Leslie Rodriguez ENC 1102 MW 1-2:15pm American Modernist Poetry 1 Notes Anyone Lived in a Pretty How Town • This poem is more harsh than the others and more up-front. • The main idea is that everyone is the same, all humans die • Time never stops • Asks the question in life/humanity is pointless • We are all just a “Cog in the machine” we are just a part of a whole, we have no individuality • We all have a constant routine and we keep that same routine for the rest of our lives Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night • Theme: life and death, regret • This poem is a direct message from the narrator to his father o Their life is ending ad they are filled with regret • Don’t give up, seize the day (Carpe Diem) mentality • Similar to the Light Brigade poem because they know they’ll die, but they fight anyway • “Rage against”= fighting, keep on fighting • Message of dying honorably and without regrets Harlem • Life doesn’t always go the way we plan • Dreams can change, can be broken • A lot of imagery Dream Variations • African American community wants freedom • They dream of equality • They find freedom in isolation Love Calls Us to the Things of This World • The people the author refers to could possibly be angels • Narrator calls for the acceptance of all people • Everyone has a good side and a dark side o Theme: dark/light, good/bad • The poem is about humanity and about the worth of our own lives o What it means to be alive 2
