ELA20 Assignment 2.17 Survey Project April 20, 2011 #1 Common Cold By Ogden Nash PoemHunter.com http://www.poemhunter.

com/poem/common-cold/ Go hang yourself, you old M.D.! You shall not sneer at me. Pic up your hat and stethoscope, Go wash your mouth with laundry soap! " contemplate a #oy e$%uisite "&m not paying you for your 'isit. " did not call you to (e told My malady is a common cold. )y pounding (row and swollen lip! )y fe'er&s hot and scaly grip! )y those two red redundant eyes *hat weep li e woeful +pril s ies! )y rac ing snuffle, snort, and sniff! )y hand erchief after hand erchief! *his cold you wa'e away as naught "s the damnedest cold man e'er caught! Gi'e ear, you scientific fossil! ,ere is the genuine -old -olossal! *he -old of which researchers dream, *he Perfect -old, the -old .upreme. *his honoured system hum(ly holds *he .uper-cold to end all colds! *he -old -rusading for Democracy! *he /0hrer of the .treptococcracy. )acilli swarm within my portals .uch as were ne&er concei'ed (y mortals, )ut (red (y scientists wise and hoary "n some 1lympic la(oratory! )acteria as large as mice, 2ith feet of fire and heads of ice 2ho ne'er interrupt for slum(er *heir stamping elephantine rum(a. + common cold, gad3oo s, forsooth! +h, yes. +nd 4incoln was #ostled (y )ooth! Don 5uan was a (udding gallant,

+nd .ha espeare&s plays show signs of talent! *he +rctic winter is fairly coolish, +nd your diagnosis is fairly foolish. 1h what a derision history holds /or the man who (elittled the -old of -olds! a6 7.ummary6 *he persona is angry at his doctor for diagnosing him with a 8common cold.9 ,e feels that his cold is the worst that there e'er was, and this is comically e$aggerated throughout the poem. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 8Common Cold is an e$tremely funny poem of a self-pitying 'ictim of a cold. "t is told in first-person! possi(ly from the perspecti'e of the author, 1gden :ash. *he persona is disgusted with his doctor when he is diagnosed with a common cold, as he feels that it is much more serious. ,e goes on and on a(out how awful his cold is, pitying himself and hoping others do the same. *his poem is 'ery easy to relate to: we all get sic , and "&m sure that no matter how well we handle it, at some point we all want a little sympathy. *his poem ma es me laugh e'ery time " read it as " can picture e$actly what is going on! an e$tremely grouchy patient muttering spitefully (ehind his doctor&s (ac . Don&t we all feel snu((ed when we are told things li e &suc it up& or &it&s not that (ad&; :ash puts this reality into < stan3as that are humorous and easy to read. c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 - split into < stan3as - end rhyme - rhyme scheme of aabbcc

#2 If By Rudyard Kipling e erypoet.com http://www.e'erypoet.com/archi'e/poetry/>udyard?@ipling/ ipling?if.htm "f you can eep your head when all a(out you +re losing theirs and (laming it on you! "f you can trust yourself when all men dou(t you, )ut ma e allowance for their dou(ting too! "f you can wait and not (e tired (y waiting, 1r, (eing lied a(out, don&t deal in lies, 1r, (eing hated, don&t gi'e way to hating, +nd yet don&t loo too good, nor tal too wise! "f you can dream - and not ma e dreams your master! "f you can thin - and not ma e thoughts your aim! "f you can meet with triumph and disaster +nd treat those two imposters #ust the same! "f you can (ear to hear the truth you&'e spo en *wisted (y na'es to ma e a trap for fools,

1r watch the things you ga'e your life to (ro en, +nd stoop and (uild &em up with wornout tools! "f you can ma e one heap of all your winnings +nd ris it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, +nd lose, and start again at your (eginnings +nd ne'er (reath a word a(out your loss! "f you can force your heart and ner'e and sinew *o ser'e your turn long after they are gone, +nd so hold on when there is nothing in you A$cept the 2ill which says to them: B,old onB! "f you can tal with crowds and eep your 'irtue, 1r wal with ings - nor lose the common touch! "f neither foes nor lo'ing friends can hurt you! "f all men count with you, (ut none too much! "f you can fill the unforgi'ing minute 2ith si$ty seconds& worth of distance run Yours is the Aarth and e'erything that&s in it, +nd - which is more - you&ll (e a Man my son!

a6 7.ummary6 *he poem descri(es many trials that afflict people in the world, and the 'irtues that are needed to o'ercome them. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 *he poem appears to (e written from the perspecti'e of a father tal ing to a son. *he father is gi'ing the son different e$amples of things that happen in life, and how to confront them while eeping his 'irtues. Cirtues li e putting in his (est effort, humility, honesty and strength of mind and moral. 2hen " read this poem " am reminded of how difficult it must (e to eep one&s 'irtues as a leader or someone loo ed up to. If you can !eep your head "hen all a#out you $re losing theirs and #laming it on you% If you can trust yourself "hen all men dou#t you& But ma!e allo"ance for their dou#ting too% *his is something that leaders face all the time! dou(t. 2hen people dou(t you, it is 'ery easy to dou(t yourself and that which you (elie'e is right. " also see this in my own life in the simple form of insecurity. "f " had more trust in myself, " wouldn&t (e such a pusho'er 7to those " don&t now6, and if " made allo"ances for their dou#ting too 7with my family6 " wouldn&t (e so indignant when my ideas were disregarded. 2hen " read the last four lines in the second stan3a! If you can #ear to hear the truth you' e spo!en

("isted #y !na es to ma!e a trap for fools& Or "atch the things you ga e your life to #ro!en& $nd stoop and #uild 'em up "ith "ornout tools% " thin of politicians! they are fore'er (ending each others words and the coming election means that they are sort of ha'ing to start o'er. "t must (e difficult to ma e progress when so many are against you. "n the third stan3a, the author descri(es what it means to truly try with all your might! If you can force your heart and ner e and sine" (o ser e your turn long after they are gone& $nd so hold on "hen there is nothing in you )*cept the +ill "hich says to them, -Hold on- *his, " (elie'e, is one of the most admira(le 7or, in some cases, formida(le6 %ualities that a person can ha'e. *o persist and do your (est when things don&t go your way! to ne'er gi'e up. "n the last stan3a, another great 'irtue is addressed! If you can tal! "ith cro"ds and !eep your irtue& Or "al! "ith !ings . nor lose the common touch% which " interpret as humility. ,umility in a person ensures that they will (e li ed e'erywhere they go, (ut whate'er company they eep, their humility will eep them constant friends to all ran s. *he final stan3a goes on to say that if he succeeds in all these things! /ours is the )arth and e erything that's in it& $nd . "hich is more . you'll #e a 0an my son1 @ipling wrote a (eautiful poem that can connect with anyone, since we all face things such as were in the poem. c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 - D stan3as - end rhyme - rhyme scheme is ababc c in each stan3a #! $ 2ady +ho (hin!s 3he Is (hirty By Ogden Nash PoemHunter.com http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/a-lady-who-thin s-she-is-thirty/ Enwillingly Miranda wa es, /eels the sun with terror, 1ne unwilling step she ta es, .huddering to the mirror. Miranda in Miranda&s sight "s old and grey and dirty! *wenty-nine she was last night! *his morning she is thirty. .hining li e the morning star, 4i e the twilight shining, ,aunted (y a calendar, Miranda is a-pining. .illy girl, sil'er girl,

Draw the mirror toward you! *ime who ma es the years to whirl +dorned as he adored you. *ime is timelessness for you! -alendars for the human! 2hat&s a year, or thirty, to 4o'eliness made woman; 1h, :ight will not see thirty again, Yet soft her wing, Miranda! Pic up your glass and tell me, then-,ow old is .pring, Miranda; a6 7.ummary6 + woman named Miranda is horrified at the thought of turning =F, (ut the narrator 7:ash6 is in wonder at this, as he thin s womanly (eauty is ageless. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 :ash&s poems are rich with original wording and hilarious meanings, e'en if many of them are %uite shallow. *his particular poem, howe'er, is a different sort of style for :ash. "t is still written in the same easy-to-read and en#oya(le manner, (ut it has a pretty serious and non-sarcastic moral. 2omen today seem to ha'e 'ery low self-esteems, and " thin that :ash is addressing this in a truly flattering way. .tereotypically, women dread their (irthdays. "t is as though they fear they will (e lo'ed less, simply (ecause age has made them less (ecoming. " am constantly coming across commercials ad'ertising products that will eep one loo ing young, and it seems that there is too little regard for what really matters! what&s inside. :ash seems to (e focusing on this, rather than on Miranda&s outer appearance. ,e nows that women are graced with so many ageless 'irtues that loo s don&t matter at all. 2hen " contemplate this, " thin of my grandma. .he is selfless, ind, lo'ing, and always there for us. Do " care how she loo s; 1f course not! .he could ha'e s in li e a pachyderm for all " care! ,er indness and lo'e will ne'er change, no matter how many candles her ca e has. c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 G stan3as end rhyme rhyme scheme is abab

#" 4eneric (itles By 3ally Bates 83purrin' the +ords9 7youth guide for the D-, -ow(oy Poetry pro#ect6. "&'e said it loud and said it long... *here&s no such thing as a cowgirl. *hat name got tac ed on >oy >ogers wife

/er a cow(oy she had too many curls. + lot has (een said a(out cow(oys /er as long as they&'e (een around. )ottom line is ... that it&s a 'ocation! *he word cow(oy&s a 'er(, not a noun. + female who nows how to cow(oy +nd can handle herself on the range "s rarely concerned a(out gender, and she ne'er would thin it strange *o carry the handle of 8cow(oy,9 +ll that means is she&s doin& the #o(. +nd she might (e a sweet little lady, or she might (e as tough as a co(. )ut if you&re one who ponders on gender 1r (eing politically correct :o wonder you find it confusing +nd don&t now what to e$pect. 2ell then, #ust go on callin& us cowgirls! "t&s not a (ad word or a 8slam.9 )ut you don&t say someones a truc dri'er-ess 1r a carpentress #ust &cause she&s a ma&am. )ut if you&re gonna call me a cowgirl *o (e sure you&re politically right *hen you (etter start calling them (ull(oys +nd lets get the gender split right! a6 7.ummary6 *he author is stressing the fact that the word &cow(oy& is something you do, not #ust a title. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 " chose this poem (ecause the truth in it ga'e me a laugh when " first read it. *he word &cowgirl& seems to me to (e an aw ward word that some feminist made in the hope of either getting more attention, or getting a comrade in gender more attention. "n the words of .ally )ates, 8(hat name got tac!ed on Roy Rogers "ife5 6er a co"#oy she had to many curls9 which means that the title is applied too li(erally. "n the third and fourth stan3a, )ates says that if a female really nows how to cow(oy, she is not going to (e concerned with a politically correct title! she is pro(a(ly going to (e more focused on her #o(. )ates goes on to e$press how ridiculous it is to ha'e #o( titles according to gender! people ne'er say 8truc!dri er.ess9 or 8carpentress&9 so why should cow(oy (e any different; *he last stan3a in this poem is what really gets me. :owadays, people seem to go to great lengths to achie'e 8political correctness,9 imposing this law not #ust upon themsel'es, (ut upon innocent citi3ens who #ust want to wish their neigh(ours a &Merry -hristmas& 7this is one of those things that riles me up6. )ates says that if you&re so worried a(out not insulting anyone (y gender discrimination, then you 8#etter start calling them #ull#oys5and lets get the gender.split right19

c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 H stan3as end rhyme abcb rhyme scheme

## 7oices Of (he Night, $ Psalm Of 2ife Henry +ads"orth 2ongfello" PoemHunter.com http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/'oices-of-the-night-a-psalm-of-life/ *ell me not, in mournful num(ers, 4ife is (ut an empty dream! /or the soul is dead that slum(ers, +nd things are not what they seem. 4ife is real! 4ife is earnest! +nd the gra'e is not its goal! Dust thou art, to dust returnest, 2as not spo en of the soul. :ot en#oyment, and not sorrow, "s our destined end or way! )ut to act, that each to-morrow /ind us farther than to-day. +rt is long, and *ime is fleeting, +nd our hearts, though stout and (ra'e, .till, li e muffled drums, are (eating /uneral marches to the gra'e. "n the world&s (road field of (attle, "n the (i'ouac of 4ife, )e not li e dum(, dri'en cattle! )e a hero in the strife! *rust no /uture, howe&er pleasant! 4et the dead Past (ury its dead! +ct, - act in the li'ing Present! ,eart within, and God o&erhead! 4i'es of great men all remind us 2e can ma e our li'es su(lime, +nd, departing, lea'e (ehind us /ootprints on the sands of time! /ootprints, that perhaps another, .ailing o&er life&s solemn main,

+ forlorn and shipwrec ed (rother, .eeing, shall ta e heart again. 4et us, then, (e up and doing, 2ith a heart for any fate! .till achie'ing, still pursuing, 4earn to la(our and to wait. a6 7.ummary6 *he moral presented here is to li'e life to the fullest! that&s how it was meant to (e li'ed. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 "n the title, this poem is called 8+ Psalm of 4ife.9 )y definition, &psalm& means &a sacred song or hymn,& and this poem does indeed contain a 'ery sacred moral. "n the first four stan3as, 4ongfellow instructs us to wa e up and stop letting our li'es pass us (y. 2e should not loo at life as something that ends, (ut as something that is happening! sei3e the moment! " ha'e often felt life get pointless, (ut " reali3e that it is only as &pointless& as " allow it to (e. "n the ne$t three stan3as, 4ongfellow encourages us to do life differently. Don&t #ust am(le listlessly through life! stop and en#oy it. "f things are (ecoming too routine, sha e up your schedule and do some things that you&'e ne'er done. -hange it up to ma e it new and e$citing! my mom does this with casseroles all the time! "n all seriousness, though, we really are doing things differently in life! we are ta ing on new things as a family, and " myself ha'e ta en on new pro#ects to ma e my days less dull. "n the last two stan3as, 4ongfellow tells us that (y li'ing our li'es to the fullest e$tent, (y doing things differently, we can inspire others to do the same. 2e can each decide what sort of (all we want to start rolling. 2ill it (e one of the heroic endea'our of lo'ing life; 1r will it (e a (all and chain! the ind that we un nowingly attach oursel'es to when we let life pass us (y. c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 I stan3as end rhyme abab rhyme scheme #$ 3onnet . (o 3cience By )dgar $llan Poe PoemHunter.com http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/sonnet/ .cience! true daughter of 1ld *ime thou art! 2ho alterest all things with thy peering eyes. 2hy preyest thou thus upon the poet&s heart, Culture, whose wings are dull realities; ,ow should he lo'e thee; or how deem thee wise; 2ho wouldst not lea'e him in his wandering *o see for treasure in the #ewelled s ies, +l(eit he soared with an undaunted wing; ,ast thou not dragged Diana from her car;

+nd dri'en the ,amadryad from the wood *o see a shelter in some happier star; ,ast thou not torn the :aiad from her flood, *he Alfin from the green grass, and from me *he summer dream (eneath the tamarind tree; a6 7.ummary6 Adgar +llan Poe is lamenting the fact that in a science-oriented world, there is no room for the art of seeing poetic (eauty in things! they are rendered dull (y their literal meanings. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 "n the way this poem is written, " get the impression that Poe is feeling almost defeated (y scientific e$planations for things. ,e appears to (e a lo'er of mythology and fiction, (ut science is frustrating him with its constant proof of his worlds not e$isting. *his frustration is felt (y anyone who has e'er (een criti%ued on something! for instance, when telling a #o e. You tell it well enough, people laugh, it&s a success, right; +nd yet there is 'ery often one in the audience who will insist upon letting e'eryone now what you did wrong! 8:o, no, no. *here were HDJ ra((its you simpleton. :ot GDH! 2hy can you ne'er tell a #o e properly;9 " may (e e$aggerating a teensy (it here, (ut the point is that critics are 'ery frustrating people. c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 .onnet .ha espearean sonnet ababc c e%e%gg rhyme scheme #7 (o 0y 0other By )dgar $llan Poe PoemHunter.com http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/to-my-mother/ )ecause " feel that, in the ,ea'ens a(o'e, *he angels, whispering to one another, -an find, among their (urning terms of lo'e, :one so de'otional as that of BMother,B *herefore (y that dear name " long ha'e called youYou who are more than mother unto me, +nd fill my heart of hearts, where Death installed you "n setting my Cirginia&s spirit free. My mother- my own mother, who died early, 2as (ut the mother of myself! (ut you +re mother to the one " lo'ed so dearly, +nd thus are dearer than the mother " new )y that infinity with which my wife 2as dearer to my soul than its soul-life.

a6 7.ummary6 Poe is descri(ing, at first, what his mother-in-law meant to him. +fter he esta(lishes how much he lo'es her, he then owns that the reason he lo'es his mother-in-law so much is simply (ecause she is the mother of his most (elo'ed wife. (6 75ournal-li e entry6 2hen " first read this, " was %uite confused, as " new that Poe ne'er new his mother 7she died when he was young6. 2hen " actually too the time to read it through, howe'er, " was surprised to disco'er that it was a(out his mother-in-law. Poe is seemingly descri(ing his mother-in-law in an e$tremely flattering way, (ut as " read the poem for the umpteenth time, a certain part caught my attention: 0y mother. my o"n mother& "ho died early& +as #ut the mother of myself% #ut you $re mother to the one I lo ed so dearly& $nd thus are dearer than the mother I !ne" 2hich can easily (e interpreted as 8*he only reason " put up with you, Mother-in-law, is (ecause " am so in lo'e with your daughter,9 and is therefor not complimenting the mother at all, (ut greatly complimenting Poe&s wife! c6 7point-form analysis of = poetry-specific items6 .onnet .ha espearean sonnet ababc c e%e%gg rhyme scheme