A project in English requires me to write a poem (along with a research paper and short story and others) about my selected peice of artwork.



It has to reflect the mood (what you think and feel when looking at it) of the artwork...I'm not really sure where to start, and since I see so much poetry showcased, I thought maybe you guys could help me out.

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Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.

Ah, when simple minds draw in to complexities with a jovial heart!
Wisdom smiles down upon thee!
Climbing upward to reach new heights of awakening,
and yet not forsaking that which brought you to this dance.
For it is when we discard our past in light of the discoveries of the future, that we become nothing more than caged animals with ugliness in out hearts.
No, tis more noble to reflect on both logic and spirit.
With that harmonious union, one can gaze into the unknown, steadfast and prepared to truly understand the wonders of the beyond, and those within our soul.

You wanted a poem, not a limerick - right?
I hope this sufficies.

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Fear is here, where's the beer?

I wanted help writing a poem, not a poem, but thanks. And no, don't offer to let me use it, especially because my English teacher will no doubt think I stole it (she thinks anything good from me I steal from Google, she wrote "Google" on the top of my last paper because she put it in a stack of papers to check on Google :mad . But hopefully that will give me some ideas.

Is there anything you can say about the process of writing a poem? I know one way suggested to us was to write down everything we see, using similies, and then try to shorten that and tighten it into prose and into a poem. But that doesn't really work for me. Any other tips?

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Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.

You might want to poetize about the three levels being similar to the three levels of society (poor/rich/inbetween).
I'm making that comparision because it seems that at the top, there's the few, the rich, the middle there are/were several people, but they're starting to climb up. And then at the bottom level, there are lots of people, who don't seem to be dressed as well/in jail.

You might mention something about how the old man in jail is disdainful towards the rest, how the jester looking fellah' playing with the box is depressed, and how the people at the top are oblivious to their plight.

Or you could compare the structure to capitalism, because there is a way to go from the bottom of the structure/society to the top, and vice versa.

Hope that helped, and was what you were kind of looking for.

[edit-As for tips of how to write a poem, come up with what you want the poem to be about, be it some of my suggestions, or your own thoughts first. Does it have to rhyme? Are there any requirements for the poem? Or did she just say "Go write." (I wish my teachers would do that..) If she said to just write, after you come up with an idea, just pretty much start writing, and you might want to pick a rhyme scheme and follow it.

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MadQuack on Military school: Pro's: I get to shoot a gun. Con's: Everything else.
"I'm going to beat you until the laws of physics are violated!!" ! Maeve's Warcry

RIP -MaDaVentor-. You will be missed.

[This message has been edited by happydud (edited March 02, 2004).]

Well, to be honest, a true poem comes from your heart, and doesn't have to rhyme.

Essentially, look at the picture as a whole, and then parts, and then describe what you see - not so much a physical depiction, but what your thoughts are on what is happening in that picture. And then add in some of your own personal feelings, and then you should be able to have a poem.

For your first time, it might take minor tweeking. The people who have the hardest time with making poems are pragmatics. You need to lose your practical side and use more of your heart and emotions to have a good poem. And it doesn't have to be happy or positive - it can be negative, or angry, or sad, or a combination. And it can have both happy and sad into it. Essentially you are pouring yourself onto a piece of paper. Poetry is meant to be personal, so when you write it, make sure whatever you write has at least some meaning to you on some level.

That's the best advice I can give for starters. If you need a process, first write what you see and feel about the picture in your own words. Then, look for ways to sum up all the scribbles. From there, you take your words, and look for new ways to eloquently put your point across. Really, if it doesn't come automatic, then similies and metaphors should be the last addition to your poem.

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Fear is here, where's the beer?

Really think about the picture and probably about mathematics. Then write about it for like 3 hours, it doesn't matter if it's repetitive or if it's a poem or prose or whatever, just keep writing even if it doesn't make sense. 12 hours later write about it for 2 more hours straight. Then 5 hours later have sex and *immediately* afterwards write some more. The sleep deprivation and hormone imbalance will make your state of mind quite different and you can get some nice results. Edit it to taste and enjoy.

O_o That's an.. interesting take.

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MadQuack on Military school: Pro's: I get to shoot a gun. Con's: Everything else.
"I'm going to beat you until the laws of physics are violated!!" ! Maeve's Warcry

RIP -MaDaVentor-. You will be missed.

Thanks, it helps a lot.

Unfortunately, my teacher rarely grades on content, so she requires a minimum length for everything. The poem must be 20 lines, any type of poem, rhyme or not. See, I hate this minimum length crap. I understand that she doesn't want a three or four line bull****ted poem, but you could easily write a 20-30 line bull**** poem that is no where near as good as 10 lines that someone poured their heart and mind into. This wouldn't be a problem if she actually read and analyzed our work. Sigh.

I also have to write a short story about what's in the picture. This isn't too hard, but I could also use some suggestions on plot or conflict. I'm having a little trouble coming up with something coherent. Once I do thought, it'll be easy, since I'm pretty good at story writing.

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Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.

You can't build that structure can you..hmmm

How about mentioning improbablty in the picture. This could happen in a surrealistic dream world.

For the "mood," I noticed no one (except for jester guy, maybe because he has a bad mind)is smiling. Maybe they are lost. The woman and the man maybe looking for each other but are seperated for some cause.



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Snail racing: (500 posts per line)
-----@%

An exile of the Soviet Massassi Regime

actually, there are some faint smiles on the faces of a couple people. Notibly the woman at the top, the guy on the ladder, and the woman with the horn-hat on the bottom.

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Fear is here, where's the beer?

Whoa, I didn't even notice the middle level was out of kilter the first couple times I looked at it.

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Have a good one,
Freelancer

Me neither - and I was specifically looking for that. *ashamed*

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Fear is here, where's the beer?

So...how 'bout that short story?

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Bassoon, n. A brazen instrument into which a fool blows out his brains.

Steer away from cliches...FAR away.

Do not think that talking about death/love/pain/depression/suicide/evil/good/darkness/light/demons/angels equals being deep

BE SUBTLE. Don't go rubbing the audience's face in the meaning of your poem. Avoid common associations and descriptions. The goal is to make the audience come to the conclusions you want it to on their own, not to directly tell them what those conclusions are. Example: Don't use flag, eagle, or red white and blue imagry in a patriotic/anti-patriotic/anti-war/pro-war/9-11 poem.

Avoid being a goth-poet. This draws heavily on the above three. Don't slather your poem with words like "Darkness" "pain" "death" "Hell" "murder" "kill." If you can picture Linkin Park putting it to music or an angsty high schooler writing it the back of a five-star notebook, then set fire to it immediately.

Don't try to tell 'the ultimate truth'.

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Dark, Darker, Darko

RIP Madaventor: God bless you.