit confusing, at first in the beginning of the poem i thought the father had cut the boys tongue but then realized the author meant it in diffrent way as i read along. The poem also mentions Tom Dacre, can he be a sibling or is the author in a foster home, because he also mentions Dick, Joe,Ned, and Jack which are also sweepers. Are they being forced to sweep?

"Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes
        The poem is very clear and straight up. The mother tells her son that life is not easy and that their will b struggles and their will be points wear you fall and would want to give up but you have to keep moving forward. Life for her wasnt easy so if she was able to do it so can her son.

"For My Daughter" by Weldon Kees
         I didnt understand the poem quiet fully. I believe something happened to the dauhter and the mother still has not been able to get over it. The mother still has her in her memory and misses her.

My response to 3 poems Diana Lopez

In "The chimney sweeper" to my understanding the son was given away by the father. Now Im very confused with this poem! I have a question? Was the speaker dreaming? Was the father bad?
In "Mother to son" I understand this poem perfectly, the mother is the telling her son that she's been thru the worst, that nothing ha sheen easy, and in other words that even though life has been tough, she still standing, and keeps going no matter how hard the path is. She ha climb no matter how hard it has been.
In "For my daughter" in this poem I perceived that the daughter was killed, an the mother is blocked to her death, therefore thats why she dent desire any daughter. Question? Is the daughter dead? or is she just evil? did she killed her own daughter ?

Connections

The three poems by William Blake, Langston Hughes, and Weldon Kees all share the common theme of parenthood but each takes a different approach on the subject. The poems are somewhat cryptic to me as only "Mother to Son" is the most easily accessible poem of the three.

"Mother to Son" seems to be about a mother informing her son about the hardships of her life as she says that "Life for me ain't been no crystal stair", which seems to be a metaphor similar to that of the "silver spoon"  in the sense of how one's life plays out. The mother goes on saying that her journey "had tacks on it....splinters...and places with no carpet on the floor", which is supposed to represent obstacles and hardships she faced in life. She talks about persevering as says that she has been "climbin' on and reachin' landin's" even in times of uncertainty as she mentions "goin' to the dark where there ain't been no light". Afterwards the focus shifts to her son as she tells him not to give up in the face of life's obstacles with the phrases "don't you set down on the steps" and "don't you fall now". With a mother addressing her son about the hardships of life, the obstacles she's referring to wouldn't be gender centric since her son wouldn't have the same experiences as a male. Since this is a Hughes poem, its reasonable to conclude that the hardships she refers to are those that would arise from racism.

"The Chimney Sweeper" has a boy that's sold to child labor by his father and sweeps chimneys for his "master" or "owner". It seems that Tom Dacre is the boy who was sold by his father, even though it is established that the speaker is not Tom. With the angel in Tom's dream telling him that "if he'd be a good boy He'd have God for his father and never want joy", Blake establishes a connection between Tom and the beginning of the poem. If this is true, who is the speaker?

""For My Daughter" is the most difficult to decipher since it is vague, I can't tell what the poem is about. It seems to be about a mother talking about her daughter but it not certain that the speaker is in fact someone's mother.

These three poems are very touchy all those are referring to someone.

"The Chimney Sweeper"

 This poem looks like the father couldn’t hold his child’s, so he sold his child. In this poem we can see that the situation that the father did it. Might because economic situation. And he believe that someday everything will be better for them

Mother to Son.

After I read "Mother to Son," the mother was trying to tell her son that  about all the hard work and situations that she has go through  in her life but how it got better. Somehow letting him know that even if he thinks things are tough, they'll always get better later on, so she point out that he wouldn’t give up in his dreams or goals.

For my Daughter

   "For my Daughter," in this poem looks like the mother lost her baby. She describes the death of her daughter, "I have no daughter, I desire none" (14) it’s might be she is saying that losing a daughter made her no longer want another. In certain way, looks like she won’t to replace her for no none.

Chimney Sweeper,Mother to Son, For my daughter

i really liked "mother to son" because from what i got from it was a mother teaching her son a lesson to never give up even when things are down and bad. Not to turn back because just as she didnt fall then neither can he.

"For my daughter" was interesting because the narrator actually has no daughter! but instead thinks to himself what would happen if he did? Maybe she would be filled with hatred to others or become a wife to a fool? i read this about 3 times until i understood

the chimney sweeper was sad as young boys are working hard since they have nothing else or no one else. the main character has a friend named tom who he looks after. i believe that tom has a dream of them in coffins? and that an angel of some sort will come and set all the boys free and this was their way of escaping until they woke up and started working again

The three poems

After reading the tree poems, it is apparent that the underling theme is the comfort of children who are growing up around a less than ideal environment. Blake's poem is the most upfront about the conditions that these children endure. They are forced to work cleaning chimneys, a dirty and in enviable task. But ironically his poem also seems to be the most optimistic. Young Tom Dacre's hair loss is turned around and used as a motivator for him to persevere. "For when your head's bare, you know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair" (Blake 441).

Kees's poem is the exact opposite. The setting is only implied, being "in certain war"(Kees 428), but the "daughter" in question has not managed to persevere. Most of the poem describes the daughter as a corpse, a victim of her environment "the slim legs green" (Kees, 428). But the last line indicates that the "daughter" is a figment of the narrator's imagination, maybe a premonition of how the setting would affect her, and thus she desires none (Kees, 428)

Even though it is far more vague, Hughes poem could be seen as the middle ground between the other two. It makes no illusions about life being easy. At the beginning and at the end, the same line is repeated "life for me ain't been no crystal stair" (Hughes 695-696). But the poem makes a point that the mother has moved forward despite the harshness of her life, and is now telling her son "Don't you fall now. For I'se still goin, honey."

Though it is a middle ground, Hughes poem is closer in tone to Blake's poem than Kees's. Furniture and house based locations are referenced in both works to stress the poor setting. Both poems end with an ascent, perhaps to heaven. Blake's writing is more blunt about its religious elements "Then naked and white, they rise upon the clouds, and sport in the wind" (Blake, 441), but the message is the same.

The funny thing is, all three poems seem to indicate that only in death will one reap the benefits of a good or bad living. Maybe I'm wrong about that?

3 Poems

When I read these poems it's obvious that they are all about someones child.

"The Chimney Sweeper" was more from the child's point of view. How his father shipped him off to work and how jkm and his friends constantly thought about death and when they died the angels would come and set them free from their coffins.

When I read "Mother to Son" it was clear that the mother was trying to tell her some about all the hard work and situations she xame accross in life but how it got better. Somehow letting him know that even if he thinks things are tough, they'll always get better later on so never give up.

As for "For my Daughter" I really felt like the mother lost her baby. She describes the death of her daughter and the end where it says, "I have no daughter, I desire none" (14) is maybe her saying that losing a daughter made her no longer want another. Like she didn't want to replace her last.

after reading "The Chimney Sweeper", "Mother to Son" and "For My Mother"

For "The Chimney Sweeper"and "Mother to Son", I think the concepts are being indomitable.
Don't give up and do you best however the situation is so difficult.
For "For My Daughter", the concept is death. All good things will be gone before the death. It only remains agony.

Mother to Son

I feel like this poem is the most straight forward of the 3 we read. It tells of a mother's message to her son. That message being, "Don't give up. Life is going to be hard but keep striving". The author repeats the line "life for me ain't been no crystal stair". The use of this metaphor, in my interpretation, means that life is not glamourous, nor easy. The crystal being symbolic of something pretty, and the stairs representing ascension, as in to "move up" or to a better place. The mother is not denying the possibility of ascending one's self to a better place, rather she is stating that it is possible, but with continuous, hard work. In comparing these 3 poems I noticed a couple of similarities. The first being that all of the stories tell of a relationship between a parent and a child. The second being that they all seem to contain a message of hopefulness. However, along with that hopefulness, there is a darkness that comes with it. For instance, in "Mother to Son", the mother is conveying a message of determination. And along with that she, in detail, describes how hard and ugly life can be. Same is the case with "The Chimney Sweeper": sure, Tom will rest peacefully, but it will require him to come to terms with his unfair job, and then it is once he dies that he will be at peace. And lastly, the hope of the parent in "For My Daughter" is to not be a parent. Or maybe the hope is for his or her sick child to die so that she can be put out of her misery, depending on how you interpret the poem. Either way, there is a goal that can only be accomplished with the accompaniment of something dark or grim occurring.

The Chimmey Sweeaper by William Blake

 The speaker is describing his childhood. I says so because he says,"I was young",(Blake line 1) so what i also think is that his childhood was not good, he did not enjoy it.
In those years children had to work most of the time since parents did not have enough money to educate them.

The other kids who are part of the poem are his friends who also work to survive but working is not what they really want to do because they feel as they were  prisoners.
They want someone who help them, "And by came an angel who had a bright key",( Blake line 9). So this angel is God. They trust him.
 He and his friends got happy and continue working as usual but with the hope that one day everything will change for them.

The speaker wanted a childhood like the sight he had.

"For my Daughter" - Kerry

The last line continued to throw me off the track. Although I believe it's describing what the daughter is seeing. The sonnet begins to explain that the daughter' flesh is innocent, but underneath, liesthis dark evil perception that are "sour in the sun" (Kees, 14). Although it's a theory, more like an educated guess but I wish I knew exactly what the poem was talking about.

Poems

The Chimney sweeper--
The poem reminds me of “To His Coy Mistress” with the reference of death. It’s sad that the father sold his own child, and now the child is doing labor.

Mother to Son--
This poem reminded me of “Sweat”. The way Delia worked hard through rough conditions and the language used in the poem. This shows a mother teaching her son that manual labor will be hard but he must not give up.

For My Daughter--
Like “The Chimney sweeper” and “To His Coy Mistress” it references death as well. I am confused towards the end where it says “I have no daughter. I desire none”(14) does that mean daughter was a symbol for something else?

Three poems

" The chimney Sweeper"
I believe that this poem had a sad , yet hopeful tone. The character in this story is a young boy , whom his father could no longer take care off. The time era at this time was very harsh so its seems, that people had no money to support their family's as we see that the father sold his only son. However the son in this poem is always hopeful .He seems never to loose hope that one day everything will be better.
" Mother to son"
I believe that this mother is trying to convince her son to try and better himself for a brighter future. She explains that her life has not been easy. She wants her son to do better they she did. As many mother would do , encouraging her son to be someone in life.
" For my daughter"
In the beginning of this poem the mother  describes thee innocence of her daughter. However the poet also describes that war bring tragedy and in many cases death. The conclusion that i got was that maybe this mother had a daughter and lost her as the war was occurring  She feels great pain and in the last she tell us she does not wish to have a daughter.

annotation of the three poems

       "The Chimney Sweeper" by William Blake is a very emotional amd sad poem. The child's mother died and the father gave him away the child meets another kid name Tom. The poem talks about child labor, hope and dreams. Tom has a dream where all the kids are fintally happy and free. This is a very meaningful dream for Tom and makes him have faith that there is a better life than their miserable life where they have to work. The idea that Tom gets is that once they die they're going to a better place and will finally be free and happy.
     "For My Daughter" by Weldon Kees is a bitter poem. Throughout the poem we start to interpret that this person is scared of what might happen to his daughter and he sees more than the innocence but at the end the last line is very meaningful because he says "I have no daughter. I desire none". To me this means that he doesn't want to have a daughter because he is scared of what the world might give her, he is scared that he has a daughter and she suffers or goes through a lot of struggles.
     "Mother to Son' by Langston Hughes is a nice poem because the mother is  trying to encourage her son. She tells him that life wasn't easy for her and it wont be easy for him either. She wants to prepare him for the struggles that might come to him. She tries to encourage him by saying that she never gave up. She kept going and going and that he should do the same. Even when the road seems very bumpy and dark he has to keep moving forward and be strong like her.

"Mother to Son " - Kerry

Can't even begin to explain how many times I was told to read this poem over the years. Almost every english class. I like Langston Hughhes personally. The poem is explaining how difficult it is to 'make it to the top'. The mother is looking over the son encouraging him to do what she did, or to do what she is STILL doing.

Parent-child poems

I believe the common theme for these three poems is hope.
In "The Chimney Sweeper", the child went through a traumatic event, being the death of her mother and the child was also rejected by his/her father. Often, kids that grow up without a parent and experience these kind of things are angry kids without any hope. The tone of the narrator doesn't sound angry, it sounds like he is accepting of his unhappy lifestyle. However, I think that, he is secretly hopeful that one day he will be free, just like his friend Tom dreams and that he will have God as a father since his own father abandoned him.
In "Mother to Son", the narrator clearly expresses her hope for her son to overcome the challenges they've gone through. The mother does not hide her hope or love, like the child from "The Chimney Sweeper". In "To my daughter", the narrator has no hope for her daughter but I think he wishes he did.

If I had to relate these three poems to gender studies, I would say that they reveal the stereotypes that males and females are given in terms  of their ability to express their emotions. The boy in "The Chimney Sweeper" is unable to express his emotions and wishes like men. Also, the father in "Father to daughter", simply looks at his daughter without expressing love or hope for her, whereas the mother in "Mother to son" is fully capable of expressing her wishes, hope and love.

"The Chimney Sweeper" - Kerry

I believe the poem starts off describing someone who has trouble sleeping due to the combustion of the chimney smoke then later leads into description of Tom Dacre's vivid dream. The ryhmes in the poem makes it far more easier to comprehend. The metaphors and similies still almost sound irrelevant, possibly because I dont understand them to my best abilities. Inside the book, they mentioned that a pun was in line 3, what is the pun?

Analysis of 3 Poems, Shaquesha Smith

"The Chimney Sweeper" By William Blake
This poem is about a child who mother died and his father sold him to work as a chimney sweeper. He and
other young children are worked hard and some die because of the labor. Tom and the narrator believe one day things will get better because an angel told Tom in lines 18-19 "if he'd be a good boy, He'd have God for a father, and never want joy." This poem takes place in a time before child labor laws. The poem is narrated in first person by the young boy.  The boy has no relationship with his parents.

"Mother and Son" By Langston Hughes
This poem is about a mother telling her son not to give up on life and to keep going no matter what because she has been through a lot. She is telling him it's not going to be easy. I think the stairs symbolize life, "crystal stair" meaning an easy life. Preparing him for his life and letting him know it will not be smooth or easy. I think this poem takes place in the twenties. The poem is narrated in first person by the mother. The son has a relationship with his mother but not his father.

"For My Daughter" By Weldon Kees
This poem is about a man who doesn't want to have a daughter because he believes her innocence will bring on death or other harmful things i.e. War in lines 3-9. She might be hated because of her beauty in lines 10-11. She might die because of the man she marries lines 11-12. This poem has a very bitter and sad tone. The poem narrated my a man. The man never states if he in fact has children.

3 poems.

In The Chimney Sweeper the narrator was sold after his mother died and now he cleans chimneys. His friend Tom is a chimney cleaner as well and one night he had a dream. I think Tom's dream gave him something to believe in. He's in a bad situation and if he's good god will reward him in the end. The only way that can happen is after death. In Mother to Son I got a similar message, the mother's life has not been the best but throughout it all she never gave up. She is still pushing forward. Her son is probably in the same situation and she wants him to use her life as an example for not giving up. In  For My Daughter the message is a little different. In the beginning the narrator is talking about his daughter. Maybe she is sick and dying and he's watching her as he talks about her. He feels there is nothing he can do to help her. In the end the narrator reveals he has no daughter. The message is the narrator don't want children because his child will died. Maybe she will suffer a very painful death.

For My Daughter By Weldon Kees

This poem is very deep. Kees is describing in the poem on how she dispises and hates the daughter. She also describes in the first few lines on what a liar the daughter is, "Looking into my daughters eyes i read beneath the innocence of morning flesh". This stanza proves that Kees knows she is lying. In the last Line it says " i have no daughter, I desire none". Im guessing Weldon wished she never had a daughter.

Mother to Son By Langston Hughes

So this poem is quite obvious that the mother is describing to her son that life is very hard to live. Hughes is using and relating nouns to how hard life can be, "It's had tacks in it, and splinters, and boards torn up and places with no carpet on the floor". Then towards the end of the poem the mother is telling the son in my perspective to never give up and to fight for what makes the son happy. A nice descriptive poem.

The Chimney Sweeper By William Blake

I think William Blake is trying to place the setting of the poem where the character "Tom Dacre" has awoke inside a dream as it said in line 10, "As was a-sleeping, he had such a sight". that line made me understood that the poem would be about a dream. In his dream he saw "thousands of sweepers" including "Dick, Joe, Ned and Jack", Blake is also describing on how the sweeper tries to free the people by using a "bright key" that the "Angel" gave to him. The second to last stanza kind of confused me a bit because it said "if he'd be a good boy, He'd have God for his father, and never want joy". What is the author stating about this stanza?

Blake, Hughes and Kees Poetry Response

     

              All three of the poems incorporate somebody's child. Langston Hughes " Mother to Son" is narrating a woman telling her son that her life wasn't a "crystal stair" (Hughes 1018), which i interpret to mean beautiful and rich. She tells him that life has been a struggle for her. She says, " It's had tacks in it, and splinters, and boards torn up" (Hughes 1018) meaning that her life had flaws, pain and obstacles. She doesn't give up and she keeps on "climbing" ( Hughes 1019) her stair of life and she wants her son to do the same. No matter what to keep on going and never stop. For the child in William Blake's "The Chimney Sweeper" the  mother is not alive. After she passes away his father put him to work as a Chimney Sweeper and one of his friend dreams of all of the chimney sweepers being " locked up in coffins of black" ( Blake 706) which I believe translates to trapped and the coffin which connects to death means their lives are a standstill. But an angel comes and says ,"' if he'd be a good boy, He'd have God for his father, and never want joy." I believe this gives the dreamer Tom and the rest of the chimney sweepers hope that things will be better, all they have to do is be good and go on with their duties. A reoccurring theme i saw in both Hughes and Blake's poem was  hope, hope for the children. Weldon Kees poem " For my Daughter" is kind of a dark poem, he talks about his daughter having to go through troubles in her life and he knows that it is inevitable. At the end of the poem, " I have no daughter. I desire none" can give me or the reader hope ( reoccurring theme) that he actually has no daughter and desires not to have one because of all the troubles and darkness she would have to face that he would not be able to protect her from. So both hope and children are themes that pop up in all three of the poems.