Shoshana’s Poetry Portfolio

Topic:The Symbolism of Flowers

5.29.10Miss Mac

My theme is “The symbolism of flowers”. The selected poems will show how different poets use flowers to explain their thoughts, feelings, and descriptions.

The main reason I chose this theme was because I wanted this portfolio to be light and carefree, not dark or dreary, like tragedy or death.

Preface

Poetry is how some people choose to describe experiences, thoughts, and feelings through writing. There are many different types of poetry, but two of the basic divisions are free verse and selective verse. Free verse is a poem written without any requirements. Selective verse can have requirements such as rhyme scheme, repetition, syllable count, and more.I like poetry because it is a way to express one’s thoughts without being judged, because some poetry is known for its exaggerations. Aristotle once said “Poetry is finer and more philosophical than history; for poetry expresses the universal, and history only the particular. ” I agree with this quote because a history book tells only the facts, while poetry can express the feelings behind the facts. Similarly, Plato states “Poetry is nearer to vital truth than history.” for the same reason.My favorite type of poetry is free verse, because it is the easiest poem to write, and it can reflect different moods depending on how it is written. I personally find it very hard to write selective verse, but it is my favorite type of poetry to read.

What is Poetry?

38. BBS III:5Build an abode for yourself among the myrtles;be happy with the oriole’s song and the wave’s chant.

Let the wave break angrily on the sand, made as if from the gold of Ofir;drive sorrow’s misery from the heart.

39. BBS III:7If the hand of the rains has ruined the flowers,oh, you beds, refrain from complaint,

For it can change your garments in the same day,so that you will lack nothing.

40. BBS III:8Rise early and come to the garden. All kinds of birds are there.They are joined to one another as companions

To drink the wine of friendship in the shade of the bushes,when they embrace as lovers.

41. BBS III:10Hurry, friends; seek the gardens;rush to the luxuriant, well-tended orchard,

Winter has passed;it’s time to sing.43. BBS III:18How sweet is my sleep on the riverbank outstretched under the moonlight;

All ‘round are garden beds embroidered with rosesred as scarlet alongside the white.

44. BBS III:21Sit by the garden bed of myrrhhedged with myrtles and flowers;

Your sorrow will bebanished from your heart.

45. BBS III:23The morning breeze opened a bundle of myrrhwhen it blew on the flowers in their beds.

It leads them slowly like a shepherd gentlyguiding his flock with his staff.

Gar

den

Bed

III

Garden Bed III is the third of a collection of poems written by Joseph ben Tanchum. I chose this medieval poem to put in my portfolio because of the metaphors and similes found in it.

An example of one of the metaphors is “The morning breeze opened a bundle of myrrh

when it blew on the flowers in their beds.

It leads them slowly like a shepherdGently guiding his flock with his staff.”

This selection compares the breeze blowing on flowers to a kind shepherd guiding his sheep. The two are similar because a shepherd is gentle when guiding a flock, just as the morning breeze is acting in the description.

Garden Bed IIIAnalysis

Coming to kiss her lips, (such grace I found)me seemed I smelt a garden of sweet flowers,that dainty odors from them threw aroundfor damsels fit to deck their lovers' bowers.Her lips did smell like unto Gillyflowers,her ruddy cheeks like unto Roses red;her snowy brows like budded Bellamoures,her lovely eyes like Pinks but newly spread;Her goodly bosom like a Strawberry bed,her neck like to a bunch of Columbines;her breast like lilies, ere their leaves be shed,her nipples like young blossomed Jessamine:Such fragrant flowers doe give most odorous smell,but her sweet odor did them all excel.

Amoretti 64

Amoretti 64 is a Renaissance poem written by Edmund Spencer. I chose this poem for my poetry portfolio because it is symbolizing flowers as beauty on a person the narrator loved. The poem opens with “Coming to kiss her lips, (such grace I found) me seemed I smelt a garden of sweet flowers” . The poem then goes on to teach about how the lover smelled, looked, and thought, with descriptions comparing them to flowers. For instance, Spencer states “Her lips did smell like unto Gillyflowers,” describing his lovers lips.

Amoretti 64

Analysis

Remembering still its former height, Shuns the sweet leaves, and blossoms green, And, recollecting its own light,Does, in its pure and circling thoughts, expressThe greater heaven in an heaven less.In how coy a figure wound, Every way it turns away ; So the world-excluding round, Yet receiving in the day ; Dark beneath, but bright above, Here disdaining, there in love. How loose and easy hence to go ; How girt and ready to ascend ; Moving but on a point below, It all about does upwards bend.Such did the manna's sacred dew distil ;White and entire, though congealed and chill ;Congealed on earth ; but does, dissolving, runInto the glories of the almighty sun.

SEE, how the orient dew,Shed from the bosom of the morn Into the blowing roses, (Yet careless of its mansion new,For the clear region where 'twas born,) Round in itself incloses ; And, in its little globe's extent,Frames, as it can, its native element. How it the purple flower does slight, Scarce touching where it lies ; But gazing back upon the skies, Shines with a mournful light, Like its own tear,Because so long divided from the sphere. Restless it rolls, and unsecure, Trembling, lest it grow impure ; Till the warm sun pity its pain,And to the skies exhale it back again. So the soul, that drop, that rayOf the clear fountain of eternal day,(Could it within the human flower be seen,) On a Drop of Dew

“On a Drop of Dew” is written by Andrew Marvell. It is a 17th century poem describing dew. I chose this poem for my poetry portfolio because it mentions dew on flowers at several points in the poem.For example, “how the purple flower it does slight”, describes how dew rests on a purple flower and bends it ever so slightly. The next line adds to this by saying “Scarce touching where it lies”. These lines together show that the dew barely touches the flower but has an impact on it just the same.

AnalysisOn a Drop of Dew

 I hide myself within my flower,That wearing on your breast,You, unsuspecting, wear me too --And angels know the rest.

I hide myself within my flower,That, fading from your vase,You, unsuspecting, feel for meAlmost a loneliness.

Within

A Flow

er

Within a Flower is a poem written by Emily Dickinson. It is my selection for the 18th century poem in this portfolio. I chose this poem to describe how sanctity can also be compared to a flower.

The poem opens with “I hide myself within a flower”, describing how the narrator of the poem finds comfort inside a shell.

Within A Flower Analysis

I am a kind word uttered and repeatedBy the voice of Nature;I am a star fallen from theBlue tent upon the green carpet. 

I am the daughter of the elementsWith whom Winter conceived;To whom Spring gave birth; I wasReared in the lap of Summer and ISlept in the bed of Autumn.

At dawn I unite with the breezeTo announce the coming of light;At eventide I join the birdsIn bidding the light farewell.

The plains are decorated withMy beautiful colors,and the airIs scented with my fragrance.

As I embrace Slumber the eyes ofNight watch over me, and as IAwaken I stare at the sun, which isThe only eye of the day.

I drink dew for wine, and hearken toThe voices of the birds, and danceTo the rhythmic swaying of the grass.

I am the lover's gift; I am the wedding wreath;I am the memory of a moment of happiness;I am the last gift of the living to the dead;I am a part of joy and a part of sorrow.

But I look up high to see only the light,

And never look down to see my shadow.This is wisdom which man must

learn.

Song of the Flower XXIII

“Song of the Flower XXIII” is an 19th century poem by Khalil Gibran. Khalil Gibran is famous for writing his Song of the Flower poems. I selected this poem for my poetry portfolio because of the different ways it symbolizes flowers. This “Song of the Flower” describes everything a flower is, by giving passages such as “at dawn I unite with the breeze” and “I am the lovers gift, the wedding wreath”.

Song of the Flower XXIIIAnalysis

A tree's leaves may be ever so good,So may its bar, so may its wood;But unless you put the right thing to its rootIt never will show much flower or fruit.

But I may be one who does not careEver to have tree bloom or bear.Leaves for smooth and bark for rough,Leaves and bark may be tree enough.

Some giant trees have bloom so smallThey might as well have none at all.Late in life I have come on fern.Now lichens are due to have their turn.

I bade men tell me which in brief,Which is fairer, flower or leaf.They did not have the wit to say,Leaves by night and flowers by day.

Leaves and bar, leaves and bark,To lean against and hear in the dark.Petals I may have once pursued.Leaves are all my darker mood. 

Leaves Compared With Flowers

This poem is written by Robert Frost. I chose it to be the 19th century poem for my portfolio because of the comparison of leaves to flowers.

The poem shows the inner turmoil of the narrator as he tries to figure out “which is fairer, flower or leaf?”

Leaves Compared With

FlowersAnalysis

Love is like a flower; with proper nurturing it blooms and flourishes as each day passes.

Yet, if it is neglected, in a moment's time it soon withers and dies.

To hold love, you must treat it as a rare and tender flower, nurturing it with the utmost patience and care.

To keep it vibrant and alive it takes many long hours of continuous effort and constant attention.

To lose it takes only a moment of forgetfulness, disinterest and mistrust.

To sow the seeds of love is as wonderful as sowing the seeds of magnificent garden, and watching them flourish and grow is a marvel

in itself.

To sow the seeds of love only to watch them wither and choke, like a garden that's become full of weeds, is a crime of the heart that none

should commit.

Love can last an eternity, like the gardens of a forbidden tropical paradise, yet, in an instant, it can be destroyed by a hurricane of hate,

in a sea of bitterness and despair.

LOVE IS

LIKE

A FLOWER

“Love is like a flower” is a contemporary poem written by Lloydene Fay Hill. I selected this poem to put in my poetry portfolio because it is comparing flowers with love. This poem doesn’t require a lot of thought to figure out what the message is; what it is trying to describe is how flowers can symbolize love. One of the ways it describes this are when the poem states “With proper nurturing it blooms and flourishes”. This is true in both love and flowers: in love, if one doesn’t help the romance progress it will become a relationship taken for granted, and it will not grow. If a flower isn’t watered every day, it will not bloom and survive.

LOVE IS LIKE A FLOWER Analysis

My Own Poems

Written in Styles fromMedieval, , , and Contemporary

The war is over,Everyone sings,My heart wants to burst,It flies on its wings!

But then I turn,And see My beau,Who is clutching a sword,Stuck in his throat.

The blood pours from him,Like flowers from a kind girl’s lips,The blood red as roses,Losing the petal’s quick.

He sighs so deeply,Then falls back,My lover is gone,A flower that took a whack…

Blood and Roses

Blood and Roses is an original poem describing a girl’s feelings after her boyfriend was killed in a war. Some of the medieval components it includes are that it tells a story, rhymes, and encompasses romance.This poem fits in my portfolio because it compares flowers to blood. The poem states “The blood red as roses, losing the petals quick”, which portrays the bloods color a deep red, the color of a rose. The last line of the poem was “A flower that took a whack”, describing how a lively man was killed with a single hit.

Blood and RosesAnalysis

The wind blows softly,The birds chirp with gleeI run through the forest

gailyWith no thought but for

the trees

Hopping over the brook,Gliding over the bridge,Almost at the meadowRight away from the

ridge

The tall grass grazes my skirts,

The bees and butterflies come,

The flowers lean to welcome me,

I am finally at my home!

Joy of the

Meadow

Joy of the meadow is a Renaissance poem of my own composition. It is describing a young girl’s desire to run in the meadow and frolic with all of her flower and animal friends.This poem reflects the time period it is “written in” in several ways. It rhymes, and the general theme is about nature.I chose this poem to put in my portfolio because of the personification of flowers. The last stanza includes “the flowers lean to welcome me”. The flowers of course can not actually lean, but the narrator personifies them for the purpose of the poem.

Joy of the MeadowAnalysis

The sighsOf the trees

The smellOf the leaves

The chirpsOf the birds

Become me…

The gentlenessOf the wind

The fragrance Of the flowers

The radianceOf the colors

Become me…

Become Me…

Become Me… is a poem about nature being part of the narrator’s soul. It serves as my original 20th century poem.This poem reflects the time period it was written in because of the free verse style. In the 20th century, there weren’t strict rules about rhyme schemes, syllable count, etc.I chose this poem to put in my poetry portfolio because it describes flowers. The line “the fragrance of the flowers” shows how the scent of flowers enters the narrator and encompasses her.

Become Me… Analysis

Flowers and treesSwaying in the breezeTrees and flowersNature’s best powers

Trees stand majestic and tallThrough winter and spring,

summer and fallFlowers have strength, small but

firmThey stand straight for 3 seasonal

terms

Flowers and treesSwaying in the breezeTrees and flowersNature’s best powers

Flowers and Trees

Flowers and Trees is my contemporary poem. It is comparing trees and flowers.This poem fits the time period it is written in because the contemporary period doesn’t really have specific “norms” for poems. This poem rhymes and has a repeated stanza.I put this poem in my poetry portfolio because it is comparing flowers and trees. One of the ways it shows this is the line that states “Flowers have strength, small but firm

They stand straight for 3 seasonal terms”

Flowers and TreesAnalysis

Poems• http://www.authorsden.co

m/visit/viewpoetry.asp?id=181418

• http://www.poemhunter.com/poem/leaves-compared-with-flowers/

• http://www.poetseers.org/the_great_poets/ar/gibran_poems/5/

• http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/edickinson/bl-ed-2-7-flower.htm

• http://classiclit.about.com/library/bl-etexts/amarvell/bl-amar-ondrop.htm

• http://lime-tree.blogspot.com/2004/05/edmund-spenser-amoretti-64.html

• http://medievalhebrewpoetry.org/josephbentanchum.html#thepoems

Pictures• http://i121.photobucket.com/

albums/o217/thedway/veiwings/flowerwoman.jpg

• Microsoft Clipart• http://www.google.com/imgr

es?imgurl=http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k48/karlapictures/myspace%2520pics%25202/music-notes.jpg&imgrefurl=http://sites.google.com/site/karlaslayouts/Home/miscellaneous/music&usg=__SCIxPiBszBFod4gnEQDRG3oQ504=&h=304&w=719&sz=16&hl=en&start=2&sig2=WAO7iHHFzMrUGkhP6yxg_g&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=knHsuUUzUAtq8M:&tbnh=59&tbnw=140&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dcartoon%2Bflower%2Bmusic%2Bnotes%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26tbs%3Disch:1,ic:color&ei=4xr_S6_AGYTGlQf584n2CQ

• http://www.colmrowan.com/images/Lynch%20Albert,%20Young%20Woman%20Holding%20Flower.jpg

• http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.freefoto.com/images/12/13/12_13_4---Flowers-in-a-Garden-Border_web.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.freefoto.com/preview/12-13-4%3Fffid%3D12-13-4&usg=__TT_VC6Q2vl3YXvmtXUdSE_BOqk8=&h=400&w=600&sz=275&hl=en&start=3&sig2=hEvgd0_a4RKwJfX9CuRZfA&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=QNqbTjzckzB1eM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=135&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dflowers%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=GU4BTLXPBsaAlAej5dzdCQ

• http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i208.photobucket.com/albums/bb123/Demon_Lace/ROSES/Blood_and_Roses.jpg&imgrefurl=http://comment.myspace.com/index.cfm%3Ffuseaction%3Duser.viewComments%26friendID%3D74329021&usg=__hL8wnIVKChykClv8OrI0uFQRGro=&h=964&w=765&sz=424&hl=en&start=1&sig2=qJQ4G2U9rogoZB7-06nqDw&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=YLBI691-ItDW9M:&tbnh=148&tbnw=117&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dblood%2Band%2Broses%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26tbs%3Disch:1&ei=Z8gBTM7SMcH7lwfbuv2hCA

• \ http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=rjk1mv&s=5

• http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3596/3341046713_a1260a9c00.jpg

Citations