Poetry Through the Ages for April

In the blocks below, please find your weekly poems written by me. There are two components to each poem: The poem I wrote as a child (I started writing poetry when I was 11) and an analogy of the lines and word use, using my current and adult understanding of poetic devices and how my lines conveyed the message using devices and styles I learned as an adult. If you have any questions or concerns about the poems, please reach out to me!

Week One:

The Final Recognition—2004. Age 15

Recognize the sound as a comforting sound.

Take comfort in the sound you heard long ago.

Recognize the sight as a comforting vision.

Death.

A vision only you can see.

Analogy

Recognize the sound as a comforting sound.—

Without context, this line has two meanings (or more if you can think of any). The concept of recognition introduces a sense of familiarity between the subject and the poet and in this line, the use of sound is used. In poetry, sound is used as the means to get the poetic meaning across and it can also be used as a means to convey intention of the poet. In some cases, the meaning of the poem and the poet’s intention aren’t mutually exclusive. This could happen when the context of the poem makes the poet uncomfortable but they write the poem anyway because they simply have to get it out of their head. In this line, the poet could feel uncomfortable with the context of the poem yet they wrote it to get the words out of their head. In this context, the reason for the poet searching for and recognizing a comforting sound could be because they are used to uncomfortable sounds and need to search for something that makes them feel safe. When the poet recognizes ‘a comforting sound’, this could also make them uncomfortable (where the meaning and intention differ) because they might not know when they will hear this sound again. In so doing, they might not know when they can feel safe again, which means this first line uses sound and the poet’s intention to get the message across.

Take comfort in the sound you heard long ago.—

Is the poet speaking to you as the reader in this poem? Does this mean the poet knows (or believes they do) know you? How would the poet know you? Does the poet believe they know you because they might assume you, as the reader, know what comfort sounds like compared to them, who can only imagine what it sounds like? Do you agree with the poet? Do you know what comfort sounds like? How would you know what it sounds like if it’s all you’ve ever known? There is also the possibility that you are in the same metaphorical boat as the poet and you, too, search for the sound of comfort. In this line, it is implied that you, as the reader, knew what comfort sounded like in the past but have since lost your ability to see or recognize it. If this is true, what did comfort sound like to you? Has the sound of comfort changed since then, which could be the reason you don’t recognize it? If you, as the reader, has had many sounds that brought you comfort, which one will you choose if the poet asks which you would give away for an easier life today? If there isn’t a comforting sound you can take solace in today, how would the poet use this to their advantage to bring you out of their comfort zone to entice you to read a poem about the final recognition of your thoughts and sounds?

Recognize the sight as a comforting vision.—

In this line, the focus has shifted from you, as the reader, and back towards the poet, but why? Has the poet realized that you, as the reader, can’t actually see the poet and only their scribbles on a page? If the poet is speaking about themselves and recognizes something as a ‘comforting vision’, what could they have seen? Or have the sounds turned into visual stimuli, like the sound of water running turning into a waterfall or the sound of a crying person turning into a person the poet and the reader can see? If you, as the reader, can see this, does this mean you understand the poet’s personal intent as well as their message to their readers? If there is something in your life that brings you comfort, or used to, when you think about that thing, do you hear it first or imagine it first? These sounds could be the voice of a caring and loving parent or grandparent who comforted you during a difficult time, or you could imagine a teacher or coach guiding a friend away from a dangerous situation that would have brought them great discomfort. These sights and sounds could be as comforting to the poet as they are to you, as the reader, because you and the poet might have had similar experiences at a basic level. These experiences could include a loving family or protecting teachers which created common ground for you to recognize the finality of your comforting choices.

Death.—

As a reader, what does Death mean to you? Is it a comforting thought when you think about your life and think it would be better if it would just end? Do you, the reader, believe this is what the poet thinks and asks for, reading the lines above? What if the comforting sound from earlier in the poem is the sound of silence then the sound of wailing when those around the dead person realize what has happened? If this is the sound you, as the reader, experienced in the past (from the earlier line), what did Death sound like? Is this a physical Death of someone you knew, or was this a metaphorical Death where an aspect of your personality died when you realized it had served its purpose, the realization of the final recognition of the feebleness of you final source of comfort: To be no more.

A vision only you can see.—

Given my explanations above, how would you analyze this line?

What do you think? Do you agree with my understanding and symbolism? I’d love to know!

Please use this [ link ] to the optional forum to start a discussion about the poem. Alternatively, you can use any of the email links from the contact [ page ]

Week Two:

The Sentence—2004. Age 15

They put me in this prison of doom,

Where I will die alone,

With nobody to comfort me,

Or me in the time of need.

Though I am glad to go.

I have done my time.

Analogy

They put me in this prison of doom,—

Who are ‘they’? Is it someone the poet knows or someone who knows the poet and all their secrets? Since ‘they’ were able to put the poet in a prison of doom, this would imply that ‘they’ have access to the poet for the poet to be put in this prison. On the other hand, this prison could be a metaphorical prison where ‘they’ could make the poet feel as if they are in a prison and the doom is theirs to create in their own mind. It’s very easy to get lost in self-doubt if those around you expect you to enter a prison of your own making because of their actions. If ‘they’ put the poet in a prison of doom, does that mean the poet won’t be able to leave until and unless ‘they’ let them out? There is another possibility: The ‘me’ in this line could be you, the reader, where the ‘they’ is the poet. Poetry, in general, is between reader and writer, and people generally read poetry as an escape from their reality. To exist in someone else’s world for ten minutes when yours is falling apart could be the easiest, and sometimes only, way to protect yourself and those around you. If the ‘me’ in this line is, in fact, you, the reader, what would be the prison of doom? Would this be something others can put you in (metaphorically), or do you put yourself in your prison of doom based on your own thoughts and wait for someone to come save you from your prison? What happens when no one comes to your aid? Are you stuck forever or will you pull yourself out?

Where I will die alone,—

Do you think "me" and ‘I’ has the same context in this line and from the previous line? If we look at the first understanding of “me”, this could be the poet who was put inside the prison of doom at the hands of “they”, either as a direct result of what they did or their own prison inside their head where doom is all they can see. In this case, the poet could understand that they would die alone in their prison of doom where they were thrown and left to deal with their thoughts and loneliness before Death comes for them. If the poet is the “me” from the previous line, they could change to ‘I’ in this line because it’s easier for them to think about themselves outside their own prison, where the ‘I’ doesn’t exist yet; it only exists in their own head prison where they could die alone since as much as we love someone, we all still die on our own. If this is the case, the ‘I’ in this line can be seen independently from the “me” in the previous line because ‘I’ and “me” need different things: The ‘I’ could need safety and a way to move away from their prison, and the “me” could focus on what the poet needs from a non-individual matter. Although “me” is still in the first person, the word “me” is often used to explain a level of selfishness without the individual person in mind. In a way, selfishness can be separate from a person if it doesn’t affect them directly. This could happen when the self (“me”) isn’t considered in these acts and the selfishness affects others before the person saying “me”. The word “me” is still said, but if their selfishness is seen as the aftereffect of their actions, the level of selfishness is usually reduced. If this “I” means you, the reader, will die alone in or out of your prison of doom, the poet might understand how you feel because they would have experienced the same level of despair and felt strongly enough to write about it. The poet could also be saying that when they die alone, they won’t be alone after all because you, the reader, have experienced their prison too. How would you, the reader, have experienced this prison? Could it be the poem you’re reading that imprisons your concentration until the final line is read?

With nobody to comfort me,—

To comfort who? The poet or you, the reader? In either case, is it always assumed that a prison is a negative place? The word itself is negative, and there are countless associations with prison, hardship, and Death, but what if the prison in this case was the only way the poet knows how to be free? Without knowing what a prison of doom is, the poet might not know what their life can be like without doom itself. This comparison could give the poet perspective on what they view as doom and when they think about it: They could compare doom and delight instead and focus on the delight part to make sure they don’t fall into their doom prison. On the other hand, they might not have a choice whether or not they enter their prison of doom because it could be up to those around them, or “they” as discussed in the first line. Is the poet stating a fact or asking someone to comfort them as they enter their prison of doom? The possible positive side of the prison doesn’t seem to be relevant here, or at least in this moment, as the poet grapples with how they are alone in a space that might not even be there because of their actions. Does this mean this poet has decided they are entering their prison, or have they known from the beginning and chose not to fight it because they knew their protests would be in vain? If the ‘me’ in this line is you, the instead, why would you, the reader need comfort in the first place? Are you going to join the poet in their prison? Or will you go to your own prison of doom after understanding that you will die alone without anyone to comfort you at the end?

Or to call me in a time of need.—

Judging by this and the previous line, we can assume the poet means ‘me’ as the selfish part of individuality without the “I” as discussed in the previous lines. If the ‘me’ needs different things compared to the “I”, these things could be spoken about in the calls during the ‘time of need’. The question is, who is calling? Those around the poet who wanted to put them into the prison of doom in the first place, or someone else who has their best interests at heart and called to make sure the poet has all they need before they resign themselves to the prison? If it’s latter, where was this person in the beginning of the poem where the poet (and potentially you, the reader) had to deal with their prison of doom on their own? If such a person existed, wouldn’t they have tried to help from the beginning and not only at the end of the poet’s life as they know it? There is a possibility that this person (who the poet could call on in their ‘time of need’) wasn’t aware that the poet was in any danger and assumed their prison was something the poet was afraid of but nothing would come of it. Could it be that the person the poet could call understood that the poet was strong enough not to succumb to their prison of doom, even if the others tried to put them there? This line doesn’t say “for me to call”, though. It says ‘to call me’. This could mean that the poet might not know who to call in a time of need, but those around them (not those from the beginning of the poem) know when to call based on how they see the situation and how the poet behaves around them. What if the call works the other way: Those around the poet calls them when they are in need, and this is why the poet feels they are in a prison of doom? If this “me” was you, the reader, who would you call? Or would you be the one who people call first to get themselves out of their own despair?

Though I am glad to go.—

Given my explanations above, how would you analyze this line?

What do you think? Do you agree with my understanding and symbolism? I’d love to know!

Please use this [ link ] to the optional forum to start a discussion about the poem. Alternatively, you can use any of the email links from the contact [ page ]

Week Three:

The Wait—2004. Age 15

I have done my time.

As I watch the people steel the world,

The world that was once mine,

I fade away gladly,

Into a world that was never mine.

Analogy

I have done my time.—

This poetry analogy is a day late and I think the timing plus the title of the poem needs to be addressed. What is time? In this context, it could be assumed that this time was from a punitive perspective as serving time in jail, be it a physical or emotional jail. How does the poet know they have completed their sentence if this is an emotional jail? Could it be why the analogy was a day late? The poet could have been unavailable on the day the analogy was supposed to come out because they were stuck in their own head, trying to escape from a prison they created themselves. What if this prison were real? If the poet has done their ‘time’, who was the one that imprisoned them? Was this imprisonment fair and according to the crime committed? How do you, the reader, know a crime was committed at all? Do you know because the poet told you a crime was committed? Did they, though? Did the poet state a crime was committed or did they simply say time was served? If the poet was a day late because they were stuck in their own prison, did they have the responsibility to get themselves out of this mindset to write the poem in time, or is that on the reader to pull them out of their self-imposed doubt? The reader doesn’t know what the poet is capable of if they can’t see the work the poet put in. In this case, the ‘time’ from this line could be your time, as the reader, as a means of paying for the poet’s psyche as they relive their prison time by writing a poem of expression. What if this was a physical prison, you ask? Aren’t all prisons physical? It’s just the type of walls that differ: Bone and skulls or concrete and punishment.

As I watch the people steel the world,—

‘As’ who watches, the poet or those who put the poet in prison? There is a spelling mistake in this line: ‘steel’ instead of steal. This is (or has to be) intentional since it’s assumed that the poet doesn’t want to release a piece of work with a mistake since this could seem unprofessional. Since this poem (so far) has been about punishment, time in punitive measures, and jail, this ‘steel’ could be what was used to keep the poet in check. If the poet had an external physical prison (instead of the one in their mind as discussed before), this steel could be used as bars for others to look at and potentially shame the poet, which could be the reason the poet spoke about an emotional prison earlier. The question is: Who is this 'I' in this line? Based on the previous line, it’s highly unlikely that this 'I' is the poet since the poet is in either a person or a self-made prison. Who could this 'I' be and why did the poet use that in the line as if the 'I' were them? It could be that this ‘I’ was or is someone the poet knows well enough to write as themselves and in so doing, this poem is the work of two people: The poet and the muse, not such an uncommon event in poetry. This still brings us to the line and the use of the word ‘steel’ and ‘watch’. While true that the use of the word ‘steel’ instead of steal could be seen as the poet watching others steal the world away from themselves as they are confined to their jail, these ‘people’ can also be seen as thieves of the world around the poet if their surroundings were once in abundance of minerals and resources but are now stripped away as the nature of people is left unchecked: They will steal and remove what isn’t theirs to make themselves more successful, despite what the others will lose.

The world that was once mine,—

By this line, we can safely assume that what was ‘once mine’ means what was once the poet’s: When people are imprisoned, their possessions are taken away for their safety and for the safety of the others. If the poet were removed from a world that was once theirs, they could accept the fact that this new world, the one where they have been imprisoned, is no longer theirs to control because they have lost their autonomy to exist in a world that they had control over. Even if this imprisonment was of their own doing (an emotional imprisonment instead of an external physical one), the world they had before this could still crumble and they could come to terms with the fact that when they get out, the world around them could be unrecognizable. If this is the case, how would the poet know the world was once theirs? If it’s unrecognizable and they were imprisoned for a long time, the world that was once theirs could be gone completely, only to be replaced by an environment suitable for the captors. If the world was indeed the poet’s world at some stage, do they have a right to claim it when they get out of their prison? How do you, the reader, know that it was the world that was stolen and not the prison? The prison could have been stolen to remove the possibility of the poet retreating to a safe place. How is prison safe? Sometimes separation is necessary as the poet, their muse, and the general population are at odds with their personalities. How else will differing opinions be safely aired in this world of violence against the other?

I fade away gladly,—

As the reader, you might be wondering where the title of the poem is and how these lines relate to the wait that happens during this separation and punitive process. Waiting for something to happen can be a punishment in itself, particularly if the wait leads to something undesirable. In this line, the poet (or whoever the ‘I’ is) fades into the background because (we can only assume) their world has disappeared in their eyes. Even if the world still exists, they (the poet or ‘I’) can’t be a part of it anymore because they aren’t familiar with how it works. It’s difficult to involve yourself in something you, the reader, no longer feel a connection to. Sometimes it’s easier just to disappear and make way for something new; something that you know you are a part of from the beginning without the possibility of fading away, potentially into a prison. If the poet (or ‘I’) is willing to fade away gladly, they must understand that this might be the only opportunity for them to fade away before (if at all) they are imprisoned. How can they be glad that they are fading away? Isn’t it better to leave your mind behind if you know you are going to experience something unpleasant?

Into a world that was never mine.—

Given my explanations above, how would you analyze this line?

What do you think? Do you agree with my understanding and symbolism? I’d love to know!

Please use this [ link ] to the optional forum to start a discussion about the poem. Alternatively, you can use any of the email links from the contact [ page ]

Week Four:

The Prison—2004. Age 15

When day becomes night;

Darkness.

People screaming,

Screaming for their hard lost life.

Souls trapped in a world of despair.

Analogy

When day becomes night;—
In prison, time usually blends into one giant blob of stretched with now start and end so this line could mean that the poet is in prison (after their sentence from their previous poem), and it could also mean that the poet has waited long enough for their sentence. Do you, the reader, know how long they have waited? Do they know, since they might feel stuck in a never ending loop? There is also the possibility that their prison sentence isn’t a prison at all and is instead a way to explain to you, the reader, that their cage is now empty and they are moving on to the next phase of their sentence, which could be Death itself. This could be how ‘day becomes night’ as in this line: It’s widely accepted that Death is dark or at least void of light, both physical and metaphorical. If the poet is waiting for day to become night, they could also be waiting for a change in pace in their internal understanding of the passage of time, waiting for something to come; something that may not be there or come in the first place.

Darkness.—

Is this a physical darkness or a metaphorical darkness that could envelope us if we allow it too? Light and fresh air is considered a human right in most countries so this wouldn’t be an issue under normal circumstance if the poet is thinking about their prison sentence in this context, but since darkness and day turning into night without mention of lighting or a reprieve, we can assume that this darkness isn’t a physical one, or that the poet is (or will be) imprisoned in an area where human rights don’t apply. Does this mean there are no humans where they are or just not humans who follow the same form of human rights as the ‘West,’ where the concept of human rights was written down and distributed to the public? Is the poet aware that other forms of prison or people who control these prisons where there may be only light as a form of torture and the darkness comes after the person goes blind from light exposure? If this is a metaphorical prison, the darkness could come from the despair the poet may feel after the realisation that they can no longer tell the difference between day and night because of the sameness and potential blindness from light exposure.

People screaming,—

Why are people screaming? Does this mean the poet isn’t alone in their prison, or could this mean that the people who are screaming is in their own head because of their isolation and they have now gone mad. Another possibility of these screaming people could be there friends and family members screaming as the poet is whisked away to prison. Why the word whisked? You, the reader, don’t know that the poet may not have wanted this from the beginning. Even if they had a bad time during the sentencing and left alone in darkness (even if this darkness was self inflected), they may have needed this time to spend with themselves after they understood the severity of their crime. What is their crime? That is for you to decide. Would you be the screaming people if their crime was against you or your kin, or would you be there in the dark with them, knowing your hands will never be clean after knowing a criminal only worthy of the darkness themselves and the prison system can give them?

Screaming for their hard lost life.—

This line changes things: Whose hard lost life if the person who could have lost their life is the poet? If these are the people who are ‘screaming for their hard lost life’, how can they scream if they have lost their life already? Is the poet and these people all dead? Is that why the poet can only see darkness, since there is only darkness in the ground, or in Death because of the light that is lost in people’s eyes once they are not longer with us? If these are indeed the people from before, it could be that they are the poet’s family and friends who were caught up in their crimes and the reason they had to go to prison in the first place. If this is the case, they could be screaming in fear or internally at the disappointment they see in their once-innocent loved one (no one starts out a criminal), and they could also be screaming to avoid the reality: Silence means they are left alone with their thoughts. These thoughts could be something like How could the (the poet) do this? I didn’t want to die or I have so much left to live for, now I’m stuck in this prison with them. Note, I didn’t say ‘prison’, I said ‘this prison.’

Souls trapped in a world of despair.—

Given my explanations above, how would you analyse this line?

What do you think? Do you agree with my understanding and symbolism? I’d love to know!

Please use this [ link ] to the optional forum to start a discussion about the poem. Alternatively, you can use any of the email links from the contact [ page ]