TrishaWehrle

Poetry Slam Dunk

I really enjoyed everyone's poetry or short story interpretations because I know how diffucult it can be for some people to get up and perform in front of the class. Two of the poems that I enjoyed the most were both by Emily Dickinson. There both have contrasting moods so I feel they will be good to discuss together. Shanna DeFrances presented "How Happy is the Little Stone" and April Santavy presented "The Sun Kept Setting, Setting Still," both of which I will be referring to.

In "How Happy is the Little Stone" the mood is very cheerful and upbeat. I was happy to read a poem like this from Dickinson because I remember most of her poems being sad and depressed sounding. It seems as thought the narrator is envious of the simple life that the rock leads. It "does not care about careers" and it lives "in casual simplicity." It kind of amazed me how she can just write a poem about a rock, to me it seems like she is bored and needs a friend.

Another poem that I liked was "The Sun Kept Setting, Setting Still." Both of these poems dealt with nature and being outside, but the themes were completely different. This poem seems to fit Dickinson's style a little better because it deals with death, a subject she writes alot about. I love how the poem slowly describes death like the setting of the sun. It is a very relaxing feeling to hear it portrayed in this way. No wonder that by the end of the poem, she is "not afraid to know." I think this line is the most important in the whole poem. She seems to enjoy nature so incredibly much and marvels at its beauty, that she can only imagine heaven being even more beautiful than earth, and she is not afraid to go there and find out!