Poetry Commons^™

Moving Into College, Richard Joyce

Manuscripts

I'm here, so what? All the years, and all the letters of "wish you were back," all the homesick hopes, and all the train fare can never bring me home again. College is my story and I'm stuck with it.

Autobiographical Recipe, Jack Howard

Manuscripts

A Recipe for a Short Autobiography:

2 parts paternal ancestry

2 parts maternal ancestry

3 parts your own personal characteristics

3 parts predictions regarding the future

4 parts candor

Seasoning of clever phrases, punctuation, capitalization, and fresh ideas to taste.

The Curse Of Being Clever, Glenn M. White

Manuscripts

Stephen Leacock mentions in one of his essays the horseman who "leaped into the saddle and galloped off madly in all directions." It would take a clever horse and a clever rider to do that, but Leacock was not necessarily being clever when he wrote it.

I Hit My Mark, William Steinmetz

Manuscripts

The hunt was ready to start, but only after a hunting ground was secured. Since I was one of a polite party of hunters, as hunters go, I left the car to ask a farmer's permission to hunt on his property.

Indianapolis Times, Margaret Parrish

Manuscripts

It is growing dark swiftly now. The slight mist that hovered around the Monument is getting heavier. Lights blink on to make the War Memorial Plaza a distant fairy land. (Only half the lights went on. That is good. Otherwise it would look like a Power and Light Company advertisement.) The pigeons on the Circle are quieting down, and Christ Church is gray with shadows.

Tangible Evidence, Wilbur Elliott

Manuscripts

Young Kipling Wiley silently inserted the key, and turned the knob with the greatest of caution. As he closed the door behind him, it gave only the merest hint of a squeak. Kipling mentally congratulated himself on the mouse-like quiet of his entrance, and then started across the floor on tip-toe.

Soft Answer, Marguerite Ellis

Manuscripts

Mr. Hughes was downcast. In fact, Mr. Hughes was pessimistic. It was not the fact that it was Sunday -- Mr. Hughes was not a church-going man -- but simply that the view from the big front window of his newspaper office was neither scenically inspiring nor financially hopeful.

Woodcut, Robert Ayers

Manuscripts

Abstract woodcut illustration.

Fate, Phillipa Schreiber

Manuscripts

Clacking little wooden beads.

Moved by stronger will than ours.

Uncle George, Ruth Marie Hamill

Manuscripts

Every evening when Uncle George walks into the house, before he greets any member of the family, he yells, "O-oh, Pepper! O-oh, Ginger!" and if Pepper and her puppy aren't already scampering down the stairs, or from the living room, they come now. Pepper stands on her hind legs and leans her forepaws on him while she nuzzles in his pockets for peanuts. Ginger dances around him, making funny noises which sometimes terminate in a short bark. He picks the little dog up and feeds both him and Pepper a few peanuts or bites of candy that he has brought …

Autumn Swept Garden, Charles Aufderheide

Manuscripts

Nothing can grow here now.

This garden is Autumn-swept;

Here, by the apple bough,

You turned and wept.

High Pressure, Cathryn Smith

Manuscripts

Pauline regarded John fretfully. She thought: "He's so sensible. I don't believe he ever did or said anything crazy in his li fe. He's absolutely stodgy!"

They rode along in silence for a while. John never drove fast, but there was enough wind to whip color into their faces, and Pauline's hair blew wildly.

The Hunt, Mars B. Ferrell

Manuscripts

The youth descended briskly the steep side of the gully. His two dogs, already at the bottom, trotted through the light snow. Their high noses and quickening steps were read by the young trapper as definite signs that a catch was to be expected. The trap he had set a day ago at a den on the side of the small tributary gully ahead probably held a victim. In any event, the "set" had looked good -- several fresh skunk tracks.

Return, Dorothy Steinmeier

Manuscripts

Martha smiled the way she always smiled when someone said something nice to her. Someone was always saying something nice to her, it seemed.

Armor Against Death, Betty Richart

Manuscripts

At last the hour of peace, the voices stilled

The contest ended at last. The citadel

Is saved, and the sudden ambushes are over.

The night is lovely and quiet where we dwell.

Denouement, Betty Richart

Manuscripts

Mrs. Bridgford was fidgeting. The prospect of the long evening before her filled her with nervous panic. Her husband sat solidly established behind his newspaper; she knew that no prospect of adventure could lure him from it. They sat in their intimate sphere of lamp-light without exchanging a word; the daily commonplace, had been duly gone through at dinner. Now there was nothing.

Betty Ballads, Grace Ferguson

Manuscripts

Three poems: "Betty Ballads," "Castles in the Air," and "Betty Loves People."

Grandma Brown, Mary Burrin

Manuscripts

"Sit down, Grandma. There's no need for you to help. I can finish the Turkey myself," said Effie Brown to her mother-in-law.

Hmm! Sitting down was all she'd done since she'd been here. As for finishing the turkey, Effie always cooked the meat too brown and dry, so hard you couldn't eat it, thought Grandma Brown.

The Bad Boy, Margaret Kendall

Manuscripts

Mr. Herbert Watts with his dog Antonio, called commonly Tony, walked into the park, Tony trotting leisurely at the end of his leash. He was a small dog of heterogeneous breed. One grandfather was known to be a full-blooded Irish terrier, but the rest of his grandparents were common dogs. Despite his questionable family tree, Antonio was a remarkable dog, according to the Watts's. Mrs. Watts had just finished a new red sweater for Tony, and the air being chilly on this particular day, he was wearing it for the first time.

Front Matter

Manuscripts

Front matter includes: cover, table of contents, and masthead.

How To Read A Poem, Julie Patterson

Articles

Our writer-in-residence offers some insight into how to read a poem.

Blazing The Real: Writing By Indiana Children, Susan C. Adamson, Julie Patterson

Anthologies

I got my first camera when I was in third grade—a Brownie Hawkeye flash model with a snazzy little camera case. The instruction manual provided six simple steps for taking successful pictures.

Hold the camera steady, supporting it underneath. Then, with the sun behind your back or over your shoulder, locate the subject in the finder. At the instant of exposure, hold your breath and press the shutter release with a gentle squeezing action (Brownie Hawkeye Instruction Manual).

The camera came with two rolls of film, each with16 frames. I eagerly used them up and sent the exposed film off …

Examples: What Teachers Are Doing With Poetry, Penny Miller, Sarah Duffer, Carole Damin, Libby Duggan

Articles

In November, 112 teachers from across Indiana attended a full-day professional development workshop with renowned poet Georgia Heard. Here is a sampling of the things these teachers are now doing in their schools and classrooms as a result of that workshop.

The Religious Imagery In Emily Dickinson's Love Poems, Constance B. Kirby

Graduate Thesis Collection

This paper will discuss to what extent Emily Dickinson's heritage, environment, and experience formed her attitudes on religion and love, and will explain how successful she was in translating her intense emotional experience of love into poetry by examining her use of religious imagery.

A Study Of Edwin Arlington Robinson With Special Attention To His Shorter Poems, Lucile Willowby

Graduate Thesis Collection

The purpose of the present study is to ascertain the principles of poetry to which Robinson adhers, to determine his position in relation to the imagists, and to discuss in some detail the technical qualities of his shorter poems.

Imagery In The Poetry Of Langston Hughes, Maple Louise Allen

Graduate Thesis Collection

Now, it is the purpose of this dissertation to present a study of the imagery in the poetry of Langston Hughes with special emphasis upon (1) its sources, (2) its types, (3) its functions, and, (4) its imprtance as a factor in evaluating Hughes' poetic contributions to society.

Gerard Manley Hopkins: Sacramentalist And Incarnationist, Helen V. Barry

Graduate Thesis Collection

It is the purpose of this dissertation to reveal Gerard Manley Hopkins as an incarnationist and sacramentalist, and to show how these doctrines manifested throughout his poetry affected the entire scope of his verse and completely colored his attitude toward life-- toward his own existence and that of his fellow man, and especially toward natural phenomena.

The Poet, Spenser, Frances M. Perry

Manuscript Thesis Collection

No abstract provided.

Lowell's Poems: Analysis, E. P. Wise

Manuscript Thesis Collection

No Abstract Available.