Explication of The Health-Food Diner by Maya Angelou

     The poem, The Health-Food Diner, by Maya Angelou, is a satire aimed at the people who take eating healthily much too seriously. Maya Angelou was raised in a time where you ate whatever was put on the table and you would never complain. The health food trend is a finicky and scrupulous way of living that Angelou criticizes. She gives the examples of the typical foods that make up a diet, "sprouted wheat and soya shoots/And brussels in a cake/Carrot straw and spinach raw" (1-3), and quickly puts in her two cents, "Today, I need a steak" (4). Maya Angelou's repetition of different types of meat truly enforce her carnivorous nature. She convinces the reader that the healthy diet and lifestyle are not for her. She describes the people invested in the healthy eating movement as "thinned by anxious zeal" (10), believing there is no way they could be happy while being so cautious about the daily amount of calories they are consuming. There is an unusual rhyme scheme in The Health-Food Diner but the rhyme gives the poem a playfully mocking tone and lets the reader know that Maya Angelou does not take herself so seriously all the time.

Explication of To A Daughter Leaving Home by Linda Pastan

     In this poem, there is an interesting use of rhythm and meter. The lines are so short and enjambed but that is what truly embodies the message of the story. The speaker is a parent, imagining their child growing up and leaving home. This thought is provoked as they are teaching the eight year old daughter to ride a bicycle. To the parent, the daughter leaving home seems to happen in the blink of an eye
     There is a rhythm that is encountered by formatting the poem into such short lines. If this poem was turned into a prose piece of writing, the rhythm would be lost. Another literary device used is imagery, the parent describes the daughter's hair flapping behind her as she is riding the bike and compares it to a handkerchief waving goodbye. There is also an example of imagery when the speaker describes the awe she experiences when the daughters rides the two wheeler for the first time, "as you wobbled away/ on two round wheels/ my own mouth rounding/ in surprise". Although there is excitement for the little girl to learn a new skill, it is bittersweet for the parent as they realize this is just one step closer for their child leaving the home.

Explication of "Woman Work" by Maya Angelou

     "Woman Work" by Maya Angelou is a poem that speaks from the point of view of mothers everywhere. The first stanza is a meticulous list of all the things the speaker must do during the day. The nearly flawless rhyme scheme here almost makes this monotonous list seem endless. Maya Angelou has long represented strong feminist values  and this poem takes on the purpose of criticizing the people who believe women are subordinate to men. Not only does the woman of the household in this story have to raise a family, they must cook meals, clean the house (or as she refers to it, a "hut"), and keep a steady job, "Then see about the sick/And the cotton to pick" (13-14). With the seemingly never ending amount of tasks, the tone of the poem is immediately overwhelming and hectic for the reader. The consistent rhyme shows how this daily routine is dreadfully consistent in this woman's life.
     In the last four stanzas, she refers to vastly different forms of nature and weather. This could be the speaker, gazing out of a window, dreaming of the possibility of escaping one day instead of being confined to performing menial tasks. The speaker wants to feel the sunshine on her skin, representative of relaxation. She wants to feel raindrops upon her brow, a sense of relief after what is a hard day of work. She wants to be lifted up by the wind and float across the sky "'Til I can rest again". She then mentions  the gentle snowflakes, the mountains, and simple leaves and stones. As a woman practically trapped in the household she is expected to maintain, she finds solace in nature.

"Feathers From A Thousand Li Away" by Amy Tan

     The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan tells the intertwining story of four Chinese women who have immigrated to the United States, specifically San Francisco, CA, and how their lives have an effect on their American-born daughters. The Joy Luck Club is broken up into a series of short stories, the first one being "Feathers From A Thousand Li Away. The first narrator is Jing-mei Woo, who goes by the American name June. Her mother Suyuan Woo has recently passed and it is up to June to figure out how the weekly Mah Jong game will continue. Mah Jong is a game almost like dominos with a set of complicated rules and it is meant to be played by four people.
     June mentions her mother's struggles in China while the Communist party was rising up in the 40's. Yet, there was always a glimmer of hope, which was the Mah Jong game that served as a distraction from the destruction in China. June includes the moments when her mother is traveling to the United States and how all they could bring was a trunk filled with the most precious silk dresses. When Suyuan and three other woman decide to form a Mah Jong game in San Francisco, it is an event. They feast on traditional Chinese delicacies and they gossip but they also just celebrate being together and sharing their similar experiences. June notes how they never truly mention the negatives of the stories, but they choose to focus on the positive aspects.
     Soon, June is asked to replace her mother's spot at the Mah Jong table but she is apprehensive. Regardless, she attends the weekly Mah Jong game and learns a secret that her mother was unable to share with her before she died. She actually has two sisters that her mother was desperately searching for, and she actually succeeded in finding their address. Unfortunately, she was not able to meet them again before she passed. Therefore, June takes on this responsibility to fulfill her mother's wishes.

"Fish Cheeks" by Amy Tan

     Amy Tan is known as one of the most famous American short story authors. She has written numerous stories about the trials and tribulations of Asians immigrating to the United States. "Fish Cheeks" is an anecdote from Tan's teenage years about how difficult she found it to blend both Chinese and American culture. As a fourteen year old girl, she mentions the crush she has on the minister's son. I know from my mom's own personal experiences that when immigrants arrive in the United States, they are often times welcomed by different churches and ministries to ease the transition of living in a foreign country. Although Amy Tan was born in Oakland, CA, she is the daughter of two Chinese immigrants, so Asian culture had a heavy influence on her upbringing.
     The minister and his family are invited to Tan's house on Christmas for a traditional Chinese dinner, just not the typical Christmas dinner. Amy Tan remembers the absolute embarrassment she feels as she watches her mother preparing the squid, tofu, and fried fish that must seem completely foreign to the American family coming to visit them. As if she was not embarrassed enough, when the dinner begins, Amy is horrified. This is when the true differences of these cultures are revealed. When the minister's family is used to using forks and knives, Amy's family uses chopsticks. When it is considered polite to hold in a burp in America, it is etiquette and a sign of respect to the cook in Chinese culture by belching very loudly at the end of a meal.
     While the duration of the short story is to focus on the pure humiliation Amy feels, the moral lies at the end of the story. As Amy is given the gift of a classic American-style tweed skirt, her mother mentions an important message. Her mother says, "You must be proud you are different. Your only shame is to have shame". Then, Amy sums up this story at the very end, saying that it was not until many years later after the crush on the minister's son was long gone that she realized that her mother had prepared all of her favorite foods.

Explication of One dignity delays for all by Emily Dickinson

     Overall from this poem, I sense a very regal and profound tone. By the end of the poem, you can tell that the description of the elaborate procession ends up being for a funeral, "And claim the rank to die!" (15). The message that Emily Dickinson is trying to bring across is that there is only one kind of dignity, whether you are a part of the royal family or whether you are a member of the lower class. She begins by mentioning "None can avoid this purple--/ None can evade this Crown!" (3-4). Purple first and foremost is known as the most regal colors and has come to represent all things royal. She also capitalizes the word "Crown" which reminded me of how people capitalize the letter G in "God". This seems like a criticism on behalf of Dickinson on how people glorify and idolize the royal family as if they were a religious figure.
     Then, Dickinson describes just how extravagant the funerals of the royal people are. She says in an excited but almost sarcastic and biting tone how it is such an important time that everyone in the village stops what they are doing to watch the service pass by and how everyone tips their hats for that one person who just seems so special. I think that Dickinson is truly perplexed by how the people in town will just halt everything they are doing to give their respects to this member of royalty, when people die every single day. There is a hint of irony in this poem in that the message of Dickinson's poem is that people spend too much time focusing on the deaths of others, while she devotes this entire poem to that very topic.

Future Themes of The Dubliners based on The Sisters

     In The Sisters, a boy's relationship with his priest, Father Flynn comes to an end as Father Flynn passes away. This specific relationship of the boy and the priest is questioned by the boy's uncle and another character, Old Cotter. Old Cotter and the uncle seem to be very critical, saying that it seems quite peculiar for such a young boy to have so much to say to such an old man. When Father Flynn dies and the boy attends his funeral service, he reminisces over the fond memories that he once had with Father Flynn. For example, how he would bring him "High Toast" to smoke in his pipe, and in return the Father would educate the young boy and teach him about Napoleon Bonaparte and how to speak Latin properly. While the aunt and the boy are visiting Father Flynn at his final resting place, they speak to a woman named Eliza who discusses some of his last moments. Eliza describes Father Flynn as a very scrupulous man-- someone who cares a lot about paying attention to details. Suddenly, he watched his physical and mental health decline and this attention to detail faltered. He was dropping chalices and he began to isolate himself from others while he would just mope around. Lastly, Eliza describes how she arrived at the chapel searching for Father Flynn only to find him seemingly insane, laughing to himself in the confessional.
     From this short story, I expect The Dubliners to be a series of novellas that are small anecdotes and looks into people's varying lives. These short stories were written in the mid-1900's so I also could see how some investigation and curiosity about psychology could be a common theme because that was a big part of The Sisters. How the characters end up acting both socially and by themselves in their everyday lives could be another possible theme.