Disillusion, Defiance, and Discontent ( ) UNIT: 5 BY: Kalin, Nick, Zach, and Evyn

Poetry by: Marianne Moore “Poetry”, in its current form, resists the ways poetry is typically organized and structured; it refuses to really rhyme or follow a metrical scheme. However, unlike other free verse poems that, from their very beginning, were written as free verse, "Poetry" is an example of highly structured verse turned free.

Marianne believes that one of poetry’s biggest flaws occurs when it lacks genuineness. She insists that poetry should combine both imagination and reality. She illustrates this point by saying that true poetry is able to present “imaginary gardens with real toads in them.” This metaphor has become one of the most widely cited metaphors for poetry. Ironically, through the speaker’s exploration of what is “derivative” and “unintelligible” in poetry, this poem proves the merits of poetry. It offers the very model of what “genuine” poetry is, and it exemplifies how valuable good poetry can be. The poem starts off in a ironic and contradictory statement, she says she dislikes poetry but she herself is writing one.

Poetry Symbolism Line 1: The speaker says she dislikes poetry, but she expresses this dislike through a poem. This is a clear instance of irony; we know we shouldn't take the first line at face value. Line 2: The speaker steps up her dislike to the level of "perfect contempt." But we know she can't totally hate poetry, so "perfect contempt" must be a hyperbole. For whatever reason, she must be exaggerating. Line 3: Suddenly the speaker refers to poetry as a "place." Wait, this poem doesn't look like a typical place to us – we're hard-pressed even to come up with a setting. This metaphor makes us rethink the way we should envision or conceptualize poetry.

Theme The theme of Empathy can be seen in line 1 when Marianne says “I, too, dislike it.” The "too" here suggests that the speaker empathizes with another person, or group of people, who dislike poetry. The speaker isn't just spontaneously declaring her own opinion; she is responding to a prevailing opinion or feeling. The previous quote also leads you to believe how Marianne is dissatisfied with the poetry that’s being produced during her life.

Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech Written by William Faulkner. He received the Nobel Prize for literature in 1950, he gave an acceptance speech that is among the simplest and most moving examples of oratory in our literature. He gave the speech in Stockholm, Sweden on December 10, 1950.

Theme of the Speech: He talks about how he deserves this award because of all of his hard work and determination. He talked about how men and women forgot the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself. What he means by that is that people today have forgotten to put really think about their writing and in a way put some of their heart in their own writing.

Continued: He also talks about how we need to remember where we came from and think about how we came to be in the situation that we are in today. He says that we need to know where we came from because if we don’t then writing itself might die off because ever thing that people write means nothing if it does not come from the heart and is humble.

What this all Means: What he is basically saying in his speech is his definition of literature and what he thinks the writers today and future writers should think about and do when they are writing. He is also saying to get where he is at it takes a lot of work and that he did not get where he was at without wanting to be at the top so badly.

Literature of the Period The Birth of Modernism- After the war people wanted to search for new ideas and idea that suited the 20 th century. These people were know as Modernists They used new styles and techniques to make a different kind of literature They wanted to show pieces of modern life and left conclusions to be decided by readers

Imagism: -Type of poetry that lasted from 1909 to Used clear images and everyday language to express their poetry. The expatriates: -The expatriates are writers who were disillusioned by World War I -The best known expatriates are Fitzgerald and Hemingway -Most of the expatriates moved from America to Paris -Most did not see anything in their civilizations to be happy about

New Approaches: Writers began using stream-of-consciousness writing to re-create the flow of the characters thoughts It involves a series of thoughts, memories, and insights that is connected to the character Writers of International Renown: Modernists affected the American literature and there is proof because the number of Americans who won Nobel Prizes. First American that won a Nobel Prize was Sinclair Lewis. The People after him were Pearl S. Buck, 1938, T.S. Eliot, 1948, William Faulkner, 1949, Ernest Hemingway and John Steinbeck.

The Harlem Renaissance: A new literature age was start in Northern Manhattan,in Harlem, by mostly Southern African Americans The Harlem Renaissance was publicly recognized March 1924 because African American writers met literary editors in the city. They didn’t make a school of literature but a coherent group. A Continuing Tradition: World War II didn’t end the literacy revival but new writers rose during it. The older writers continued to write stories and plays

Information on the Short Story Author: Mississippi native William Faulkner is considered one of the world’s greatest writers and perhaps the most significant writer the United States has yet produced. In 1950, William Faulkner received the world’s highest literary award, the Nobel Prize in Literature. In his acceptance speech he started out by saying “I feel that this award was not made to me as a man, but to my work.” This quote is saying that he earned the award because he worked hard to get to the point he is at and he took a lot of time and thought hard about his writing.

Information Continued: He reminded him of the courage, honor, hope, pride, compassion, pity and sacrifice a lot that turned in to glory.” This approach to writing is certainly reflected in his work. Faulkner was born in 1897, during the post-Civil War era of the South. His literary work captivates the emotional transition faced by southerners as they emerged from an era gone-by to a new, more modern period. The characters he created exemplified the conflict that was embedded deep within the human spirit of southerners who live in this changing society. Reading Faulkner allows today’s society to take a step back in time and capture a glimpse of one of the most evolutionary periods in American society.