ENG 125 Week 3 Discussion 1

Prepare: Prior to beginning work on this discussion, read the poems “Wild Geese” and “The Red Wheelbarrow” in Chapter 7 of your course textbook. You are also required to listen to the Mary Oliver Reading Wild Geese  and William Carlos Williams Reads The Red Wheelbarrow   videos before completing this discussion. Audio clips of the poems can also be accessed in your online course textbook. These clips demonstrate the importance of performance, rhythm, and musicality in the poetic form. If you are unable to listen to these poems due to an auditory impairment, please reach out to your instructor for an alternative prompt for this discussion.

Reflect: Poetry is a literary form that can offer readers a different experience based on whether the poem is read silently, read aloud, or simply listened to when read by someone else. For example, you might hear a certain rhythm or change of pace that you might not catch when simply reading the poem silently to yourself. For this week’s discussion, you read and listened to poetry. If you didn’t the first time, read and listen with careful eyes and ears so you can respond thoughtfully to the two parts of the discussion this week.

Write: Part 1 – Answer the following questions about either “Wild Geese” or “The Red Wheelbarrow” poems based on your reading of them:

·         Identify the theme of the poem. How do you know this is the theme?

·         Define the poetic devices (e.g., rhythm, figurative language, etc.) used in the poem. Offer at least two examples. If needed, review the List of Literary Techniques    to determine the poetic device.

·         Analyze how these poetic devices contribute to the development of the poem’s message.

·         Support your ideas with textual details and analyses and include paraphrased and quoted material from the primary sources (the poems themselves). For help on writing paraphrases and quotations, review the Ashford University Writing Center’s tutorial Integrating Research    and the Quoting, Paraphrasing, & Summarizing    web page.

Part 2 –

Describe your listening experience of the same poem you wrote about above. If you are unable to listen to these poems due to an auditory impairment, please reach out to your instructor for an alternative prompt for this discussion. Respond to at least two of the following questions:

·         How did your hearing the poem recited aloud compare to your silent reading of it?

·         Did the performance highlight certain words or phrases that were not as apparent in a silent reading?

·         Did the pace change and, if so, how did it change your understanding of the poem?

·         Did words have different connotations when spoken aloud, and, if so, what kinds of connotation did you associate with the poem?

·         Do you think reading poetry aloud is a worthwhile endeavor when analyzing it? Why, or why not?

Your initial post that includes parts one and two should be at least 200 words.

Guided Response: Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts. Each response should be at least 75 words in length and should address two or more of the following:

·         Do you agree with your classmates’ perspectives? Why, or why not? Be specific.

·         Ask a specific question to encourage further discussion on the topic.

·         Challenge your classmates’ interpretation of literature and/or point of view.

·         Do a small amount of research and share what you learn with your peers about the topic discussed in this post.