List of Fives Part Seventeen
Five Favorite Poems--In no particular order
1. Fire and Ice, Robert Frost. My sister will laugh at this because I am not a big Robert Frost fan. But I've always loved this poem. I have a soft spot for "Nothing Gold Can Stay," but that's more because of "The Outsiders" novel than anything else. What do I love about "Fire and Ice?" I love its simplicity. The poem is about the end of the world and what does it matter how it ends? Frost says that when it comes to hate, which could very well lead to world destruction, hot or cold is irrelevant. Great stuff.
2. Resume by Dorothy Parker. Miss Parker was a whip, a pistol, and a genius. This poem, all eight lines, are precise. Life is pain... deal with it. But she says it with a glimmer and a wink. And a healthy dose of reality.
3. The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. This was a close call. It was either this or Poe's "The Bells." But "The Raven" won because it is a horror story in a poem. Thus is Poe's genius. He was never afraid to shy away from the darker side of things and "The Raven" exemplifies that perfectly. Madness is never that far away, is it?
4. Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson. How odd. I just realized that I've picked American poets. Strange. Anyway, Dickinson is somber and morose but here she manages to find solace in Death as, in the guise of a suitor, they make their way through her ending life toward eternity. It's probably Dickinson's best work.
5. Sonnet 116 by William Shakespeare. Yes, it is probably the most popular of his Sonnets. But there's a reason. It's beautiful. Oh, to know for sure what the poet speaks of, a love that "bears it out even to the edge of doom." Does loving this poem make me a romantic? We could argue that until forever. I just adore this. I believe that such a love is possible. At least, I hope it is.
1. Fire and Ice, Robert Frost. My sister will laugh at this because I am not a big Robert Frost fan. But I've always loved this poem. I have a soft spot for "Nothing Gold Can Stay," but that's more because of "The Outsiders" novel than anything else. What do I love about "Fire and Ice?" I love its simplicity. The poem is about the end of the world and what does it matter how it ends? Frost says that when it comes to hate, which could very well lead to world destruction, hot or cold is irrelevant. Great stuff.
2. Resume by Dorothy Parker. Miss Parker was a whip, a pistol, and a genius. This poem, all eight lines, are precise. Life is pain... deal with it. But she says it with a glimmer and a wink. And a healthy dose of reality.
3. The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe. This was a close call. It was either this or Poe's "The Bells." But "The Raven" won because it is a horror story in a poem. Thus is Poe's genius. He was never afraid to shy away from the darker side of things and "The Raven" exemplifies that perfectly. Madness is never that far away, is it?
4. Because I Could Not Stop for Death by Emily Dickinson. How odd. I just realized that I've picked American poets. Strange. Anyway, Dickinson is somber and morose but here she manages to find solace in Death as, in the guise of a suitor, they make their way through her ending life toward eternity. It's probably Dickinson's best work.
5. Sonnet 116 by William Shakespeare. Yes, it is probably the most popular of his Sonnets. But there's a reason. It's beautiful. Oh, to know for sure what the poet speaks of, a love that "bears it out even to the edge of doom." Does loving this poem make me a romantic? We could argue that until forever. I just adore this. I believe that such a love is possible. At least, I hope it is.
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