Layers of Understanding

At first glance, Shakespeare’s Sonnet 130 appears to be a critique of conventional notions of beauty. The speaker compares his mistress to objects of nature and describes her in less-than-flattering terms, seemingly defying the typical poetic praise of a lover’s physical attributes. Instead of comparing her eyes to the sun or her lips to coral, he candidly admits her imperfections, stating “My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun; Coral is far more red than her lips’ red”(lines 1-2). However, amidst this apparent criticism lies an affirmation of genuine love that transcends superficial appearances “And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare,’ suggests that despite the speaker’s unconventional description of his mistress, his love for her is authentic and rare.”

Enter Catherine Tate’s character, a student who disrupts a classroom setting with her exaggerated antics and unconventional behavior. On the surface, she may seem like nothing more than a nuisance, embodying the antithesis of scholarly engagement. However, as the sketch unfolds, it becomes evident that there is more to her character than meets the eye. In a brilliant twist, Tate’s performance suggests that despite her outward demeanor, the student possesses a keen understanding of Shakespeare’s sonnet and its underlying themes- Much like the speaker in the sonnet, who sees beyond traditional standards of beauty to appreciate the true essence of his mistress, the audience is invited to look beyond the facade of the disruptive student to uncover her unexpected depth.

Tate’s comedic delivery and unexpected moments of insight character challenge preconceived notions and stereotypes. Her character becomes a symbol-like figure for the idea that intelligence and wisdom can manifest in unexpected ways, even in those who may not conform to societal expectations. In this light, Tate’s performance enhances the essence of Shakespeare’s sonnet by highlighting the notion that true understanding and appreciation go beyond surface-level impressions. Just as the speaker’s love for his mistress is genuine and true despite her perceived flaws, the audience’s appreciation for the student’s intellect is deepened by her unexpected depth.

-Mustang Chang

The Body, The Soul

In “Abecedarian Requiring Further Examination of Anglikan Seraphym Subjugation of a Wild Indian Rezervation” by Natalie Diaz, we are forced through the harsh reality of living on a reservation, using the perception of others and what they have done to transfer over to the self in what we look like and what we have done. When Diaz talks about the body in her 2018 interview, she means both a physical body and the soul within. When asked about lexicon, Diaz retreats back to how the body is shaped by how it is, and how it is described. Both her poem and her interview work towards enforcing her view on the perceived self and how Diaz wants to have better control over her own being and how she is seen. Enjambment is used to represent the constant change that happens in everyday life, we are, to other people, one thing then the next which could be inaccurate, when what we want is to be known and accepted as who we intentionally are. Implied metaphors are used with owls, bats, and coyotes, these animals are representative of Native American Mythology, owls and bats are symbolic of death while coyotes are symbolic of trickery. Diaz uses this symbolism, combined with implied metaphors to talk about a few characters the speaker mentions, Gabe and the Preacher’s son. Gabe is stated to “have wings” and goes around sleeping with women, traveling with stolen vehicles. It is hard to determine whether he is a coyote, a trickster, or a bat, a creature that is within both groups, animals and birds, often able to switch sides within Native American Mythology. The Preacher’s son is mentioned to be the “angel” in a Christmas pageant that is held during December. The speaker gives us the reason of skin color for why the Preacher’s son is given the role of an Angel, a religious and mystical symbol of both holiness and peace. However, the traditional meaning of an angels and religion is juxtaposed when we are told of the “White God that floated along the ocean”. This quote mentions the British Colonizers, including the American Colonies. We are told an impertinent description of these people, “rich and fat and ugly”. Diaz uses enjambment, implied metaphors, symbolism and juxtaposition to flip the perceptions we had as readers and to compel us to view the rough life on the reservations, the perceptions of people on the reservations and how she has perceived herself and her people.

Roman Arroyo

Fucking Amazing Poem

Vinnie Kim

I just wanna start off by saying, this poem is off the chain. “Like This” by Rumi is one of the only poems that I can genuinely say I enjoyed while reading. Rumi has such a beautiful way of using figurative language to give more meaning and emotional weight to his words. The English language, in my opinion, is so bland and words don’t carry that much emotion/weight. Especially with modern trends and whatever, even the phrase “I love you” has lost it’s meaning.

The poem depicts a picture of two people almost describing their love for one another, saying our love is perfect/ideal. “When lovers moan, they’re telling our story. Like this.” They’re telling OUR story. Sex now-a-days is something that happens 24/7 everywhere. Everyone to even teenagers are having sex. But everyone forgets that the original meaning and purpose of sex was to make love. Two people coming together and embracing one another to the fullest extent. The author is almost trying to draw the picture of what true love looks/feels like. As you read each line, the “like this” draws you in, almost pulls you.

Rumi also uses figurative language to say that true is love is so irresistible, even more infatuating than religion. “If anyone wonders how Jesus raised the dead, don’t try to explain the miracle. Kiss me on the lips. Like this. Like this.” Rumi is almost saying that this ideal relationship is more important than religion. He’s almost saying, push religion to the side, this love is more beautiful.

Love between two people is such a beautiful thing and people, because of society and the way the world works now, often forget that. This poem not only depicted the love between two people, but serves as a reminder of what love could be, maybe even should be.

The beauty of perception

By: Jasmine Carrillo

Robert Herrick and Ben Jonson do a great job at expressing their interpretation of art throughout their poetry. In both poems they mention a woman’s beauty and compare it to the beauty found in art. Although they do so, they both seem to have different ways of viewing are.

Herricks poem takes into account a woman’s beauty but he also goes beyond just what’s on the outside. He goes on and mentions “Do more bewitch me, then when are Is too precise in every part.” (Lines 13-14) Herrick likes when art is intricate because he enjoys analyzing it beyond just looks.

On the other hand, Jonson also has an appreciation for art but he doesn’t try going any deeper than whats visible to ones eyes. In lines 10 and 11, Jonson states “Such sweet neglect more taketh me”. My understanding to this is him stating that the “sweet neglect” of art is what one knows is there (whats beyond just seeing) but we choose to not even go there. He further goes on mentioning ” They strike mine eyes, but not my heart.”, this illustrates how he doesn’t really want to dive deeper but, art does in fact intrigue him.

So yes, both Jonson and Herrick believe art is a beautiful thing but they don’t agree on the nature of it. Herrick goes beyond whats on the outside and Jonson just takes in whats visible and leaves it at that.

To each their own

By Jasmine Carrillo

In my opinion, Marianne Moores poem defines poetry the best without making it very confusing to understand. Moores poem expresses, “…the same thing may be said for all of us, that we do not admire what we cannot understand.” Poetry is something that many will define in their own way. One specific poem can be understood by someone a completely different way than it can be understood by someone else. Of course, how Moore mentioned, poetry should somehow be understood by someone, and if it’s too complex or “unintelligible” then whoever is reading it might become uninterested. For myself, the Ferlinghetti and the Cummings poem was total gibberish. To someone else those poems could be the best poems ever written in the world. I think that this is what Moore is trying to say that poetry is. Poetry is something to be read with “contempt”. Once you do, whatever understanding you get from it, is what’s genuine to each individual.