My Father

The memory of my father is wrapped up in
White paper, like sandwiches taken for a day at work.

Just as a magician takes towers and rabbits
Out of his hat, he drew love from his small body.
Yehuda Amichau

In this section from "My Father" by Amichau, the flow of the poem speaks strongly to the reader. The poem being about a father makes it easily relatable, for most people have a father or a fatherly figure that remains in their life. Also it renews a warm, fuzzy feeling that oozes out of a father and his presence’s. When reading this, I instantly found the image of my father in my brain, and I related the poem to his doings. I can easily picture the author creating this piece and searching for memories to help progress the poem, because of the line of how the memory of his father is “wrapped up,” like a sandwich.

This poem creates not only a theme of admiration for his father, but also uses strong and relatable imagery to developing ideas within the poem. The imagery of a magician pulling a rabbit out of his surprisingly smaller hat relates so creatively to the father’s large love coming out of “his small body.” The use of this is so innovative and not expected, but it’s also so relatable and familiar that it fits perfectly into the poem. This same concept is also applied to the sandwich wrapper. This idea of using something uncommonly used to describe a feeling is

Once by the Pacific

The shattered water made a misty din.
Great waves looked over others coming in,
And thought of doing something to the shore
That water never did to land before.
The clouds were low and hairy in the skies,
Like locks blown forward in the gleam of eyes.
You could not tell, and yet it looked as if
The shore was lucky in being backed by cliff,
The cliff in being backed by continent;
It looked as if a night of dark intent
Was coming, and not only a night, an age.
Someone had better be prepared for rage.
There would be more than ocean-water broken
Before God's last Put out the Light was spoken.
By Robert Frost

Robert Frost poems, “Once by the Pacific,” fluently speaks to the reader through personification and smooth movement from one line to another line. Imagery also is used throughout the poem like, “The clouds were low and hairy in the skies,” but personification is mainly used, “the water never did to land before.” Over all the poem is well crafted and Frost is yet again a talent poet.

Robert Frost’s use of personification in “Once by the Pacific,” is strong and evident. The sea comes to live within the poem showing human qualities and ideas. The ocean seam almost angry as if a storm is brewing due to the “dark intent…of the night,” this strong use of personification lets the reader have a personal connection with a nonliving subject. There is also a direct connection with the angry sea and the people because a mad sea will affect them with all its rage.

Night Crow

When I saw that clumsy crow
Flap from a wasted tree,
Over the gulfs of dream
Flew a tremendous bird
Further and further away
Into a moonless black,
Deep in the brain, far back.
By: Theodore Roethke

Theodore Roethke creates such full compassion in a rather short poem. The poem itself leaves the reader wondering what does the night crow stand for. It suggests through the poem that it is symbol with the usage of such lines like “deep in the brain.” It is more the clumsy of someone’s conscience than anything else. Roethke is a wonderful poet, strong in his writing, and sure in his ideas.

In the “Night Crow” symbolism is heavily used. Even from the title a reader can be clued in that this poem is not just simple but more complex. The poem talks about the difference between reality and imagination. “Over the gulfs of dream” allows us to understand that crow is seen in a dream and how it is a symbol of imagination. I would like to apprentice myself to Roethke for his usage of symbolizing imagination. It is such a free subject and I would be delightful to write about.

The Train

I like to see it lap the miles,
And lick the valleys up,
And stop to feed itself at tanks;
And then, prodigious, step

By Emily Dickinson





The poem is brilliant. The description of the train is inspiring and incredibly creative. Dickinson ability to engulf the reader is so dominant and ensuring. Though it takes a coupling of readings to understand the full context of the poem and the emphases placed through brilliance and inception. It is very captive and entraining to read.

Throughout this poem Emily Dickinson cleverly depicts the life of a train with the use of personification. The used of personification throughout her poem portrays the train performing humanlike behaviors to illustrates the trains motions in actuality. Dickinson describes the train as it “lick[s] up the valleys” and feed[s] itself at a tank. These activities do not mean the train is actually licking the valleys and feeding itself out of a tank. Dickinson creatively describes the act of the train moving through the valley blissfully and quickly, while occasionally stopping to fuel its engine to continue down the road. By illuminating the trains activity with human like characteristics, the author keeps the reader’s full attention as the concept of the train becomes more relate able to the audience. The use of personification throughout a piece can truly captivate the audience’s attention, while also bringing life to a piece.

Park Bench

“I beg a dime for dinner –
You got a butler and maid.
But I’m walkin’ up!
Say, ain’t you afraid”
--Langston Hughes

“Park Bench’s” narrator is a homeless man talking to a wealthy audience. He talks of how he “lives on a park bench” but can see Park Avenue in the distance. He then compares himself to the wealthy, how he has to “beg a dime for dinner” while they have a “butler and maid.” While the poem is relatively short, only three stanza, it has great composition. It’s meaning and depth or endless making it beautifully written.


Hughes creates a story, character, and plot in a relatively poem. His ability to create a in-depth character in a short time is remarkable. From this poem the reader can easily see that the narrator is homeless, needs dinner, and want to eventually live on Park Avenue. But it is not just the hard facts that makes the narrator, it is also the ability see his mood, tone, and dreams. This poem shows how a narrator who is reader friendly is beneficial. Hughes is a great poet to apprentice.

Why I Went to College

“If you don’t,
My father said,
You better learn
To eat soup
Through a straw,
‘cause I’m gonna
Break your jaw”
-Martin Espada

“Why I Went to College,” is a Haiku that at this time of my life I can relate to. From this poem you can infer that the father is strict and pushing for an educational route for his son. Also this poem gives a humors out look of Espada’s future and a funny reason why he decide to go to college. Without the title this poem would be lacking a lot of sense and could be seen in a more serious, abusive way.


This is a good poem to apprentice myself to because it says so much in only a few words. The length of each line only consist of three words making them relatively short, however his ability to express a though through each line is brilliant. Also Espada doesn’t use punctuation at the end of each line allowing for a more fluent reading and also allowing for the lines which do have punctuation to more dominant. The poem is relatable, humors, and witty all wrapped up in one.

Two Sunflowers Move in the Yellow Room.

"Ah, William, we're weary of weather,"
said the sunflowers, shining with dew.
"Our traveling habits have tired us.
Can you give us a room with a view?"

They arranged themselves at the window
and counted the steps of the sun,
and they both took root in the carpet
where the topaz tortoises run.

BY: William Blake


“Two Sunflowers Move in the Yellow Room,” is a terrific example of personification at its finest. The Sunflowers, weary of rain are looking for a “room with a view” where they can take “root in the carpet.” Blake also does great jobs with catchy phrases and brilliant imagery. This poem can easily be enjoyed by any age, making it very versatile. William Blake created an allusion of humanistic sunflowers by applying detailed traits to them.

Personification is a useful technique that can be applied to poetry. Personification is the attribution of human characteristics to a non-human object. Blake applies this technique throughout, “Two Sunflowers Move in the Yellow Room,” by express human traits in sunflowers. They speak, and travel just as a pair of people would. By giving the sunflowers human characteristics Blake allows for them to become more relatable to the reader. These non-human character essentially resemble something very relatable that the reader can significantly connect easier with them. This technique is easily applicable and readers respond well to it.