Poetry Response

     The poem I chose to research is called "A Valentine" by Edgar Allen Poe. This poem is about a woman that Poe fell in love with and he basically pours all his feelings towards her in this poem. Poe tells the characteristics of the woman and what he loves about her.

     I think that Edgar Allen Poe wrote this poem because he really loved the woman, and he wanted to let her know how much he did. Somewhere in the poem the woman's name is hidden. Throughout the poem he is giving hints to the reader as to where to find the name.

“A Valentine”
Edgar Allen Poe

For her this rhyme is penned, whose luminous eyes,

Brightly expressive as the twins of Lœda,

Shall find her own sweet name, that, nestling lies

Upon the page, enwrapped from every reader.

Search narrowly the lines! -- they hold a treasure

Divine -- a talisman -- an amulet

That must be worn at heart. Search well the measure --

The words -- the syllables! Do not forget

The trivialest point, or you may lose your labor!

And yet there is in this no Gordian knot

Which one might not undo without a sabre,

If one could merely comprehend the plot.

Enwritten upon the leaf where now are peering

Eyes scintillating soul, there lie perdus

Three eloquent words oft uttered in the hearing

Of poets, by poets -- as the name is a poet’s, too.

Its letters, although naturally lying

Like the knight Pinto -- Mendez Ferdinando --

Still form a synonym for Truth. -- Cease trying!

You will not read the riddle, though you do the best you can do.

HINTS: 
first letter of her name is the first letter on the first line
the second letter of the first word on the second line
third letter of the first word of the third line
fourth letter of the first word on the fourth line
fifth letter of the first word on the fifth line
sixth letter of first word on the sixth line
seventh letter of the first word on the seventh line.

The poem "A Valentine" reminds me of two teens that are in love and the guy is too shy to admit it so instead of telling her he dedicates a poem to her. I think that because the way Poe (the teenage boy) wrote the poem, by hiding the girls name, it makes me think that maybe he was too shy to actually tell her he loves her, so he dedicated a poem to the woman. I do not know the actual reason why Edgar Allen poe wrote it, but where I found the poem it says he wrote it on Valentine's Eve 1849.

     As I was reading the poem "A Valentine" I visualized a heart with the name of the woman because to me the heart is Edgar Allen Poe's heart and since he loves that woman so much I thought that she was forever in his heart. I wrote Frances Sargent Osgood inside the heart because that is the woman's full name, but in the poem 'Frances' is the part that is hidden in the poem.

Commented on: Amilee's, Emily's, Hazelle's

2nd Quarter Reflection

In what area do you think you made your biggest 
improvements in English Language Arts? 

     The area I think that I have improved on this quarter in ELA is vocabulary because I got better scores this quarter than last quarter. I think that I improved because in the 1st quarter I was not used to studying that much and having to memorize words and their definitions was really difficult. It still is but I've gotten better at focusing on the words and I repeat them over and over again. 

What has been the most challenging part of 2nd Quarter for you

and what did/can you do to help overcome this?

     The most challenging part of the 2nd quarter for me was getting all my homework done in time. Although I did turn my homework in on time, I struggled with this because I had sports started and I did not have enough time to do my homework after my games. What I did was to do my homework ahead of time, or finish everything in class so I did not have to do it at home. If I had a blog or AOW due at the end of the week, I would finish it on Tuesday afternoon so I wouldn't have to worry about it. 

How have your research skills improved?

     I think that my research skills have improved a lot since 1st quarter because in the 2nd quarter we did much more assignments that required research. A lot of those assignments were very difficult because I could not find the proper information so I had to learn some strategies to help me. One of the strategies I used was that if I couldn't find what I was looking for, then I would search something similar. Most of the time I would find something else and I would use it in my work, but other times I didn't find anything so I had to remove that question. I honestly struggle with research because I get frustrated when I cannot find any information, and most of the time I just give up. I know that's not the best thing to do, but I can't think of anything else to do. The next time I feel frustrated for not finding information, I will try looking for key words, or specific things, instead of broad topics. I think that if I do that instead, then I will find what I am looking for.

Blog Week of 1/18/16

     The book that I am currently reading falls under realistic fiction and is called Stray Voltage (1-70) by Eugenie Doyle. This book is about a boy named Ian that lives with his father, his older brother named Ray and his Aunt Julie. Ian and his family live in a rural place in northern Vermont. A winter storm hits and it gets hard for the farms because the storm pulled the power lines and stray voltage gets loose on the farm and accidentally shocks humans and animals. Ian's mom leaves them and it gets hard for the rest of the family to run the farm. Ian is feeling sorrow because his mother abandoned him and he gets really lonely since he isn't that close to his father or brother. He starts to struggle and has no idea what to do, he wants to look for his mom but he does not think she'll want to come back. His life changed negatively ever since his mother decided to go "figure things out". 

     The main character in my book is Ian. Ian is a smart 11 year old boy that enjoys writing poetry.  He is hardworking because he loves to help out in the farm and always does his homework no matter how difficult it is. Ian never gives up. Even though his mom abandoned him, he always has hope that she'll return. 

     Ian's biggest conflict that he had to overcome was the feeling of emptiness when his mom left him. Although she did not leave because of anything he did, but it was because she had to figure some things out, so in her place she sent her twin sister Julie. Ian has been struggling in the last 4 chapters that I have read. He really wants to go and visit her, but is very indecisive on what to do. He's afraid that she won't agree to come back. 

     The mood of this story is fair-minded because at times it can be upsetting but other times it can be pleasant. The reason that I find it upsetting is because of the struggle he goes through without his mom and the way his dad treats him, but I find it amusing because he has a great time with friends and he enjoys school. In the story it also includes the poems he writes and I think that is great because the poems are really good and interesting. 

     I think that the theme is perseverance because he never gives up on his work and he keeps living life to the fullest, even though he is going through a tough time he doesn't let that get in the way. 

     I enjoy this book because it focuses on friends and family and I think that it's relatable and many people can picture themselves as the main character as if it was their own story. What I remember most about this story is that Ian's mom had left him an early Christmas gift, which was a kitten, and at times he really hates the cat and other times he loves it and shows his sensitive side and I find that amusing because he can call it stupid one minute and the next he'll be cuddling with it.  I would recommend this book to anyone that loves a family/friends story because this book is full of it. It talks about family problems and I think that most of these problems are really relatable. 

     

commented on: Sumar's, Amilee's, Evelyn's