A Turn for the Verse: Fever 103

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Fever 103

A minor ache below my ear

I've grown tired

Of moving, and now cannot move

You tear me from sleep

But won't let me leave this place, once soft

Disheveled I am

My hair, gnarled and tangled

The knots keep amplifying,

Like the knots in my throat

Knots in my chest, my stomach

New aches intertwined with the numbness

And I am still awake

Taunted by the phrases that haven't escaped

Because you can't hear them

And they simmer, distracting

As the familiar numbness evaporates

103 degrees now

103 words

103 times I've done this before

I can't help myself from hitting 'send'

2 comments:

Agnes O'Connor said...: Katie,

You describe so well the experience of fever, of the relentlessness of illness. Good job!; March 11, 2009 at 10:25 AM
Maria Basile said...: Good use of repetition in the body of this poem, Katie, especially the knot and the number 103. Very Good.; March 11, 2009 at 6:08 PM

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WRITING PROMPTS

Week 4 Uncertainty

Use the phrase, "I Don't Know" as a catalyst for your next poem. You can use it as a theme, as a title, as a first line (or last line). You may not even use the phrase at all and still be writing about it. And yes, Cassidy, you can even say it in French. :) See you Wednesday.

Week 3 Ekphrasis, Art, and Empathy

Pick a visual work of art from the NYU's Art, Literature, and Medicine Database, and reflect, in your poem --What do you see? --What else do you notice? --How does this work make you feel?

Week 2 The Body

Choose a part of the body and describe it.

Describe something being done with or to that part of the body.

Use (and be ready to discuss) simile, metaphor, or other figurative language in your poem.

Week 1 Fever

Think back to your own experience of illness. Recount a particular sickness, accident, surgery, or other anecdote related to your own health. Like Plath, try to describe not what happened, but how it made you feel. Try to write lyrically -- expressing the emotional experience -- rather than literally.

HOW TO READ/COMMENT ON A POEM

I find that reading a poem is like looking at a piece of art, a painting, a sculpture, a movie, or a play. When we read each others' poems we have an opportunity to show appreciation and to help the poem get even better! Try to answer three basic questions, and even if you don't have a lot of experience reading poetry or using any of the lingo, you'll still have much to say.

What do you see?

-- What does the poem look like on the page. What can you say about its structure, form, line lengths?

-- What is the literal meaning of the poem, what is actually happening? How would you say it in your own words?

-- What is the setting of the poem? Where and when?

-- Who is speaking in the poem? What does the speaker want?

What else do you notice?

-- What are the sounds of this poem? Look for lyric devices, such as meter, rhyme, assonance, alliteration, consonance.

-- Look for figuarative language: similes and metaphors, imagery, symbols and allusions. Look up words you don't know or familiar words used in unusual ways.

-- Take longer poems in chunks. Comment on a favorite stanza, line, or word.

-- If there is a part that seems confusing, it's OK to say where you get lost, it may help the poet revise and rework the poem.

-- If there is a part or device that works particularly well, make sure to mention it.

How does it make you feel?

-- Mention how the poem makes you feel. Does it remind you of anything, any time, any place?

-- What is the theme of the poem? Is there a message here?

Always remember to criticize the poem, not the poet.

Have fun, and thank you for sharing your thoughts!

A Turn for the Verse

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Fever 103

2 comments:

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