The Funeral By Gordon Parks
The Funeral, by: Gordon Parks
“Death ends a life, not a relationship.” ― Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie. In “The Funeral,” a poem by Gordon Parks, it talks about his father's own funeral. Gordon Parks was a photographer, director, poet, and a screenwriter. He worked at Life Magazine and he also composed music. He was born in Chicago in 1912. In 1942 he won a photography contest. I chose this poem because of the title and the picture next to the poem. “The Funeral” is a descriptive poem that talks about the authors deceased father. The author focuses on the usage of hyperbole to show how perceptions of the world seem smaller when we return home.
The author uses his voice to narrate his experience with his own father’s funeral. He sets the
scene in a country burial ground on snowy day. A literary device used for this poem is alliteration. Alliteration is “the repetition of the initial consonant sounds. Though alliteration usually refers to the sounds at the beginnings of the words, it can also be used to refer to sounds within the words.” It is used in this poem by saying Curving on to China, Kansas City or perhaps Calcutta.
The main focus of the author was the usage of hyperbole. Hyperbole is “ an overstatement, or exaggeration, used for a dramatic effect.” The following are examples of hyperbole used in The Funeral; “mere hills”, great mountains, raging rivers, wide road, and one hundred strong men. Personification is a figure of speech in which an animal, a thing, a force of nature, or an idea is described as if it was a human or is given human characteristics. It is used by saying “time whittled” and “wide road...withered.” A metaphor is used to compare the author's father to a giant.
“Death ends a life, not a relationship.” ― Mitch Albom, Tuesdays with Morrie. In “The Funeral,” a poem by Gordon Parks, it talks about his father's own funeral. Gordon Parks was a photographer, director, poet, and a screenwriter. He worked at Life Magazine and he also composed music. He was born in Chicago in 1912. In 1942 he won a photography contest. I chose this poem because of the title and the picture next to the poem. “The Funeral” is a descriptive poem that talks about the authors deceased father. The author focuses on the usage of hyperbole to show how perceptions of the world seem smaller when we return home.
The author uses his voice to narrate his experience with his own father’s funeral. He sets the
scene in a country burial ground on snowy day. A literary device used for this poem is alliteration. Alliteration is “the repetition of the initial consonant sounds. Though alliteration usually refers to the sounds at the beginnings of the words, it can also be used to refer to sounds within the words.” It is used in this poem by saying Curving on to China, Kansas City or perhaps Calcutta.
The main focus of the author was the usage of hyperbole. Hyperbole is “ an overstatement, or exaggeration, used for a dramatic effect.” The following are examples of hyperbole used in The Funeral; “mere hills”, great mountains, raging rivers, wide road, and one hundred strong men. Personification is a figure of speech in which an animal, a thing, a force of nature, or an idea is described as if it was a human or is given human characteristics. It is used by saying “time whittled” and “wide road...withered.” A metaphor is used to compare the author's father to a giant.