Apron Strings By Beth Gylys: Poem Analysis

In the short story “Lysandra’s Poem”, by Budge Wilson, Lysandra is justified in taking revenge on Elaine. This is because Elaine was never a good friend to begin with. Elaine mentions that Lysandra was always made fun of as a child, being given the nickname “Pigeon-Toed Cochrane”. Elaine had never stood up for Lysandra, not even once. If they truly were best friends, Elaine would have tried to stand up for Lysandra. Furthermore, when Lysandra spends most of her time writing her poem for the contest, Elaine states that she hangs out with her other friends because Lysandra is “of no use at all” to her. Additionally, Elaine disregards Lysandra’s feelings toward the contest. Knowing that Lysandra was passionate about poetry, Elaine calls the contest

Individuals make choices every day that affect history. During the Holocaust, the mass murder of Jews during Hitler’s reign, ordinary European citizens shaped history by allowing Jews to die. Their decisions were greatly influenced by their understanding of the universe of obligation, which sociologist Helen Fein defines as “The circle of individuals and groups ‘toward whom obligations are owed, to whom rules apply, and whose injuries call for [amends]’ (“We and They” 56). The majority of ordinary citizens chose to neglect Jews in order to protect themselves or their families. However, some brave individuals called upstanders chose to stand up to the Nazi regime by rescuing Jews and other victims of persecution. Numerous bystanders claimed to have no other options when faced with a moral dilemma, and in doing so, they gave the perpetrators permission to hurt others. Bystanders enable perpetrators to commit atrocities; therefore, they are just as guilty of the crimes that the Nazis committed during the Holocaust.

Mama, a “big boned woman with rough, man-working hands,” awaits her daughter’s (Dee) return in the literary piece Everyday Use (70). When returning home, Dee’s only mission was to ask for two specific quilts with hopes of hanging her heritage on display. Ordinarily Maggie, Dee’s sister, was once a bright, generous, young girl with abundant potential. Explicitly, one day, Maggie was damaged significantly in a fire in which transformed her entire life. The fire turned a once intelligent, social undeveloped girl into a terrified, hopeless juvenile, along with the failed assistance of her family.

People have the need to always prove their self worth to everyone. In the poem The Leaving, Brigit Pegeen Kelly demonstrates how an individual’s environment and expectations of others encourages a person’s actions. In the poem the girl is so dedicated to her work that she’s willing to stay late even when her father doubts her. The speaker takes on the challenge to prove to her father that she can complete her task, and she successfully proves to him that she can do it. By proving her self worth to her father, the speaker faces new challenges along the way that test her own thoughts and decision making which ultimately determines the pursuit of her hard work.

‘For What It’s Worth’ by Buffalo Springfield has a logical message because it is referring to the Sunset Strip Riots that took place in Hollywood during the 1960’s. People protested when they lost their civil rights due to a curfew law that was put into place. The song says, “Stop, children, what’s that sound. Everybody look- what’s going down?” Community members were angry at the young people going to clubs at night because they were “loud” and “disruptive”. The curfew law was put into place after the complaints and the youth became outraged. They believed their civil right were being taken away. There were riots along the sunset strip, where all these clubs were located, to protest the law. Police were at these riots and many people were handcuffed and hauled off to jail. They are referring to children because these protests were from the younger generation. Even though the overall message is logical, the support within this song is not as strong. ‘For What It’s Worth’ is often mistaken as an anti-war song since it was released during the Vietnam War era. When most people hear this song that is what they think of. The song can be heard in several war related movies. Some even believe it is about the Kent State Shootings although the song was released years before that event occurred. Even though there is not strong evidence to back up this song's true meaning, it

How would you feel if someone could control what you were thinking? In “The Feed” written by M.T Anderson, everyone living in the community had a feed in their brain that was controlled by one large organization. Violet, the main character, suffers through a malfunction in her feed that changes the way she sees her society. Most people’s opinions can be changed when they have experienced the benefits and the disadvantages of something. Since Violet is aware of how life is with and without the feed, she becomes hesitant to believing that her community is being run efficiently. She realizes how her feed affects everything she does and how without it, she would be incapable. Based on her experiences, thoughts, and actions, I can infer that Violet

A mothers love is simple: caring, forgiving, and unconditional. This is shown in Billy Collins poem “The Lanyard”, which starts out with the narrator reflecting on a lanyard that gives him memory of back when he would go to summer camp.  This is because he made a lanyard out of boredom and brought it home to give to him mother. The narrator thinks as a young boy that this can thank his mom for all she has done, but then he realizes once he gets older that nothing he can do will repay his mothers efforts. After reading the poem “The Lanyard, I believe that the narrator feels as if he will never be able to give back to his mother what she has given to him in his life, however, what he does not realize is that his mothers view could be completely different.

The language of the poem in the first stanza also depicts the setting of New York as a busy place with a lot going on at one time, “The sun is hot, but the/cabs stir up the air. I look/at bargains in wristwatches. There/ are cats playing in sawdust.” (11-14) The near-sporadic thinking of the speaker: having multiple thoughts in the same stanza that aren’t directly related and being written in short-enjambed sentences (creating breathlessness), creates a feeling of sensory overload which a city like New York is known

Have you ever faced a life-changing experience that impacted you, your family, or your country? Melba Pattillo Beals, Jackie Robinson, and Feng Ru faced life-changing experiences and made decisions that impacted their lives, their family’s lives, and their countries’ lives. In the story Warriors Don’t Cry by Melba Pattillo Beals, Melba integrated an all white school so blacks can get an equal education as whites. In the story I Never Had It Made by Jackie Robinson, Jackie was the first African American to play in the Major Leagues. Finally, in the story “Father of Chinese Aviation” by Rebecca Maksel, Feng Ru, became the first Chinese aviator to build planes of his own design. Not only did these three individuals change their countries, but by doing something life-changing, they impacted their own lives.

In his poem, Aunt Ida Pieces a Quilt, Melvin Dixon presents the protagonist Aunt Ida experiencing an internal as well an external dialogue with her family members. Initially, the poem starts off the mother of Junie (the departed) handing all the clothes to Aunt Ida. Automatically, the presence of disconsolate, nostalgic, and agonizing are the feelings that build up the atmosphere of the poem. However, as the poem continues the purpose to why Aunt Ida was handed down the clothes of Junie is because from the clothes of the decease she will make a quilt. As she starts to quilt the atmosphere of the poem transition to a more unifying and commemorations feelings towards the families that have had a family member die from AIDS and to Junie too. Indeed,

Literature is full of characters that people may say are heroic. The first book, “The Odyssey” is an epic poem written by Homer, taking place in ancient Greece, where Odysseus the main character lives. The second book, “The Things They Carried” is a fiction piece by Tim O’Brien, taking place in Vietnam where Tim O’Brien, one of the main characters is stationed in the war. People you least expect can show heroism in different ways. Odysseus and Norman are heroic because they do stuff for people others would not do.

This particular poem is about parents that have no idea what's going on in their kid's daily life and what they go through. With this type of action, the parents act as if all is good and make little to no effort to get involved in their day to day activities. This shows the kid that the parent does not care or seems like it. The kid will be influenced to do things they normally wouldn't do. If the parent would at least make an attempt to get involved, it may influence them for the better but until then it will not happen. Back into the books, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee shows how much a single parent can influence several kids. Atticus Finch is a single father of two. The kids are Jean Louise, aka Scout, and Jem. Attics is a lawyer that takes on a case about an African American charged with rape trying to defend him. He teaches his kids that everyone is equal no matter what color or what they have done. His kids pick up on this shortly after learning what their dad is doing and help stick up for the colored people. “We know all men are not created equal in the sense some people would have us believe- some people are smarter than others, some people have more opportunity because they're born with it, some men make more money than others, some ladies make better cakes than others- some people are born gifted

Although the Landmine and the Rope in Melissa Range’s poems are both made to participate in horrifying violence against the innocent, the Landmine reveals its boastful indifference by twisting imagery of life and hope into a grotesque threat to haunt the world of peace long into the future, while the Rope reveals its humble sympathy by longing for a future that redeems violence by affirming life and beauty.

The name Erin Hanson is one many have not heard. The young poets ideas spread confidence, self love, and acceptance. Her young age allows her to connect with her audience in ways many her fellow poets can not. For example in her poem non-officially titled “People are not poetry” Hanson covers the many struggles of being human. However; instead of focusing on the negative, she turns the spotlight on accepting what makes each one of us different. This interesting turn makes for some fascinating works of literature and life lessons. Style and tone, symbolism, and metaphorical language communicate embracing individualism in Erin Hanson's poetry.