Poetry is Fun

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Poetry is Fun

• Following a Model by a Master

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Model to Follow Poem

• 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

• Portrait VIII
• Buffalo Bills
• 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

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Model to Follow

• 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

• 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

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Model to Follow

• 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(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

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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

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Portrait IX by Antonio T

• Beyonce
• Dreamgirl
• Who used to
• Say my name, say my name
• 
  BDay
• And shake onetwothreefourfive times justlikethat
• 
  Irreplaceable
• She was destinys child
• and
  what I want to know is
• Can you pay my bills?

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Poem

• Einar
• who works now
• But used to
• work at greasy
• Mcdonalds
• 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

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Poem 5

• Mr. Morrell
• who works at the school
• But used to
• work for the
• 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?

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Portrait
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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
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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

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PORTRAIT IX

• 50 cent
• Rapper
• who used to
• say I got shot nine times
• 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

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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

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YOUR TURN

• Create your own Portrait poem (Model to Follow)
  then add it to your power point poetry portfolio