“The Harlem Dancer” vs “Harlem Shadows”

“The Harlem Dancer” is told through an imperfect Shakespearean sonnet. I say imperfect because at line 11-12, there is the use of a unrhymed word,”the”, which is an enjambment that leads into the next line. These two lines stand out because they are the reason the sonnet is 15 lines instead 14. McKay wanted to bring emphasis to petrachan lady, the dancer, by emphasizing that both boys and girls were in awe at her beauty. The sonnet is set on a warm, sunny day. This is clear in line 4 by the phrase, “upon a picnic day,” (McKay). If it is nice enough to have a picnic, it is most likely sunny. This sonnet, although celebrating the dancer’s beauty, has a darker undertone. In the rhyming couplet, the speaker says the dancer has a, “falsey-smiling face,” (Mckay). Although her body and face may express joy about what she is doing, there is an eery feeling that the dancer does not enjoy what she does. She has to perform in “light gauze” that does not cover much of her body. She is on display to be ogled by anyone.

From the first glance at “Harlem Shadows”, it is much longer than “The Harlem Dancer”. The first two stanzas are told in a Shakespearean sonnet however, there is an extra stanza. However, similar to the first sonnet, there is a tone shift. Since this is an irregular sonnet, I believe the volta appears at the start of the third stanza. This is because the sonnet moves from describing the actions of the young prostitute to aching for the young prostitute.

Both sonnets focused on the women of Harlem who have had to take up jobs they don’t like to make money. The Dancer must entertain and show off her body, while the young prostitute has to sell her body for money. The dancer performs in the daylight, where anyone can see her face. Her family could walk by and see her. However, the young prostitute does her job at night where she can hide away from judgemental faces when needed. Both girls are still using their bodies in different ways to make money.

By: Tierney Bowden

Ode 44

The poem I chose was Ode 44 as seems like the poet is telling a story about the love between two people, it focuses on one night with a woman. As well as the poet, Hefez portrays this story through figurative language that helps to picture the stunning women, and it appears that he is religious due to his references to “The gods above Ordained this wine for us” (Hafez). It showed the readers that he was instantly taken by her and was intrigued. I also found that the poem seemed to focus on the idea of temptation and love. There is a lot to unpack within this poem as I’ve noticed that there can be different interpretations of what the poet’s true intention was. 

It seems that almost immediately the poet uses a metaphor, “Narcissus-eyes all shining for the fray, Filled full of frolic to her wine-red lips,” (Hafez).In this line, the poet appears to be using personification as well as a simile to portray the woman’s lips and how they may have looked attractive in a way. He chooses very specific words to describe the woman as he seems to compare her to the wine that they are drinking, which I found to be quite an interesting comparison. It also appears that the woman looks to be initiated as her body language says so, “Sudden she slips Into my bed – just in her little shift” (Hafez). Immediately after this happens the poet seems so excited to proceed with their relationship or what he believed was to happen. “ ‘ Oh my old lover, do you sleep or wake!’ And the instant I sat upright for her sake And drank whatever wine she poured for me-” (Hafez). It seems as though the poet hints at the idea that the two of them appear to be intoxicated as he mentions that he “drank whatever wine she poured for me”, which can insinuate that they weren’t sober as the poet had initially been talking about wine. 

I found that this poem did seem to surround the idea of temptation as well as his religion and how it appears that he may be talking more specifically of the temptations that he faced with this woman as well as how alcohol became a key factor within this temptation. It appears that both of these things combined created a huge temptation for the poet which can contribute to something that his God may not believe in. I’ve noticed how the poet also talked about his God throughout all of this, more specifically Islamic spirituality. As well as how the poem seems to embrace this spirituality. 

I am quite interested in what the poets initial intention for this poem is and what he actually wants us to interpret from it. I liked reading and analyzing this poem as it appears to be quite open to different interpretations.

Yue Wu-Jamison

What is Art?

 In ‘Delight in Disorder’ it is the promiscuous and sexy vibe from a woman. The telling is that you can be a mess and still be beautiful in any light. Yet, in ‘Still to be Neat’ it is quite the opposite, the author Johson likes women who are neat and basic in their beauty. The nature of art in this sense is that we share different views when it comes to art. For example, The Mona Lisa is a widely renown piece of art that people see in different forms. Some depict the Mona Lisa as smiling, while others see her as frowning or not having any form of expression. This can be greatly seen in how the two poets enforce different meanings and outlooks on how a woman’s beauty is portrayed.

 I’d say, ‘Delight in Disorder’ holds a better argument than ‘Still to be Neat’, in lines 1-2 “A sweet disorder in the dress Kindles in clothes a wantonness.” We can already see that the disorder is pleasing to the writer, how the second line opens us up to the sexual tension of how the woman looks, how he sees her and already wants to be with her sexually is the strength of this poem. The fact that he wants this woman so badly, with the use of diction and imagery helps us imagine how she looks. It makes us put up an image of a sexy woman not even trying to woo us over. Just because of how imperfect and real this is to us it shows that art doesn’t need to be precise and neat. It can be messy and hot and still garner our attention to continue watching, and staring. There also are the beats of these lines that go ba-bump, ba-bump, which bring rhythm into play. These ba-bumps are almost on how the speaker feels in this moment their heart is beating and reacting to how the woman is being expressed. It conveys this throughout the rest of the poem, and I think this is such a great play on rhythm since it continues to show the sound of that heartbeat getting faster as it goes on.

 As in ‘Still to be Neat’ in lines 5-6 “Though art’s hid causes are not found, All is not sweet, all is not sound” this tells us more that sometimes not everything in art needs to be conveyed, yes, we may not find the meaning in art, but we can see everything else surrounding it. The word sweet is usually associated with something delicious or pleasant here the writer uses it to show us that art doesn’t have to be vibrant or straight in your face. While this can be true, it generally depends on how you see it. With the last word rhyming to the next line, it also creates a rhythm and a setting of happiness and fun in the poem. Which doesn’t really play on that on the meaning of the poem for me, it creates almost a false illusion of playful writing. When its talking about the simple beauty of art and how it corresponds to the simpleness of a woman’s beauty when she isn’t trying to seduce.

 Art is a form of expression and how you choose to accept it, I like things more in my face and loud. While others may like the subtleties of art in its form. There are different ways to view art and judge it, a woman’s beauty can be the social standards of looking perfect all the time or being able to let loose and show her beauty without hiding anything on top. The fact of the matter is that one poem plays with our heart strings of desire and the other tells us to take things the simple way and not dig too much into it.

Kelly Flores

The Mystery That is a Woman

Herrick and Johnson’s “Delight in Disorder” and “Still to Be Neat” are very similar. Their iambic tetrameter poems have a huge similarity yet a minor difference. Some of the minor differences are the specific things that women do that confuses them. Herrick talks about his confusion in a lens of someone who has lived in the older time while Johnson, not much younger than him talks about things that are a little more up to date. The similarity between Johnson and Herrick is that they both wrote about the mystery that is a woman. They both wrote about the things that confused them about women; all of the “disorderly” things. They wrote about the things that men thought about in the 15th and 16th century.

Through Herrick’s poem you can oblivious tell that he is older or that he is talking about older time because he uses words like “stomacher” and “petticoat” which are both words that I’ve never said a day in my life, or any one else who has ever lived in the 21st century truly had to say. In the poem he says “An erring lace, which here and there Enthralls the crimson stomacher, A cuff neglectful, and thereby Ribbons to flow confusedly;” It is obvious that he is talking about the clothing that a woman is wearing and how he is enthralled with it; how it confuses yet fascinated him. He then follows these lines with “A winning wave, deserving note. In the tempestuous petticoat; A careless shoestring, in whose tie I see a wild civility; Do more bewitch me than when art Is too precise in every part.” In this last part of the poem is when his enthrallment shows the most. He talks about her wave, her petticoat that just seems to be tempting him, her shoestring and how she is wild yet civil. His feelings and the way he expresses them are almost like madness, like a hypnotic loop going over and over again.

In Johnson’s poem it’s like he wants to look through her facade. He wants to see the devil that’s covered by a pretty dress, the wolf in sheep’s clothing. In the poem he says “Though art’s hid causes are not found, All is not sweet, all is not sound.” In this he is expressing that though everything seems fine, behind the pretty clothes, the facade, all is not sweet and all is not well. He is distrusting in women; he believes that the devil lives in the pretty lady and all of the things she wears. He then says “Give me a look, give me a face That makes simplicity a grace; Such sweet neglect more taketh me Then all th’ adulteries of art. They strike mine eyes, but not my heart” It’s almost like he’s begging her to show him that everything is as it seems and that grace lies within her soul and damnation; yet deep inside he himself does not believe it, his eyes may believe but his heart doesn’t.

Comparing the two poems for which one is a better example of art is a hard one, it’s also a very personal one. I have begun to love both of these poems the more I analyze them; but if I had to choose between the two, I would choose Herrick’s. I say this because while Herrick’s is so chaotic; like a wild abstract painting with no structure, reading it is like watching a hypnotic wheel for hours on end; Johnson’s is like a puzzle, the more you analyze and crack the code, the deeper it gets. They are both beautiful, but Herricks is just more of an explosion of color compared to Johnson’s.

By Paris Baker

Sit Still, Look Pretty.

I was truly surprised with how much I enjoyed William Shakespeare’s “My Mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun” and Catherine Tate’s comic relief classroom performance. This skit is now definitely one of my favorite videos that I’ve seen. With my first read of “My Mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun” I was shocked due to the contrasting William Shakespeare sonnet “Shall I compare thee to a summer’s day?”, where Shakspeare questions whether to even compare his lover to a summer’s day. In the “My Mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun”, the overall comparison is between the body of the speaker’s lover and beautiful things. These beautiful things include the sun, snow, roses, and even a goddess! With this in mind, it is my opinion that in Catherine Tate’s comic relief classroom performance, Tate quite actually references the sonnet but also expresses some of the same irony on women’s standards. I think that Tate’s use of the sonnet in her comic relief classroom performance is mostly used as humor. When watching the YouTube video you can tell that the teacher (David Tennant) is annoyed with the female student (Catherine Tate) because Tate asks too many questions, is very loud and annoying, and unfocused during the class. I think that the persona of Tate’s character is a critique of the role of women. In Shakespeare’s sonnet, we see that his lover is not beautiful, not the typical type of woman that is considered ideal. Likewise, Catherine Tate’s character doesn’t act like the ideal student, let alone female student. This comic relief video enhances Shakespeare’s sonnet, because it shows how standards for women are still the same as they were in Shakespeare’s time: sit still, look pretty. 

When looking at the File on Catcourses named, “ENG 57 the sonnet.docx” we can learn about the turn and the rhyming couplets. Ironically, the definition stated from the sonnet.docx says, “couplets are sharp, witty, and self-reflective sayings that conclude the sonnet” and the last two minutes of the comic relief classroom performance are Catherine Tate reciting from memory the entire “My Mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun” sonnet. William Shakespeare’s sonnet is then transformed and enhanced by Tate’s classroom performance, because they both end with the same rhyming couplet. Of course, Tate is then shrunk down to a tiny version, which definitely doesn’t happen in the sonnet, but hey! It’s a comic relief video for a reason. s

Lastly, for watchers that didn’t catch the joke in the comic relief YouTube video, when Tate asks Tennant, “Are you the doctor?” and Tennant replies, “Doctor Who?” it is in reference to the television show “Doctor Who”, that Tennant and Tate both star in. THere are other jokes made as well, such as “Suck it alien boy!” This joke really doesn’t have anything to do with Shakespeare’s sonnets, but it’s a good joke. A great one even.

Anne K. Anderson

Shakespeare a poet.

Shakespeare is a poet that I never understood, especially why he was so popular when reading his poems I always question them mainly because you never really know what Shakespeare is talking about or trying to say his poems are messed up and they have a sense of making us feel powerful. For example in the sonnet he wrote “My mistress eyes are nothing like the sun” he talks about how his mistress is nothing as how the poem describes his mistress is not perfect but his mistress is not real either there’s a line in the sonnet that really caught my attention which was “I have seen roses damasked, red and white, but no roses I see in her cheeks” (Lines 5-6) these lines in the sonnet caught my attention because of how powerful it is, it talks about imager and allusions how his own mistress doesn’t blush but that makes it perfectly fine but how does the sonnet connect to the video of David Tennent Is Catherine’s Tate new teacher? The meaning of this poem is to show strong feminine which is why when the girl in the video said the sonnet out loud it made it seem more powerful.

The meaning transformed to Catherine’s performance because she herself was nothing like the sun, in her performance she shows she isn’t perfect she shows that when she reads the sonnet she is giving out a strong aroma because she is a women reading a Shakespeare poem that describes what a women is. Catherine’s performance is being enhanced to Shakespeare sonnet because she reads the poem in a way where she herself wrote it and when she says at the end “bite me alien boi” it just shows how strong she felt after reading the sonnet because she was able to describe what feminism was through Shakespeare sonnet which is female beauty and she is showing female beauty by reading the sonnet through a very powerful tone because that’s what Shakespeare does to you it makes you feel powerful because he is a powerful poet. I also believe that the video connected with the sonnet because it helped us figure out what the tone is which is an aggressive, powerful tone it helped to see how the tone is in the sonnet.

– Ana Munos

The Rhythm of Art or Objectification of Women

Poetry is difficult to understand, and poems are said to be up to the interpretation of the person that is reading/analyzing the poem. This week in our class we have been discussing how an author will use rhythm and mete in order to emphasize what he means in the poem. As we read over both of the poems that have been assigned, “Delight in Disorder” by Robert Herrick and “Still to be Neat” by Ben Johnson, we cans see that both of these authors have used rhythm and meter in order to convey their messages.

In the Herrick’s poem, “Delight in Disorder” we can see that most of the poem can be said to be iambic tetrameter. Although we can find this meter through most parts of the poem there are parts if the poem that free themselves from this rhythm such as line 4, “Into a fine distraction”, I would consider this line to be dactylic then spondaic. The parts of this poem where he breaks form the usual iambic iambic rhythm allows the reader to connect the poem back to the title, the fact that poem isn’t completely orderly and the fact that the title sys that there is “Delight in Order” help us see what the poet is trying to tell us. The disorder that comes with these lines free us from the structure and give us something else to focus on, the freedom can give the read some delight in from the poem. The name can be said about the way that Jonson has included rhythm “Still to Be Neat,” but in this case I believe that the neatness of the poem is being forced upon the reader.

Both of these poems have good use of rhythm and meter in order to enhance and better interpret the message/meaning that the author wants to convey with these poems but I prefer Herrick’s take when it comes to interpreting the art. Yes, bit of the poems had an essence of interpreting art and describing how people may view art, buy Jonson began to objectify females and use a misogynistic view in order to try and relate that to art. With the first stanza of the poem describing what he preserves women to be and that they shouldn’t try and impress men with fake glamour, and talking as if everything women do is for the male gaze, it just doesn’t st right with me. Then going on to say that art does this as well and that this is like adultery as it is a deception of what they really are, as I see it this poem just didn’t really interpret art in a correct and well fitting way. So for the message of the poem I prefer “Delight in Disorder” not only did it use rhythm and meter in a way where it had lines and words work with the rhythmrythymto futher exentuate the poem and the meaning but it also completely objectify a whole gender.

Guadalupe Lemus

Objectified Art

Katherine Deras

I believe that Jonson’s “Still to be Neat” poem gives the best representation of art. In lines 3 and 4 he gives you the impression that he is talking about a woman however he is also talking about art. People create art to be admired like women get “powdered” and “perfumed”. In line 6 he states “all is not sweet, all is not sound” maybe he is saying that although art may look beautiful that the looks can be a deception. Just like how when a women is all powdered up that their looks may be deceiving as well. In the last line he also mentions how art strikes his eyes but not his heart. Perhaps he means that art is admired but it does not appeal to his heart due to how art is something that is meant to always look great rather than something flawed and raw. This shows how art is objectified because he wants art to look admirable but he wants it be something natural at the same time. Just like how women are expected to look beautiful but society wants women to be natural as well. Art is held to different expectations and standards. Women are held to these standards as well. Art is something both beautiful but imperfect, it somehow has live up to both expectations.

As Natural, As Nude

Female Gestures by Lau Hoe In

Jojo C. Chukwueloka

Art and beauty are often intrinsically linked. Many of the most famous poems, art pieces, and general great media are often encased around the idea of what it means to be beautiful, to look beautiful, and to feel beautiful.  It is only expected, then, that both Ben Johnson and Robert Hedrick would put the symbols of their poems to be the most familiar and citedly beautiful creatures humanity has ever known: women.   However, while their subjects and opinions are the same, neither man goes about representing their regard for art the same way or how they view the women they choose to symbolize it. 

In Herrick’s “Delight in Disorder”, the reader is presented with a woman in a state of dishevelment.   Specifically, she’s referred to as a “sweet disorder in a dress” with “erring lace which here and there” and “in clothes a wantonness” (lines 1 to 5).”   Most would consider this a criticism, but the poet doesn’t present it as such.  He can see notions of “wild civility” (line 12) meaning that though ungainly to most it is still beautiful.  To him, her messiness is natural and realistic, something that enthralls him.  He uses this as an argument against the notion that art needs to be polished or aesthetically pleasing to be moving and intimate.  Hedrick emphasizes his belief that art should be allowed to be imperfect and sloppy in line 4.  Unlike the rest of the poem that is set in iambic tetrameter, line 4 is spondaic and throws the reader off (being a literal distraction).  It makes the poem “imperfect”, making the reader actually have to pause and consider the message presented rather than follow a rigid system of thoroughly repeated patterns.  Lines 13 and 14 reinforce this viewpoint in a self-aware moment presented by the poet.  The lines state that inconsistency and inaccuracy is far more bewitching and interesting to view than a perfect piece.  Having non-linear lines, blemishes, or mistakes in art adds to the piece, spellbinding the viewer more so than without. 

Johnson’s “Still To Be Neat”, delivers a situation of the complete opposite to Herrick’s.  Here the woman is in a state of what Johnson decides is overdressed.  He laments, stating that she is “still to be powdered, still perfumed” (line 3) and how he wishes for “a face that makes simplicity a grace” (lines 7 and 8).  The use of over abundant makeup on a woman is a common comparison to over-touched art that lacks noticeable features like messy brush strokes, muddy colors, or unrealistic proportions.  Johnson argues that both, while pleasing to look at, do not invoke any emotion in him.  They are pretty, yes, but there is no human/natural element to them via the scarcity of imperfections.  His use of repetition in lines 1, 3, and 6 further this idea.  They represent the boredom through the uninteresting nature “perfect” art has.  That it comes off as feeling wrong and unsound, truly unnatural.  Johnson furthers this disillusionment with art in line 11.  He describes art as a series of adulteries, secondary to candid life.  It is only an imitation and, therefore, it’s something incapable of making him feel like a real, genuine, and bare person would.   This is also the line where he goes off the usual iambic tetrameter and pulls a spondaic pentameter to emphasize his point. 

In terms of which is most effective in representing the nature of art, my hand goes for Herrick’s.  Both are reaching for the same goal, but “Delight in Disorder” is far less restrained than “Still to be Neat”.  Rather than just stating he wants simplicity, Herrick entices the reader’s senses and puts us in the scene. This decision to describe the unkempt nature makes the poem feel more intimate and less artificial.  Neither are love poems (per se), but they are honest.  Disorder is far more valuable than perfection.  Without it, life would be tedious and boring. So, whether it be in women, art, or poetry, inconsistency makes the ride a whole lot more compelling.  

Defining Poems Through Rhythm/Meter

Ben Jonson’s “Still to Be Neat” and Robert Herrick’s “Delight in Disorder” are two unique poems that, in some sense, contradict one another when it comes down to interpretations. In a normal world, we as people have a common understanding that everyone views the world through their own lens filled with distinguishing meaning and purpose. Both these poems are perfect examples of two opposite sides of the spectrum involving the idea of simplicity, or the lack there of it, and perhaps the openness and acceptance of it. One can argue that neatness is the prime example of higher order or superiority, while others believe that uniqueness is what sets one apart from the rest: the true definition of superiority and higher order.

Jonson’s poem presented with an iambic tetrameter pattern as he a went on about the idea that women constantly maintain themselves to appear simple and put together in order to hide whats within. He creates a lot of emphasis around wanting women to be true to themselves rather than sulking because it’s not what matters on the outside as much as it does in the inside. This is a very powerful message for readers and the audience in general because society and social norms have the tendency to set unattainable beauty standards, forcing women or anyone to try and one up the next person. Such insecurities cause a constant battle not only for women all around, but with oneself too. Jonson used an interesting rhyme and rhythm combination at the ends of each line, creating a balanced flow throughout the poem. This highlights his message nicely because just like the rhythm, the poet reflects two thoughts back and forth between women and his own from the outside looking in.

Herrick’s poem also presented with an iambic tetrameter pattern while explaining the concept of imperfection and how disorderliness is quite beautiful in its own way. There’s something powerful about women who own their identity and openly embrace their style. Often times, people feel the need to pull up a facade to the world in order to prove that everything is ideal, when true beauty lies in admitting the opposite. Another thing that makes this poem unique from the other is the diction usage. Terms like “wantonness” and “bewitch” can create a more exciting scene showcasing power. The title “Delight in Disorder” is a perfect way to sum up the poet’s thoughts on confidence and artistic endeavors. The usage of rhythm creates sass and sexiness, which is very fitting for the poem as it constantly brings light to the intention that not being put together is essentially favored.

It’s almost difficult to choose which poem was more effective in representing the nature of art because both, in their own way, showcased brilliant skills and techniques alongside deeper meanings for the audience. While Jonson had the right idea of keeping an orderly and concise poem with his rhythm, Herrick played with the concept of contradiction to the next level. He used rhythm in order to describe messy and quirky scenarios. I see this as art because it gives the poem a different and deeper meaning, almost like telling the audience that perhaps not being perfect is perfection in itself.

Simranpreet Kaur