投稿類別 : 英文寫作類. 篇名 : A Win-win Tug of War between a Poet and a Psychoanalysist 作者 : 胡峻瑋 國立新竹高級中學 高二 18 班

Transcription

1 投稿類別 : 英文寫作類 篇名 : 作者 : 胡峻瑋 國立新竹高級中學 高二 18 班 指導老師 : 蕭若綺老師

2 I. Introduction Poetry could be considered the most elegant genre of all writing styles. It incorporates the most condensed words to embody the beauty of language. Short lines, rhymes, rhythm, shapes, stories or images between lines constitute a complete work. With these distinctive features, however, poems are not well-presented in the context of schools. Most of them are decomposed. So, a crucial question pops up: How can a poem be appreciated without killing its uniqueness? The uniqueness of a poem in the present study is narrowed down to symbols, which refer to using an item to infer the theme (Arp & Johnson, 2002). The followings are some of the examples: an apple bright in A Poison Tree written by William Blake (as cited in Arp & Johnson, 2002) is a symbol of hatred and temptation; The two roads diverged in a yellow wood in The Road Not Taken written by Robert Frost (as cited in Arp & Johnson, 2002) form the symbol of choices in life; the stars in Annabel Lee written by Edgar Allan Poe (as cited in PoemHunter.com) symbolize the eyes of the speaker s lover. Psychoanalysis is an interesting discipline used to analyze poems. Rooted in Freud s theories, it leads readers to understand a poem from the angle of the poet by digging into his experiences and inspecting the reasons behind his work (George, 2011). This, however, causes uneasy relationship (Phillips, 2001, p.13) between poets and psychoanalysts. This relationship, to me, is so much like two parties in the game of tug of war. So, another crucial question occurs to me: Can t the game end with a win-win situation? My interest in English poems started with senior high school and so far I have composed more than twenty English poems. It is apparent that my works grow from my inner self, which is there but obscure. In my current phase, the gangplank to university, knowing who I am and exploring my life constitute my priority. Tasting my poems layer by layer will be like peeling my true self, showcasing my personality, interest, and life experience. The purpose of this study is to bring out some of the poems I have written and analyze them, not only to demonstrate how to appreciate poems in a fairer way but also to investigate me as a poet with this opportunity. II. Thesis 1

3 1. Personality 1.1 Reliable According to Oxford Advanced Learner s Dictionary, reliable refers to that can be trusted to do sth well; that you can rely on (2008, p. 1679). This characteristic is indicated in Next, particularly in stanza four, as shown below. Since you walk to me in grace Since you fall into my embrace Since we pace through the pillars Since we pull on sneakers and race Since I ask you to give me pizzazz Since I tell you we ll be the stars The above stanza depicts the interaction between the poet and his only friend. The two lines Since you fall into my embrace, and Since I tell you we ll be the stars reveal a believed courage and a shared sense of security. The third stanza, consisting of one line, At times we are two parallel lines is a more persuasive proof. The invisible connection links the two friends, which can never be attained without trust. 1.2 Sympathetic Oxford Advanced Learner s Dictionary defines sympathetic as kind to sb who is hurt or sad; showing that you understand and care about their problems (2008, p. 1679). This quality can be illustrated in two poems: Spot and Someday. Take the former for example. The fire sends you home With choking smoke and my howl Licking you as I m loving you All Allies, you all get home Alas, with me all alone Lamenting for me as you re loving me The two verbs Licking and Lamenting in the last line of each stanza create 2

4 a tableau of caressing, and the repeated pattern as [someone be] loving you/me clouds this poem with a sense of pity. In Someday, the wording throughout the whole poem clearly expounds the sympathy of the poet. Why do you wander alone? The night is coming Take my hand to bring you back Let the dark devour me, please I ve tasted the grudge and ordeal Close your eyes as if you were blind, only I could see you Don t touch my mascara of scar and bruise What re you doing? Wait! Wake up, the sunshine is calling Stand up, the ground is howling Hands up, the day is coming Never give up, the dream is rolling What can be seen in the first quoted stanza is the dialogue between the poet and a character. The greeting Why do you wander alone? The night is coming as well as the invitations to Take my hand to bring you back and Close your eyes as if you were blind, only I could see you illustrate the warmth of the poet. The last stanza indicates the poet s ability to cheer the character, a depressor, up. 1.3 Romantic Romantic in Oxford Advanced Learner s Dictionary is defined as showing feelings of love (2008, p. 1734). This characteristic is shown in Polaris, Dead Dream, and Migrant. Let s start with the first one. If I were yours I could hold your hands and bring you to everywhere Capture every expression of you with my eyes Engrave every mood of you into my life 3

5 Then tell you the most beautiful in the world-is you. If I were yours I could caress your face and kiss you at everywhere Taste every breath of you with my tongue Feel every warmth of you with my arms Then tell you the most beautiful in the world-is you. These lines create an impression of one-side love with the subjunctive mood, If I were yours. The poet wants to hold, to confess his love to, to caress, and to kiss the girl. This scenario is indeed romantic though a sense of sadness is woven between lines. As for Dead Dream, the focus should be put on the last four stanzas, as can be seen underneath. I will spend the last remaining day with you My beloved Pieces of lyrics, elegant melody, and Muse by the piano I am willing to pluck up thornless roses for you As you in my eyes, the most beautiful without defense Then I will get drunken Drunken in your tenderness and temperament Drunken in the red hickey left on my left chest I will The most interesting word in the fourth line I am willing to pluck up thornless roses for you is the coined word thornless. All roses have thorns, the description that is against our common sense echoes an episode in The Little Prince (Saint-Exupery, 2000). In chapter eight, the rose claims that she is not afraid of tigers because she has four thorns. If thorns are considered the arms of roses, then thornless roses have no defense at all. It is thus implied that for the poet the essence of love is sheer tolerance without conflicts or struggles. In the followed two stanzas, the poet uses drunken to describe the dizzy state of mind which the poet has when staying with the girl he loves. 4

6 Migrant is another poem that emits an aroma of a sincere love. It s chilly here in the northern island Standing here is me, to see you off You leave a word without turning back, let-go It s comfy there in the southern island Traveling there is you, to set you free Since then you re no longer a Frisbee Once you were every moment in my eyes Your appearance comes and goes with seasons You are a migrant in romance Yet I am emptiness You reign the marine breath, just unintentionally swinging the wings My tears watered that sandbar, just uninhibitedly indulging the pledge The remotest horizon hangs a beam of incomplete smile You re exhausted, living in the time tide I catch the fallen feathers, piecing them together Hope you see the wetland, and that plain flower Waves of waving reeds as your tranquil habitat Someday you ll fly again, and someday I ll fly Embrace, to the high, one wing respectively The poet paves a special path for romance with the rhythm of the poem: from separation, described in the first stanza, to missing, shown in the second stanza; from missing to inferiority, found in the third stanza; and from inferiority to reunion, presented in the last stanza. In the first stanza, the moment of bidding goodbye is revealed to readers. Repetition in the second stanza creates a contrast between the poet, just uninhibitedly indulging the pledge and another character, just unintentionally swinging the wings. This contrast shadows the entire poem. In the third stanza, the hurt poet by a shoal of feathers is caressed by a gentle woman beside him. The last stanza ends with an image of two clinging angels, which reaches the peak of romance in this poem. 2. Interest 5

7 2.1 Football The theme of football appears in Play the Beauty and Dead Dream. The former will be discussed first. OH~OH~OH~ Shake your body and make you high Goal~ Goal~ Goal~ Jump your body and let you go wild Ale! Ale! Ale! Wave your flag; you want it? Ale! Ale! Ale! Sing your beats; you want it? Waka Waka Shed your sweats and drink your tears Waka Waka Run your way and lighten your buddies Waka Waka Dribble, tackle, and weave the gorgeous vibes Waka Waka Let s go the beautiful game OH~, Ale!, and Waka Waka are used in this poem to build the atmosphere of an arena, where the audience is passionate about the game. What should catch readers eyes is the term Waka Waka, which means cheer up in Afrikaans and which earns its popularity during the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa because of the theme song Waka Waka sung by Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll. On the other hand, the first day in Dead Dream reveals another clue to the poet s interest. I will spend one day playing football With my best teammates One ball, two goalmouths, and eleven burning hearts 6

8 I am willing to use up the last breath of my energy Stretching on the sward The poet s enthusiasm about football is directly exposed with his first choice to play a good football game with his teammates if he only has only three days to live. 3. Life experience 3.1 Religion To some extent, religion plays an important part in the life experience of human beings, particularly for those who are pious. It somehow directs people to honor their God in their daily life, and the poet is no exception. The poem The Verse of Rovers, proves this concept. The city was sleeping soundly in the dead of night; Only some feeble lights remained. In the chilly winter, I didn t know where to go I just sat down on the ground, alone Along with mice and bugs; Along with passion and hope; Along with my tired body and falling heart. He had granted my life with enormous torture, As lots of inspirations punching on me. Little girl, please give me a match, so that I can see Maria. Old man, please give me some bread, so that I can see Jesus. Beautiful lady, please give me some water so that I can wander around. Gentleman, please give me one hug so that I can hear my heartbeat. Once I was the raging blaze Till the heavy rain of human prosperity drenched me. 7

9 Fire in the mist. Belief in the myth. Crawling in the crowd, I knew Only He would come to my rescue. The first stanza portrays the poet s everyday experience. Hard and miserable as the life is, it doesn t drench his hope to the world. Then a twist turns in the second stanza. It seems that the poet is complaining to God, but in some way, a sense of appreciation, a possible blessing in disguise, is leaked as well. The third stanza contains a series of metaphors, which point to the direction of the religion of the poet: a match to Maria is inspired by Den Lille Pigemed Svovlstikkerne written by Hans Christian Anderson; the bread to Jesus echoes the picture II Cenacolo or L Ultima Cena drawn by Leonardo da Vinci. He, referring to Heavenly Father in Christianity, in the end of the poem, is the last straw to rescue the poet. III. Conclusion Many theories have been proposed to analyze poems in the field of literature. In the present study, the analysis aims to dig a ditch to go into the poet s mind, which, thus, highlights the life experience, interest, and personality of the poet. Sigmund Freud has stated that before a poem is completely interpreted, it can and should be obtrusively interpreted like dreams, which are created by multiple motivations and conflicts (as cited in 王溢嘉, 2001). Due to the space of this essay, the conflict part is not discussed but the motivation part is indeed well elaborated. The first objective of the present study is to present a possible way to taste a poem. What the above analysis suggests is to try to interpret a poem from more than one aspect, to accept all possible explanations, and to think deeper about the theme from the angle of the poet, while one enjoys the symbols handpicked by the poet. Symbols in poems are small things that can magnify the reality, which further magnifies the poet s heart. They are what cannot be missed to understand the poem and thus the poet. For Sigmund Freud, people are all poets who reveal unspeakable facts with a creative use of language (Phillips, 2001). Step by step, we are not only appreciating a poem but also sneaking into the inner world of the poet, which may not be known to him at all and which may be applied to the readers. 8

10 The second objective of this study is to explore who I really am. The results of the above analysis confirm what my calling is, what I am concerned about, and what ability I have. All in all, it seems that a great confidence is built for my future. Most important of all, the tug of war between the poet and the psychoanalysist in my case is surely a win-win situation. IV. Reference Arp, T. R., & Johnson, G. (2002). Perrine s sound and sense: An introduction to poetry (10 th ed.). Australia: Wadsworth Cengage Learning. George, J. (2011). Psychological criticism and Dickinson s poetry. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from cal-criticism-and-dickinsons-poetry/ Oxford advanced learner s dictionary (7 th ed.). (2008). NY: Oxford. Phillips, A. (2001). Promises, promises: Essays on literature and psychoanalysis. NY: Basic Books. PoemHunter.com. Retrieved March 30, 2016, from Saint-Exupery, A. d. (2000). The Little Prince (R. Howard, Trans.). San Diego: Harcourt. 王溢嘉 (2001) 精神分析與文學 台北縣 : 野鶴 9