contemplation upon flowers and orchids (poetry essay)

Question

From the prescribed list of poems you have studied, choose TWO in which the speaker shows
admiration for something.

a) Briefly explain what the speaker admires in each poem.
b) Compare the ways in which the speakers respond to the situations they face.
c) Identify and discuss an effective device used by each poet in presenting the theme of
admiration.

Answer



1. Essay by : Jordon Hayles

4 Pool 4 English B

Ms. Atkins

Poetry is a way in which a poet can express one’s thoughts in many different ways, and one way
a poet can express themselves is showing admiration. Admiration is a feeling one gets when they admire
something. Admiration, as defined by Google, is the object of respect and of warm approval. In the
book, The World Of Poetry admiration is a theme shown in some poems, two of which are ‘A
Contemplation Upon Flowers’ and ‘Orchids’. ‘A Contemplation Upon Flowers’, written by Henry King,
and ‘Orchids’, written by Hazel Simmonds-McDonalds, are both about flowers, and one common theme
shown in both is admiration.

The poem ‘A Contemplation Upon Flowers’ is about exactly what the title suggests. The poem is
giving us the thoughts the writer thinks while observing some flowers, and we can see the comparison
of the flowers to many things, mostly to that of the flower’s nature versus that of the nature of humans.
In ‘A Contemplation Upon Flowers’, the speaker shows admiration to many qualities the flowers display
all throughout the poem. In stanza 1, the poet expresses his admiration to the flowers for the way they
are humble and not proud. He admires the fact that, even though the flowers are made of immense
beauty, they still know that they are all equal, and that they will soon die and go back into the earth,
where it, and all the other flowers have come from. The writer, in stanza 2, starts to compare the flower
to that of his nature, and to a greater extent, to the nature of all humans. It speaks on the way that
flowers gracefully accept the fact that their time is done, that while they have only certain times or
seasons where they can survive, especially spring, the human race on the other hand, want it to be their
favourable season year round, and the proof in that can be easily seen with all the different medicines,
health devices and whatever else may increase the chances of staying alive. And finally, in stanza 3, the
poet expounds on the fascination and admiration with the flowers acceptance of death, and, asks them
to teach him how to, instead of seeing death and being afraid, how to accept it, and also admires the
fact that, not only do they embrace death, but they complement it, as they are very much often used at
a funerals to lighten and add cheer to the air. Also the writer admires that, even after death, flowers
can be used to sweeten the air, as seen with perfumes.

The title of the poem ‘Orchids’ also gives the reader a brief look as to what the poem is about,
and also that it focuses on flowers. The poem shows us that, at first, the speaker did not appreciate the
gift of the purple orchids, as she was contemplating throwing them away; also, it tells us, the reader,
that the poet was so unimpressed with the flowers that she tried killing them by over-watering them
and then later by neglecting and starving them, but with all this ill treatment the flowers received, they
still continued to grow and they continued to flourish, and it is at this point the poet came to a
revelation that their ‘purple hearts’ and their durability were characters in which she admired. She also
admired how resilient the flowers were, how they could still grow in such harsh and abusive conditions.

The poem ‘A Contemplation Upon Flowers’ focuses mainly on death, and it can be seen that two
stages of the human life is shown, birth for the first half of stanza 1, and death for the second half of
stanza 1, and also in stanzas 2 and 3. The situation that the persona faces in this poem is fear and un-
acceptance of death. There are many reasons in which the persona would be contemplating and
associating things as innocent as a flower with death, especially if the persona was an elderly person.

Elderly people usually sit and contemplate, reflect on their life, and usually in a peaceful, quiet and
serene place. This is probably where the connection between death and the flowers came into play. In
this poem, the persona realizes and learns from the flowers, that it is best to obey the timing of Mother
Nature, it is best not to fight death, but to accept it. The persona, in the end, learned that, the way to
deal with death is by letting his life be a legacy, so he can ‘live on’, just as the flowers live on after they
die, as they are used in perfumes and potpourri. The persona says that he wants his life/legacy
to ‘...sweeten and perfume my (his) death’. This can also mean that, on the day of his funeral, he
does not want the kind and sweet things they say about him as they usually do at funerals to be false, but
the truth, so that the last things said about hi may be pleasant. In the poem ‘Orchids’, we are introduced
to the persona just as she is packing for what can be described as another move from the five week life
she had in that house. While the speaker is in the middle of packing she finds a spray of orchids that was
given to her by someone who has a habit of giving people flowers as gifts, just as some people have a
habit of giving cards or poems for gifts, and as a result of this, the persona did not really appreciate the
gift, so the situation in this poem is that, the persona did not like the gift, but not wanting to seem
unappreciative, she did not throw it out, she had instead kept it and instead dealt with the situation by
over-watering them; thinking they would die, but they still grew and blossomed normally, so she tried
another tactic, by starving, but even then, they still began to blossom new blooms. She then came upon
the realization that she was fascinated by their ‘purple hearts’, and so she comes to a resolve by
choosing to keep them, by preserving them in the pages of her memory, so that she can discover
their ‘peculiar poetry’. The way in which the persona in both poems deal with the situation they face, in
a way, is by preserving them, whether their legacy, or the flowers.

The devices of literature can be used to paint a precise and lucid image of exactly how the
persona feels and brings the point across clearly. Each poem being compared uses literary devices to
show how they admire the flowers in the poems presented. The use of simile in line 1, ‘Brave flowers,
that I could gallant it like you,’ is very effective in bringing across the fact that the persona admires the
flowers, and it also basically sets the tone for the rest of the poem. This comparison is comparing the
braveness of the flowers to that of the bashful, reluctant and often feared approach humans have
towards death. This is used to set the tone of the poem, and it can be seen throughout the poem; in
stanza 2 this is clearly seen, especially in lines 7, 8 and 9. In ‘Orchids’, the use of simile is also very
effective in bringing across the admiration shown by the persona in line 14 of the poem, ‘like polished
poems’, as it is comparing the flowers to finished and perfected poems. This is effective because,
people appreciate and admire a fully finished and properly perfected poem, as it lives forever and, and
the persona had said they would ‘press them between pages of memory’, they would, in a sense, be
immortal.

In conclusion, the theme admiration is found to be interwoven between the lines of the
poems ‘A Contemplation Upon Flowers’, written by Henry King, and ‘Orchids’ written by Hazel Simmons-
McDonald. It can be seen that admiration was given to the flowers for their acceptance of death, and for
their resilience. The speakers deal with the situations they both face commonly, by preservation. And, it
can be seen that the literary devices are very vital parts in bringing across the ways in which admiration
is shown to the flowers.






2. Khalid Sheriff, 4Pool4

In A World of Poetry, many stories share similar themes or situations. Two of particular noteworthiness
are "Orchids" and "A Contemplation Upon Flowers." Both present a situation where a character is
having a monologue about a bundle of flowers they happened to have acquired through a, for the
most part, irrelevant means. What is predominantly the common focus between the two poems is
the significance and meaning assigned to the flowers by the speaker him/herself. This leads to their
admiration for the flowers, and why that is.

As stated before, both poems focus on the admiration of a characteristic of a flower. This,
however, is where the poems begin to differ, as "Orchids" and "A Contemplation Upon Flowers" differ
not in what object they admire, but what it is they admire. In the former, the speaker admires a spray of
orchids. Specifically, the speaker admires the die-hard resilience of the orchids, despite the mistreatment
of the flowers, by the speaker him/herself. This resilience moves the speaker to the point where they
decide to preserve the petals of the Orchids by pressing them between 'pages of memory'. In the latter,
the speaker admires the humble, gallant and altogether well lived life of the flowers they speak of. More
so, they admire their acceptance in the face of death, and their ability to live in knowledge, but not fear
of death. The qualities which are admired by the speakers face amplify this admiration.

The qualities found in these flowers are focused on, due to the situations the speakers find
themselves in. "A Contemplation Upon Flowers" has a speaker who is contemplating the eventuality of
death, as well as how someone is able to live a humble, yet meaningful life. Throughout the poem, the
speaker makes it clear that he/she is fearful of death, so much so that they beg the bouquet of flowers
to teach him/her to be more like them. In "Orchids" the speaker, currently in the process of moving,
happens across a small spray of orchids she had received from someone. The orchids that she comes
across appear to be a metaphor for her appreciation of poetry. With this in mind, the poem
simultaneously focuses on the flowers themselves, as well as the poems and the similarity to each other.
The speaker goes on to discuss the hidden beauty in both, preserving and savouring the petals of the
flower, comparing them to peculiar poetry yet to be appreciated.

The admiration is conveyed through the use of one or more literary device(s). "A Contemplation
Upon Flowers" uses personification as its main literary device. Throughout the poem, the speaker
assigns qualities such as humbleness, mindfulness, and braveness in the face of death. This device is
effective as it provides a means for the poet to have the speaker express themselves, and their feeling
towards death, which is the focus of the poem. The second poem, "Orchids", the poet uses the orchids
as a metaphor for poems. This usage is effective, as it allows the poet to express his/her opinion on
poetry. This opinion, that some poems, as well as their messages, are under-appreciated, due to the fact
that they have a meaning in their 'peculiar poetry' that has yet to be discovered.

While the poems have their similarities, they also have their differences. These differences are
due to the subject matter the poet chooses to possess. The poems explore interesting concepts found in
flowers, a common element. They choose to explore what qualities the flowers possess, and how these
qualities influence the speaker. Towards the end of each poem, the speaker is changed by the message they interpret from the speaker.

Wine of Astonishment

http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2012/02/26/reading-the-wine-of-astonishment/  (part 1)

http://www.kaieteurnewsonline.com/2012/03/04/reading-the-wine-of-astonishment-2/  (part 2)

Old Story Time

'Old Story Time'
Beryl Clarke, Contributor

I am picturing, even as I write, an old man, still sprightly, full of humour or should I say 'joke' as he begins the drama of Old Story Time. How do you see him, and have you thought of the setting in which these characters meet now to listen to Pa Ben, as well as of the community in which they live? From your reading, and I do hope you have done your first reading either by yourself or in class, you must have some ideas about setting.

Their village is small but it boasts a school, a post office and a church; there is also a river. These aspects of the setting are all relevant to the way the play develops. Len does well enough in his local school to earn a scholarship to high school, and the post office becomes a place of great interest to Len's mother when he is studying abroad as she anxiously waits to hear from him. The minister of the church is a 'brown' man and he is socially important and greatly admired by Miss Aggie because of his colour. It is her deepest desire and greatest wish that her son should marry the pastor's daughter. This, as you know, puts Len in a pickle. The river has its place here, too. Do you remember where Miss Aggie finds Len when she returns from market? Yes - he is in the river playing with Pearl.

The pieces of furniture we see in the beginning tell us that Miss Aggie is poor. As part of the staging, notice that the same pieces of furniture are used for different purposes in different scenes. While this makes for ease in scene changes, it may also hint at the diverse uses that are made of what one has because of being poor.

At the start of the play we meet no one in the village who is financially well-to-do. Those who gather to hear and participate in sharing the drama are simple folk. Pa Ben, who does not appear to work or to have much money; Miss Aggie is a haggler, then there is her son, Len, and his schoolmate Pearl. Miss Aggie's house is made of wattle and daub, a type of building which by this time was disappearing from the housing landscape in Jamaica. This small group comes together to open the pages of our history. I believe that you will learn much about us from Old Story Time.

You should not be surprised at the themes that are explored in our play for they reflect the Jamaican character then, and to a great extent today. While we will not begin to examine them in this week's 'class', please identify them for future discussion.

My mind goes once more, as it has before, to the question of the playwright's reasons for choosing this title. You may have thought of it, too. The word story conjures up certain ideas. A story is a make- believe account, a fairy tale; it can also be a factual account, as in a media report. A story may be created from truths and/or real occurrences. In other words, while the characters in the story are not real, what they do and say are what real people do and say. So, in this play we do find out about the racial situation at the period in which it is set, the belief in obeah, a bit about the education system and about teenage pregnancy. This title, therefore, suggests that the audience sitting in the theatre watching Pa Ben, Miss Aggie, Len, Pearl, Mr 'Mongoose' McFarlane, Lois and Miss Margaret will learn something about our past. I believe, too, that the word 'story' hints at the humour that is very much a part of the Jamaican consciousness. All of us enjoy a good story, both to tell it and to listen to it.

This play focuses on the dream of a poor mother to have her one child, a son, rise out of the poverty and the low social status into which he was born. She is convinced that their black skin is a hindrance to achievement and upward mobility and sees education as his only way to a successful future. In addition, she believes that he can cement his improved position by marrying a brown-skin girl with 'tall hair down her back'. Like many Jamaican mothers then and now, she struggles and she makes sacrifices to give Len the support he needs.

Some instances of humour that we meet are painful even though they provoke laughter as we watch her try to do her best. It might seem ridiculous to us to hear that she does not even want a black fowl in her yard, but you should realise that her attitude is the result of living the reality of being black and receiving a certain kind of treatment. Do speak to persons who were born in the '30s and '40s, perhaps even before, and you will find out how much skin colour mattered and its effect on one's self-confidence.

Helpful sites. Use well

notes on poems
http://vincyclassroom.com/2012/04/22/cxc-english-b-poetry-tutorials-for-csec-2012/

Sample question and answer
http://vincyclassroom.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/cxc-poetry-a-question-and-sample-answer.pdf

Prescribed poems and short stories for the CSec Examinations

Prescribed Poems for the 2012-2014 Examinations

*  Contemplation upon Flowers – Henry King

*  Once Upon a Time – Gabriel Okara

*  Forgive My Guilt – Robert Coffin

*  West Indies, U.S.A. – Stewart Brown

*  Sonnet Composed Upon Westminster Bridge – William Wordsworth

*  Orchids – Hazel Simmons-McDonald

*  The Woman Speaks to the Man who has Employed her Son – Lorna Goodison

*  It is the Constant Image of your Face – Dennis Brutus

*  God’s Grandeur – Gerard Manley Hopkins

*  A Stone’s Throw – Elma Mitchell

*  Test Match Sabina Park – Stewart Brown

*  Theme for English B – Langston Hughes

*  Dreaming Black Boy – James Berry

*  Epitaph – Dennis Scott

*  Dulce et Decorum Est – Wilfred Owen

*  This is the Dark Time, My Love – Martin Carter

*  Ol’Higue – Mark McWatt

*  ‘Le Loupgarou’ – Derek Walcott

*  South – Kamau Braithwaite

*  To an Athlete Dying Young – A.E. Housman

*McWatt, M., Simmons-McDonald, H (Ed) (2005). A World of Poetry for CXC Oxford Heinemann Educational Publishers (pp. 177-78)

Short Stories Prescribed for the 2012-2014 Examinations

* Blackout – Roger Mais

*  Shabine – Hazel Simmons-McDonald

* Emma – Carolyn Cole

*  The Man of the House – Frank O’Connor

*  Septimus – John Wickham

*  The Day the World Almost Came to an End – Pearl Crayton

*  The Boy Who Loved Ice Cream – Olive Senior

*  Berry – Langston Hughes

*  Mom Luby and the Social Worker – Kristin Hunter

* To Da-duh, in Memoriam – Paule Marshall

Writing an essay in response to a play

http://www.englishbiz.co.uk/mainguides/play.htm

From the desk of Ms. Munroe- 5th Formers Guide to Writing Literary Essays

by English Munroe on Sunday, March 25, 2012 at 10:49pm ·

 Some of your quries regarding Literary Essay writing answered. ENJOY!

Q.: How should I begin my essay? Should I paraphrase or repeat the question?

A.: Begin your essay in whatever way makes it easiest for you to write. If you simply cannot begin on your own without rephrasing the question, then do so. Your reader will not consciously hold it against you, but keep in mind that your reader is reading hundreds of essays that also begin with the same unnecessary restatement of a question he or she already knows by heart and that you’ve wasted a small amount of time. If you can, get to the point right away. For example, assume a question on a prose passage asks you to “discuss Lovelace’s attitude to Bolo and the stylistic devices he uses to convey his attitude.” If you begin your essay — and thousands will — “Lovelace in this novel conveys his attitude to Bolo using devices of style. This essay will discuss his attitude and also the devices of style he uses to convey it,” all you have accomplished is to have bored the reader briefly. A better start is something like, “In the novel Lovelace regards Bolo with a combination of sympathy and disapproval,” or whatever the attitude is. If you are one of those writers to who writing a first sentence is like setting a first toe in the ocean on the coast of Maine, then use the question to get you started. Better still; begin by addressing the first task the exam calls on you to write about.

Q.: Should I write an outline before I write my essay?

A.: If you write better essays by writing an outline first, then do so. If not, then don’t. The outline won’t be graded or counted in any way. Do whatever makes it easier for you to write well-organized, specific, and relevant essays.

Q.: Should I write a five-paragraph essay?

A.: If, by a five-paragraph essay, you mean an essay in which the first paragraph is introductory and says what you’re going to do in paragraphs two, three, and four, and the fifth recapitulates what you’ve done, then No. Write a five-paragraph essay with the introduction and conclusion addressing the issues in the body. Give support to your argument. You should write in well-developed paragraphs and let their number be determined by what you have to say in answer to the questions.

Q.: How long should an essay be?

A.: Long enough to answer all the parts of the question specifically and fully. There is no extra credit given to a very long essay, especially if it is repetitious or off the subject. A very short essay (one paragraph of only a few sentences) will fall into the scoring guide’s “unacceptably brief” category and receive a very low score. If you’ve said all you have to say about a question, don’t try to pad out your answer. Go on to the next question. A student with average-sized handwriting usually writes one and a half or two pages in the booklets, but many write more and many write less.

Q.: How important is spelling and punctuation?

A.: Very.  If there are so many errors or if they are so flagrant that they interfere with a fluent reading, you will lose some points.

Q.: How important is correct grammar?

A.: The readers realize that you are writing rapidly, and they are tolerant of a lapse here and there. But if your writing suggests inadequate control over English prose, you may be penalized. On the literature exam, essays that are “poorly written” can score no higher than a three, but “poorly written” means much more than an occasional split infinitive, agreement error, or dangling participle

Q.: How important is handwriting or neatness?

It is VERY important that your handwriting is legible. What the examiner understands is what will be graded.

Q.: What are the most important qualities of a good essay?

A.: That it answers all the parts of the question fully and accurately. That it is supported with specific evidence. That it is well written.