Creative Writing

Creative Writing Unit 1 Poetry

Syllabus Review • The signed syllabus is due on Monday 1/13/14

1/7/14 Journal #1 • Aliens are among us, but they are not what we expected…

Literal Language • Basic, straightforward language without anything creative or clever. Literal: Figurative: You are six feet tall. You’re as tall as a giant. Your turn – write one literal language example.

Writing Like Poets - Learn to write simply beautiful poems

Poetry Comes in All Forms Acrostic Tanka Verse Epic Ballad Rondeau Name Haiku Elegy Carpe Diem Sestina Quatrain Blank Verse Dramatic Monologue Iambic Pentameter Couplet Bio Limerick Sonnet Epigram Free Verse Epitaph Lyric Idyll Ode Burlesque Narrative Pastoral Shape Shakespearean

We will explore additional forms of poetry through examples. You will learn techniques you can use in your own poetry writing. DO NOT throw away any work you do in class – you will take your work and put it into a Poetry Portfolio And hopefully you’ll have some fun along the way… but only if you have a positive attitude! :)

Limericks – The form Limericks have rhythm and rhyme Limericks consist of five lines. Lines 1, 2, and 5 have 7 -10 syllables and rhyme Lines 3 and 4 have 5-7 syllables and also rhyme

Limericks 1 There once was a man from Beijing. (7-10 syllables) 2 All his life he hoped to be King. (7-10 syllables/ rhyme) 3 So he put on a crown, (5-7 syllables/ rhyme) 4 Which quickly fell down. (5-7 syllables/ rhyme) 5 That small silly man from Beijing. (7-10 syllables/ rhyme)

A Man from Peru • There once was a man from Peru. • He dreamed he was eating his shoe. • He woke with a fright • in the middle of the night, • to find that his dream had come true.

A girl named Lynn • There once was a girl named Lynn. • Whose form was uncommonly _______________ • She once by ______________________ • Was mixed in ___________________________ • So they baked that young girl named Lynn.

A guy named Stan • There once was this guy named Stan • Who had some trouble ____________________ • He wore a dress __________________________ • And drove a Chevrolet with __________________ • And soon Stan became a __________________

Old man in a ______ • There was an Old Man in a _________ • Who was horribly bored by a Bee; • When they said, 'Does it _______? • He replied, 'Yes, it does! • 'It's a regular brute of a Bee!'

Fly on the wall There once was a fly on the wall I wonder why it didn't fall because it's feet stuck or was it just luck or does gravity miss things so small

Now it’s your turn • Write your own Limerick. • Limericks have rhythm and Rhyme • Limericks consist of five lines. • Lines 1, 2, and 5 have 7 -10 syllables and rhyme • Lines 3 and 4 have 5-7 syllables and also rhyme

Snapshot Poems Williams liked to write poems like cameras capture pictures: giving the reader a “snapshot” of an image that they can interpret however they wish. While he uses few words, his “snapshots” DO give the reader a clear image in their mind.

Snapshot Poems • William Carlos Williams (1883-1963) • Williams once said that poems aren’t puzzles to be figured out or solved; that poets aren’t trying to trick you. • He believed that a poem did NOT have to be complex to be “good.” • His poems are often light-hearted & fun.

William Carlos Williams The Red Wheelbarrow so much depends upon a red wheel barrow glazed with rain water beside the white chickens. (1923)

What images did you see while listening to that poem? A red wheelbarrow? White chickens?

So, you’re probably thinking, “This is the dumbest poem ever. Why should I learn this?” Besides creating excellent imagery AND being one of my all-time favorites, would you believe me if I said this knowledge could make you RICH? From “Who Wants to be a Millionaire?” “White chickens!!!!” I screamed at the TV. (He had to phone a friend.)

Now it’s YOUR turn! THINK of an IMAGE. Yes, ANY image. It can be COMPLETELY random. (But for this purpose, appropriate.) THEN... Write a poem using the “Red Wheelbarrow” model Your first two lines will be so much depends upon See examples...

Examples from past students... the faded blue jeans So much depends upon the faded blue jeans stone-washed with silver buttons laying in the heap of dirty clothes. The charger So much depends upon the cell phone charger laying on the counter plugged into the wall.

Early Out So much depends upon the school secretary’s voice stammering over the loud speaker announcing a two-hour early dismissal from school. the white snow So much depends upon the white glistening snow falling from the gray sky on a gloomy school day.

1/8/14 Journal #2 You mistakenly enter a room through a door marked “FOR AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL ONLY.”

Figurative Language • Creative or poetic language used to make a more striking impression on the reader. • Example: The sunset glistened over the ocean, setting the waves on fire. • Your turn – give an example of figurative language.

Turnitin.com • Class ID: 7471965 • Class Password: CWSpring14

Fake Apology Poems Williams also believed poems can be something as simple as a half-hearted apology such as “This is Just to Say”, in which the speaker issues an “apology” for eating someone’s plums. Notice his use of alliteration and sensory images (taste, touch/feel).

This Is Just To Say By William Carlos Williams I have eaten the plums that were in the icebox and which you were probably saving for breakfast Forgive me they were delicious so sweet and so cold (1934)

Now try writing your own... Have you ever apologized for something you REALLY weren’t sorry for? Write a poem using the “This is Just to Say” model You’ll issue your apology, but then tell the reader why you really aren’t sorry. See examples...

Examples from the past... This is Just to Say I have eaten the last piece of chocolate cake in which you were probably saving for dessert. Forgive me, it was heaven so rich and so creamy. This is Just to Say I have used all the hot water for my shower even though I knew you were going to shower, too. Forgive me, it was steamy and very relaxing.

More examples from the past... Long Live the Hawkeyes I threw the wet frozen snowball at your Illinois jacket the one Santa brought for you Christmas morning. Forgive me it felt exhilarating as it splattered over the ugly blue and orange letters. This is Just to Say I drank the last Diet Dew in which you were probably saving for lunch. Forgive me. It was so fizzy and quenching and bold.

Irony or Paradox poem Gwendolyn Brooks Brooks (1917-2000) grew up in Chicago, Illinois. She experienced racial prejudice growing up She published her first poem in a children’s magazine at age 13 By the time she was 16, she had published around 75 poems

Brooks uses imagery, alliteration, metaphors, similes, and more in her poetry. The poem you will read is called “We Real Cool.” She is able to write with the flavor of the language--catching the accents or slang that teenagers would have used. Ask yourself as you are listening if the group sounds “cool” at all.

We Real Cool by Gwendolyn Brooks THE POOL PLAYERS. SEVEN AT THE GOLDEN SHOVEL. We real cool. We Left school. We Lurk late. We Strike straight. We Sing sin. We Thin gin. We Jazz June. We Die soon.

Do you think the group is “cool”? Why or why not? What statement is Brooks making about the group?

Now try writing your own... Write a poem using the “We Real Cool” model (a.k.a. Irony or Paradox poem) Make a list of actions, then a final statement indicating the OPPOSITE of what you think. See examples...

Example We Real Smart Students at HHS. Six sitting in the Commons. We real smart. We Dissin’ art. We Sleep late. We Party great. We Hate to run. We Havin’ some fun. We Skipped P.E. and Chem-is-try. English we hate. We No grad-u-ate.

Personification Poem Carl Sandburg was born in Galesburg, Illinois in 1878. Carl was a hobo, then served in the Spanish-American war. After returning from the war, he enrolled in classes at Lombard College in Galesburg. Though he never graduated, he was awarded honorary degrees from Lombard, Knox College, and Northwestern University.

PERSONIFICATION Read this Carl Sandburg poem that uses PERSONIFICATION

Fogby Carl Sandburg (Chicago Poems, 1916)The fog comeson little cat feet.It sits lookingover harbor and cityon silent haunchesand then moves on.

Personification The fog is being compared to a cat (remember that personification is a type of metaphor). It quietly moves into the city, stays for a little bit, then quietly moves on, just like a cat. But that description is very boring, so Sandburg uses personification: giving the fog the qualities of the cat. Because, last time I checked, the fog didn’t have eyes to look over the city or haunches to sit back on. Or feet, for that matter...

Personification Examples The roses opened their petals to face the rising sun The stars wink, sparkle, and then say goodnight We could hear the bench groan after the player sat down

Jot down a few examples of personification. Try to turn them into poems.

SIMILE Poem Simile – comparing using “like” or “as” Read this Margaret Atwood poem that uses a SIMILE

Margaret AtwoodYou Fit Into Meyou fit into melike a hook into an eyea fish hookan open eye(1971)

Atwood’s example leads us to believe that the simile is something sweet, loving. But then we see that it’s actually the opposite. The reason this poem works is because the words “hook” and “eye” have several meanings.

Words with several meanings (or when paired with an adjective take on a new meaning): ring, band, box, door, line, block, link, chain, tool, key, bat, stand, hand Ring: Wedding Ring...or Boxing Ring? Block: Building Block...or Road Block? Can you come up with a similar poem using those nouns in a simile? (It’s harder than it looks!) Mrs. Neade's Example: we go together like a ring and a hand a boxing ring a broken hand

Jot down a few examples of similes. Turning them into a poem like these examples...

Creative Writing