Poetry

For some reason, I had this poem I like stuck in my head today. One line of thought lead to another, and I remembered all the "favorite books, music, movie, tv show, other NG's" threads, so I thought I'd start one where everyone posts their favorite poetry, line of poetry, or poet's.

Kyle wrote:

Oh, hell. I don't read peotry at all, really. I've had too many bad experiences of it from school (like the time I had to memorise several verses of The Lady Of Shallot and recite them in front of a camera, and I forgot every damn word despite having spent hours learning it the previous day) so I try to avoid it. However, we're doing this poem called 'Vultures' right now, which is actually quite good. I've forgotten it now, but I read on ahead in the text book and found this rather strange poem called 'Study: No. X' and, oddly enough, I can remember the entire thing! Anyway, my favorite line from it is as follows: 'infanta! madonna! guernica! hiroshima!' I have no idea why I like that, but it's the only poem I've ever read that has appealled to me. I've never been much of a poem-type person.

I always like "The Gallows Tree". I can't remember who wrote it. But it think it would make a good Metallica song.

~po

A wise man once said "Nothing is better than an unnecessary pair of sunglasses at night." At least, I hope to one day become a wise man.

One of my favorite lines:

Quoth the raven, "Nevermore." Also the witches from Macbeth:" Double, double, toil and trouble. Fire burn and cauldron bubble. Hair of snake and toe of frog." Or something like that. I tried to memorize it before I had to return the book to the library. Hey everybody! Guess what! The Redskins might actually win today. Or not.

TAra

"Kyle" wrote:

One my usual long posts ahead...

Sigh. You made me grab my Brick, vol. 2. (Aka, the Norton Anthology of English Literature.) I thumbed through its well-thumbed pages, and picked these favorites.

Even though I was never a big Romantic Poet fan, I have to admit that Shelley's "Ozymandias" always comes to mind when I start thinking of my favorite poetry, as do the opening lines from Homer's "Iliad" -- we had to learn them in the original ancient Greek from one of my profs who was an ancient Greek scholar. (Literally. <g>). It sounded better when he said it though.

Wilfred Owen is also a favorite, mostly because he managed to show me a little sliver of the horror of WWI. (And he made me really start to actually *think* about what I really believed in.) "Anthem for Doomed Youth" and "Dulce Et Decorum Est" come to mind: "My friend, you would not tell with such high zest To children ardent for some desperate glory, The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est Pro patria mori."

And there's always Browning's "A Grammarian's Funeral:" "That low man seeks a little thing to do, Sees it and does it: This high man, with a great thing to pursue, Dies ere he knows it. That low man goes on adding one to one, His hundred's soon hit: This high man, aiming at a million, Misses an unit."

Then I decided to look in my Brick, vol 1, for a few others... Andrew Marvell had a great 17th century pickup line-- er, poem, "To His Coy Mistress" "Let us roll all our strength and all Our sweetness up into one ball, And tear our pleasures with rough strife Through the iron gates of life: Thus, though we cannot make our sun Stand still, yet we will make him run."

Finally, Sir Thomas Wyatt the Elder, "Blame Not My Lute," "Then though my songs be somewhat strange And speaks such words as touch thy change, Blame not my lute."

There's more, but I don't want to eat up *too* much bandwidth with stuff I'm sure you've all seen before, anyway. (At least I *hope* you've all seen this stuff before... <g>)

rich.

Jane: Usually when I have this dream I'm wearing pink taffeta.

Kyle wrote:

     "I'm here, but where are you? Sure, I see your body. Anyone home in that
rotting bag of flesh?"
     Just kidding, I just wanted to be the first to type that. I've always
thought poetry was the way literary types could make me look stupid. Prose for
me, thank you. But then, I didn't get a lot of prose before. Mainly because I
didn't get symbolism, thus I would quail away from, say, James Joyce like a
vampire to garlic.
     Seriously, though, I did like that one Shakespeare sonnet, the one that
begins "Come away, and in sad cypress let me be laid..." or whatever.
"Ozymandias" too, like someone else mentioned (Shelley, right? I gots me an
edumacation.)

MIKE (a.k.a. "Progbear")

make GEORYN disappear to reply

"It is not an obscenity to be free. It is a divine right." --Annette Peacock

N.P.:"Winterthru"- E c h o l y n / S u f f o c a t i n g T h e B l o o m

Progbear wrote:

I like that one. I think, at my school, people think I'm a 'literary type' which is not at all true, but is apparently based on the fact that I 'get good grades and stuff'. In reality, I'm lazy as hell, I avoid poetry, literature, etc, as much as possible, and I never do homework unless threatened with detention.

Shakespeare. The one play of his I've read is Romeo And Juliet and I _hated_ it. The characters are sooo annoying. It's like, Juliet, she won't tell her parents she's in love with a Montague, and then later it's like, "Oh no, my boyfriend's dead! I'll have to kill myself!" I didn't like her 'cos she was a wuss.

I wrote:

I have just realised the immense hypocracy demonstrated in my earlier post. Next time, I will check that my foot is not in my mouth before clicking the 'send' button.

WOW!! Sounds like me all right. There are still people who think I'm a nerdy type who don'r realize I'm a bum. I'm a lazy bum. I'm a rotten bum. That's why I like me.

Hehehe.

Umm... poets I like. I don't read much poetry. I read Spike Milligan's poetry, because he rules. Of course his serious poetry is so popular that its out of print worldwide.

Oh, and Dorothy Parker. Very funny... and serious too sometimes. Some article somewhere called Daria a high school Dorothy Parker. Dammit, I wanted that job!

Let's see... we've been reading some poems in American Lit. Longfellow and Frost, yeah, they're actually pretty cool. Wow. I don't hate English this year. Maybe because I don't have the devil for a teacher.

I've written 4 poems in the past two years. Two are about Vivian Stanshall, written in a moment of inspiration. Two are Ayn Rand-ish things written for classes. Weird, because those are two totally opposite people. Yet they both are people I identify with. Hmm...

Dagny

Visit The Parsley Firefly http://members.aol.com/Eccles9697 Monty Python, Spike Milligan, Marx Brothers, and more...

"You got a light, mac?... No, but I got a dark brown overcoat"- Viv Stanshall

Eccles9697 wrote:

That's it! Totally! I'm a lazy bum too! Heeheehehe!

Make that 3 lazy bums.

endless, nameless wrote in article ...

nerdy

That's why

Aaah, you should read something other than that. Actually, preferably WATCH. Julius Caesar, now there's a play.

Dagny

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"You got a light, mac?... No, but I got a dark brown overcoat"- Viv Stanshall

Eccles9697 wrote:

I saw The Tempest once, very confusing. And A Midsummer Night's Dream. That was very odd.

Kyle wrote:

My favorite poem is probably "The Hollow Men" by T.S. Eliot. How can you *not* like a poem whose last stanza is: This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends This is the way the world ends Not with a bang but a whimper.

Another wonderful poem is Eugene Fitch Ware's "He And She":
  When I am dead you'll find it hard,
     Said he,
  To ever find another man
     Like me.

  What makes you think, as I suppose
     You do,
  I'd ever want another man
     Like you?

Other favorite are Ogden Nash's "So That's Who I Reminds Me Of"; William Blake's "The Tiger"; Alfred Noyes "The Highwayman"; Irving Bacheller's "Whisperin' Bill"; Edgar Allen Poe's "The Raven" and "Annabelle Lee"; Sylvia Plath's "Daddy"; and Puck's final soliloquy in Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream."

Finally, I love this poem by Dorthy Parker, which seems rather appropriate to post at this ng: Razors pain you; Rivers are damp; Acids stain you; And drugs cause cramp. Guns aren't lawful; Nooses give; Gas smells awful; You might as well live.

Regards, Elizabeth [email]

"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it." -George Bernard Shaw

NuitCoeur wrote:

LOL! I take it that was directed mainly at me!

And Alli (endless, nameless) replied:

Actually, I just thought it was the sort of humour Jane or Daria might find amusing. Although I guess it is rather appropriate for you, too. What an interesting coinsidence.

Regards, Elizabeth [email]

"The power of accurate observation is commonly called cynicism by those who have not got it." -George Bernard Shaw

NuitCoeur wrote:

[snip!]

How ironic! Didn't one critic once call Daria "a 10th-grade Dorothy Parker"?

MIKE (a.k.a. "Progbear")

make GEORYN disappear to reply

"Parece cosa de maligno. Los pianos no estallan por casualidad." --Gabriel Garcia Marquez

N.P.:"Foret"- H a l l o w e e n / M e r l i n

Kyle, in message , invited us to name our favourite poetry.

For me, three authors stand out.

GK Chesterton's poetry is full of a robust anti-puritanism that I cherish.

"Martin Sylvester" wrote:

<snippage for the sake of bandwidth>

No one with a truly open mind could find any insult in your post unless s/he already had "issues." I, for one, am always glad to find new sources for Things to Read and Think About (even if I am one of those dreary Protestants who always ask that dirty little question -- "Why?" <grins>.) Thanks for your contribution.

rich

Jane: Uh-oh, someone just put us in a position of responsibility.

Daria: The day has suddenly turned sinister.

[email] wrote in message ...

Hey, that is *the* question! <bg>

It's the question that reveals that no technology, however brilliant, no product, however skillfully made and marketed, can fill the longings of the human heart. It's the question that reveals the void at the heart of communism, capitalism, consumerism, materialism, and every other secularism we've made up for ourselves. It's the question that begins the spiritual journey, and renews it when we get complacent.

Don't stop asking it!

And thanks for your encouraging remarks. Appreciated.

Martin.

Martin Sylvester wrote:

I like Heaney's poem Mid-Term Break. That's really sad.

I hope so too. I've been brought up to be rather anti-Church, but I do have appreciation for good moral values. I hate some religious types. Yesterday, I saw the film Carrie. That girl's mother is such a bitch. <I'm going to go completely off topic here> I found the bit where she locks Carrie in the closet rather disturbing - my mother has done that to me on several occasions. Anyway, back on topic: she's an example of the sort of religious person I don't like. And off The Simpsons, Reverend Lovejoy. He's a twat. But anyway, I don't think you're offending anyone. :)

"This isn't about Jesus, is it?" "Homer, everything's about Jesus. Except this."

heheheheh.. please don't get me started on Simpsons quotes.. i can't stop if i start.. ~po

A wise man once said "Nothing is better than an unnecessary pair of sunglasses at night." At least, I hope to one day become a wise man.

On 10 Nov 1998 22:12:17 GMT, [email] (CrtoonDude) wrote:

His wife is almost as bad. She can usually be heard yelling "what about the children" "will someone please think of the children." She's the type who uses her religious beliefs to justify her political ideologies and use children to shield herself from "crackpot liberal" ideas. I can almost hear her saying "I don't want my CHILDREN being taught that they are just 'evolved monkeys'."

You and me both. I could recite Troy McClure film titles all day long. Alice's Adventures through the Windshield Glass Locker Room Towel Fights : The Blinding of Larry Driscoll "Muttonchops" (A one-man musical tribute to the great thinkers of the 19th Century.) Good-Time Slim, Uncle Doobie, and the Great 'Frisco Freak-Out' Lead Paint: Delicious But Deadly Two Minus Three Equals Negative Fun Dig Your Own Grave and Save like I said I could go on all day but I wont.....OK 2 more. Get Confident, Stupid! Smoke Yourself Thin

Happydude wrote:

There was that one episode where she's standing next to Moe and he says it instead. I forget which one now.

Hehehe!

OK, enough, enough! :)

I like that one where Lisa's teacher goes something like "Lisa, it's PC thugs like you that stop the rest of us getting a husband!"

On Tue, 10 Nov 1998 23:02:46 +0000, "endless, nameless" wrote:

lisa: she called me a PC thug. Homer: I get called a greasy thug all the time and it still hurts

Rev. Lovejoy: "Ned, have you considered any other religions? They're all pretty much the same."

Well, first of all, that mother had a psychological disorder of some kind I'm sure, not religion.

But that movie does not do the book justice by any stretch of the imagination (do they ever?).

I *strongly* suggest you read it, it's great.

endless, nameless wrote in article ...

On 10 Nov 1998 22:27:55 GMT, "Kyle" wrote:

I was just going to post the same thing. The book is way better than the movie. It's a great read especially if your in high school. The prom-night massacre at the end was a very satisfying read back then.

Happydude wrote:

Yeah, I can imagine! I don't know who the book is by, though, I just happened to see the movie when it was on the other night, so someone will have to tell me who wrote it.

On Wed, 11 Nov 1998 00:27:59 +0000, "endless, nameless" wrote: *snip*

It was Stephen King's first book

That is one of Stephen King's first big hits.

endless, nameless wrote in article ...

i AM in high school, and I read it at least once a month. I love reading her thoughts.

Happydude wrote in article ...

kind

Kyle wrote:

I guess. She's disturbingly like my mother, and as I said, my parents aren't religious. My mother just will not listen. And she used to lock me in the garage on occasions. But at least she doesn't accuse me of sin or anything.

I will. I always think books are far better than the movies adapted from them. In English class, we read To Kill A Mockingbird, and then watched the movie. It totally ruined it for me, it was just not how I imagined it. I don't usually watch movies at all, and I have such a short attention span that if I do, I have to get them on video, and then stop the tape every 10 minutes so I don't get bored. With books, it's easier 'cos you can just put it down whenever you want.

I hated the girl who played Scout. Just thought you'd like to know that. I really didn't like that movie, the book was OK....

But movies based on books gernerally suck... the "bastardization" as Mrs Berlin calls it.... Don't even mention the character of Sybil Vane in the movie of "Picture of Dorian Gray" to me unless you want me to post a long, emotional rant on how she's not the same Sybil Vane that's in the book.

Dagny

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"You got a light, mac?... No, but I got a dark brown overcoat"- Viv Stanshall

Eccles9697 wrote:

I didn't like Dill. But I didn't like him in the book either, so...

What do you think of Sybil Vane, then? C'mon, I wanna read this!

Well then you asked for it, tee hee.

Sybil Vane in the book was a GREAT character. She was an excellent Shakespearean actress in a theatre with cheap props and sets, and with all the other actors were really bad. But Sybil was really talented: she *became* each of the great characters of Shakespeare- and when Dorian fell in love with her, the point is he was really falling in love with the characters, and also that she was like him in that she appeared different than she was. And what happened was that when Dorian proposed to her, it was the first time something interesting happened to HER, Sybil Vane, and she realized how false the acting was, and from then on was horrible, so Dorian tells her "I can't marry you, you're acting was horrible" and she kills herself.

In the movie, she's not a great character. She's a cheap singer and a cheap love interest. Plus Dorian's actions leading up to her suicide are more him doing as Lord Henry told him, rather than his own doing- they tried to make the film a "moral statement" which the book was definitely NOT.

Dagny

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"You got a light, mac?... No, but I got a dark brown overcoat"- Viv Stanshall

Eccles9697 wrote:

I hate that. I hate it when there's a 'moral' thing, because there's never one in real life. I wish there was, but there's not!

I remember watching "Wargames" for the first time, and loving it. (It's a movie where a kid hacks into a gov computer and makes them believe the russians are firing missiles at us).

At the end, the computer analyzes nuclear war, and decides "The only way to win is not to play". It was such a great movie till that cheesy, cliched ending, and I just wanted to slap the director around a little.

endless, nameless wrote in article ...

Kyle wrote:

I nearly always wanna do that. There's nearly always one, simple thing that ruins a movie, and it's usually something like that.

On Sat, 14 Nov 1998 23:43:36 +0000, "endless, nameless" wrote:

FYI, the original ending of "WarGames" had the nuclear war actually happen, but the test screenings didn't go well ("don't do that... it's downbeat") so director John Badham changed the ending.

Martin (to send E-mail, remove the "nospam" from my E-mail address) ---- Quinn: You kids know where Grandma's TV is. Go watch something educational. SSW: "Breast implants for chickens???" Quinn & Daria: Not that!!! ---- Visit Outpost Daria! http://www.concentric.net/~systech/daria

There has *got* to be a place where I can get my hands on a copy of that!

Martin J. Pollard wrote in article ...

educational.

Yeah, and the "It's A Wonderful Life" killing spree ending...

Shadowcloak [email] (NOT @aol) http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Museum/7252/

"Oh, no. The toilet is talking to me again." - Jane Lane

endless, nameless wrote in message ...

You said it, sister! That brilliant bit in last night's episode (from memory): "If our government has legalised anything, it is no longer immoral." Erm, yeah, real counter-cultural, alternative lifestyle, church of the martyrs stuff that! <g>

Do you know pre-Raphaelite art? All those girly-girly, silk-draped, soppy women fit to swoon? You get the impression the artists had a problem with real women. Anyway, Bernard Levin once wrote a *brilliant* review of a pre-Raphaelite exibition, where he damned the whole movement: "From Exhibit No. 1 to Exhibit No. 250 there is no feeling, only calculation, no heart, only thought, no passion, only assiduity, no vigour, only force, no fire, only smoke, no humility, only discretion, no love, only desire, no God, only religion, no nature, only scenery, no art, only technique, no understanding, only knowledge, and above all no genius _and no regrets for the lack of it_." (From "The Barren Brotherhood" The Times, 7 May 1984, (c) Times Newspapers Limited, 1984).

I like to think Jane Lane's review would be much the same; the point of my quoting it is to say I think there are plenty of people full of religion but empty of faith.

<Sigh> And I didn't want to start a religious debate!

Thanks, Alli! 8-)

Martin

I wrote in message ...

I realise I should make it clear I'm not using "girly-girly" as another word for "cute". It's more about attitude... 8-)

Martin

Martin Sylvester wrote:

What was last night's episode?

LOL! Brilliant! I always hated that sort of art. I don't like it when artists go sticking nude women in their art for no good reason. One thing I have noticed is that you rarely see naked men in their work. <going off on irrelevant feminist rant here> There's some Dal� painting that shows him naked except for a cleverly placed umbrella or something, but his paintings always have girls with their tits out. And I think it's Bellmar that has that breast-sculpture thing. No woman would make a sculpture like that with the breasts replaced with penises (well, I know I wouldn't). But anyway, I won't even go into what I think of that pre-Raphaelite stuff.

That's exactly what I mean. Why is it that I can spend hours trying to explain it, and then someone else comes along and says it in one simple sentence?

But religious debates are fun!

Kent Brockman: "Coming up tommorrow night, we debate which is the one true religion."

Sorry, but once I start, I can't stop, i told you. And there are so many good Kent Brockman ones.. ~po

A wise man once said "Nothing is better than an unnecessary pair of sunglasses at night." At least, I hope to one day become a wise man.

CrtoonDude wrote:

I can't think of any Kent Brockman ones right now, but how about this one? (You know I can't stand this guy!) Reverend Lovejoy: "Ned, why don't you try one of the other six major world religions? They're all pretty much the same."

Oh, and this! Lisa: "Doesn't the Bible say 'judge not, lest ye be judged'?" Reverend Lovejoy: "I believe it's somewhere towards the back..."

On Tue, 10 Nov 1998 22:55:55 +0000, "endless, nameless" wrote:

*snip*

here are some other quotes, or at least as close as I can remember

Apu: I'm hindu, there are 600 million of us you know lovejoy:(rolling his eyes) ohhh wonderful

Apu: can you perform a hindu wedding? Lovejoy: whatever, Christ is Christ.

I think it was Bertrand Russell who was arrested for protesting against the First World War. The officer who booked him in asked him the standard questions, name, age, occupation -- and, as was usual at that time, "What is your religion?"

"Agnostic," Russell said.

The officer shrugged. "Well, there are many different religions," he said, "but I guess we all believe in the same God ... "

Think globally, act locally. Susan

Ooh yes. Especially after we all go at each other's throats. Then it's even more fun than Jerry Springer

(removes tongue from cheek, and possibly foot from mouth)

Dagny

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Eccles9697 wrote:

But that _is_ fun! I _like_ going after people's throats! I'm sure Kazul would agree, he must do that all the time. :)

endless, nameless wrote in message ...

The one where Homer gets a job in Mr Burns' new casino, and Marge becomes a gambling addict. (These plotlines are so creative <g> )

[snip bit about pre-Raphaelite art]

Levin also says (same reference): "There is a Max Beerbohm cartoon in which Queen Victoria is eagerly asking one of the Brotherhood [of pre-Raphaelite painters], 'But what were they going to do with the Grail when they found it, Mr Rosetti?' Max did not provide the answer, but I can; they were going to drink cocoa out of it."

If I had the patience, I'd transcribe the whole article; but I haven't. ;-)

my

but

Practice! Years of toil, nights of self-denial, and countless books and poems read and pondered. <g> Oh, yes, and the influence of _The Complete Plain Words_ by Sir Ernest Gowers. He wrote it originally to try to get civil servants (I think in US English = public officials) to speak & write plain English instead of jargon and officialese. He has some great examples of real writing from official reports; including, "The ceilings are beginning to bite, but that is what ceilings are meant to do." He quotes one paragraph from a government report and says he cannot discover any meaning in it whatever!

Until the bigots move in <doomy music>. But I reckon bigots wouldn't feel at home in alt.tv.daria. Oh, I forgot, bigots just keep shouting until it does feel like home...

God preserve us from 'em!

Martin.

Martin Sylvester wrote:

LOL! Why does that not surprise me?

Tell me about it. Go check alt.fan.courtney-love, I guarantee at least half the posts will involve the Kurt Cobain murder theory put forward by Tom Grant (obsessive stalker) and the late El Duce (misogynistic freak who got hit by a train and thus proved that there is a God). And yes, there is shouting (ie, typing in capital letters) and they have definitely made themselves at home. But that's a different type of bigot. Sort of. Don't mind me, I just get bored of staying on topic for too long. As I've said before, I have a very short attention span.

endless, nameless wrote in message ...

Mind you? Alli, you're a treasure. A few days here in atd are enough to see you're thoughtful, dryly funny, creative... I won't go on, to spare your blushes. a.t.d would be duller without you.

The upside of a short attention span is it allows new ideas, new ways of seeing things, new connections to be made; perhaps (I'm not sure about this) more rapid decisions and less dithering. Which reminds me: someone who lectures at Sandhurst (the college for future Army officers) once said, "We're looking for people who can make quick decisions. It helps if, now and then, they're also the right one."

This is not careers guidance. <g>

Martin.

Martin Sylvester wrote:

Aww, thanks. :)

It isn't? Damn. I leave school next year and have no idea what to do. Suggestions would be welcome <hint, hint>

You know, Dr. Kevorkian is getting on in years... and SOMEBODY's got to run around assisting all those suicides. <crawls back into her corner and pulls her foot out of her mouth>

DIBS!

Demeter471 wrote in article ...

run

pulls

http://www.gurlpages.com/writing/loneliness/index.html

Huh? What's 'DIBS!'?

Kyle wrote:

"Dibs" as in I'm calling squatters rights on the Kevorkian job.

endless, nameless wrote in article ...

Kyle wrote:

Huh? Sorry, I'm very slow today. I got up *way* too early.

Demeter471 wrote:

You like that corner of yours, don't you? :)

Yes. <pulls herself into a fetal position and begins rocking> It's the only place they can't see me. You see, the KGB is after me because I killed the ghost of Joseph Stalin, and they have cameras all over. The walls have eyes, I tell you!! THE WALLS HAVE EYES!!!

(In case you were wondering, that was a joke.) Actually, I just usually lurk here, and somehow it just seemed right to hide in a corner. (Intense psychoanalysis, anyone?) Oh, and good luck with the Kevorkian job, Kyle... don't forget, practice makes perfect.

I just realized that I didn't actually post the poem that started this little thread.

Kyle wrote in article ...

(Please note that this is directly cut from a copy of the poem, so it has no spelling or punctuation errors, that is just Mr. Cummings' style)

"next to of course god america I By ee cummings

"next to of course god america i love you land of the pilgrims' and so forth oh say can you see by the dawn's early my country 'tis of centuries come and go and are no more what of it we should worry in every language even deafanddumb thy sons acclaim your glorious name by gorry by jingo by gee by gosh by gum why talk of beauty what could be more beaut- iful than these heroic happy dead who rushed like lions to the roaring slaughter they did not stop to think they died instead then shall the voice of liberty be mute?" He spoke. And drank rapidly a glass of water