Aziz Hamid Journal 6

Part One:

The piece that caught my attention the most in the Wax Paper was To Be Great, Be A Whale by Holly Wren Spaulding. 

The poem is short and easy to read. The poem is one big stanza which I think works well in this poem.  

The poem was motivational to me.  After reading this poem, I got a boost of confidence. This poem strengthens my determination to pursue my goals.  This poem hit me emotionally. The first line “Be a blue whale with a heart the size of a room” sets the tone well for the rest of the poem.

The message of the poem is to strive for greatness. This message of the poem is universal. Everyone has their own set of goals and challenges.

My favorite line is “Let few see you. Let them wonder.”  To me this line basically means to work hard in silence. Nowadays most people like to brag about their accomplishments and success. Some people post their accomplishments on Instagram, Facebook and other social media. They want everyone to know what they accomplished and this line is basically saying to stay humble.   

Another thing I noticed in the poem is there are many commands in the poem.  For example, “Be more at home”, “Let few see you”, “Take note of what is right and true about the world there." This goes well with poem because the poem is encouraging the readers to be great. Having commands helps the reader feel more empowered.

Part Two:

I believe my criticism improved the most through our workshops. At first, I had a really hard time providing criticism to my classmates on their poems. I didn't know what to say or talk about. The more workshops we did in class the more I improved on my criticism. For example, when criticizing a poem I learned to talk about how the line is used, prose vs friction. I improve on identifying devives and techniques the writers use such as alliteration,enjambment, refrain, figurative language and more much more.