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Unfair Society
Money doesn’t buy happiness
People underestimate what tiny paper can do
What if that paper can make world better
What if that paper can save thousands of lives
Human is controlled by money
It changes one’s society up and down
Good example of this is huge gap between rich and poor
People are like mice that follows cheese which is actually money
While looking at this unfair situation, earth is crying
Because of extreme hunger, innocent people are dying
Carefully care about common conflicts in the corrupted society
Is it hard to stack donation money instead of playing black jack?
Looks like cloudy weather in the sky
and smells like unwashed leather
It sounds like many toddlers screaming
and feels like unbelievable daydream
Rich people don’t know how it feels to be poor
Poor people don’t know how it feels to be rich
They are living in opposite side
But same human being
Here are the articles that inspired my poem:
Here’s How Money Really Can Buy You Happiness
Study Shows Income Gap Between Rich and Poor Keeps Growing, With Deadly Effects
My reflection / discussion:
My Poem:
My favorite poem :
JOE HELLER
By Kurt Vonnegut
True story, Word of Honor:
Joseph Heller, an important and funny writer now dead,
and I were at a party given by a billionaire on Shelter Island.
I said, “Joe, how does it make you feel to know that our host only yesterday may have made more money
than your novel ‘Catch-22’
has earned in its entire history?”
And Joe said, “I’ve got something he can never have.” And I said, “What on earth could that be, Joe?”
And Joe said, “The knowledge that I’ve got enough.” Not bad! Rest in peace!
Poem Composition:
– “Joe Heller” is one of my favourite poems ever read. The poem talks about money and knowledge. It also emphasizes connecting money and knowledge throughout people’s behaviours inside our society. The type of poetry is Elegy, Imagery, Sonnet. The speaker is Kurt Vonnegut, who is known as a novelist and essayist for over 50 years. He is known for not only satirical literary style, but also science-fiction style elements in his works. In the poem, the speaker compares having a lot of money versus gaining a lot of knowledge. The conversation between Joseph Heller and Kurt Vonnegut at a party given by a billionaire on shelter island shows they describe how having money and expertise is different.
There are two figurative devices I can find. The first one is “Not bad, Rest in peace” The speaker puts exaggeration after Joe’s response, which shows hyperbole. Another one is personification on “True story, Word of honor.” The word contains the meaning of honor. Connecting with Oryx and Crake, the poem talks about how knowledge is a special thing to have as a human. In Oryx and Crake, human manipulation has made people forget the humanity and individual difference. Money is tangible to everyone. However, knowledge is imagery that makes it intangible. The speaker is trying to tell the reader the importance of knowing other than having material things. In our society, money is the most priority things people care about the most. However, they only look at physical benefits instead of their development, such as knowledge. I agree with Joe’s statement that “The knowledge that I’ve got enough” He shows how the importance of knowing compared to money. He thinks money can disappear quickly depends on a person’s financial habits. One the other hand, knowledge cannot be dismissed, and it is hard to forget. I love the poem because it gives us life experience advice directly. I get a lot of comfort and compassion in the poem.