Skill: FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE 5.B – Explain the function of specific words and phrases in a text. Topic: Importance of Names Part 1 Primary and Secondary Blog Prompt: Compare and contrast the two poems. What are their similarities? How do they differ? Overall, which poem do you feel is more “essential” to study in AP English Literature and why? -Primary Blog Entry (100-150 words) due by Tuesday at 11:59pm; -2 Secondary Blog Responses (60-80 words) due by Thursday night at 11:59pm BE SURE TO ADD WORD COUNT AND USE YOUR NOM DE PLUME! Part 2 Individual Written Reflection Prompt: Produce a written reflection (200-250 words) wherein you explain the function of specific words and phrases illuminates the theme in one of the two poems. Demonstrate a strong line of reasoning and support all claims with textual evidence. Upload to Turnitin by 11:59pm on Friday.
Dean Koontz
3/31/2020 09:35:19 am
Both poems have to do with the importance of names but again they are very different from each other. The one by T. S Eliot is more on the satire side whereas Idris Goodwin has a more serious tone. Eliot's poem seems kind of trivial compared to Goodwin’s poem, but even then Goodwin’s poem still seems kind of lighthearted, like he’s not mad just trying to inform people. He tells a small life story with his poem and it has deeper meanings. I feel like Eliot’s poem is not as impactful as Goodwin's whatsoever and kind of pointless. It does not carry the same weight as Idris Goodwin’s poem does. But at a deeper level, Eliot’s poem talks about identity and how people present themselves in different ways to the general public, to their family and friends, and to their most private self when they are alone.
Corona
3/31/2020 10:23:10 am
I do agree that Eliot’s poem is more trivial, however I do like your analysis of his poem at the end of your comment. I honestly didn’t realize that it did have a deeper meaning about how people present themselves to different groups of people. Overall, Eliot’s poem is more satirical and Goodwin’s is more serious and trying to educate others. At the beginning of Goodwin’s poem though, I do think it is comical that the man spelled his name completely wrong right before Goodwin goes off and tells his story. That part has a lasting effect on the reader showing how this happens so frequently that it’s pointless to correct every single person that makes the mistake.
Peace
4/2/2020 08:01:23 pm
I agree with your statement concerning the difference between these poems. T.S Eliot incorporates satire into the poem to grab the attention of the readers and Goodwin uses a more serious tone in order to provide insight to his audience concerning his own personal struggles when dealing with his name. I also agree with your statement that Goodwin's poem leaves a more impactful and deeper message in comparison to Eliot's poem.
Corona
3/31/2020 10:08:49 am
The topic of both poems is the significance of an unique name. “Say My Name” by Idris Goodwin talks about an issue with many people of different heritages. These people have names that are perplexing to the general population of outsiders. Goodwin talks about how it is frustrating that others don’t take the time to say their name properly. The significance of a name is simply minuscule. In “The Naming of Cats,” T.S. Eliot solidifies this idea that it’s not important to others when he talks about the names of cats. The author puts some comedy in the fact that cat’s do have names, but obviously we will never know. However, this poem is different from Goodwin’s because Eliot is almost mysterious in a comedic way of never knowing a cat’s name. Goodwin on the other hand, has a more serious and straight to the point tone talking about how people commonly confuse unique names. I still feel like “The Naming of Cats” is more essential to study in AP Literature because it takes a more satirical route as we are in the satire unit.
Dean Koontz
4/2/2020 10:34:50 am
Ben Dover
4/2/2020 10:58:14 am
I do agree with your statement that Goodwin's poem is a lot more straight forward tonally and the subject matter is more series considering his place in the world as a black man. And Eliot's poem certainly is outlandish in it's writing style and the names it uses to describe the cats. However, I think the argument can be made that Goodwin's poem has a rather light-hearted tone to it that makes it humorous in it's own way albeit it doesn't beat around the bush like Eliot's
Justin Bieber
4/2/2020 02:33:43 pm
I do agree with you about the main focus of the poems, as well as the explanations for how the two poems differ. I think the AP Lit people wouldn’t just pick Eliot’s poem because of its satire, but the way it is written. It though “straight forward” isn’t really straight forward. We still have to reread to make sure that we really understand what the author is trying to write about.
Caroline Forbes
4/3/2020 12:46:10 am
I like that you include the differences in tone that each piece uses. It is important to note this tone, so that the audience reacts a certain way and understands what the poet is trying to say beyond the words. It is vital to understand that Eliot’s poem is more light hearted to show how unimportant names really are.
Erin Morgenstern
3/31/2020 01:53:14 pm
Both poems explain the importance of names and where names are from culturally. Idris Goodwin's poem talks about his struggles about his name and how he had to learn to accept his name growing up. Goodwin uses repetition of the phrase how do you say it ? to emphasize the complexity of his name and how people aren’t used to names that aren’t common. T.S. Eliot’s poem explains about naming a cat and how the cat knows what it is called. By having the cat know what it should be called shows that names go based on how people feel how they should be called. Both poems are essential for Ap Lit because both are different structurally, but both have a nice theme throughout the poems. Neither were bad and even though Goodwin’s poem sounded more modern but he did incorporate a lot of poetic devices.
Colson Whitehead
4/2/2020 11:51:53 pm
I love the fact that you mentioned Goodwin's use of repetition. Often times with spoken word poems, we tend to miss out on certain clue words or phrases. However, you pinpointed the fact that the phrase "How do you say it?" is repeated many times in the video. I believe the phrase "How do you say it" is an important feature to consider because it holds significance. As an individual whose last name is quite ethnic, I become frustrated when people ask me "How do you say it?", especially after I've pronounced it to them on many occasions. Besides having a negative connotation, the phrase "How do you say it?" is a comment representing curiosity. It's hard to identify whether the person asking is coming from a genuine place, but a good strategy is to pay attention to their tone of voice.
Peace
3/31/2020 09:40:17 pm
These poems are similar because they both talk about the importance of names and how a name can hold value and significance in one's ever day life. In the Poem, "Say my Name", Idris Goodwin talks about his struggle with accepting his name and how all his life it was always a concern of his that his name was considered different and wasn't the "norm" for an average American. In the poem, "Naming of Cats", T.S Eliot uses satire in order to bring his message across concerning the importance humans place on names. As humans, we take joy in naming our pets. However, it's ironic that we name our pets even though they may have a name of their own that obviously we don't know about. Even though both of these poems would be great to review during class, it would be more beneficial to study the, "Naming of Cats" because of it's comical set up and interesting word choice.
Ben Dover
4/2/2020 11:06:37 am
I think your analysis of both poems is spot on and the opening sentence sums up the premise of both of them nicely. I like how you included a micro summary about both of the poems for us to better understand. I also didn't realize that Eliot was referring to the names pets have for themselves in the poem so that was a nice addition to clarify a detail that may have been overlooked.
Justin Bieber
4/2/2020 02:39:50 pm
I agree with your analysis of both poems, and how you also added a little summary just in case anyone who didn’t understand what the theme of the poem had an idea. I also like how you dive in a bit more to the Eliot’s poem because it was a bit more difficult to interpret, and reading your interpretation helped me get a better understanding of the poem.
Erin Morgenstern
4/2/2020 09:17:41 pm
I agree that both poems are about how a name can hold value and significance in one's everyday life. I also agree that the poem "Say my Name" talks about Goodwin's struggle with accepting his name because it wasn't the norm for an American. You illuminated the poem "Naming of Cats" because I didn't understand the poem that well and by reading your interpretation helped me understand the poem a lot better now.
Colson Whitehead
3/31/2020 11:57:29 pm
I admire how both poets took something as simple as a “name” and transformed it into a complex interpretation. Both poems seem to comprehend how much significance a name can have. T.S. Eliot directs his attention towards the naming of a cat. Eliot seems to be quite passionate about how a cat should be named as he elaborates his reasoning as to why cats should have three different names. Throughout “The Naming of Cats” readers can’t help but to feel a sense of urgency, especially if they happen to encounter a cat in a city alley. Eliot’s poem is playful, similar to the playful nature of a cat. On the other hand, “Say My Name” is more formal and more in depth. I wholeheartedly believe Idris Goodwin’s “Say My Name” is more essential to AP literature as the poem itself addresses the deep relationship between one’s name and their role in society. Unlike Eliot, Goodwin schools readers on the prejudice that may rise due to how ethnic one’s name appears to be.
Corona
4/1/2020 02:16:52 pm
I like how you compared “The Naming of Cats” playful nature to the playful nature of a cat. It connects the title and the poem as a whole. However, I didn’t get the sense of urgency when reading the poem. I just thought it was satirical with an obvious message behind it. I also like your last sentence on how Goodwin “schools” the readers on the prejudice due to ethnic backgrounds. I definitely got that from the poem especially when his manager, I believe, didn’t even try to remember his name and called him something completely different.
Dean Koontz
4/2/2020 10:40:04 am
Yes I like that as well. It's amazing how something so small and simple can create works of art that people can relate to, like Goodwin's poem. People who come from ethnic backgrounds with unique names of different spellings can relate to the butchering of their name. I personally can relate to this. My name is different and gets mispronounced all the time. Then my name is abbreviated, it's not that pig of a deal, but that is not my name.
emily
4/20/2020 03:35:04 pm
i like how you took the time to appreciate how the poets took a simple thing like a name and turn it to a complex interpretation. I agree with how "the naming of cats" has a playful tone, although express his thoughts on names. i like how you believe learning how a deeper meanings are more essential to learning, and i didn't really think of it like that.
Ben Dover
4/2/2020 10:53:00 am
The two poems focus on the significance of names but take a more different approach to their purpose. Goodwin's take on the name focuses more on the connotations of a name. How the name can be so vastly different it doesn't seem like it belongs to someone from his background in his area of residence. Here, names are a birthright, given to a person with a purpose in mind; something you cannot take back. This poem is more heavy in weight and meaning and has a modern approach to it than T.S Elliots which resembles that of a Dr. Seuss poem. In Elliot's poem, the subject matter does not pertain to humans but rather the outlandish and broad spectacle of names we choose to give cats. Here, it is suggested that the naming conventions for a cat can be outlandish as we want to suit the owners originality ,with an added layer being implied that the cat's behavior would be based on the name it's given. Each poem focuses on the connotation of names yes, but the manner and structure of Idris Goodwin's makes it more relevant to the AP Lang exam
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4/2/2020 10:55:08 am
193 Words
Justin Bieber
4/2/2020 02:18:59 pm
The two poems focus on the importance of a name, and how much weight it can carry. The two poems differ in their approach to exemplify this idea. Goodwin uses story telling about his own name to exemplify this idea that his name is pronounced the way it is because of its lineage. There shouldn’t be any kind of shortcuts to a name given to him to be said the way it is. T.S Eliot is much more of a comedic stand point of it. Cats probably had their own names, but we will probably never know what they are, but that doesn’t matter. It is what you do with your name which will make you feel more like you.
Peace
4/2/2020 08:09:07 pm
I agree with your statement. Both poems did a nice job of expressing the importance of names and how it relates to their own individual lives. Goodwin's use of storytelling allows the reader to feel apart of the discussion and more drawn in. Eliot's use of satire brings comic relief to the topic of names and allows the audience to understand the reasons behind names through the perspective of something as simple as a cat.
Erin Morgenstern
4/2/2020 09:26:15 pm
I like your statement about how important a name is and how much weight a name can carry. I agree that Eliot's poem is comedic because we name a cat without considering it might have it's own name. Meanwhile Goodwin's poem is more serious because it's based on his struggles of growing up with his name. I agree that both poems have their own different approach in exemplifying the idea of the importance of a name.
Colson Whitehead
4/2/2020 11:59:06 pm
I admire your interpretation because you provide a brief explanation as to how both poems are different. T.S. Eliot's remarks on Cats is interesting to consider since humans love to take charge in almost everything they do. Whereas Goodwin's poem seems like it's calling out humans for holding these prejudices against an individual's name.I believe Goodwin’s poem is more essential and you did a good job at stating why.
Caroline Forbes
4/3/2020 12:56:36 am
I like that you included that the name does not matter because it is only personal to you. The name does not define the person, the person defines it. People can choose to embody and be proud of their name. In the end, the name doesn’t matter as much as some people might think. It’s just a way to address someone.
emily
4/20/2020 03:29:01 pm
I truly agree with this because, they both express importance of names, but the way they both go about it hit differently. the expression of cats names is very ridiculous but it also makes sense as to why names are important. I also agree that how Goodwin explains how his name is because of its lineage and how it provides a deeper feeling, and a more serious tone.
Caroline Forbes
4/3/2020 12:42:05 am
In “Say My Name” by Idris Goodwin and “The Naming of Cats” by T.S. Eliot, both poets address the vitality of names with concern to self-identity. While Goodwin uses personal anecdotes to convey to the audience the confusion that surrounds his name despite the simplicity of it, Eliot uses an extended metaphor to describe the different facets of someone’s identity represented by different names. While Eliot utilizes a more universal, all-inclusive tone, Goodwin employs a more personal tone. In my opinion, both poems are important to the study of A.P. Lit because while “Say My Name” provides a more cultural perspective on names, “The Naming of Cats” is applicable to everyone. It is important to be exposed to different perspectives and personally applicable perspectives as well.
emily
4/20/2020 03:22:25 pm
These poems both encompass the importance of names to a particular individual, names are important to an individual because they identify who you are. Both poems express many names that could be used to identify a individual, but say how one name is the most important. the name the individual feels is his or hers is the one they should be called. These poems are very similar but one talks about himself and the other talks about a "cat". The first is more explicit in saying what he means, whereas the second he uses a cat to explain his thoughts on names. i believe both of these poems are essential to learn in AP lit because watching and reading both of them made me understanding the meaning of names to an individual. Comments are closed.
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