Robert Lee Frost (March 26, 1874 – January 29, 1963) was an American poet. He is well known for his realistic writings of rural life and his use of American informal (slang) speech. His poems were often set in rural life in New England in the early twentieth century, and used these settings to look at complex social and philosophical themes. Frost has often been quoted by other people. He was honored often during his lifetime, receiving four Pulitzer Prizes for Poetry.
The Road Not Taken
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth;
Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim Because it was grassy and wanted wear, Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same,
And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I marked the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way I doubted if I should ever come back.
I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference.
The New York Public Library on 42nd St. (the big one next to Bryant Park with the two big lions sitting in front) has a special free exhibit about one of Spain’s most famous poets: Federico Garcia Lorca. He came to New York in 1929 to study English as a Second Language and also learn about America. They have his letters, manuscripts, and drawings on display, as well as his guitar and passport.
Since it’s National Poetry Month, why not go check it out? It’s going to be there till July 20th.
The exhibit’s name is Back Tomorrow: Federico García Lorca / Poet in New York. From the NYPL website:
In June 1929, at a time when young writers and painters dreamed of living in Paris, Federico García Lorca (1898–1936), Spain’s greatest modern poet and playwright, broke boldly with tradition and sailed for New York. His nine months here, followed by three months in Havana, changed his vision of poetry, the theater, and the social role of the artist.
Lorca came to New York to study English but devoted himself instead to writing Poet in New York, a howl of protest against racial bigotry, mindless consumption, and the adoration of technology. “What we call civilization, he called slime and wire,” the critic V. S. Pritchett once wrote. But Lorca’s book reaches beyond New York—“this maddening, boisterous Babel”—into the depths of the psyche, in a search for wholeness and redemption.
In 1936, the poet left the manuscript of Poet in New York on the desk of his Madrid publisher with a note saying he would be “back tomorrow,” probably to discuss final details. He never returned. Weeks later, at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, he was brutally murdered by fascist elements in Granada, his body thrown into an unmarked mass grave. The book was published posthumously in 1940, but the manuscript mysteriously disappeared, lost to scholars for decades. The Fundación Federico García Lorca in Madrid and The New York Public Library exhibit it now for the first time, together with drawings, photographs, letters, and mementos—traces of a Poet in New York . . . and of New York in a poet.
And here’s one of his poems about New York, translated into English:
Dawn by Federico Garcia Lorca
Dawn in New York has
four columns of mire
and a hurricane of black pigeons
splashing in the putrid waters.
Dawn in New York groans
on enormous fire escapes
searching between the angles
for spikenards of drafted anguish.
Dawn arrives and no one receives it in his mouth
because morning and hope are impossible there:
sometimes the furious swarming coins
penetrate like drills and devour abandoned children.
Those who go out early know in their bones
there will be no paradise or loves that bloom and die:
they know they will be mired in numbers and laws,
in mindless games, in fruitless labors.
The light is buried under chains and noises
in the impudent challenge of rootless science.
And crowds stagger sleeplessly through the boroughs
as if they had just escaped a shipwreck of blood.
We are going to have some posts, activities and contests this month to celebrate all things poetry. So enjoy and start reading some poetry…all the cool kids are doing it.
First, maybe you noticed the Poet’s Corner in the lobby of 175 Eldridge St. You’ll find a magnetic poetry board (pictured below) for you to play and experiment with. Check it out, have some fun. Also here is a link for you to play with magnetic poetry on your computer.
Also, don’t forget to sign up for Poem-A-Day. You’ll get a new poem sent to you everyday. It’s a great way for you to improve your English skills and a great way to start your day.
Meet our new student of the month, Li Juan Zou, Winnie. Her teacher is David Moss from class W2 (Saturday & Sunday 9:30AM-12:30PM).
Watch and listen to Winnie comfortably and confidently answers our interview questions . Winnie also reads one of her favorite poems. Below, you can also read the movie review Winnie wrote for one of her favorite films, Groundhog Day (and watch the movie trailer).
Winnie Zou
Groundhog Day Movie Review
Groundhog Day’s director is Harold Ramis. The main characters are Phil and Rita. The movie is about Phil, who keeps reliving Groundhog Day. Phil wakes up at 6:00AM every day, he wakes up to the same song and listens to the same news on the radio. At first, he tries to face the same day and tries to end Groundhog Day. He jumps off a building, he gets hit by a car and he electrocutes himself with a toaster in the bathtub, but none of this works. Also he tells his producer, Rita, but she doesn’t believe him. So he tells her about all the people in the town to prove to Rita that he is reliving the same day. Then he tries to enjoy Groundhog Day and falls in love with Rita. He tries to be nice to people he brings breakfast to his co-workers, he learns to play the piano, he does ice sculpting and he catches a kid who falls out of a tree. Finally, Rita and Phil fall in love with each other and Groundhog Day ends. “Today is tomorrow!”
My opinion is that the film’s message is telling us to enjoy our life and bad or good situations don’t really matter. People have a dream, they wonder if they are reliving the same day, there would be no consequences. People could do whatever they wanted. People wouldn’t worry about gaining weight, love handles, cholesterol or eating too much sugar. They wouldn’t worry about accidents because nobody would die. It sounds very funny and beautiful.
I like to watch Phil as he tries to end Groundhog Day and he does some silly things. He tries to enjoy the same day and he is nice with people. I like the song in the movie, “I Got You, Babe”. I would recommend this movie to my friends. I like the film because I also like to daydream.
This poem was written by William Blake, it is my favorite poem because it resonants with me. I think people should value what they have and find beauty from small things.
We had our first day of classes today, and we were happy to see that a lot of people showed up. Evening students, your classes start tomorrow.
As Michael was sitting at home stranded last week, he wrote this limerick about the storm:
There was a girl named Sandy
She was rainy, snowy and randy
She came before Halloween
And left tricks and twists in between
When she was gone there were bags of leaves, branches, but no candy!
