Author Archives: Mariama Zoumanigui

Gluttony

 

Gluttony

Part Of Speech-Noun

Definition-greedy or excessive indulgence

Source -Webster Dictionary

Choi Jeong MIn

Franny Choi

They make them into these greedy people but then get mad when they actually become these selfish greedy people.

 

oppressed

Oppressed

Part Of Speech-Adjective

Definition-Subject to harsh and authoritarian treatment.

Source -Webster Dictionary

Found in ” Hair” by Elizabeth Acevedo (line 17)

This word expresses  how people from different races go through oppression because of the way they look.

Blossomed

Blossomed

Part Of Speech-Verb

Definition- mature or develop in a promising or healthy way.

Source -Webster Dictionary

“Folding My Clothes”

Julia Alvarez

This word is explaining how the girl is growing because now it says her feet grew

 

Leer

 

Leer

Part Of Speech-Verb

Definition-look or gaze in an unpleasant, malicious, or lascivious way.

Source -Webster Dictionary

Julia Alvarez

“All American Girl”

This is another word that also describes how she vie the way Americans speak.

Spite

Spite

Part Of Speech-Noun

Definition-a desire to hurt, annoy, or offend someone.

Julia Alvarez

“All American Girl”

This word in the context is showing how the person is trying to be american and thinks this word is how Americans portray themselves.

My research on Langston Hughes

 

James Mercer Langston Hughes  lived ( February 1,1901 -May 22,1967), he was a american poet, social activist, novelist,playwright, and columnist from Joplin,Missouri.Hughes had a complex ancestry, both of Hughes paternal great grandmothers were enslaved African Americans and his Paternal great grandfathers were white slave owners in Kentucky. Hughes mother was a school teacher, his father left the family after Hughes was born and divorced Caroline Mercer Hughes mother.His father traveled to Cuba and then mexico to escape racism in the united states.Hughes was raised in Kansas by his maternal grandma she installed racial pride in him as a young boy.In Hughes autobiography “The Big Sea’ he wrote: “I was unhappy for a long time, and very lonesome, living with my grandmother. Then it was that books began to happen to me, and I began to believe in nothing but books and the wonderful world in books—where if people suffered, they suffered in beautiful language, not in monosyllables, as we did in Kansas”,this where his love for literature started.In 1925 Hughes poem ”The Weary Blues ” showed his poetic style and his dedication to his black heritage. This poem won first prize in in a Opportunity magazine literary competition, and he also received a scholarship to Lincoln university in Pennsylvania.

https://www.biography.com/people/langston-hughes-9346313

https://www.poets.org/poetsorg/poet/langston-hughes

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langston_Hughes

Poetry In Motion

 

author- Jean Valentine

 Poetry In Motion                                 

The title of the poem I have chosen is “My Words To You” by Jean Valentine, I found this poem on the 6 line. I have seen this Poem many times before, every time I would see it I would read it and try to understand it. This Blog Post gives me the opportunity to go more in depth and really get a better understanding of this poem. My initial reaction to reading this poem, was the speaker holding on to a loved one and spending more time with them. In line 1 to 3 “My words to you are the stitches in a scarf “/ I don’t want to finish/ maybe it will come to be a blanket”. I think that the speaker wants more time with their loved one, because comparing a scarf to a blanket, a scarf is smaller and takes less time to make. Stitching that blanket together symbolizes the speaker wanting time to say more and spend more time with their loved one.
The two themes I can take from this poem are love and time, Time because the speaker wants to spend more time with their loved ones, they don’t want the words to finish because then time is up. Love because they want to hold there love one and not lose them. I do think this poem is accessible for general readers because there are many different ways to decode this poem because it is short and straight to the point. The image next to the poem is a design of many different flowers within each other, it is very abstract. What does this image represent ? Why do the words have to end?, those are two questions that have been picking my mind.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Narcissus

 

Narcissus

Part Of Speech-Noun

Definition- a bulbous Eurasian plant of a genus that includes the daffodil, especially (in gardening) one with flowers that have white or pale outer petals and a shallow orange or yellow cup in the center

Source – Webster Dictionary

Found in Rita Dove” Persephone, Falling ” line 1

The definition of this flower helps make an image in mind of the difference between these flowers in this context.

Assails

 

Assails

Part of Speech- Verb

Definition – Make a concerted or violent attack on.

Source – Webster Dictionary

Found in Edna St. Millay’s “Pity Me Not Because Of The Light Of Day” Line 10

This definition helps me understand how the authors is showing how nature  tend to destroy tings overtime.

 

 

Jeer

Jeer

Part of speech- Verb

Definition- Make rude and mocking remarks, typically in a loud voice

Source- Webster Dictionary

Found in Claude McKay’s “America” Poem, Line 10

This definition allows me to understand that their is some bitterness ad hatred towards America.