Sylvia Plath

Daddy

You do not do, you do not do

Any more, black shoe

In which I have lived like a foot

For thirty years, poor and white,

Barely daring to breathe or Achoo. 5

Daddy, I have had to kill you.

You died before I had time--

Marble-heavy, a bag full of God,

Ghastly statue with one gray toe

Big as a Frisco seal               10

And a head in the freakish Atlantic

Where it pours bean green over blue

In the waters off beautiful Nauset.

I used to pray to recover you.

Ach, du.                           15

In the German tongue, in the Polish town

Scraped flat by the roller

Of wars, wars, wars.

But the name of the town is common.

My Polack friend                   20

Says there are a dozen or two.

So I never could tell where you

Put your foot, your root,

I never could talk to you.

The tongue stuck in my jaw.        25

It stuck in a barb wire snare.

Ich, ich, ich, ich,

I could hardly speak.

I thought every German was you.

And the language obscene           30

An engine, an engine

Chuffing me off like a Jew.

A Jew to Dachau, Auschwitz, Belsen.

I began to talk like a Jew.

I think I may well be a Jew.       35

The snows of the Tyrol, the clear beer of Vienna

Are not very pure or true.

With my gipsy ancestress and my weird luck

And my Taroc pack and my Taroc pack

I may be a bit of a Jew.            40

I have always been scared of you,

With your Luftwaffe, your gobbledygoo.

And your neat mustache

And your Aryan eye, bright blue.

Panzer-man, panzer-man, O You--     45

Not God but a swastika

So black no sky could squeak through.

Every woman adores a Fascist,

The boot in the face, the brute

Brute heart of a brute like you.     50

You stand at the blackboard, daddy,

In the picture I have of you,

A cleft in your chin instead of your foot

But no less a devil for that, no not

Any less the black man who            55

Bit my pretty red heart in two.

I was ten when they buried you.

At twenty I tried to die

And get back, back, back to you.

I thought even the bones would do.     60

But they pulled me out of the sack,

And they stuck me together with glue.

And then I knew what to do.

I made a model of you,

A man in black with a Meinkampf look    65

And a love of the rack and the screw.

And I said I do, I do.

So daddy, I'm finally through.

The black telephone's off at the root,

The voices just can't worm through.      70

If I've killed one man, I've killed two--

The vampire who said he was you

And drank my blood for a year,

Seven years, if you want to know.

Daddy, you can lie back now.             75

There's a stake in your fat black heart

And the villagers never liked you.

They are dancing and stamping on you.

They always knew it was you.

Daddy, daddy, you bastard, I'm through.  80

5 paragraph essay

Bun
- Hook
- Introduction
Special Sauce
Toppings
Meat
Bun

Organization of ideas

2nd Biggest Idea
- smaller ideas in service of

leads to

Big Idea
- smaller ideas in service of

leads to

Big Idea
- smaller ideas in service of

leads to

Biggest Big Idea
- smaller ideas in service of

leads back to 2nd Biggest Idea

Seamus Heaney Poems

Death of a Naturalist

All the year the flax-dam festered in the heart
Of the townland; green and heavy headed Flax had rotted there, weighted down by huge sods. (pieces of earth)
Daily it sweltered in the punishing sun.
Bubbles gargled delicately, bluebottles
Wove a strong gauze of sound around the smell.
There were dragon-flies, spotted butterflies,
But best of all was the warm thick slobber
Of frogspawn that grew like clotted waterIn the shade of the banks. Here, every spring
I would fill jampots full of the jellied
Specks to range on the window-sills at home,
On shelves at school, and wait and watch until
The fattening dots burst into nimble-
Swimming tadpoles. Miss Walls would tell us how
The daddy frog was called a bullfrog
And how he croaked and how the mammy frog
Laid hundreds of little eggs and this was
Frogspawn. You could tell the weather by frogs too
For they were yellow in the sun and brown
In rain.

Then one hot day when fields were rankWith cowdung in the grass the angry frogs
Invaded the flax-dam; I ducked through hedges
To a coarse croaking that I had not heard
Before. The air was thick with a bass chorus.
Right down the dam gross-bellied frogs were cocked
On sods; their loose necks pulsed like snails. Some hopped:
The slap and plop were obscene threats. Some sat
Poised like mud grenades, their blunt heads farting.
I sickened, turned, and ran. The great slime kings
Were gathered there for vengeance and I knew
That if I dipped my hand the spawn would clutch it.

metaphor-

onomatopoeia-

simile-

alliteration-

negative-

anaphora-

caesera-

imagery-

oxymoron-


Churning Day

A thick crust, coarse-grained as limestone rough-cast,
hardened gradually on top of the four crocks
that stood, large pottery bombs, in the small pantry.
After the hot brewery of gland, cud and udder,
cool porous earthenware fermented the butter milk
for churning day, when the hooped churn was scoured
with plumping kettles and the busy scrubber
echoed daintily on the seasoned wood.
It stood then, purified, on the flagged kitchen floor.

Out came the four crocks, spilled their heavy lip
of cream, their white insides, into the sterile churn.
The staff, like a great whiskey muddler fashioned
in deal wood, was plunged in, the lid fitted.
My mother took first turn, set up rhythms
that, slugged and thumped for hours. Arms ached.
Hands blistered. Cheeks and clothes were spattered
with flabby milk.

Where finally gold flecks
began to dance. They poured hot water then,
sterilized a birchwood bowl
and little corrugated butter-spades.
Their short stroke quickened, suddenly
a yellow curd was weighting the churned-up white,
heavy and rich, coagulated sunlight
that they fished, dripping, in a wide tin strainer,
heaped up like gilded gravel in the bowl.

The house would stink long after churning day,
acrid as a sulphur mine. The empty crocks
were ranged along the wall again, the butter
in soft printed slabs was piled on pantry shelves.
And in the house we moved with gravid ease,
our brains turned crystals full of clean deal churns,
the plash and gurgle of the sour-breathed milk,
the pat and slap of small spades on wet lumps.

Heaney uses sensory imagery to convey the senses and feelings associated with the memory.
He uses similes and metaphors, adjectives and adverbs to make his descriptions more vivid and immediate in our minds.
1st stanza:
The poem begins with a detailed description of the four crocks in which the buttermilk is standing.
Likens the thick crust  that has formed on the milk to "limestone rough-cast".
Uses a metaphor to describe the crocks as "large pottery bombs", which gives evidence for the shape of these vessels.
The use of the adjective "plumbing" is unusual and has an onomatopoeic effect, imitating the sound of the kettle boiling.
The word "purified" gives a religious sense to the rituals that have been carried out to prepare for the transforming of the milk into butter.
2nd stanza:
Personifies the crocks- the milk coming from their "white insides" as if it is part of them
Hard, physical nature of the work is expressed in the phrase "slugged and thumped for hours. Arms ached. Hands blistered."
As others take turns they are soon "spattered" with "flabby" milk as it begins to coagulate (change to a solid or semisolid state).
3rd stanza:
The verb "dance" is used to describe the gold flecks of butter as they begin to form, this suggests a kind of celebration for the feat.
The metaphor "coagulated sunlight" describes the coagulation of the milk into butter and suggests the colour and warmth and glow.
The final simile in the stanza repeats this image of a golden colour, with the use of the word "gilded" emphasizing its richness.
4th (last) stanza:
The use of the word "stink" at the beginning of the final stanza is unexpected, but describes the ever lasting smell of the curd. This is emphasized further by the simile "acrid as a sulphur mine", graphically giving a sense of the pervading/ permeating nature of the smell in the house.
The ending of the poem creates a sense of a job well done and of satisfaction. Their minds are like "crystals", the churns are clean and the onomatopoeic effect of "plash" and "gurgle", "pat" and "slap" gives a satisfying sense of the butter being slapped by the butter spades and turned into slabs.

Death be not Proud:

DEATH, be not proud, though some have callèd thee          

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so:      

For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow  

Die not, poor Death; nor yet canst thou kill me.        

From Rest and Sleep, which but thy picture be,                  5

Much pleasure, then from thee much more must flow;         

And soonest our best men with thee do go—           

Rest of their bones and souls' delivery!         

Thou'rt slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,       

And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell;          10

And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well       

And better than thy stroke. Why swell'st thou then?

  One short sleep past, we wake eternally,     

  And Death shall be no more: Death, thou shalt die!       

Holy Sonnet 14

Batter my heart, three-personed God, for you 
As yet but knock, breathe, shine, and seek to mend; 
That I may rise and stand, o'erthrow me and bend 
Your force to break, blow, burn, and make me new. 
 I, like an usurped town to another due, 
 Labor to admit you, but oh, to no end; 
 Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend, 
 But is captived, and proves weak or untrue.

 Yet dearly I love you, and would be lov-ED fain, 
 But am betrothed unto your enemy 
 Divorce me, untie or break that knot again; 
 Take me to you, imprison me, for I 
 Except you enthrall me, never shall be free, 
 Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

Paradox    

Self-conscious/Self-questioning

Metaphors/Similies

Abrupt Opening

Witty

Conceit
Biblical Allusions
Contradictions

paintings

Glossary

Glossary:

• Metaphor- the transference of a quality from one thing to another.

• Simile- comparison between two things using like/ as

• Analogy- a relationship of resemblance or equivalence between two situations  

• Conceits- comparison and contrast between a metaphysical quality and a tangible object

• Alliteration- refers to the repetition of a particular sound in the first syllables of a series of words and/or phrases.

• Assonance- is the refrain of vowel sounds to create internal rhyming within phrases or sentences

• Consonance- repetition of the same consonant two or more times in short succession.

• Onomatopoeia- the formation of a word, as cuckoo  or boom,  by imitation of a sound made by or associated with its referent.
• Anaphora- repetition of a word or words at the beginning of two or more successive verses, clauses, or sentences.
• Caesera- a break, especially a sense pause, usually near the middle of a verse.
• Oxymoron- a figure of speech by which a locution produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect.

metaphysical poetry (page 4)

Metaphysical Poetry: Page 4

·         17^th century English writers

·         Ex- Abraham Cowley, Richard Crashaw, John Donne, George Herbert, Andrew Marvell and Henry Vaughan

·         Used simple events and expanded them into broad abstract ideas

·         Unusual/ paradoxical images

·         Writers were intellectual

·         Wrote against the backdrop of revolutionary political developments:

o   Continuous internal conflict

o   The impeachment and beheading (1649) of King Charles I

o   The Civil War which followed this

·         Self-conscious/ self-questioning

·         Usage of metaphors

·         Abrupt opening

·         Witty

·         Conceits

jackson pollock

Jackson Pollock:

·         American painter

·         Major figure in the abstract expressionist movement

·         Struggled with alcoholism for most of his life

·         Best known for dripping and throwing paint

·         Would place the canvas on the floor since he believed that “paint has a life of its own” (would use sand and broken glass to do this) and he wanted to “engage the painting while in the thought process”

·         Would use “sticks, towels and knives” to apply the paint onto the canvas

claudius speech commentary notes

Hamlet is one of the great tragedy themed plays by William Shakespeare. The themes of the plot cover indecision, revenge and retribution. Prince Hamlet mourns both his father's death and his mother, Queen Gertrude's remarriage to Claudius. As a result King Claudius is forced to react to the situation in his inauguration.

Throughout history numerous kings and leaders adopt their appearance to suit their public. Either they exaggerate their abilities or they create new characteristics for their character. In act 1 scene 2 Shakespeare forces King Claudius to explain himself to the people of Denmark in order to seem as a better leader. This essay will discuss how Shakespeare manipulates his audience through language choices in the speech of King Claudius.

                By splitting the speech into 3 main parts, each with its own idea, it is easier for us to analyze this extract. The first part of the speech is from lines 1-7, and the main focus here is the death of King Hamlet. The second part begins right after on line 8 and ends in line 16. Here the subject is the marriage of King Claudius with Queen Gertrude. The last part of the speech, also the longest, talks about the politics with Norway. This begins in line 17 and ends in line 36.

Shakespeare ensures that King Claudius explains all the problems leading to his inauguration. First there is King Hamlet’s death. Towards this issue Shakespeare makes certain that King Claudius is seen as caring and sensitive by diverting the attention of the death of King Hamlet to Claudius’ reaction to the death. Shakespeare does not actually describe the death of King Hamlet or shows in any way Claudius’ point of view on the matter. Instead Shakespeare only illustrates what the public want to hear through King Claudius. This is proven by the 3^rd person point of view and the use of plural pronouns such as ‘us’, ‘we’ and ‘our’. Throughout the first 7 lines Shakespeare constantly uses “our dear brother’s death”, “it us befitted to bear our hearts in grief”. This shows how Claudius is manipulating the public into thinking he is remorseful towards his brother’s death by generalizing the ideas to suit the public. At this point in the story Hamlet still has no idea of the guilty King Claudius so is also fooled by his words. However he is still angry at his father’s death and his mother’s remarriage.

-King Claudius marriage to Queen Gertrude

-Claudius touches on the sensitive topic of incest “Therefore our sometime sister, now our queen, taken to wife.”

-Shakespeare makes Claudius seem forceful and threateningà “Nor have we herein barred Your better wisdoms,” Here he is basically saying, “you are lucky you decided to accept this marriage or else…”

                     -Politics with Norway

-He is addressing the court because the king of Norway has a nephew named Fortinbras who wants the new King Claudius to return certain lands formerly given to Hamlet the Elder and now devoid of a pact any longer since the elder has died and Fortinbras is to be the new ruler and not bound by promises and treaties made by others. Claudius refuses to give in and makes the choice public with this court appearance as well as sending Cornelius and Voltimand with a letter to the old king to let him know what the nephew is doing while he is sick and old. The two courtiers have no power to negotiate, only to inform and their presence at the court of Norway will indeed require something to be done or discussed.

3rd soliloquy

·         Hamlet contemplates whether or not he should take it upon himself to act accordingly against his uncle’s crime against his own father

·         Hamlet ponders whether he should take action against his "sea of troubles" and seek revenge for his father's death or live with the pain of his father's murder

·         He also contemplates whether it is better to stay alive or commit suicide. "To die, to sleep--/No more--and by a sleep to say we end/The heartache and the thousand natural shocks/That flash is heir to--'tis a consummation/Devoutly to be wished

·         Portrays Hamlet as a sort of coward because he cannot act upon his own emotions and desires. In order to escape his heartache, he cowardly thinks about killing himself

• Line 55 - To be or not to be is an example of antithesis, a rhetorical device containing a contrast of ideas in a balanced parallel construction. The use of antithesis draws attention to the first line of the soliloquy and focuses the reader on one of the play's prominent themes.

·         Lines 59, 60, 61 - Hamlet uses metonymy, a special type of metaphor that substitutes the name of one thing with something it is closely associated with. In these examples sleep represents death.

·         Lines 57, 69 - Hamlet uses a metaphor, comparing slings and arrows and the whips and scorns of time to life's problems.

·         Lines 69-73 - Hamlet uses parallel structure, a rhetorical device comprised of phrases with like grammatical structure, to create rhythm and draw attention to life's woes.

·         Line 79 - Hamlet uses a metaphor, calling death "the undiscovered country, from whose bourne no traveller returns."

·         Lines 83-84 - Suicide is referred to as "the native hue of resolution," a metaphor; the fear of death is referred to as the "pale cast of thought."

“The text coloured in red is an extract from this site”: http://www.brighthub.com/education/homework-tips/articles/58444.aspx?p=2#ixzz1H8lf91S4

nunnery scene

Nunnery Scene Notes

·         Act 3, scene 1

·         Ophelia is sent by Claudius and Polonius to check on the condition of Hamlet. 

·         Hamlet demanded Ophelia to go to a nunnery in sense of protection

·         Repetition of the instruction:

o   “Get thee to a nunnery” (1) “Go thy ways to a nunnery” (10) “to a nunnery, go” (21)

§  Thee refers to Ophelia

§  This phrase is used numerous times to illustrate that Hamlet is playing antic-disposition, as he adheres to his sense of protection (over Ophelia)  

·         Rhetorical questions:

o    “Why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners?” (1)

§  Taking a Christian slant – everybody is born a sinner, therefore, he tries to protect Ophelia from giving birth to sinners (which will make her a sinner) by sending her to a nunnery

§  This rhetorical question is used to illustrate that Hamlet does care for Ophelia and that he is not mad

§  Hamlet is directly stating that Ophelia is a sinner and making her feel guilty  

·         “What should such fellows as I do crawling between earth and heaven?” (8)

·         “Between earth and heaven” refers to Purgatory

·         Hamlet criticizes himself purposely saying “ What should such fellows as I”

·         This device is used to show that Hamlet is playing antic-disposition because he exaggerates the fact that he is not well 

·         Listing:

o   “I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious,” (5)

§  Shakespeare used listing to emphasize that Hamlet is mad as a result of his father’s murder and his uncle taking over his position

§  As he uses the three descriptive characteristics which symbolize

·         Proud: education

·         Revengeful: father’s death

·         Ambitious: to take the throne    

·         Simile:

o   “As chaste as ice, as pure as snow” (17)

§   Hamlet is saying to Ophelia that if she does get married she should not engage in sexual acts

§  Ophelia’s beauty overpowers honesty when looking for a guy – therefore, Ophelia needs to be careful (this causes Hamlets paranoia, demanding her to go to a nunnery)   

·         Caesuras:

o   “Get thee to a nunnery, go; farewell.”

o   Shakespeare wanted to show a sense of haste – showing true madness

·         Metaphor:

o   “What monsters you make of them”

§  Hamlet is criticizing not only Ophelia, but the woman race (misogyny) as a whole – saying that she will make her groom a ‘monster’

§  Hamlet is pretending to be mad

·         Biblical Reference:

o   “God has given you one face, and you make yourself another” (25) and “God’s creatures” (27)

§  Shakespeare uses biblical references to highlight Hamlets misogyny and his true madness

§  Hamlet is mad at Ophelia and the woman race; accusing ‘them’ that they change their personality and behavior to please others

·         Personification:

o   “Noble mind”

§  Part of Ophelia’s soliloquy

§  She is showing respect for Hamlet, however, she does believe that he has is truly mad