Sorting Laundry
By: Elisavietta Ritche

In this poem, the narrator is simply folding laundry.  She describes how each piece of laundry carries a different meaning to her.  "Folding clothes, I think of folding you into my life" (Ritche).  Her husband or boyfriend is so important to her that a simple act of folding laundry reminds her of him.  She says that pillowcases remind her of their dreams.  Putting pairs of socks together reminds her of the pairs of animals that were on Noah's Ark.  Each piece of laundry carries a random and unique meaning to this woman.  She seems to view them as a part of her.  She says that if this man ever left her, she wouldn't have enough clothes/laundry to fill the empty side of the bed.  I liked this poem because it is simple, and the narrator had a positive tone.  I like her way of showing her appreciation for someone.  She realizes this appreciation in an everyday task, so I think this man definitely is important to her.

Batter my heart, three-personed God
By: John Donne

This sonnet is an apostrophe between a man and God.  He is directly addressing God, asking Him to purify his heart.  The first 8 lines include the narrator admitting and confessing his wrongs.  However, he is telling God that he cannot purify himself.  He wants God to do it all for him.  The last 6 lines see a shift.  The narrator begins to surrender to God.  He tells God that he is currently rejecting Him, but he wants to be saved.  "Yet dearly I love you and would be loved fain, but am betrothed to your enemy" (Donne).  Here, he tells God that the devil has taken prominence in his life.  He asks God to be saved, and he claims that he cannot do anything to save himself.  Only God can purify him.  Another thing I took note of in this poem is when the narrator used three consecutive words; I took them as references to the Holy Trinity.  He uses "knock, breathe, shine" and "break, blow, burn" (Donne).  I think that "knock" and "break" refer to God.  He is the one that can remove evil from our lives.  "Breathe" and "blow" refer to Jesus Christ, the Son.  He is the living form of God, and these words are actions that would have to be done by a person.  "Shine" and "burn" refer to the Holy Spirit because it is often depicted as a fire, which can shine and burn.

I taste a liquor never brewed
By: Emily Dickinson

When I first read this poem, I honestly had no idea what Dickinson was talking about.  The best I could come up with was that the poem was and extended metaphor that compares being drunk to a summer day.  However, I didn't realize the narrator wasn't literally referring to being drunk.  It turns out that she is talking about being drunk on nature.  She compares this feeling to drunkenness because she feels like she is in a different state of mind.  The poem first presents the metaphor by talking about how this "liquor" is unique.  The narrator starts the second stanza by saying that she was "inebriate of air" (Dickinson).  I think she was saying that the beauty of nature was breathtaking.  The metaphor continues throughout the poem, and the end talks about how others wanted to watch the narrator indulge in the enjoyment of nature.  "And the saints-to windows run-to see the little Tippler leaning against the-Sun-" (Dickinson).  After I finally understood the meaning of this poem, I really liked it.  I can relate to how the narrator felt.  I went on Summer Field Studies this past year, and I had never experienced nature in that way before.  I still can't explain how I felt when I first saw the Grand Canyon and stared in shock at how huge it was.  I enjoyed reading this poem because of the extended metaphor that attempts to explain this feeling in such a unique way.

The Convergence of the Twain
By: Thomas Hardy

This poem discusses the tragic sinking of the Titanic with excellent use of imagery.  However, it lacks a tone of sympathy, rather it is a bit harsh and rude.  I would have thought that the author would feel bad for all of the people that died in this historic event, but he seems to ignore the people altogether.  Instead, he focuses on the material things aboard the ship.  For example, instead of mentioning the bodies that went to ocean floor along with the ship, Hardy talks about the jewels.  Titanic was extremely extravagant and elegant, and there were many wealthy people on the ship.  In Stanza IV, Hardy mentions how the jewels "lie lightless, all their sparkles bleared and black and blind" (Hardy).  Hardy using this imagery to allow readers to picture the many riches just laying at the bottom of the ocean.  I found it odd that he was so concentrated on these material things.  Other images included in this poem include sea-worms and cold, alienated waters.  Based on all of the negative images, I think that Hardy was comparing the sinking of the Titanic to the sinking of human dignity.  With this theme, he focused on the items that the people all took pride in.  Hardy seems to think the ship's sinking was bound to happen.  If they had been more concerned with the people, more lives could have likely been saved.