Six Poems

Things I Learned Last Week - William Stafford

Symphony in Yellow - Oscar Wilde

The Night Has a Thousand Eyes - Francis William Bourdillon

Diving Into the Wreck - Adrienne Rich

My Papa's Waltz - Theodore Roethke

In the Park - Gwen Harwood

One of the poems I chose was William Staffords, "Things I Learned Last Week." The poem begins with two stanzas explaining random things he learned the past week, and then the rest of the poem focuses on irony, and causes the reader to be skeptical of human actions, and for a couple stanzas, human motives. For example, in the stanza "A man in Boston has dedicated himself to telling about injustice. For three thousand dollars he will come to your town and tell you about it." The man Stafford is speaking of is every bit as unjust as what he has "dedicated himself" to talking about. Another example of irony is the stanza "Schopenhauer was a pessimist but he played the flute." The flute is a happy and positive sound, although Schopenhauer did not think that way. It is a very interesting poem and makes one focus on the small things, and how interesting they are.

I also chose the poem "In the Park," by Gwen Harwood. It is the story of a mother, who regrets the decisions she has made in the past. She has three children, whom are uncontrollable and cause the mother unhappiness. A gentleman that she used to love passes her in the park and "a small balloon," which I believe is supposed to represent a "thought bubble," comes from the man's head and looks back on the future that they could have had together. The poem ends with the woman saying "They have eaten me alive." She is referring to her children, and she seems to be depressed with the life she has.