Recognizing the important of a group effort is one of the most important goals in achieving success in any situation. Different environments have different component parts that work together to create something unique and beautiful. However, true beauty and value does not lie in the end result, but rather in the effort of achieving the end result. Each of the poems, “One’s-Self I Sing”, “I Sing The Body Electric” as well as the short story, “Lush Life” very much relate to this theme. I too can relate to this theme from the lessons I learned at volunteer service-learning this week. When individuals or individual parts come together to attain a common goal or create something larger, they are breaking down barriers in the process. Literature often employs this concept because it is a universal theme that helps us realize the importance of differences and how they help us create or understand something greater.
John McClusky’s story, “Lush Life” puts this theme into context very well. The piece tells the story of a band, and how it uses the unique combinations of all the members’ talents to create music. Two of the band mates, Earl Ferguson and Billy Cox travel in a car separate from the bus that transports the instruments and other members from show to show. In the story, Earl and Billy work together using their individual talents to write a song. Even though the song is composed of different chords, melodies, and notes, it beautifully showcases the combination of their abilities. Using music to communicate this theme, McClusky also portrays the importance of different sounds and rhythms necessary to compose a beautiful piece of music. On a larger scale, McClusky illustrates the beauty of humans working together. When they are driving, Billy has reservations about stopping to help a white boy with a flat tire. Putting their differences aside, Billy breaks the barrier by helping them change the tire, an act that displays the beauty of human nature.
In examining the human condition, we observe that the body is a complex combination of different parts working together for a greater cause. Each breath or step we take requires a combination of movements and efforts exerted by several different body parts at a single time. Walt Whitman cleverly displays the beauty and complexity of this process in his piece, From “I Sing The Body Electric”. The speaker references several different body parts from the iris of the eye to the joints of the fingers to heels of our feet. Referencing these parts is important because it helps us realize as humans, the every part, big or small works together for create the masterpiece of human life. The nature of life and the way these parts interact casts women as the creators, and men as the powerful sustenance. Although these roles are very different, they work together through communication and interaction to sustain life and contribute to the complexity of human existence.
The last piece, Walt Whitman’s “One’s-Self I Sing” is very much relevant to this theme of interaction and working together, although it presents much more individualistic undertones. In this piece, the speaker admires the beauty and freedom associated with being an individual. By referencing “a simple separate person” and the word “democratic” the speaker is alluding to the freedom and liberty related to individuality. While the speaker revels in the beauty of the male physiology he notes that “the female equally with the male I sing”. This line helps the reader understand that the speaker in noting a sense of equality between men and women. The beauty of this piece lies in the fact that men and women are free and independent individuals that, despite their differences work together to sustain “life immense in passion, pulse, and power”.
The event I attended this week was a special volunteer workshop at St. Mary’s School. In addition to my weekly visit every Tuesday as a volunteer tutor, last Friday I was one of a couple of volunteers that lead an art workshop for the kids. The children, most of who were first and second graders, sat at different tables and drew illustrations with pastels. It was fun and intriguing to interact them while at the same time observing their interactions with each other. The theme for the workshop was cave painting, so the kids first drew a practice picture and then drew the picture again on the large wall mural. Interacting freely with out the pressure of teachers or parents, and expressing themselves creatively through art seemed to help the kids appreciate their strengths and weaknesses. Although it seems overly simplistic, Kiara was good at shading while Steven was good at tracing the animals onto the mural. In aiding the children with their activity and observing their interactions with each other, I watched as they began to recognize the importance of their differences. With everyone using their specific abilities to work together, the children created a unique and beautiful mural they were very proud of. When their parents came to pick them up, each child was able to point to a specific area or element of the mural to which they contributed, which was a very rewarding experience for them as seven and eight year olds.
Working together and appreciating the strengths and weaknesses present within other individuals or component parts in one of the most imperative and necessary elements of success. In each of the pieces, the speaker illustrates some recognition of the beauty that lies within the interaction of small parts to create something much more large scale. John McClusky’s “Lush Life” presents this recognition through the composition of music and lyrics. Whitman’s “One-Self I Sing” celebrates the value of individuality and admires the way men and women interact and intertwine to ultimately lend humanity beauty. Lastly, Whitman’s other piece, “I Sing The Body Electric” presents the complexity of the body’s collective parts working in unison for exert every single blink, step, breath, and pulse.

Even though we may appear to be different in many ways from those around us—especially in physical appearance and race, personal taste, and belief—we are, in fact, very similar. Through the poems written by Walt Whitman and the short story by John McCluskey, a common theme can be recognized. Bridging these pieces together is the description of music and voice and its importance to the lives of everyone. Through the overarching theme of music and its connecting powers, the writers identify the similarities between all humans; both in terms of physical characteristics and core values. Recently, I too had the opportunity to realize the soothing, healing, and connecting powers of music within the setting of a rehabilitative hospital where I volunteer every week.
Walt Whitman, within his piece “I Sing the Body Electric,” structures his poem, a tribute to the characteristics of all things human, in the form of a song. Starting from broad to specific and literally from the top of our heads to our pinky toes, Whitman describes the human body—noting that, in essence, we are all the same. Within the line “I dare not desert the likes of you in other men and women, nor the likes of the parts of you,” (line 1) he concludes that we share the same body parts. More deeply, our human condition, where our souls experience the same pleasures and disappointments, signifies that we are not very different at all. Whitman calls on the reader to remember that our outward appearances are shared by all individuals within the human race and the thoughts that occupy our souls are akin.
Furthermore, Whitman provides another look into the similarities between humans within the poem “One’s-self I Sing.” Expressly, he notes that the differences that are characteristically established between individuals and genders, in actuality, do not exist. Once again, he uses descriptive diction and form to express his ideas in a songlike manner—presenting the idea that through the mechanism of song, humans are connected beings.
John McCluskey, although in the form of a short story, expresses a similar message. His story of a group of black musicians by the names of Billy Cox and Earl Ferguson, presents a situation in which the individual musical capabilities of these band members are unique apart but when put in concert, they form a kind of music that changes the lives of their listeners. Breaking down racial barriers, McCluskey reminds his audience that music has the power to reconnect individuals of all races and all backgrounds. Just as the notes on a page may be different on a most basic level, humans also have basic, unique qualities, that when put together, form a perfect, flowing symphony.
As I have been doing for the past six months, I volunteered yesterday at Mount Washington Pediatric Hospital. Coincidently, with regards to the connection to the connective power of music and the arts, my volunteer coordinator introduced a new method of therapy that we could try with the babies—music therapy. Besides having a calming effect, listening to music even as an infant helps a child to begin to feel the various rhythms and beats that characterize a song. Although they cannot understand or appreciate what music brings to the world, they can begin to understand that music will be something that they will be able to experience throughout their lives. Within the hospital setting, I have seen children from all different backgrounds and races. What is interesting, however, is the unifying power that music has on the individual children. One song has the same influence on almost all of the children of different backgrounds.

Complements Put Together

A few weeks ago I went on Loyola’s Kairos to College retreat for students who had gone on the Jesuit retreat known as Kairos while they were in High School. Kairos to College, or K2C, is centered on two things: forming a deeper relationship with one’s peers and forming a deeper relationship with God. Kairos is uniquely Jesuit and we listened to talks on things like the Jesuit Exam, which aims to garner a deeper personal relationship with God, and on the Jesuit idea of using one’s own gifts to help others. One talk we heard was about one priest’s decision to become a Jesuit. He emphasized the support he had throughout his training as a priest and told us that it was only with the help and blessings of his closest friends and family members who got him through his challenging Jesuit training. Through his talk I also noticed his strength as an individual. In much the same way, “One’s-Self I Sing”, “I Sing the Body Electric”, and “Lush Life” all celebrate individual parts of a sum, but they each emphasize the value and power of the total. In the talk we heard on K2C and in the works read for class I can see the power of the individual. However, more importantly, I can see that, when complementing features are put together, they can accomplish much more.
“Lush Life” is a short story that shows the extreme importance of teamwork. It introduces Earl, “among bandleaders…he was one of the best” (McCluskey, 564) and Billy Cox, “the best composer in the business, period” (564). They both work together to “get twelve voices…to shout or moan as one” (564) and this worked well for them, as their band was considered one of the best in the business. Earl and Billy are good friends and, though their jobs are different, they bring their own considerable and complementary skills together to create art. “Billy and Earl brought opposites or, at least, unlikely combinations together” (565). Considering that they are a great band, this works for them. They each bring something different to the table and, thus, can work together to create a unique piece that neither of them could have created on their own. In the same way, the priest on Kairos would have had a much tougher time becoming a priest had he not had the help of his supporting peers.
“One’s-Self I Sing”, by Walt Whitman, is a poem about a single person or a single body, but it emphasizes the entire person. The speaker explicitly states that he does not want to merely talk about one or two parts- “Not physiognomy alone nor brain alone is worthy for the Muse” (Whitman, One’s-Self I Sing, 4). Although many people talk about the beauty of the face or the power of the mind, this speaker wishes to look at the whole body as one- “Of physiology from top to toe I sing/…I say the/Form complete is worthier far” (3-6). Interestingly, the speaker is talking about just himself, but he says “Yet (I) utter the word Democratic, the word En-Masse” (2). He says this because of his emphasis on the unity of the entire body, a union of complementary parts that work together to form a beautiful work of art. The Jesuit speaker told us about the support he received and in his talk he did not emphasize any single reason that he made it to where he is now. He did not explicitly talk about himself and his own strength and, likewise, he spoke of several supporters, not a single supporter, who all influenced him to a similar degree.
Just as the Jesuit spoke of the strength he gained from the unity of his peers in their support for him, Walt Whitman speaks of the strength of the body by talking about each of its parts and how they fit together in “I Sing the Body Electric”. Whitman goes through an extensive list of body parts and then he says “these are not the parts and poems of the body only, but the soul” (35). In other words, the parts make the person. The strongest bodies or groups are those that come together to work as one.
Thus, while single parts are special in themselves, they should be put together so that each can use its own strength for the good of the group. Whether it is in composing songs and leading a band, or in the body, or in the support of a good friend in a trying time, unified groups work better than any single entity can because of the support and complements that each part lends to the other.

Last week, with some free time on my hands in between classes, I decided to browse through Loyola’s art exhibit in the Julio Gallery, which is titled “Urban Visions.” This exhibit was obviously meant to tie in with Loyola’s theme of the Year of the City, and it effectively did so. This was a nice addition to the many events, lectures and trips associated with the Year of the City. The display consisted of paintings and photography by four artists with extraordinary talent and important messages to convey.

The first artist whose pieces I looked at was that of Ellis Marsallis – a 13 piece compilation of urban photography. Her photos were in both black and white, and in color. A Baltimorean herself, she definitely was successful in her attempt to portray the real Baltimore. She did so by focusing particularly on children and teens.

I then moved on to Tony Shore’s three paintings – which were actually acrylic paint on velvet boards. I was drawn to his collection because I had never before seen this type of art; it was so foreign and interesting to me, and also – so beautiful! (They were also the largest in the gallery). The first, and largest painting was of six people, sitting at a table, talking and enjoying each other’s company. The next, “Steak and Onions” was of a man cooking under tight conditions, but still doing something necessary and joyful. Finally, the third painting, “Shore and Sons” – seemed to be in a mechanical shop. These works were all of people among the Baltimore community in action – performing daily activities such as hanging out with friends, cooking (a hobby/pastime), and working for a living – necessities in life.
Next, I looked at Tom Lipka’s five painted screens. This unique form of art was also one that I have never before seen. Lipka used bright colors and simple, happy scenes. On the top of the painting was a screen – which just added more to his individual style. Another somewhat strange characteristic of his collection was that two of the pieces were so similar, that it was difficult to tell them apart. Although very different from the photography and velvet paintings, they still somewhat portrayed city life in its essence by showing the streets and homes.

Finally, were the 10 digital prints, by Andre Chung, who photographs for the Baltimore Sun. These photographs were particularly emotional and moving. They portrayed the lives of various urban lives (particularly of young people). More than one focused on finishing high school (i.e. the diploma/prom). The rest were just on actual life. It seems that his message is that even amidst great hardship and poverty, determined people are able to be successful and go after their dreams.

All four of the collections that I viewed were moving. They represented each artists’ view on urban life in Baltimore. Whether it be by hanging out with friends, going to school, going to work, or whatever – they all portray how full of life and accomplishment the city is (regardless of material wealth). Although many of the individuals portrayed in these artists’ works seemed to be struggling in life, this was what the artists were rejoicing about. They were relishing the individuality and uniqueness of Urban Baltimore. The exhibit was also an invitation for us as Loyola students to take a look at the real Baltimore. Driving through the streets, or going to the Inner Harbor hardly gives a real view of life of life in the city – as these works do. They give us an up close and personal look into different people’s daily lives and activities. Furthermore, the exhibit was a creative supplement to Loyola’s Year of the City theme. It was a nice addition to the multitude of cultural events and lectures occurring on campus. Going to this exhibit and seeing all of this firsthand definitely opened my eyes to a side of Baltimore I have never before seen. It also reminded me of Father Koldenbach’s speech on the Jesuit goal of taking what you learn and using it, as we discussed in class. Finally, the exhibit went along with many of the themes we have discussed in class – particularly about accepting one’s individuality.

Using Gifts

Many people take advantage of life and the things they posses in their lives. People live in a bubble and don’t realize how privilege they are from others. For instance, there is a great difference between the poverty in the United States and the poverty in Liberia. However, the people in America take advantage of the opportunities they have and the lifestyle they live. Tools such as technology, food, religious freedom, education, gas and money are just a few items that Americans take for granted. In order to fix this problem, people need to realize their worth and abilities, and use them to their fullest potential. Instead of taking it for granted or complaining about our gifts, we should take the gifts God has given us and use them to help others and make the world better.

On Tuesday February 20, I went to see James Howard Kunstler speak about the issue of industrialization and global oil predicament that the world is about to face. He mentions how the oil problem is not going to go away only get worse. Kunstler mentioned how the peak of oil production was 1970 and it is rapidly decreasing because we use about seven billion barrels a year and we only have twenty billion left. He said that we depend too much on technology and in the end technology doesn’t produce energy. Kunstler states that people need to do something and stop ignoring the signs that our right in our faces. The people need to stop sitting back and talking about change and actually try to make the idea of change happen.

This lecture reminds me about Milton’s “When I consider how my light is spent” the speaker talks about how he has lost his sight that he took for granted. He eventually doesn’t know what to do with himself because he understands that he was given the loss of sight for a reason; he doesn’t want t take it for granted like he did with his sight. By the end of the poem the speaker realizes that he can fulfill his duty by being the best person he can be, the sense of self awareness is found. The people of the world are like the speaker, the resources we have are similar to the sight the speaker had; eventually resources will leave just like the speaker’s sight. The world must become self aware now and each individual needs to realize his or her importance and apply it to helping the world in the future.

Man forgets that all the good and bad things we have in the world are due to God. People take things for granted and many times underestimate the little qualities and attributes that they obtain. Through self awareness and acceptance of gifts individuals can better the world and they need to realize that through change and development they can take a world that is slowly decreasing in value and make it flourish as it once did.

Appreciation for the Human in All

Last semester I decided to take part in one of the U.N.I.T.E weekends. In U.N.I.T.E. not only do you spend a Saturday morning serving at Beans and Bread meal program, but you also get a chance to meet the remarkable men who live in the Frederick Oznam House (also called FOH). FOH is located adjacent to Beans and Bread in the projects of Baltimore City. The house serves as a half-way house for men who are trying to get a fresh start in life, and who need support to stay clean and out of trouble. FOH houses men from all different backgrounds, poor and rich, black and white, well educated and illterate. But, all of them have two things in common- one, they are homeless; some kicked out by their families, others have been living on the streets of Baltimore for over ten years, and two, they all suffer from the same disease- addiction. When first meeting these men, some were very open and adamant about sharing their stories. While all of their stories differed, all of them involved drugs, alcohol, violence, homlessness, fighting, family problems, and heartache. Many ended their stories by saying when they had gotten over their selfish ways, and realized the pain and suffering they had caused to the people around them, that is when they decided to change their lifestyles. Before entering the Frederick Oznam House, the men need to first be clean and detoxed off of whatever drug it may be. Then once accepted, they begin a journey that lasts for months up to two years full of counciling, rehabilitation, and reflection until they go back into the world, many with stable jobs and continuing support. Some graduates from the Frederick Oznam House even remain there today, working and volunteering, helping others who are going though similar hardships. Just one night of bowling and conversation with these men, made me want to continue volunteering with the Frederick Oznam House. So, two wednesdays out of each month a group of Loyola students and I meet with some of the men who live at the Frederick Oznam House, just to hang out and talk, to remind them that just because they are fighting an addiction, and face hardships that many Loyola students could not even imagine, that they are people too, and sometimes everyone just needs to hang out and enjoy life.

Working with the men of FOH has reminded me of something that the Jesuit education teaches, the importance of the whole person and the promotion of justice. Just this Wednesday I met with other students and the men of FOH for game night. We played various board and card games, and just hung out and had a good time. As I sat there playing (and losing) five consecutive games of checkers with Tom*, I did not act any different with him as if I was playing checkers with a friend or classmate. We laughed and joked as I lost game after game, not being able to remember the rules. While I have heard some people criticize and ask why I continue to take part in activities with "ex-users, bums, or homless men," I realized that they are human too, and all humans should be appreciated for who they are, for being--human. Just as how Walt Witman showed his appreciation of life and living in his poetry, so should others by not succumbing to the social injustices of the world and neglecting those who have harder lives, or face more hardship. Too many people think that those who are living on the streets chose that lifestyle, are lazy, or are "druggies." Not many are quick to try to help those who have problems, neglecting to see that they too are a person and have a worth. Through service-learning, the Jesuit education tries to promote justice and shed light on the areas of need, allowing others to see that those who are worse off are people too.

As I leave game night with the men of FOH, one says to me "See ya next week shorty," I smile and wave "bye" back, not at an ex-drug addict, but at a person who, like myself is also looking foward to next week's movie night. We will be watching one of my favorite movies, "Little Miss Sunshine."

Last Tuesday I heard the Keynote Speaker for this year’s Humanities Symposium, James Howard Kunstler. He has written many books about cities and also had the privilege of interviewing Jane Jacobs, who is the author of this year’s Humanities Symposium book. Mr. Kunstler started off his talk telling us about how oil is a global as well as national problem and how we also need to start looking out for natural gas. The constant climate change does not help the situation. We are importing 2/3 of our oil, importing more and more each year and using less and less of our own. I found it quite fascinating America uses 7 billion barrels of oil each year. He stressed that we must start negotiating and compromising with ourselves and the countries around us.

Mr. Kunstler also spoke to us about how cities have to make arrangements for the change in economy we are going to face. He said the larger cities are going to be the cities that fall apart and the smaller more remote cities are the cities that are going to flourish. Coastal cities are also going to benefit from these changes. Cities are going to have to make arrangements for things such as retail commerce, trade, education, how they will make things, and food. Food is going to become a serious problem for us. We are going to have to downscale and rescale everything, we must contract and become more local. We will have to get used to worrying about where we are and staying rather than where we are traveling to. We must produce more food close to home and use less energy. Building design is going to become very important.

I also had the opportunity to watch the Sankofa African Dance Theatre perform last (Tuesday) night. Being a dancer myself I absolutely loved the experience. Their use of drums with the dancing was amazing. I find it fascinating the way African American Theatre dance is performed, the way they make use of every part of their body. I loved watching their performance, and was upset when it ended so quickly.

Whether we notice it or not, our emotions affect the emotions of others. I feel that the emotions in both of Walt Whitman’s poems reflects the emotion that was put in the African dancing. Walt Whitman’s poems are about the appreciation for life and the human body. “I Sing the Body Electric” in particular reflects an enormous appreciation for every part of the human body. African dancing is about using each part of the body and exaggerating the way that each part moves. African dancers have a huge appreciation for the body they have been given and use their talents to not only perform for others but to participate in ritualistic movements of their ancestors.

Another theme of Walt Whitman’s poems is an appreciation for life in general. We are all made uniquely and given talents to be used and shown to others. The Sankofa dancers spoke about their appreciation for life and how they show it through their dancing. I feel that Mr. Kunstler’s talk was the complete opposite. Instead of embracing life, the world, and what has happened to us he gave us thousands of things that are wrong with it and how we have to change each one. Instead of embracing what we have, he pointed out what we don’t have.

In John McCluckey’s “Lush Life” he tells us the story of a traveling band. Sankofa African Dance Theatre is a traveling group with dancers and drums, so instantly I realized a connection between the two. Earl (the leader of the band) and his band travel to many different cities and have the opportunity to touch many lives through their performing. I know from personal experience that the Sankofa African Dance Theatre touches lives in all the cities that they travel to in a positive way, like Earl and his band. Also from personal experience I know that Mr. Kunstler also touches the lives of those he speaks to. Depending on your personal opinions, you can take what he has to say as a positive situation or a negative situation, it is all about perspective.

The way we look at situations in life many times affects how other people view the situations. Each day we touch people’s lives, it may be directly or indirectly, and many times we may not even realize it. In Walt Whitman’s poems I felt a great sense of joy and appreciation for the human body and life, the same way I felt when I watched the Sankofa African Dance Theatre Performance. Earl and his band travel from city to city and touch many lives, the same way Sankofa African Dance Theatre and Mr. Kunstler did. Personal expression and emotion is many times expressed in ways that affect the people around us. From reading Walt Whitman’s poems and “Lush Life” and seeing the Sankofa African Dance Theatre perform as well as hearing Mr. Kunstler speak I know that first hand. It makes me stop and think about what I may be saying and/or doing that could affect other people’s thoughts or feelings. Hopefully they are as positive as what I felt during the Sankofa performance.

oneness

My event for this week was called “Staking Out the City – St. Ignatius and the Jesuit Strategy.” A man named Father Thomas Lucas spoke about the Jesuit tradition. He began in Spain around the year 1491, which is where and when Ignatius was born. He talked of this man’s life, and the spiritual journey that would lead Ignatius to Rome (and ultimately to the Jesuit religion). Father Thomas Lucas told the audience how determined Ignatius was to serve God and to serve him right. It was then that he was inspired by the simplicity and humility of what would become the Jesuit tradition. In 1540, the first “sketches” of the Jesuits were approved by the Pope. This is where the Jesuits began their “Jesuit strategy.” They would place themselves (housing, church) right in the middle of the city, so that they could be in the center of the people. The Jesuits wanted to be “one” with the people, and help them as much as they could. In fact, in 1544, the Jesuits opened up a Halfway House to allow children of prostitutes to learn a trade so they would not turn out like their mothers.
The Jesuits asked themselves and the people around them where the biggest need was and where they could reach out and be the most powerful. The Jesuits targeted great cities/nations to help as many people as possible, and reach out to many as possible. Nevertheless, the Jesuits always put themselves right in the middle of the city. Being interconnected with the people not only by mind but by location was vital for the Jesuits. They wanted to feel oneness with the city, but also with the city’s people. I never thought that location would be such a significant part of conveying the Jesuits message. Now looking at it, the plan of the Jesuits was a very clever one. I would have never thought of it, but to be placed in the heart of the city is an ideal place to be when wanting to be with the people, and to become “one” with them.
This feeling of oneness is the theme that lies within the three works for this weeks blog: “I Sing the Body Electric” and “One’s-Self I Sing” by Walt Whitman, and “Lush Life” by John McCluskey. In both of Whitman’s works, there is a sense of the body being described as being one with the soul. It is also interpreted that it is the body that makes connections with people. Moreover, it seems that if there is no connection between the body and the soul, this human or form is worthless. Also, in both these poems there seems to be an oneness or equality between man and women. Moreover, “Lush Life” expresses an interconnection between the soul/body and music. Music seems to bring out the passion in the characters, but also make them come together or relate to one another.
“I Sing the Body Electric” is a very unique poem that expresses the oneness of people, the body, and the soul. Whitman makes it evident that he wants to include almost every person when states, “Man’s, woman’s, child’s youth’s, wife’s, husband’s, mother’s, father’s, young man’s, young woman’s poems (4).” Whitman wants everyone the be able to relate to this poem. Then, Whitman goes on to describe the body in full detail and makes it seem as though the body can make a connection between people (man and woman). Whitman writes, “All attitudes, all the shapeliness, all the belongings of my or your body or of any one’s body, male or female(19).” Even though man and women’s bodies are very different, Whitman writes that he wants them to be “one;” he almost wants equality. Furthermore, this can be paralleled to Father Lucas stating that the Jesuits put themselves out there, and attempt to make a connection with people. Instead of the body making a connection between people, the Jesuits wanted their location and thoughts to connect them to people.
“One’s-Self I Sing” seems to also have this common theme of connecting one’s-self or the body to both man and woman. Whitman begins by referring to himself as a “simple separate person.” Then he sings from “top to toe,” referring from up and down his body – his soul. However, Whitman then implicates that his body or life is only complete or worth with man and women both. He writes, “Form complete is worthier far/The female equally with the Male I sing.” Here, Whitman also expresses the equality between man and woman. Moreover, “One’s-Self I Sing” also relates to Father Lucas’ talk on the Jesuit Strategy. Both the Jesuits and Whitman seem to make a connection to the people of the world – just in different ways. Whitman here deliberates the connection by the body, where the Jesuits made the connection through their location in cities. Both expresses oneness with the people or universe around them.
“One’s-Self I Sing” is very much like “I Sing the Body Electric.” Both seem to connect the body to life, and to the likeness of having both man and women around. Life does not seem to be complete without both sexes. However, this seems rare for this time period. Whitman wrote both of these poems in the 1800’s, and there was no notion of equality between man and woman at the time. Both these poems actually come across somewhat shocking to me.
“Lush Life” by John McCluskey also expresses the connection between the body and people. However, it is a different part of the body: the mind. McCluskey adds another component into this story – music which is attempted to be created through a thought process. All throughout this short story, the two main characters, Earl and Billy, attempt to compose music in their heads. Music is what allows them to connect to their souls, in part because it is what they love to do. Funnily enough, Earl and Billy both look deep into their minds and imagine certain women as they are thinking of tunes – they see images. McCluskey writes, “One of the band’s more popular numbers…was the results of Billy’s meditations on the richly perfumed arms of a large and fleshy woman…(565).” Moreover, the reader can tell that the music really shows Earl and Billy who they are. They are dedicated, driving through the night without any sleep just to get to their band the next day. This is their passion. Their music shows who they truly are, but also connects Earl and Billy together. The music aspect of this story is what parallels the Jesuit’s location component. Both put people and their minds “in tune.”
All three of these works – “I Sing the Body Electric,” “One’s-self I Sing” and “Lush Life” all show how the body and mind connect people together. “I Sing the Body Electric” shows how the body brings both man and women together. They share equality in this world, and human bodies make them one. In “One’s-Self I Sing,” individuality is introduced being a “separate person,” but humanity is only complete with females and males being equal. “Lush Life” expresses the connection between people through music. Music and images being created in the character’s head are what show these people who they really are – it represents their soul and passion. Father Lucas’ point was that the Jesuits strategically placed themselves in the city so that they could show people what their passion was – Jesus Christ. The Jesuits placed themselves directly in the middle of the city so that people would notice them, and so they could give out the most help possible.

Role Playing

This evening I attended a lecture by Dr. Jasmin Bey Cowin entitled “Fallen Female or Femme Fatale?” that had to do with the role of women in literature and more specifically operas. The speaker talked about how traditionally women die in the end of Italian and German operas and literature. Dr. Cowin showed us three operas that support this stereotype: La Traviata, Carmen, and Tosca.
The first opera she talked about, Tosca, is about a young artist Mario Cavaradossi who loves Tosca, an attractive singer and actress. He’s not the only one who loves her however, as Scarpia, the Chief of Police also has fallen in love with Tosca. A man of power, Scarpia tortures Cavaradossi until Tosca reveals his dirty political secrets to save Cavaradossi’s life, as she has fallen for him and wants to be with him. By doing so, she believes she has done the right thing, but in the end the secrets that she revealed cause Cavaradossi to be executed, leaving Tosca alone. With nothing left of her life, she kills herself in shame.
Secondly, Dr. Cowin talked about the opera La Traviata. In this, Violetta, a beautiful, rich young woman gives up the life she knows to find love. She indeed finds love in a man named Alfredo. However, their love was interrupted when Alfredo’s father comes to visit Violetta to tell her that if she marries Alfredo, his sister will have little chance of getting a good arranged marriage, and asks Violetta to leave Alfredo. Violetta agrees and when Alfredo finds out, he throws money that he won in a card game at her feet and calls her a whore in front of a crowd. Violetta is outraged by this and tells him that she no longer loves him. In the end, the father reunites the two and reveals Violetta’s sacrifice to Alfredo. However, Violetta is dying and despite temporary relief from her sickness, she dies in his arms.
The last opera that was talked about was called Carmen after the main character. Carmen was a beautiful gypsy, and enticed a young Spanish soldier with a good family name of Don Jose. After Carmen continuously flirted with the young soldier, he fell deeply in love with her. Unfortunately, Carmen did not feel the same about him and refused to be with him despite his bold decision to break army rules in order to be with her. He doesn’t accept her decision and once he finds out that she has fallen in love with a bullfighter Escamillo, he follows her to Seville and pleads for her to come back. When Carmen refuses to come back with him, he kills her.
The presentation was somewhat hard to comprehend, as the speaker talked with a thick accent and spoke very quickly. Also, even though it was a very thorough and good presentation on the topic, the topic in general was not the most interesting to me. Regardless, she seemed extremely knowledgeable about the subject and made her point very clear and concise. I found it extremely interesting how operas that don’t include a woman dying are usually quite unpopular and regarded as lesser, even in today’s world.
The theme of this lecture was similar to many themes we have encountered in our study of poems thus far; women often have expectations and stereotypes placed upon them, especially by men. Women are often subject to roll playing in the poems we read, whether that role is someone’s love of their life, a sexual partner, or an oddball in that they don’t follow stereotypes.
In today’s society, women are still often stereotyped, but their situation has vastly improved. It is very strange to me how, despite all the steps forward, that operas still have stereotypes for a woman’s role.

The Power of Music

On Monday night I went to watch the African Dance Theatre. I think it was more of a cultural experience than anything else. This was a world-renowned dance group that had actually come to perform at my high school the year before. They were dressed in authentic African garments and had drums from Africa. It was a short performance but it was a lot of fun to watch. Not only were there Loyola students there but also many people from the community came to watch the performance as well. There was a group of school children that came in and also just a large group of adults from Baltimore as well. Although this was not designed as a year of the city event, it was an event for Black history month, I think the two connected very well. It was introducing part of the African culture, something that is obviously very present in the city of Baltimore, to the students of Loyola that otherwise would have been unlikely to see something like that.
I also realized the power that music and dance can have over people, about 15 minutes into the presentation the performers had us on our feet dancing to the music they were playing, unifying the whole group. We see this aspect of unification in John McClusky’s “Lush life” when Billy is describing the situation when the woman comes up to him to tell him about her baby and how he was hurt. His friend Earl responds to him, “ It’s this music we play, Billy. It opens people up, makes them give up secrets. Better than whiskey or dope” (571), clearly showing that just because these musicians play a certain type of music that people feel connected to them, feel related to them, causing them to open up and share stories and experience that one would only share with someone close to them.
Music is also something that is seen as able to break down boundaries, break down barriers between cultures and bring them together. This is the reverse effect that we have seen throughout our discussions in class. During our discussions we talked about people build boundaries, emotional and physical boundaries to protect themselves to protect their thoughts. But music can break through those boundaries and work as a unifying factor between cultures, between races and between different backgrounds.
In Walt Whitman’s poems, “ One’s Self I Sing” and “I Sing the Body Electric” the speaker emphasizes more of the beauty of music by celebrating individuality and what makes us human. Both poems are a way of expressing equality, and also there is mention of both the male and female figure in both poems. This stresses the concept of one’s individuality. Whitman’s “I Sing the Body Electric” is also a free-form poem in structure, mimicking the poems message of being free, of being different, of having no boundaries. Here Whitman uses songs, uses lyrics, and music as a way of expression, as a way to reach out to people and get his messages across in a way that is universally accepted in a way that everyone recognizes.

To Live Virtuously

In today’s society, helping others and learning about other cultures has become more and more popular activities. An increasing amount of celebrities are sacrificing their time and money to help others in a variety of areas. These concentration subjects include those in third world countries, helping and supporting research for deadly diseases, and offering assistance or money to others who are not as well off as them. Walt Whitman also brings these ideas of helping people and the soul in two of his poems. He embraces the idea that to live a virtuous life, one must offer what they can to those who need it.

Walt Whitman states it perfectly in his poem “Ones-Self I Sing” in the last stanza. “Of Life immense in passion, pulse, and power, Cheerful, for freest action formed under the laws divine, The Modern Man I sing.” I interpreted this quote as if you live a life of passion, freedom, and of love, then you have entered the world of the modern life. Everywhere, you hear of more and more people offering money and support to people and organizations that really need it. Celebrities have set a trend and some may even say that it is a race in the world of fame to see who can give the most.

In another poem written by Walt Whitman entitled “I Sing the Body Electric”, in which he concentrates on the soul. He begins by stating his belief that the body is the soul. They are two within one and without the soul, there cannot be a body/person. Whitman lists all of the separate pieces of the body and ends with “O I say now these are the soul!” Clearly, it is his belief that the soul is the body and one must feed the soul to stay alive. What he does not make clear is how he believes one can live this kind of life.

There are opportunities surrounding everyone to give back and help out people in need. This weekend, I went home and volunteered at my town’s library. It was a life enhancing experience. We were able to work directly with unfortunate children from nearby towns. First, all of the volunteers were separated and told we would each have a group of three to four kids. We would be reading them a story and then play games with them. I was a little nervous but then after getting my reading assignment, Dr. Seuss’s “One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish”, I was calmed a little. This story was one of my favorites as a young child and I had practically memorized it due to the countless times I read it with my parents or by myself.

The kids arrived and I found my group finally after about ten minutes of chaos. I had three boys and one little girl. The girl seemed upset that she was not with her friends so I felt bad for her. I tried to make sure she was included in all of the activities we did. I read the story to them and they seemed to really like it. They thanked me for reading it to them and quickly asked what games we would be playing. I told them to follow me and we would find out. I started walking and when I looked behind me, the little girl was still standing there all alone. I told the boys to wait and asked her if she was okay. Looking down at the ground, she just shook her head “no”. I tried to find out what was wrong but she would not talk. I asked the person in charge if she could watch the boys for me because Anna, the little girl, had to go to the bathroom. I carried her to the bathroom and talked to her. Eventually she opened up and was laughing and talking to me! It felt so good to have this result from her. We went outside and met up with the rest of my group. For rest of the day, we all enjoyed playing Duck Duck Goose, Simon Says, and Tag, just to name a few. While we waited for the kids to get picked up, they had time to draw and color. Just as Anna was leaving, she came up to me and gave me a big hug and handed me a picture. She drew a picture of us holding hands. I told her thank you so much and that I hoped I would see her again. Then, she left.

This experience was one that I doubt I will forget. I have volunteered many other times, but this time was a little different. My previous experiences had been helping older people, especially the elderly. This time, with little kids really made the activity that much more rewarding. Volunteering is something that everyone knows about, but few actually partake in it. The first time I volunteered, I just did it so that I could make my confirmation. However, after experiences like this, I cannot help but continue to do it. The feeling afterward is a truly unique one that I believe only these kinds of encounters can produce.

Bodily Rhythms

Last week I attened the lecture by James Howard Kunstler about urban development. This was another lecture on how there really isn't much hope for cities right now and the only hope there can be must be created by our generation. Kunstler spent most of his time speaking about buildings and architectural structures. What this has to do with the year of the city and people in general is how ugly we are making our cities and the useless purposes we use buildings for. He began the lecture speaking about how the world is in trouble with oil, natural gas, and climate change, but focused mostly on oil. Right now we use seven billion barrels of oil a year and there are only 25 billion barrels left. Americans use oil for many things, but most importantly, in cars. Kunstler said that "if we continue to go the way we are going we can't survive at this pace." We are entering an energy scarce economy and that is not good. He also said that "the leading religion in America is worship of unearned riches, like gambling in Vegas." In other words we want to get something for nothing. Americans are basically leaving in a fantasy world and we are in for a rude awakening. The way these ideas deal with the city is how much we are going to have to downscale everything we do, cities are going to have to contract. Skyscrapers will either have to be torn down or some other idea has to be brought to the table because the energy it takes to heat and cool them is too much. One thing we can do right now is to "revive and restore the railroad system, because they aid to the oil changes." Cities are going to have to come together to figure out new ways to live in our economy with this downfall in energy.
This lecture relates to the works we had to read in that it has to do with people, body and mind, and what we can do. People are energy consuming machines. We like things now and fast and we have built our economy around that idea. The works "Lush Life," by John McCluskey, I Sing the Body Electric, by Walt Whitman, and One's-Self I Sing, by Walt Whitman are about how people use their bodies, but they tie it in to music and rhythm as well.
The short story "Lush Life," by John McCluskey is about the life of a band. They have this crazy life on the road stopping at all different cities to play their music for people. The two characters he focuses on are Earl, the leader of the band, and Billy, the master of horns. While they are driving to the next city they find themselves creating their next new song. It was Earl who began the beats and thinking of the new song, and while he is thinking McCluskey paints a picture in his mind of the rhythm he is creating. "The woman in his mind walked faster, traffic about her thickened, the streets sent up jarring sounds. Those would be trumpets, probably. Surroundings leaned in. Trombones and tenor saxophones playing in the lowest octave announced their possibilities." (pg 566) What's unique about this is that when most people see a person they think of the music behind them or the beat they are making. In these musician's lives they find the music first then create the rhythms of a person. Later on the same woman is described for his songmaking for "she would return, surely, to move through another song, walking to a different rhythm." (pg 570) At the end of the story Earl describes what their music does for people and how it helps them in their lives. "It opens people up, makes them give up secrets....You can loan it to strangers, and they thank you for it." (pg 571) In other words the rhythm of their music can do wonderful things for people, in body and mind. It can make someone open up and feel comfortable letting something out through words or body motions.
Walt Whitman uses the idea of the connection between the body and soul in his poem I Sing the Body Electric. This is different from the short story because rhythm is not a focus in the poem, but it is how the poem is read where we see the affect of rhythm. The poem is like a tribute to the body, naming each part and the other parts related to them. He brings both male and female into the picture and shows how each of their bodies adds to the world. He also connects the body and the poem. In the beginning of the poem he describes how he will not desert his body, because it is connected to the soul, and these are connected to this poem. At the end of the poem he brings this idea back to form closure in the poem by saying, "O I say these are not the parts and the poems of the body only, but of the soul, O I say now these are the soul!" (lines 35-36) Whitman is celebrated the body through this rhythmic poem, because your body is the way to your soul.
Whitman's One's-Self I Sing is a poem about man and their power in body and mind. "Not physiognomy alone nor brain alone is worthy for the Muse, I say the Form complete is worthier far, The Female equally with the Male I sing." (lines 4-6) This line is saying that components of a person by themselves aren't affective, but when put together as a whole they have this immense power. This poem also uses rhythm on the outside to express the poem's content.
A person's body can do spectacular things. It affects other people as well as yourself and your soul. Ryhthm is a big part of your body, whether it is used to describe it or used by your body to express yourself through dance or other means.

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

This past month, the Humanities Symposium sponsored an art exhibit in the Julio Fine Arts Gallery which was entitled, “Urban Voices”. The exhibit showcased local Baltimore photographers and artists. A side of Baltimore that I have never seen before was exposed after visiting the gallery. The photographers and artists wanted to portray the people of Baltimore, more importantly people of color, and tie in a relationship with the real world.

The first artist was Tony Shore who is a native of Baltimore. His pictures were on a felt canvas and were of family members as well as friends. Shore has strong ties to his community and his work represented that ideal. Shore had three pieces of art in the gallery. The first picture was a on large canvas and showed six individual. The people looked blue-collar and were engaging in smoking, talking and everyday activities. The second painting was of a man cooking in what appeared to be a cramped kitchen. The home and man looked to be of meager means. The third and final painting had the setting of a mechanic’s garage. There were two young men in the garage. This job may have been a way of survival for the two. All three portraits were not showing a glamorous lifestyle. Shore gave a blue-collar and more down-to-earth view of a natural Baltimore community.

Andre F. Chung is a photographer for the Baltimore Sun. Chung’s had an exhibit of 10 actual photographs. His message was that people of color have a place in the world. Chung also believed that poverty as well as color hinders a class and that society has negative views on this class. The 10 photographs showed everyday life for young adults. The first picture, which was the most moving picture in my opinion, showed a young black man crying at his graduation. The second picture was taken of another African American male accepting a diploma. The next two pictures were of a high school prom. The last five pictures were of the daily life of a selected group of African Americans. The last five pictures had an undertone of poverty throughout them.(In regard to clothing and housing in particular) I found Chung’s work inspiring and emotional. His pictures proved that people of color as well as people who are impoverished can accomplish anything.

The most eye-opening pictures came from Ellis Marsalis, III (t.p. luce). Marsalis is an independent photographer who captured the most urban aspects of Baltimore. She portrays the truth of culture in her pictures. All 13 pictures in her collection were taken in her neighborhood and were also all in black and white. Her whole display was focused around children and young adults. There were 3 pictures in particular which really caught my eye. “Manchild’s eyes on the prize” was taken of an African American male who was sitting on steps. Marsalis focused in on the man’s eyes, which were intensely fixed upon a gun. The picture was startling. The title adds that the prize, according to the male, is the gun. “In the shade of trees” was picture of a man who looked to be in a park. There was a tree in the background and the black male was in the front of the camera. Again, the man was clutching a gun and was looking right into the camera’s lens. This picture and its title could be interpreted as concealing a weapon under the secret shade. The third picture, “Black Shiny” was of three young African American girls. They were all innocently posing around a street light. This picture showed a lighter side to Marsalis work. The girls seemed to be proud of who they are and where they are from. Even though I only mentioned three pictures, Marsalis’ display did show a side of Baltimore that I have never experienced.

After reading Walt Whitman’s, From “I Sing the Body Electric”, I could see the theme of praising oneself. The speaker is showing the beauty of the human body, both male and female. The speaker goes on further to say “O I say now these are the soul,” (Whitman 36). The speaker views the individual parts that compose the human body to also be part of the human soul. Not only does the body parts make up the outside and physical structures of the body, but they complete the human on the inside. The pictures viewed in the gallery could also be tied into this theme. Chung and Marsalis were praising African American culture. Both photographers did not want an outside component, such as skin color, to take away from the true beauty of the human being. The color of one's skin can only strengthen the human soul and one's individuality.

“One’s-Self I Sing” is another poem by Walt Whitman. This poem is more subtle in praising individuality. The opening line, “One’s-Self I sing, a simple separate person,” (Whitman 1) shows that the speaker is praising his own rareness. The speaker is also talked about men and women being on an equal playing field. “The Female equally with the Male I sing,” (Whitman 6). The speaker is praising himself and the male physiology as a whole in the first few lines of the poem. In spite of this, he also wants to show that women are just as equal with independent ness. Individuality and self-praise were evident in this poem and also in the pictures. The picture of the male accepting his diploma and later on crying showed that his individuality made it possible to reach of goal of graduation. Barriers may have been set up along the way; however he was able to overcome them.

In the finally piece of literature, “Lush Life”, the audience is introduced to two musician named Billy Cox and Earl Ferguson. The two are members of an African American band. Separately, each man shows individuality with respect to his own instrument. Yet, as the story goes on, the audience realizes that the band is incomplete without each member’s input. The musicians have their own individuality, yet they bring their own uniqueness to make the band the best it can be. The band and its member is just a small, musical note on the big sheet of music known as society. This story, again, shows how strong individual ideals can be a bright light in dull society. Also, the pictures and painting can be related back to “Lush Life” because of the independent nature of the human spirit.

All three pieces of literature and the three artists can be related. They all relay how important it is to be yourself and praise the person you are. Furthermore, individuality can not only shape a person, but it can also help shape humanity. Individual members of society, no matter of race, religion, sex, or class all have a vital relationship to the world in which we live in today.

Interconnected

Within human art and expression many connections can be found; the connections between man and woman, the workings of the human body, and even in composed music. All things are intertwined so that they are not separate but rather part of an entire entity.
Walt Whitman composed a piece of prose entitled I Sing the Body Electric in 1855. Through his lyrical writing, Whitman names many of the separate characteristics of the human body. His references span from shoulders and navels to ears and voice. The speaker makes a general point to the interconnections within the body that lead to its success as a whole—though each part that makes it up is small, composed it’s a masterpiece. The speaker also notes the primacy of the body and the importance of connections between people. Men seem to represent power, while women represent creation. We all rely on one another and find ourselves intertwined into something much greater.
Whitman wrote another piece entitled One’s-Self I Sing in 1867 with much the same point as the former. Though someone may be “a simple separate person” (line 1) it’s his ideals and beliefs that bring him into a group with others: separate becomes part of a whole. The speaker “sings” of the complete human form in all of its beauty, not of its separate parts. “The Female equally with the Male I sing” (line 6) reinforces his point that there are no differences between humans but that we all act as one. “The Modern Man” is one of perfection that represents an ideal. He lives an active life filled with “passion, pulse, and power” (line 7).
Connections can be found outside of human interactions and within music. John McCluskey wrote of those connections found in music in the short-story Lush Life. In the story, two musicians subtly portray the interworkings of human interactions and notes on staff paper. The speaker shows the relationship between two friends, Billy Cox and Earl Ferguson, and their interactions with their fellow band members. Separately each of the band members has his own individual, musical talents but when put together, they form a unique combination. The entire group is one of amazing ability and sound. This reliance is even shown in the labor that Cox and Ferguson put into composing a new song. The final draft is a mix of both men’s ideas; it’s a song that, though it’s composed of separate notes, flows together like a story. Although each member of the band differs and Cox and Ferguson differ from the young, white boy they aid, they are all part of the entire composition of humankind—small, separate entities that form into one.
On Monday night, I attended the Sankufa Dance Theater’s African dance presentation. Sankufa, a term originating out of Ghana, means “reaching back to move forward.” The dance company made a major point that the African people believe in educating their youth to work for a stronger today and a stronger future. Society stresses the importance of history, culture, tradition, and future. There is no need to look down or fear, but rather to be glorious. Tying together neatly with the former three pieces of prose, a major point of the theater was the “spirit of the land being inseparable from the spirit of the people.”
Music, especially drums, and dancing are a large part of the African lifestyle. Drums are seen as a way to open, a call to order. They are form of communication and their beats tell a story. Accompanying the drum rhythms, women typically dance in time. The dances are celebratory and accommodate the messages of the songs. As explained by one of the dancers, when men go out to sea to fish, the women wait at the shore for their return home. Upon the return, if there is a great bounty of fish, the women perform a specific dance in joy for the blessing. The dance is celebratory of the great fortune they have received. The beats of the drums tie together into words, words into stories. The stories are reenacted through the motions of the women. Men and women rely on each other within society and work together in celebration.
Human nature creates connections between beings. These connections range from those within our bodies that compose our make-up to how we interact with one another. Even within music, the connection can be found with notes making up a song. One small part adds with others to make a whole—that is what makes mankind.

A World of Comfort

The Year of the City is about getting out of the comfort zone. Actor Alan Alda once said, “The creative is the place where no one else has ever been. You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover will be yourself.” An interesting source to speak such profound words that articulate volumes about the Year of the City and about Jesuit education. One of the key ideals of the Society of Jesus is to be open to growth. The Year of the City is urging us to get out and do something that will change our lives and integrate us into the Baltimore community. The Sankofa African Dance troupe is a perfect example of a cultural experience incorporating worldly traditions, Jesuit ideals, and the city of Baltimore, all on the campus of Loyola College.
McGuire Hall was the Sankofa Dance Theater as the drums began to sound and the dancing began. The beat picked up with “poise on the hips, leaping, reclining, embracing, arm-curving, and tightening” as Whitman unknowingly sings the body electric for the drummers and dancers that glide gracefully in front of the Loyola crowd. I have never seen anything like this before. It is easy to shrug off something like the Sankofa as weird. However, it is important to understand that it is a tribute to a different culture, the African country Ghana. I was reluctant to participate in the dance when they asked the crowd to, but I realized that I should not shy away from this new opportunity. I felt really uncomfortable, but the Sankofa is more than welcoming to the participation of the crowd.
Sankofa is a word that comes from the Akan language of Ghana meaning, “going back to fetch it”, or “reaching back to move forward”. I can easily scan my brain and think of a very uncomfortable moment in my life by thinking about my mission trip to Ecuador in the summer of 2005. I easily mingled with the people in our town and the children at the daycares, but I was never very eager to deal with the elderly. Two of our days there, we spent in the city of Guayaquil at a center for patients with Hansen’s disease. Frankly, this is a leprosy house. While I thought of the hard time I was having with the people and the interaction we had to do, I had to look at it from another perspective. These people are ostracized from society and quarantined. They know that we are probably disgusted by the diseases they have and by their appearances. It was our job to treat them as they deserve, as equals. I discovered myself there and I was very thankful for my “exquisite realization of health”. If I can spend time with lepers, I can do a dance with the Sankofa in McGuire Hall, and I can certainly appreciate the part of the culture that they shared with us. Sankofa is based in Baltimore, but by being open to growth, I was able to expand my mind and body. But these are not the thoughts and actions of the body and mind only, “O, I say now these are the soul!”

The four poems: “Bored” by Margaret Atwood, “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, “The Video” by Fleur Adcock, and “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas are all related in the sense that they reflect on memories of the past – of the innocence of their childhoods, and their regrets.

In Margaret Atwood’s poem, “Bored,” she talks about how throughout her childhood, she was constantly bored while spending time with her father, and performing meaningless tasks – such as “holding the log while he sawed it” (Atwood 2-3). Now that her father has passed away, she regrets taking for granted their time together, and wishes she could go back to those “boring” times. She realizes, as a grown up, that maybe “boring” was not so bad after all.

“My Papa’s Waltz” is about a boy ‘s abusive experience with his father. Although his father seems to have hurt him, he still loves him, and tries to condone his behavior by comparing the abuse to something beautiful – a waltz. Even though it was a horrid experience, he never stopped loving his father; “I hung on” (Roethke 3).

“The Video” is a poem about a young girl, Ceri, growing up. Her baby sister, Laura, was born. Ceri was not ready to accept the new sibling, because she was used to having all eyes on her. She wishes she could go back to the time when her sister was not born, which is represented by her watching the home video of the birth, and then rewinding it and watching Laura go back in (Adcock 12).

Finally, Thomas’ “Fern Hill” tells about his love for his childhood innocence and carefree nature. It is obvious that he yearns to be young again. He also recognized the passage of time, and how he is no longer young and innocent.

In conclusion, all of these poems clearly represent memories of childhood times. Whether happy and blissful, boring, or negative – the writers reflect on their past days, and what they have learned from them.

Don't Hate, Appreciate.

College is the perfect place to realize the importance of family. As my first extended stay from home, I am able to aptly understand the role my family has played in my life. It is only now that I can truly question the appreciation I have shown them. I feel that I take for granted the time that I spend with them, no matter how worthless the activity we are doing may seem. The poems for today are focused on the idea of home, family, and the different perspectives of the meaning of a father figure.
Dylan Thomas’ Fern Hill speaks of a beautiful place of youth, innocence, and relaxation. This carefree countryside seems like an imaginary place that could be used as an escape. There is also the mention of a male other than the author. This “He” is the father figure of the story, and could symbolize God the Father. I question Thomas’ motive for writing a poem like Fern Hill due to Dylan’s reserved and sickly childhood. Fern Hill could have been Dylan Thomas’ wishful idea of a home worth his appreciation, with a father that the children would “follow out of grace”.
The Video is a laconic, satirical poem. Adcock uses quick, easy rhymes and humor to speak of one perspective of family. When a family is first started, time spent together is treasured and often captured, like in the poem, on the camcorder. The humor of the final line produces the familial theme while discussing the possible idea of rekindling the enjoyment that a family first has. As a family grows older, people lose appreciation for each other, and relationships weaken. If a video is the best way for someone to realize how much people love one another, so be it.
A clear use of the father figure takes place in Theodore Roethke’s My Papa’s Waltz. The writer is recounting a part of childhood, with this story of his father. The poem describes a father trying to dance with his son, dancing the waltz. However, the father is intoxicated and he has a hard time trying to gracefully waltz as the boy “hung on like death”. This poem is an example of family issues. Alcoholism is one specific problem that plagues families, and it is tough to deal with, especially if a dominant male figure has the problem. Roethke speaks of how the mother sadly and angrily looked on as the waltz seemed to ravage the house, the son, and the father. Theodore uses this poem to show the movement through the waltz in the house, the child’s average day, and a family’s life.
Margaret Atwood’s Bored is another poem centered on a father figure. Atwood spends the entire poem being bored and tired of the same old chores and tasks with her father. She is constantly trying to find an escape or comfort from her everyday boredom. It is not until later, after her father’s passing, that she realizes how much she appreciates the time they spent together. Atwood wishes she appreciated the life they had together while they had it. This poem especially makes me contemplate the relationships I have established among my family members. I need to show them the appreciation they deserve and enjoy the time we have together. I would hate to no longer have my family and wish they were with me at that moment. “Then I wouldn’t be Bored…Now I would know.”

Odes To Childhood

Dylan Thomas’s “Fern Hill,” Fleur Adcock’s “The Video,” Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz,” and Margaret Atwood’s “Bored” are all poems relating to the narrator’s appreciation and/or reminiscing about their youth and the past. All of these poems are memories of past events that have occured in the narrators own life. Also, most of these poems seem to be an ode to the way things were.
“The Video” is a short poem telling of a child appreciating the time she had before her mother gave birth to a new baby girl. The narrator tells of the child watching the video of the birth of her new baby sister, and rewinding it so the baby goes back into the womb; the child is wishfully thinking. This disapproval of the new baby is made clear when the narrator negatively points out that the daughter realizes that her mother spends only half as much time with her as she used to. The older child wishes things went back to the way they were before she had a new sister.
“My Papa’s Waltz” is a poem telling a story about the narrator’s father and how he was a drunken and abusive parent and husband. This quickly flowing poem is the narrator’s reminiscing about how she had to overcome and deal with her fathers flaws; she clung on like death regardless of his messy habits.
The underlying theme in the poem “Bored” by Margaret Atwood is how at first, as a kid, she underappreciated the boredom and repetition of being young, only to come to the realization that the repetitions and boredom of childhood are blissful compared to the future. As a child, one experiences significantly unimportant things and always seems to wish for more, not knowing the realities of the future. This poem, being about the death of the author’s father, tells of how she wishes once again to be ignorant like she was when she was a child. As a child she wanted nothing more than to escape the hell of repetition and boredom, but now that she knows too much, she would like nothing more than to return to her old state.
Similarly, the poem “Fern Hill” is about the narrators longing for the way things used to be and how he loved his youth. Most of the poem speaks of his adoration of youth and its carefree nature. Many times during the poem the author attaches the color of green and gold to youth; both green and gold usually represents happiness in literature.
All of these poems tell of a narrator’s remembrance of their younger days. Similarly, in all of these poems there is a sense that most of the narrator’s believe that those were the best days of their lives, perhaps with the exception of “My Papa’s Waltz” in which the narrator has a more regretting tone than the other narrators.

Innocence and Growing up

The poems “Fern Hill”, “The Video”, “My Papa’s Waltz”, and “Bored” are poems that deal with youth and innocence. In many respects, the innocence of youth is the best time in one’s life. People wish they could be young again all the time. These poems are no different. To a certain extent, they exude the theme that “youth is wasted on the young”. However, the most important aspect of each of these poems is each one’s dealing with growing up, or passing into adulthood. All of the poems hark back to childhood longingly and suggest that growing up is a rough time. As the characters mature, they seem to miss what they had in their youth and, to a certain extent, they each want that innocence back.
“Fern Hill” spends most of the poem talking about childhood. However, the poem also conveys an awareness of time’s passing. The speaker is describing his childhood and it seems that his awareness of time has grown as he has matured. The speaker says “I was green and carefree” (Thomas, 9) in describing his childhood innocence. He contrasts this with his state now, after he has “(followed time) out of grace” (Thomas, 44) because he is in “the mercy of (time’s) means” (Thomas 51). Thus, one can infer, if the speaker says that he has fallen from grace, that he wishes to be young and carefree again.
The poem, “The Video”, describes a child who is forced to “move over a bit” (Adcock, 4) by the birth of a new sibling. Ceri, in her inexperienced youth, is not used to this shared attention and misses her life without her new sibling. This is shown when she “made her go back in” over and over again. Ceri has experienced a part of growing up and wants to go back to the way it used to be.
“My Papa’s Waltz” can be understood as a story of a young boy growing up. The boy is dancing with his father- he is learning from him. He is following his father’s footsteps literally. He is also following his father figuratively- such that he is learning from the steps and the missteps his father takes. “At ever step you missed/ My right ear scraped a buckle” (Roethke, 11-12). The boy is learning from his father’s mistakes, but it is a rough and painful learning. The boy would probably rather not have to learn this way. He would not want to learn about growing up and being a man in a way that is rough and painful.
In “Bored”, the speaker describes a longing for the past that is different than the other poems. The speaker wants to go back because she never appreciated her father as a child. She would always get bored when they were working together on seemingly boring tasks. She wants to go back because “now (she) would know” to appreciate her father (Atwood, 39); now she would know that innocence does not last forever and nor do people. She indirectly describes the pain she experienced growing up- the pain of losing her father- and she wishes that she could go back to before she had to experience this pain, back to the innocence of before.
Thus, each of these poems describes childhood as a time of carefree innocence. They each also tell the reader that growing up is inevitable- and rough. They are telling the young to appreciate what they have and take advantage of it. However, one wonders if the innocence that the young possess will preclude them from taking this lesson to heart.

Childhood

Within life, we understand things once we have moved past them and looked back. Experiences are re-lived through memory with a perspective that develops after the fact. Commonly, these experiences are from childhood—things that at the time seemed normal or minute but later become an integral part of learning. In the works of Dylan Thomas, Fleur Adcock, Theodore Roethke, and Margaret Atwood, childhood remembrances lead the speakers to rethink the past, leading to a new perspective.
Dylan Thomas’ Fern Hill captures the essence of adult nostalgia. The speaker, being of many years, begins his discourse by fantasizing his childhood. He makes mention of his days of happiness and carefree being. His childhood was accompanied by much imagination and play. As an adult, the speaker looks back upon those days gone with a sense of longing. Life as a child seemed to be so easy and free as compared to adulthood. This aspect goes unnoticed until maturity though and looking back on all the carefree-spent years can bring happiness to a person once again.
In Fleur Adcock’s The Video the speaker takes a third person perspective to the dynamics within a family. When the parents of Ceri had another daughter, she was no longer the center of attention. This shift occurred immediately at the birth of the other when Ceri was pushed aside by her father so he could get a better glimpse of his newborn. This incident was a major turning point in the life of little Ceri—never again would things be the same. Long after the birth, Ceri was described to be obsessively watching the video of her sister’s birth. Ironically, after each time that she watched it, she rewound it and watched her younger sibling go right back in. In retrospect, the birth of the second child had a major impact on the main character. Although she was a child at the time and may not have realized it, Ceri was very unwelcoming of the newcomer. The presence of another lead Ceri to a change in lifestyle and way of being; it was an integral part of her development.
Unlike the first two, My Papa’s Waltz, Theodore Roethke, takes on the perspective of a young boy. A major aspect of this boy’s childhood was his relationship to his father. Often the two danced together before bed in an act portraying love and reliance. The speaker clung to his father for the steps and rhythm of the “waltz”—metaphorically speaking for support and teaching. This ritual played a major role in the boy’s childhood and is an experience that he recalls as an adult. The time spent with his father was a time for learning and bonding—an intricate part of growing up.
Taking on a different perspective to childhood memories, the speaker in Margaret Atwood’s Bored describes the various duties she helped out with as a child. She makes reference to “Holding the log while he sawed it. Holding the string while he measured” (lines 2-4). The speaker makes many notes to how repetitive and “boring” the work was that she helped out with. As a child she had no use for the mediocre tasks and saw no meaning within them. Looking back as an adult though, she sees their purpose. If she were to take on the tasks again, there would be no boredom found in them simply because of her gained understanding. Over time, she has accumulated wisdom to help to make sense of those mediocre things. This wisdom would lead to enjoyment in the tasks.
As children, humans face many experiences that don’t seem to make sense. These experiences are then stored as memories and re-lived by the adult mind. After years of learning, these memories may finally make sense or their morals revealed. Within all four of the assigned pieces, the writers capture the essences of childhood and the lessons that come from the revival of its memories.

Looking Back at the Past

Many times people look back to the past as a coping mechinism to deal with the present. Many writers reflect on the past in poetry to signify a yearning or hardship that exists in the present. In "Bored' by Margaret Atwood, "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke, "The Video" by Fleur Adcock, and "Fern Hill" by Dylan Thomas, all authors present the poems in relating to the past, with a way of dealing with the present.
In "Bored" by Margaret Atwood, the speaker talks about being bored in the past. She talks in run-on sentances and in a cyclic fasion that emphasis not only the boredom she faced in the past, but also a yearning that she has for the past. When the speaker says, "Or sat in the back of the car, or sat still in boats, sat, sat, while at the prow, stern, wheel he drove, steered, paddled;" she repeates herself in a way that not only makes the past a vivid image now, but also shows a yearning for the past. While the speaker may have been bored in the past, she misses that boredom which she spent with her father, who presently is dead.
The speaker of "My Papa's Waltz", does not have a yearning for the past, rather focuses on it in a way that he uses to cope with the present. The speaker speaks of the way his father treated him as a young boy, characterizing him by likening the way he treated him to dancin the waltz. The speaker remarks, "The whiskey on your breath could make a small boy dizzy; but I hung on like death: such waltzing was not easy, " here the speaker looks back on the past with no yearning, almost in a way to deal with what his father has left him as through his ill treatment.
In Adcock's "The Video," the speaker uses the past as a way to characterize the main person in the poem, Ceri. The speaker divided the poem into two parts, the past and the present. In the past the speaker remarks quickly on the life of Ceri, being an only child and how she had her entire family to herself. Then in the second part of the poem the speaker talks of how Ceri's life currently is, and how it is different due to her sister being born.The speaker is able to show the underlying theme of a yearning for the past, or how Ceri yearned for the past by telling how Ceri constantly replayed the video of her sister being born, watching her come out and then reversing it so she would go back in. This action signifies Ceri's yearning for the past, rather the time of before her sister was born.
The speaker in Dylan Thomas's "Fern Hill," uses diction and imagry to create an image of his past. The speaker's yearning for the past is evident in how he speaks of the farm that he inhabited in the past. The speaker remarks, "And as I was green and carefree, famous among the barns about the happy yard and singing as the farm was home..." here the diciton points out a yearning for the past, being that the past was a better time where the speaker enjoyed nature and his life, using words such as carefree and the color green associated with health and happiness.
Sometimes in literary works it is hard to figure out for what reason authors tend to focus on the past. But for many it is a way of coping with the present and thinking of better times, while for others it is something so bad they can never forget,

Memories

Time and memory go hand in hand. As each moment passes, the only tie that we have to our past is what we have stored in our memory. Poets often express their feelings of nostalgia and the sense of the passing of time within their works. Poems such as “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas, “The Video” by Fleur Adcock, “My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke, and “Bored” by Margaret Atwood, reveal several variations on the theme of memory and time.

Within the framework of the poem, “Fern Hill” by Dylan Thomas, the childhood memories of a man are exposed. The speaker begins the poem by mentioning that as a child, his life was filled with simple, happy moments as he was “happy as the grass was green” (2). Often within childhood, life is void of the complexities that are often associated with becoming an adult. Free and careless, the speaker mentions the feeling of control that the child had over time and nature. As things moved more slowly, the child had time to explore his surroundings with blissful ignorance even as time passed on. The final stanza of the poem represents the time in the young boys life when he begins to realize what he has learned since transitioning into being an adult. He now knows that the reign over nature and time that he once had, has become trumped by the realities of being an adult.

Looking back on his childhood memories, the speaker of Theodore Roethke’s poem, “My Papa’s Waltz” reminisces of a special dance with his father that was a bedtime ritual for the young child. Although the dance may not have been perfect or conventional by any means, it was a memory kept within a special place in the child’s heart. Just as they “waltzed [him] off to bed still clinging to [his] shirt” (15) the speaker still clings to this memory of his father.

Home movies and photographs add to past memories; especially those of young children made by proud parents. Fleur Adcock’s poem “The Video” is representative the eagerness that a child feels to watch themselves and the people that they know on film. The subject of this poem is the story of a young girl, Ceri, who becomes the big sister to her baby sister, Laura, watching her birth both in person and on video. Watching the movie repeatedly, in both forward and reverse, reveals that while Ceri may like to have a little sister, she also thinks about the time when she was the only child. Watching the memory of her sister’s birth and her ability to watch the birth in forward and reverse reminds us that only in video, can we make time fast forward, go backwards, or stand still.

The final piece, “Bored,” by Margaret Atwood, is representative of the feelings that many people experience when they look back on their lives. Specifically, the speaker of this poem recalls a memory of certain experiences from her past—ones that she used to consider mundane and boring. As time passes and the speaker becomes older and more experienced, it becomes evident that he misses the very things that he dreamed of getting away from for so long. Although those times may have been more boring and uneventful, the speaker now understands that “perhaps boredom is happier” (35). Knowing what he knows now, the speaker notes that, going back to his old life, he “wouldn’t be bored [because] now [he] would know too much” (37).

At some point, everyone wishes to know what is going to happen next and to grow up as fast as possible. As identified by these pieces, however, we begin to miss the little simplicities that made us happy when we were bored and naïve as children. We learn that time is perpetual, never stopping, even after we are gone. The speakers of these poems remind us to look upon each moment of our lives and appreciate them as they pass because once the moment has passed, it can never be relived.

Nostalgia & The Past

The desire for the past or past experiences is an innate quality of the human condition. Often times, individuals look to the past for inspiration, encouragement, or just to dwell upon past relationships and experiences. The four works “Fern Hill”, “The Video”, “My Papa’s Waltz”, and “Bored” each present a different nostalgic memory through the speaker of the poem. These poems are in many ways alike because each of the speakers uniquely conveys a similar yearning for the past and childhood experiences.
One of the greatest elements of the nostalgic imagination is the ability humans have to fantasize about past experiences. In Dylan Thomas’ “Fern Hill”, the speaker is looking back upon the glory of his childhood days when he was “young and easy under the apple boughs”. Lines such as four and five, “Time let me hail and climb, golden in the heydays” suggest that the speaker is fantasizing about the days when he could be carefree without responsibility, one of the greatest aspects of childhood. The speaker fantasizes about the days when he was the “prince of the apple towns…green and carefree, famous among the barns”. These lines present the idea that perhaps the speaker misses the days when he was his only authority, and has the freedom to “play and be golden”. Ultimately, it appears that the speaker in Thomas’ “Fern Hill” is getting older and recognizing how greatly he prizes the freedom and independence her experienced throughout his childhood on the farm.
“The Video”, a poem by Fleur Adcock features a similar theme, as Ceri recalls the experience of the birth of her younger sister, Laura. Although the poem is a nostalgic piece, it is unique because unlike the others it is narrated from an outside perspective. In the first stanza, the speaker describes the environment at the moment of Laura’s birth. “They all gathered around Mum’s bed…Dad said – he was trying to focus the camcorder on Mum’s legs and the baby’s head”. In the following stanza, the speaker provides examples that display Ceri’s acknowledgement of passing time, “Mum had gone back to being thin, and was twice as busy”. The observation suggests that perhaps Ceri was resentful of the attention her mother gave to the new baby. Additionally, the father tells Ceri to “move over a bit” in the first stanza, which is symbolic of Ceri’s resentful feelings. From an objective standpoint, the speaker observes Ceri watching “Laura come out, and then, in reverse, she made her go back in”. These lines, ten and eleven provide evidence that Ceri is ultimately looking nostalgically upon the days when she was an only child and did not have to compete with a sibling for attention.
Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz” is also a nostalgic poem, although like “Video”, the tone is somewhat more serious. In this piece, the reader gets the impression that the speaker experienced a troubled childhood with regard to his relationship with his father. The rhyme scheme and form of this poem are unique because they represent the meaning of “Waltz” in the title of the poem. The arbitrary line breaks and every other line rhyme scheme make the form somewhat unconventional, yet the poem continues to flow, almost like a dancing Waltz. The speaker communicates the complexity of his relationship with this father when he recalls, “You beat time on my head with a palm caked hard by dirt, Then waltzed me off to bed still clinging to your shirt”.
Margaret Atwood’s “Bored” relates to the common theme among these poems, because it also nostalgically examines the speaker’s past. In this piece the speaker recalls her boredom with the everyday tasks she worked on with her father. While she remembers being bored and uninterested “holding the log while he sawed it” or “doing things over and over, carrying the wood, drying the dishes”, at the end of the poem the speaker questions whether “boredom is happier”. Even though she was uninterested in her work, the speaker notes that it was “sunnier all the time then”. For this reason, the reader can assume that perhaps the speaker has experienced a harsher, or more boring environment and now appreciates the tasks she once found uninteresting and monotonous.
Memories and nostalgia are a common theme among literature because the past plays a very important role in people’s reactions and decisions later in life. Each of the poems presented a different attitude toward the past. “Fern Hill” emphasized fond memories of a carefree childhood while “The Video” and “My Papa’s Waltz” had more sincere undertones. “Bored” was a contemplative piece that suggests that perhaps people don’t recognize the value of certain experiences until they are no longer presented. Thus, the speakers in each piece portray different nostalgic attitudes toward the past and its influence.

memories

Each of the four poems including, “Bored,” “My Papa’s Waltz,” “The Video,” and “Fern Hill” share the common theme of memories during their childhood. However, contrary to the more frequently heard of times of happiness and carefree minds, all of these poems with the exception of “Fern Hill” follow the topic of unhappiness during their youth.
In Margaret Atwood’s poem entitled “Bored” she focuses on a time when she was unhappy. She is helping someone close to her, possibly a brother or father, do chores that she has no interest in doing. By the end, however, it seems like something has happened to her work partner and maybe she now regrets not having enjoyed the time they had together. “Perhaps though boredom is happier…Now I wouldn’t be bored. Now I would know too much.” This quote gives the impression that she no longer has any time to spend with him. Although she did not embrace the moments she shared at the time, and rather seemed to be annoyed that she was involved with the tasks, the speaker is now happy that she did spend the time. Now, if she had the chance she would not be bored because she would know that those moments would be extremely meaningful.
Theodore Roethke’s “My Papa’s Waltz” takes a little bit of a different approach in that I do not think the speaker regrets the time he spent with his father. He definitely, however, regrets the manner in which they spent their time. This can be supported in the first and last stanza in which he explains how he tried to hold on to his father. In the last stanza the speaker says that as his father basically drags him to bed after his beating he is “Still clinging to your shirt.” This shows how he badly he wants to be with his father. Even after the inhumane way his father treats him, the speaker still loves him and just wants to be with him.
The third poem “The Video”, written by Fleur Adcock, is similar to “My Papa’s Waltz” because this also shows how a young child yearns to spend more time with her parents. When Ceri’s baby sister is born, her parents no longer give her attention and have no more time for her it seems. The sadness and pain she must feel begins during the birth of her sister when her dad tells her to move over so that he is able to film better. However, I think she unfairly blames her sister more than her parents because she directs her anger towards the baby. It is more evident the resentment she feels towards her sister for doing this to her in the last line when “she made her go back in.” It is interesting how the speaker is able to demonstrate the fury Ceri is feeling and going through by playing the tape in reverse.
Finally, the last poem, differing slightly from the previous three, “Fern Hill” written by Dylan Thomas, is more about a memory that he uses to escape. The first four stanzas each include only beautiful ideas and pictures. They seem to draw the expected picture of playing and running around, just generally enjoying nature. However, there seems to be a major change in the last stanza where it seems to have a mood of melancholy. It almost seems like he is dreaming about this beautiful picture, but then it is interrupted by reality. “Oh as I was young and easy in the mercy of his means, Time held me green and dying Though I sang in my chains like the sea.” This quote seems to express how when he was young he had a good life and did not suffer much. Then, suddenly something changed in his life and now the only way to relieve his pain is by imagining these youthful ideas.
Poems are a way for a poet to express their inner feelings. Childhood memories are understandably a popular topic because most people do not like to talk about their upsetting memories. These poems do just that to let the pain the speaker is holding in out.