Poetry is Fun
Following a Model by a Master
Model to Follow Poem
Portrait VIII
Buffalo Bill’s
defunct
who used to
ride a watersmooth-silver
stallion
and break onetwothreefourfive pigeons justlikethat
Jesus
he was a handsome man
and what i want to know is
how do you like your blueeyed boy
Mr. Death
-
e e cummings
The poem at left was written by a master of
the free verse form of poetry
e e cummings broke the rules of grammar to
make every letter, every word, every
space within his poem have meaning
He often played with language, making the
images on the page force the reader to
experience the poems physically, not
just mentally (as in his concrete poem
about the grasshopper which you
experienced earlier)
Look at the poem and list the parts of it that
demonstrate his playfulness with words,
and identify WHAT effect his tinkering
has on the way we read the poem
Model to Follow
Portrait VIII 1/2
e. e. someone
buried by busy ones
used to
wish yes aprils with a you
and a me
and write onetwothreefourfive poems justlikethat
by dong and by ding
he was a perceptive man
and what i want to know is
where is he now when we need him
Mister Death
-
Bill Irwin
They say that imitation can be the
sincerest form of flattery
Bill Irwin took the pattern of
e e cummings poem and paid
tribute to the poet by using some
of cummings own poetic
devices and words in the poem
at left
Look at the poem and see if you can
identify the techniques Irwin
used that are specifically copied
from the original poem by
cummings
Model to Follow
Portrait VIII 1/2(b)
Arnold Schwarzenegger
“Guvernor”
but used to
make action films
“I lied”
and pump up onetwothreefourfive villains justlikethat
Conan
he was steroid man
and what I want to know is
how do you like your women now
Predator
- Richard Morrell
January 2007
At left, you see my newest attempt to
follow the model of cummings, by
employing the borrowed
techniques that Irwin chose.
Notice that the layout is the same, and
certain passages from the original
have been lifted exactly from the
original text.
Now, you will write your poem following
the model of cummings. You may
break writing convention, and can
smash words together as
cummings did. Some of the
structure of the models must be
retained. Where that occurs, the
lines are typed in and in italics…
You begin by choosing someone
famous to write about
Portrait VIII 1/2 (a)
Michael Jackson
Trapped
but used to
make the girls swoon
“A B C”
And spin onetwothreefourfive times justlikethhat
“Thriller”
He was a black man
and what I want to know is
How do you like your mask now
Elephant Man
Richard Morrell
Fall 2003
Portrait IX
by Antonio T
Beyonce
Dreamgirl
Qui ckTime™ and a
TIFF (U ncompr essed) decompressor
are needed to see thi s pi cture.
Who used to
Say my name, say my name
B’Day
And shake onetwothreefourfive times justlikethat
Irreplaceable
She was destiny’s child
and what I want to know is
Can you pay my bills?
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
QuickT i me™ and a
T IFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed t o see thi s pi cture.
Poem
•
Einar
who works now
But used to
work at greasy
Quic k Ti me™ and a
T IFF (Unc om pres s ed) dec om pres s or
are needed to s ee t his pic t ure.
Mcdonald’s
But then onetwothree quit his job justlikethat
DAMN
He was a stressed man
and what I want to know is
Why did you “quit”
Mr. Fatman
-Ignacio A
Poem # 5
• Mr. Morrell
who works at the school
But used to
QuickTime™ and a
work for the
TIF F (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
ARMY
But then onetwothree quit his job justlikethat
DAMN
He was a lost man in careers
but what I want to know is
Why did you make us write these poems!!
Mr. Funnyman
-Ignacio A, not bad huh?
QuickTi me™ and a
TIFF ( Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see thi s pi ctur e.
Portrait
Chris Brown
Singer
but used to
a normally kid that
lived in VA
and write onetwothreefourfive
songs justlikethat
talentedЙ
youngest R&B singer around
and what I want to
know is
How do you like being famous
and rich?
Portrait IX
T.I.
Rapper
Who used to be
a bag boy Paper or Plastic
And sack onetwothreefourfive groceries justlikethat
“What you know about that”
King Of the South
and what I want to know is
What does he really know about what?
-Karissia S, 2006
Portrait by Igor K
Borat
The movie star
Who used to make his peers laugh
and me
And make onetwothreefourfive
jokes justlikethat
He was a funny man
and what I want to know is
How you gonna deal with all the
lawsuits
Funny man
QuickTi me™ and a
T IFF (Uncom pressed) decom pressor
are needed to see t his pict ure.
PORTRAIT IX
50 cent
Rapper
who used to
say I got shot nine times
QuickTime™ and a
TIFF (Uncompr essed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
“Ja rule”
And got famous onetwothreefourfive times in the U.S just like that
G-Unit
Shot to fame
And whatt I want to know is
how you came about being so rich in a short amount of time?
Hustler
By George N
Model to Follow Format
Portrait IX
_______________________ [name of person]
_______________________ [current status/situation of person]
but used to (or) used to (or) who used to (or variation of these)
_________________________________
___________
_______________ onetwothreefourfive ________________ justlikethat
___________ [strong expression/expletive]
____________________________ [a one-time quality of individual]
and what i want to know is
_________________________________________ [ask some question]
___________________ [create an apostrophe (a reference to the individual that captures a quality about them)]
USE THE HANDOUT TO COMPLETE THIS… IT WILL HELP YOU FORMAT YOUR POEM
YOUR TURN
Create your own Portrait poem
(Model to Follow) then add it to
your power point poetry portfolio