| Cast: Mr. Reader Mrs. Response Mrs. Response: On first reading I could not get much out of this poem. Mr. Reader: Surly you must have gotten something. Mrs. Response: I got the sence that the narrarator was mad at somebody. Mr. Reader: And what makes you think this? Mrs. Response: Words like �abhorrence� , blood, kill, flames. And that was just in the first stanza! These are not words that mince meaning. They clearly evoke anger and rage. Maybe even resentment. Mr. Reader: What about the rest of the poem on first reading? Mrs. Response: I felt like it was hard to keep track of who was talking. In retrospect I see that the title does say it�s a soliloquy, so it must be only one person. In the second stanza there are italics and I think this is what through me off. Mr. Reader: Did you pick up on the music of the poem on first reading? Mrs. Response: I think I was paying so much attention to understanding the words that I missed out on the music. Mr. Reader: What did others say about the poem? Mrs. Response: The person from whom�s three poems I chose from thought it was funny. That is why she said she chose it. She also said it was gossipy, in a high school kind of way, and that the narrarator was shallow. This did not make me me excited to read the poem because who wants to read about shallowness? I was conscious of the fact that there must be humor in the poem, so I think I may have been consentrating on looking for the funny parts. Mr. Reader: And did you find any? Mrs. Response: Maybe some mildly amusing moments. Suffice to say I was not falling out of my chair with laughter. Mr. Reader: What did the fellow think? Mrs. Response: Almost the opposite of what she thought. He said it was a poem about cursing out God and that the narrator was going to hell. Mr. Reader: Hmm. Mrs. Response: How can they have both got two very different meanings? Mr. Reader: You tell me. What about subsequent readings for you? When did things start to coming together? Mrs. Response: As if! Mr. Reader: What about when I read it aloud? Mrs. Response: I picked up on the rhyme scheme better, that�s for sure. I definately heard the music better. Mr. Reader: And what did this do? Mrs. Response: I think it tied things togeter better for me. It was less choppy and more smooth. This also helped me to realize that the narrator, as far as I can tell, ends each stanza with a put down of somebody, or something. It is almost like he always has to have the last word. He builds each stanza, then pulls the rug out beneath its feet. Mr. Reader: Please go on. Mrs. Response: It reminds me off silly limericks that a child would say to another in mock. Mr. Reader: Do you think this where the shallow high schoolishness comes in to play? Mrs. Response: I suppose. It definately gives away the age of the narrator, mentally more than physically. |