Walt Whitman

What an interesting person he was. I do not agree with his ideas on God though. God is someone that should be on our mind all the time. Should we try to squeeze him into a textbook? No but he is way more important than other people.

To be fair though his poetry is beautifully written. We can learn a lot from him. He wrote on whatever topic he wanted to and that took guts. As we discussed in class some of his poetry is very sexually elicit. Some even challenged the ideas of what "normal" relationships should be as he discussed homosexuality. He challenged the conventions and beliefs of his time and I respect him for that.

Edgar Allan Poe

I really enjoy reading Poe's works. I am not a big fan of poetry but I love reading his poems. I especially like the poem, "Annabel Lee." I always feel so sad when I read this poem. I can't help but think that it was written for his young wife that died. I have never been married but I can't imagine losing a spouse. The grief and pain that comes with it is unbearable. There are so many emotions that run through you as in the poem. There is blame that one has. In the poem Poe blames the "heavens". He claims that they were jealous of their happiness together and that they took her. He is a grief-stricken widow and sometimes it is good just to get your frustration out. Poe's poetry can still speak to us 150 years later and that is why they should be studied.

Here is a link to a great video of the poem, "Annabel Lee"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRhIJB6YD-4&feature=related

Herman Melville

This was quite an interesting story. I pretty much enjoyed reading it. I guess I am a little confused on what Melville was trying to tell us though. Bartleby is a weird loner guy who eats nuts, lives in his place of work, dosen't listen to his boss, and says "prefer" a lot. Oh yeah, he also dies in the end. What? It is an interesting, entertaining story but why are we still reading it 150 years later? I look forword to the class discussion today because I am sure there is some meaning to all this. I am usually the last one to get a joke so I will probably be the last one to go, "oh yeah, I get it now."