When I first read my poem, The Darkling Thrush by Thomas Hardy, I didnt understand it at all. I just liked the way it sounded and the way it flowed. I was also looking for a more difficult poem because I was looking for a challenge. After having memorized and said it many times, I have discovered that my favorite stanzas are the first stanza and the last stanza.

The first stanza is all about describing whats going on around the narrator. It also kind of shows you how the author is depressed and kind of thinks that everything is dying. This part also continues on into the second stanza, but I like the way the first one is written best. The first stanza also stuck in my head for some reason. After having read it multiple times, this stanza stuck in my head the most and I cannot figure out why. I hope some day, looking back at this poem, I will figure it out.

I also like the last stanza because the narrator seems to be getting more hopeful after seeing and hearing the thrush sing. I also like the way the author words the way he thinks about why the thrush is singing as cheerfully as he is. The thrush is small and dying, yet it is singing a joyful song. The narrator doesn't understand this, but he wants to so he can be somewhat hopeful to.

1. January, 1975 by Mary Robinson

2. Revenge by Letitia Elizabeth Landon

3. Garden by H.D.

4. Domestic Violence by Eavan Boland
The Death of Allegory by Billy Collins

Of the poems I listed above, the ones I enjoyed the most were January, 1975 and The Death of Allegory. I enjoyed The Death of Allegory because the author seemed to have an interesting opinion about the way justice works. I liked January, 1975 because the author put the truth about how some people are put aside when they are having trouble in life instead of being helped. The only poem that I didn't like was Garden. I didn't like Garden because it did not really say anything to me, and I couldn't grasp the meaning the author was trying to get across. The poem I would choose to study further would be January, 1975 because it seemed to relate to real life more than any of the other poems I read. I am personally connected with this poem because myself and everyone else see much of what the author is talking about every day. The two easiest criteria for me would be the voice and articulation category and level of difficulty. These two will be the easiest for me because I don't have a hard time being loud and articulating and I really am not a big fan of the simpler poems. The two criteria I will have difficulty with are the dramatic appropriateness category and the physical presence category. I will have difficulty with these categories because I am not good at using dramatic pauses or things of that nature and I don't have good posture and I get nervous easily. The first poem I watched was Man-moth. This poem was successful because of the way the person who was reciting the poem was speaking and the emotion he out into his voice drew me in and made me want to hear the rest of the poem. The second poem I listened to was Forgetfulness. This was successful because of the way the person who recited. He put the correct emotion into his voice and he had the correct dramatic effect that made the poem more interesting to listen to. After being on the poetry out loud website, it made me appreciate poetry more than I had before. I appreciate poetry more now because I have found more poems that I like and am possibly interested in.