MASTECTOMY, by Wanda Coleman

Mastectomy, by Wanda Coleman . Don't forget to practice reading these out loud. I'm sure the poems will sound very different with different reader in our group!

HER MY BODY, by Bob Hicok

OK, may be I do have a theme for this week...check out Her my body, by Bob Hicok.

LARGE INTESTINE, by Anna Swir

It's all about The Body...or is it? In Anna Swir's poem, Large Intestine, who is she addressing? What is she saying about her body, her illness?

Reflections on Fever 103

Greasing the bodies of adulterers (10)

Like Hiroshima ash and eating in. (10)

The sin. The sin. (4)

Darling, all night (4)

I have been flickering, off, on, off, on. (10)

The sheets grow heavy as a lecher’s kiss. (10)

Alan mentioned something very important about Fever 103 that I want to reiterate with this post. He mentioned a distinct turn in the poem and what makes it even more significant is that between stanzas nine and ten there’s this distinct symmetrical play on the amount of syllables. The amount of syllables counts ten, ten and four and the following tenth stanza count four, ten, and ten. The structure of Fever begs the question if the narrator of the poem truly is manic depressive? Plath eloquently instills a turn using a mirror to contrast the symbolic hell and heaven.

The fevered pace at which the poem can be read may imply erratic and passionate outpouring, but the calculated change in the change of tone in the poem seems to imply that Plath was keenly aware of the subject she was writing about. The poem may speak toward anger at her husband, her many lovers, or simply a fever. However, the inferences imply a deep struggle between suffering and salvation.

I believe that the poem is not a suicide note, but rather a call for release. Fever shows us that the flames of hell serve not only to burn away the sins that a person may accumulate throughout their life, but also offer redemption. Like Megan pointed out irony drips all over the final two stanzas. The reader of the poem probably knows much about Plath’s life, perhaps she planned it that way.

The end “(My selves dissolving, old whore petticoats)—“ comes across as an after thought, as though the narrator did not want the reader to know that this what she was thinking as she rises toward paradise. Truth, like old whore petticoats, cannot be removed by the flames of hell. They are carried in their parenthetical bubble as the narrator heads toward paradise. The narrator will not let them go.

FEVER -- ish

Great class today, guys. It was wonderful to meet you all. I never cease to be impressed by how incredibly accomplished, well rounded, talented, and fun medical students can be. And yes, Gabriella, you are all very smart! I'm excited to see you have some interest in writing poetry as well, and think we can use this space, and some time each week to write.

I am truly intrigued to hear of some of your experience reading, even "performing" poetry. I think this really adds dimension to our study of this art. I have some thoughts about which poems we will discuss next week, but first I'd like you to read (or listen to) former US Poet Laureate Billy Collins thoughts on reading out loud. He prepared this project for use in secondary schools when he was the Poet Laureate, called "Poetry 180." Click HERE or check the sidebar for a link to his site.

FEVER 103, by Sylvia Plath

Welcome to the Team Blog for the MCS2 Literature and Medicine: Poetry Selective for the Class of 2010. I hope to post assignments, comments on our class and other resources for you here. I have configured this blog that you each are authors who may post any of your thoughts as well -- a shared journal as such. If there is any interest in writing poetry, we can also use this space to "workshop" poems, posting work and letting each other comment on it.

On Wednesday, February 27, we will be looking at Sylvia Plath's poem Fever 103. You can find it on the Poetry Foundation website, and a biography of the poet by clicking here. You may post your thoughts by clicking "comments" below, by posting a separate entry on this blog, or by bringing any thoughts with you to class. Read it a couple of times, look up any words with which you may not be familiar, and think about the metaphors and images Plath uses to describe the intensity of her experience. What words does she use and how does she use them to make this such a powerful statement?

The word "verse" comes from a Latin verb meaning "to turn" (as in versus, and reverse). Now it's your turn, and this is your space. Thank you for allowing the study of humanities, literature, and poetry a turn in your medical education.