Reflection

A moment in time,

A moment in time when life was normal.

A moment when the trees and birds would sing in harmony,

All until machines came and destroyed it.

Destroyed what we need the most

Now instead of the birds and trees

All you can hear is the hiss and holler from the machine.

The machine that will destroy it all

The machine that will take this world,

And turn it into a nightmare

Without a care in the world.

Then we will think back one day.

And wish,

Wish for the birds and trees.

poem composition

Reflection by Olivia Sykes is a poem based on the way machines are destroying nature and how people are oblivious to the consequences that come with it. Sykes put a theme of repetition throughout the poem, with the first three lines all starting with “A moment in time”. For example lines two and three, “A moment in time where life was normal, A moment in time when the birds and trees would sing in harmony” which is also a metaphor. I believe Sykes was trying to use a worried tone throughout the poem to convey the seriousness of the issue society has caused.

Sykes wrote this poem as a free verse open poem. Her insight into life is the fact that humans would rather kill the beauty around us to make materialistic items. New buildings and factories have now become more important than the nature that was here before us. As Sykes said on lines twelve through fourteen, “Then we will think back one day. And wish, Wish for the birds and the trees”. Society doesn’t realize the consequences that destroying nature will cause until it becomes too late to fix the problem. In conclusion, I believe her poem provides an insight into the way society will end up if we don’t begin to be aware of the damage we are doing to this earth.

Composition on praxis

Praxis by Sharon Thesen is a poem about trying to change or act on the way society is ignoring serious issues that could affect us down the road. The meaning of praxis is to do, to practice and to take action. I believe the title plays an important part in understanding the meaning of the poem. Thesen also goes into detail on how people are too afraid to be the one to attempt to make a change that the world needs as they are scared, they won’t succeed. If you continue to live your life the same way without change you will never fully experience life to the fullest. You must take risks and go beyond the social norms to see a change. Instead of leaving problems alone for future generations to fix It’s important to try.

Thesen uses metaphors for obstacles that occur in the poem. For example, “So stop crying. Get up. Go out. Leap the mossy garden wall”. There is also a use of repetition at the beginning of the poem when These wrote “unable to imagine a future, imagine a future better”. Both examples of figurative language are crucial to the poem.

When looking into praxis and text-to-text connections, the first thing that comes to mind is Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury. Both the poem and novel have the same issue with people disregarding issues going on around them. For example, when Thesen says “weeping in the abattoir” it relates to Mildred as she has walked herself into the abattoir and is unaware, she is just following the rest of society. Whereas Montag tries to take the leap and escape.

In conclusion, the Poem Praxis has a real-life meaning in today’s society and portrays the way many may just stay seated instead of facing the problem that lies ahead.