Poetry

Danah Bakir
“Same Song” By: Pat Mora * Predictions: Based on the picture surrounding this poem, which is a mirror, I predict this poem will be about external beauty and the concept of beauty only being skin deep. Based on the title of this poem, I predict this poem will be about similar people’s stories and how they handle their situations in similar manners. The type of poem I think it’ll be is an observational and descriptive poem. I predict this because I think the author is going to use a lot of descriptive sentences about the characters because of the mirror being the picture with this poem. She could describe how the characters looked in the mirror. * Theme: The theme of this poem is negative self-body image. The people in this poem will never be content or satisfied with their body’s appearance no matter how hard they try to mold themselves into someone they are not. No matter how much makeup the girl in the poem applies, the mirror will still frown at her and she won’t be happy with her image. And consequently, no matter how much the boy exercises and molds his body to look stronger, the mirror will still frown at him and he won’t be content with his outside self. * Literary Techniques: One literary technique often used in this poem is imagery, mainly because the author is constantly describing the new image for both the girl and boy (the makeup used by the girl and the description of her face; also the workout for the boy and the description of his new body).
Another literary technique used by the author is symbolism. The main symbol in this poem is the mirror. The mirror symbolizes external beauty and no internal beauty at all, since a mirror obviously cannot see what a person is like on the inside.
A third literary technique is allusion. A reference was made to Snow White within the poem and that is with the use of the words “mirror, mirror”. The author wants to show how the evil witch in the story Snow White wants to mold herself into becoming the most beautiful woman in the land, so she looks into the mirror and is always dissatisfied with her looks, just like the children are unhappy with their looks.
These literary techniques develop the theme very well. By using imagery, the author is able to paint a descriptive image in the audience’s minds of just how much the children changed, such as all the makeup used and all the body muscles described. The symbolism in this poem also develops the theme. By using the mirror to symbolize external beauty, the author shows that beauty is not only skin deep; there is much more to a person than just what you see on the outside. By using the allusion referenced in the poem, the author is able to relate another story with hers. The witch in Snow White shares a very similar problem with the children in the poem and that is being insecure about their looks and wanting to change. By using the allusion, the author is able to emphasize the theme by giving the audience another, pre-existing story with a character with similar problems to relate back to. * Connections: The connections that the author wants the audience to make is to accept yourself for who you are, and don’t let society change you. One of the greatest accomplishments is to be yourself in a world that is ever-changing, and I think that is one of the major points stressed by Pat Mora in her poem. Back in the 1970s when this poem was written, a lot of prejudice occurred against many Mexicans, which included Pat Mora, so Mora wanted to stress that it is acceptable to be yourself. Based on my own experiences, I believe that modern society has come to a point where unless your body figure is slim and curvy for women, and big and muscular for males, you are not considered beautiful. Within this poem, Pat Mora tried to change that perspective by saying that whoever you are, and however you look, you are beautiful and unique. Negative self-body image has taken over the lives of many girls and boys today. They believe that they must change themselves, and alter their bodies into what society considers to be beautiful (makeup caked on for females and muscles bulging for males). I can definitely relate to this poem since the society that I live in today has the same problem as these to innocent, young children in the story.

“Legend” By: Garrett Hongo
Predictions: Based on the title of this poem, I predict it will be about an old story or myth that is being retold throughout many generations. Based on the picture, which is of an old man, I predict this old man will be the figure retelling the story, as I stated earlier with my prediction about the title of the poem. The type of poem this will be about is a narrative, because I think it will just be a straight told story.
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