Poetry Project
I titled my poem "Ignorant to Happiness" because I was intrigued by the concepts that we are so obsessed with happiness that we forget to be happy.
Artist Statement:
Ivie O’Nan
For me, the writing process consisted of numerous rewrites and several peer edits. My peers were essential in writing a poem that was comprehendible, yet interpretable. They helped me realize confusing stanzas and elaborate where necessary. I was able to use lines in my poem to construct more elaborate stanzas that now greatly contribute to my perception. I knew I wanted to write about the fabrication of both sadness and happiness and how manufacturing of such emotions makes people feel miserable. I began the writing process with the title, which is rather unusual for me, but was immensely helpful in maintaining focus throughout my poem. I immediately flocked to the title “Ignorant to Happiness”, although I didn’t assume I would stick with it through the countless times my poem was picked apart and reconstructed.
Through writing a shifty rough draft, I realized I was repeatedly drawn to the concept of society being “obsessed” with sadness. I really wanted to emphasize this obsession and was drawn to the poetic device of repetition, which is valuable in stressing certain points. I am also very dependent on personification within the poem because of the numerous times I personify obsession and sadness to connect to the reader and make the perspective clear. I used personification to make stanzas more efficient when they dully stated that fabricated sadness was “bad”.
When I reached a certain point in my editing process, I realized that the majority of my peers concluded that my writing was becoming cliché which was decreasing the powerfulness of my poem. Once again, I went back to the drawing board and highlighted all of the places where my writing was tacky- eventually going through and substituting the commonplaces with powerful language. I created my own unique, complex, and interesting metaphors and similes, rather than the simple cheesy ones my poem had become dependent on. For me, this was one of the most crucial steps in creating an intense poem. By replacing words like “bad” with vocabulary like “dreadful”, I enormously deepened the message and depth of my poem; allowing me to effortlessly expand important key concepts.
Ignorant to Happiness
We tend to focus on the rain instead of the rainbow
The bruises instead of the fact that we’re still alive
We mourn losses rather than celebrating life.
We begin to give up when our life starts to fall apart,
rather than working on taping it back together.
We have a bad habit of focusing on the dreadful
How can we learn to be content when we’re insistently obsessed with the rotten?
Obsession with negativity
Obsession with mistake
Obsession with tragedy.
The burden of fabricated sadness weighs us down
more than bags of sand tied to our ankles.
Relentlessly tugging us under the surface.
Tirelessly challenging our endurances.
We claim satisfaction
Claim happiness
But we barely ever take the time to stop
and listen to the birds chime.
Or watch the sun rise.
To listen to the laughter
Or be grateful for our own.
Where are the people obsessed with the happiness?
Obsessed with glory
Obsessed with joy
Obsessed with love
Why would one ever want to find more than that?
Where are the happy people?
Where are the people who are free from their own self-pity?
Deep in the rainforest, hidden in the dessert, sailing the seas, they have to exist somewhere-
I want to join them.
But unless I can escape the burden of my own disappointment,
I will never be one of them.
Unless I can free myself from the chains of pessimistic pressures,
they will never exist to me
In a world obsessed with sadness,
We reprimand the wicked
And overlook the honorable.
Dwell on a difficult day
Instead of focusing on making others extraordinary.
How can we expect to be happy if we frown at spilled milk
And forget to smile at all of life’s reasons to be rapturous?
We need to learn how to be happy
We need to learn how to break the cycle of cheerlessness.
Where are the happy people?
We lose our fight for joy
When we become distracted by our fascination with sorrow.
Where are the happy people?
Artist Statement:
Ivie O’Nan
For me, the writing process consisted of numerous rewrites and several peer edits. My peers were essential in writing a poem that was comprehendible, yet interpretable. They helped me realize confusing stanzas and elaborate where necessary. I was able to use lines in my poem to construct more elaborate stanzas that now greatly contribute to my perception. I knew I wanted to write about the fabrication of both sadness and happiness and how manufacturing of such emotions makes people feel miserable. I began the writing process with the title, which is rather unusual for me, but was immensely helpful in maintaining focus throughout my poem. I immediately flocked to the title “Ignorant to Happiness”, although I didn’t assume I would stick with it through the countless times my poem was picked apart and reconstructed.
Through writing a shifty rough draft, I realized I was repeatedly drawn to the concept of society being “obsessed” with sadness. I really wanted to emphasize this obsession and was drawn to the poetic device of repetition, which is valuable in stressing certain points. I am also very dependent on personification within the poem because of the numerous times I personify obsession and sadness to connect to the reader and make the perspective clear. I used personification to make stanzas more efficient when they dully stated that fabricated sadness was “bad”.
When I reached a certain point in my editing process, I realized that the majority of my peers concluded that my writing was becoming cliché which was decreasing the powerfulness of my poem. Once again, I went back to the drawing board and highlighted all of the places where my writing was tacky- eventually going through and substituting the commonplaces with powerful language. I created my own unique, complex, and interesting metaphors and similes, rather than the simple cheesy ones my poem had become dependent on. For me, this was one of the most crucial steps in creating an intense poem. By replacing words like “bad” with vocabulary like “dreadful”, I enormously deepened the message and depth of my poem; allowing me to effortlessly expand important key concepts.
Ignorant to Happiness
We tend to focus on the rain instead of the rainbow
The bruises instead of the fact that we’re still alive
We mourn losses rather than celebrating life.
We begin to give up when our life starts to fall apart,
rather than working on taping it back together.
We have a bad habit of focusing on the dreadful
How can we learn to be content when we’re insistently obsessed with the rotten?
Obsession with negativity
Obsession with mistake
Obsession with tragedy.
The burden of fabricated sadness weighs us down
more than bags of sand tied to our ankles.
Relentlessly tugging us under the surface.
Tirelessly challenging our endurances.
We claim satisfaction
Claim happiness
But we barely ever take the time to stop
and listen to the birds chime.
Or watch the sun rise.
To listen to the laughter
Or be grateful for our own.
Where are the people obsessed with the happiness?
Obsessed with glory
Obsessed with joy
Obsessed with love
Why would one ever want to find more than that?
Where are the happy people?
Where are the people who are free from their own self-pity?
Deep in the rainforest, hidden in the dessert, sailing the seas, they have to exist somewhere-
I want to join them.
But unless I can escape the burden of my own disappointment,
I will never be one of them.
Unless I can free myself from the chains of pessimistic pressures,
they will never exist to me
In a world obsessed with sadness,
We reprimand the wicked
And overlook the honorable.
Dwell on a difficult day
Instead of focusing on making others extraordinary.
How can we expect to be happy if we frown at spilled milk
And forget to smile at all of life’s reasons to be rapturous?
We need to learn how to be happy
We need to learn how to break the cycle of cheerlessness.
Where are the happy people?
We lose our fight for joy
When we become distracted by our fascination with sorrow.
Where are the happy people?
Growth as a Poet Reflection
The perspective I communicate in my poem grew through my many drafts. At first my poem was very cliché with lines like: “We reprimand the bad and let the good go ignored.” But as I developed my poem, these cheesy stanzas turned into: “In a world obsessed with sadness, We reprimand the wicked And overlook the honorable.” By editing my poem, I was able to focus on certain perspectives and develop them into meaningful concepts. I was able to pick out the most important parts of my poem and emphasize them.
One of the most important changes I made between early drafts of my poem and the final draft was adjusting my vocabulary to make my writing stronger. In an early draft I used the line: “We have a bad habit of focusing on the bad. How can we learn to be happy when we’re constantly obsessed with the sad?” I felt this needed to change because although the concepts of my poem were deep, the undeveloped vocabulary was making my poem less engaging. In my final draft, I developed my concepts by changing that stanza to: “We have a bad habit of focusing on the dreadful. How can we learn to be content when we’re insistently obsessed with the rotten?”. I made this change because by improving my word choice, I was able to focus on topics while making my poem piercing. This change improves my poem by making my poem less cliché, allowing the main perspectives to be emphasized and taken seriously.
When I began to focus on more elaborate similes and metaphors, my poem became more powerful. I was able to strengthen and enhance different aspects of my poem by using figurative language and literary devices to communicate messages more effectively. During my peer edits, I was told that many of the claims within my poem needed to be elaborated on to make them less “cheesy”. I knew the concepts of my poem were strong, but the way I was trying to convey them was taking away from my poem’s impact. I began to use similes and metaphors to connect the severity of ideas to my standpoint. I knew I needed to make these changes to allow my poem to be taken seriously and for it to have a greater impression on the reader. By adding metaphors like: “The burden of fabricated sadness weighs us down more than bags of sand tied to our ankles. Relentlessly tugging us under the surface. Tirelessly challenging our endurances.” I was able to support my claims and enhance my perspective. This change improved my poem by allowing the intellectual aspects of the poem to be developed and eye-opening. This allowed for ideas to become more complex in a way that would possibly alter the perspective of the reader.
Another important change I made to my poem was the addition of relevance to me and my life. I found that by connecting my poem to myself, I could further develop it. “Where are the people who are free from their own self-pity? Deep in the rainforest, hidden in the dessert, sailing the seas, they have to exist somewhere- I want to join them. But unless I can escape the burden of my own disappointment, I will never be one of them. Unless I can free myself from the chains of pessimistic pressures, They will never exist to me.” I was able to both connect to my perspective and show why it mattered. This change improved my poem by making it more impactful and showing how it applied to the reader’s life. This change made sense to me because it was real world application while showing why what I was talking about mattered. This change improves my poem by influencing the reader and making it easier for them to connect to. As a poet, I grew a lot when I realized how influential and deepening this change was.
One of the most important changes I made between early drafts of my poem and the final draft was adjusting my vocabulary to make my writing stronger. In an early draft I used the line: “We have a bad habit of focusing on the bad. How can we learn to be happy when we’re constantly obsessed with the sad?” I felt this needed to change because although the concepts of my poem were deep, the undeveloped vocabulary was making my poem less engaging. In my final draft, I developed my concepts by changing that stanza to: “We have a bad habit of focusing on the dreadful. How can we learn to be content when we’re insistently obsessed with the rotten?”. I made this change because by improving my word choice, I was able to focus on topics while making my poem piercing. This change improves my poem by making my poem less cliché, allowing the main perspectives to be emphasized and taken seriously.
When I began to focus on more elaborate similes and metaphors, my poem became more powerful. I was able to strengthen and enhance different aspects of my poem by using figurative language and literary devices to communicate messages more effectively. During my peer edits, I was told that many of the claims within my poem needed to be elaborated on to make them less “cheesy”. I knew the concepts of my poem were strong, but the way I was trying to convey them was taking away from my poem’s impact. I began to use similes and metaphors to connect the severity of ideas to my standpoint. I knew I needed to make these changes to allow my poem to be taken seriously and for it to have a greater impression on the reader. By adding metaphors like: “The burden of fabricated sadness weighs us down more than bags of sand tied to our ankles. Relentlessly tugging us under the surface. Tirelessly challenging our endurances.” I was able to support my claims and enhance my perspective. This change improved my poem by allowing the intellectual aspects of the poem to be developed and eye-opening. This allowed for ideas to become more complex in a way that would possibly alter the perspective of the reader.
Another important change I made to my poem was the addition of relevance to me and my life. I found that by connecting my poem to myself, I could further develop it. “Where are the people who are free from their own self-pity? Deep in the rainforest, hidden in the dessert, sailing the seas, they have to exist somewhere- I want to join them. But unless I can escape the burden of my own disappointment, I will never be one of them. Unless I can free myself from the chains of pessimistic pressures, They will never exist to me.” I was able to both connect to my perspective and show why it mattered. This change improved my poem by making it more impactful and showing how it applied to the reader’s life. This change made sense to me because it was real world application while showing why what I was talking about mattered. This change improves my poem by influencing the reader and making it easier for them to connect to. As a poet, I grew a lot when I realized how influential and deepening this change was.
Omelas Seminar Reflection
PART ONE- Option 2: Alternate ending
The child of Omelas sat in its small dirt room contemplating how long it would have to live there, how long it would take for it to die. It knew they needed him, he knew he was there for a reason. Did he do something? What do they say about him? He knew they would never let him out. He knew he would never be free. He knew no one could ever speak to him. But these thoughts were too complex for him. More or less, his thoughts were no more complex than “I want out, I’ve been good, let me out”. The ones who walked away from Omelas thought about freeing the child. They thought about sacrificing everyone’s happiness, redeem the life of one.
The boy could hear no more than the soft rhythm of a flute. Night after night, it grew closer, and seemed even sweeter. The music was comforting. No one had ever comforted the child before. One day, the sound seemed to be right outside of the door. The door that was always locked. The door that the child wished never existed. The door on which the other side was all the child ever dreamed of. It was the young flute player from the parade. The one whose sound was so soft it spoke for him, he never said a word. He had seen the child many times before. His father held the keys. His father was the man who was in charge of making sure the child stayed in the tool room. The flute player despised his father. He was unsure of how someone could live with keeping an innocent child suffering in a dirty room. The flute player, who we’ll refer to as Lewis, knew it was up to him to rescue the child, at any cost.
Lewis knew the secrets of the child. He knew secrets that very few others knew. He knew whose terms kept the child in the room. He knew who the child was before, who his family was. He knew what the consequences would be for saving the child. He knew where the people who walked away were going, he felt what pulled them. What he knew is insignificant to this part of the story, but most importantly, he knew that he had what it took to rescue the child.
One warm summer night in Omelas was nothing special, all of its days were rather pleasant, but this one was exceptional. This would be the night Omelas would truly be free. This would be the night everything Omelas had come to be, would crumble to the ground. This would be the night that the child would be at liberty. Among the sounds of Lewis’ father’s keys and the soft sound of the child whimpering as its door swung open, throughout Omelas, the people could hear a rather serene flute melody as Lewis and the child walked away from Omelas: hand in hand. What happened to Omelas is insignificant. It blended in with the rest of the world. Its people filled with happiness and hate and with greed and regret. It’s up to you to decide whether or not freeing the child was for the better. Where the children ended up is left to you to decide, but the best thing about them walking away, is that no one had to walk away ever again.
Part Two- Does our culture have its own small child in a broom closet?
I believe that this question is basically asking if some people find happiness at the expense of others. I believe this answer to this question is a simple yes. To deepen my understanding of this question, I should attempt to comprehend how the human population un this globalized world ‘sustains’ itself. People are constantly battling society- whether it be for a new job, a pay-raise, the new house or car you’ve wanted for so long, or that pair of cheetah-print Jimmy Choo’s in the window. Were the people who hand-crafted those beautiful cheetah masterpieces given fair pay and benefits? Do people even consider that? I know I don’t. I don’t even consider how easy it is to overlook the inequality of this world and of the system. I’m not suggesting that we all fight the system, but I am suggesting that we recognize human rights as a priority, no matter how much we want our Jimmy Choo’s. I believe our child in a broom closet in on a much larger scale but is much harder to target because it does not exist on a personal level. The people of Omelas kept the child in the closet and personally victimized the child, which is much more treatable. Whereas our culture’s “happiness” is at the expense of many people who we can’t see and aren’t very aware of.
The child of Omelas sat in its small dirt room contemplating how long it would have to live there, how long it would take for it to die. It knew they needed him, he knew he was there for a reason. Did he do something? What do they say about him? He knew they would never let him out. He knew he would never be free. He knew no one could ever speak to him. But these thoughts were too complex for him. More or less, his thoughts were no more complex than “I want out, I’ve been good, let me out”. The ones who walked away from Omelas thought about freeing the child. They thought about sacrificing everyone’s happiness, redeem the life of one.
The boy could hear no more than the soft rhythm of a flute. Night after night, it grew closer, and seemed even sweeter. The music was comforting. No one had ever comforted the child before. One day, the sound seemed to be right outside of the door. The door that was always locked. The door that the child wished never existed. The door on which the other side was all the child ever dreamed of. It was the young flute player from the parade. The one whose sound was so soft it spoke for him, he never said a word. He had seen the child many times before. His father held the keys. His father was the man who was in charge of making sure the child stayed in the tool room. The flute player despised his father. He was unsure of how someone could live with keeping an innocent child suffering in a dirty room. The flute player, who we’ll refer to as Lewis, knew it was up to him to rescue the child, at any cost.
Lewis knew the secrets of the child. He knew secrets that very few others knew. He knew whose terms kept the child in the room. He knew who the child was before, who his family was. He knew what the consequences would be for saving the child. He knew where the people who walked away were going, he felt what pulled them. What he knew is insignificant to this part of the story, but most importantly, he knew that he had what it took to rescue the child.
One warm summer night in Omelas was nothing special, all of its days were rather pleasant, but this one was exceptional. This would be the night Omelas would truly be free. This would be the night everything Omelas had come to be, would crumble to the ground. This would be the night that the child would be at liberty. Among the sounds of Lewis’ father’s keys and the soft sound of the child whimpering as its door swung open, throughout Omelas, the people could hear a rather serene flute melody as Lewis and the child walked away from Omelas: hand in hand. What happened to Omelas is insignificant. It blended in with the rest of the world. Its people filled with happiness and hate and with greed and regret. It’s up to you to decide whether or not freeing the child was for the better. Where the children ended up is left to you to decide, but the best thing about them walking away, is that no one had to walk away ever again.
Part Two- Does our culture have its own small child in a broom closet?
I believe that this question is basically asking if some people find happiness at the expense of others. I believe this answer to this question is a simple yes. To deepen my understanding of this question, I should attempt to comprehend how the human population un this globalized world ‘sustains’ itself. People are constantly battling society- whether it be for a new job, a pay-raise, the new house or car you’ve wanted for so long, or that pair of cheetah-print Jimmy Choo’s in the window. Were the people who hand-crafted those beautiful cheetah masterpieces given fair pay and benefits? Do people even consider that? I know I don’t. I don’t even consider how easy it is to overlook the inequality of this world and of the system. I’m not suggesting that we all fight the system, but I am suggesting that we recognize human rights as a priority, no matter how much we want our Jimmy Choo’s. I believe our child in a broom closet in on a much larger scale but is much harder to target because it does not exist on a personal level. The people of Omelas kept the child in the closet and personally victimized the child, which is much more treatable. Whereas our culture’s “happiness” is at the expense of many people who we can’t see and aren’t very aware of.
Do we have our own helpless child locked in a closet?
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Global Village Seminar
1) Is this "new world order" he is describing ultimately positive or negative? In what ways?
I believe that this “new world order” would ultimately be negative. Personally, I would rather live in a more globalized world with less unique cultural identities, as Iyer recalls in his intro- globalization supplies people with diversity in everything they do, what they wear, where they live, the foods they eat, and what they are exposed to (media and so forth). Without multiculturalism, the human capacity for growth would be extremely limited. People would have to be much less specialized. The ability to trade allows societies to grow, but at what point must we stop growing?
Although there are benefits to this trend, there is detriment as well. Overpopulation and further pollution can be contributed to by longer life-spans due to further medical advances (which aren’t all negative), and higher birth rates. As the world becomes overpopulated, our natural resources we depend on will deplete at an expedited rate and we will run out of room. Also, as cultures and different ethnicities begin to mix, the individuality begins to fade. Although, I don’t believe that a lack of extreme ethnic individuality would deprive the world, I do believe that it is an important factor in establishing values. As values are already established, I don’t believe these beliefs and moral will be completely removed from today’s world as cultures continue to mix and multiculturalism continues to affect our lives.
2) Can we have a globalized world without losing our unique national and cultural identities?
As the world becomes more globalized, cultural and national identities become interconnected. I think that although the distinctiveness of national and cultural identities will fade, the cultural values will still exist in a broader way. I believe that after enough time has passed, identities will become more similar. Although it will remove some of the uniqueness, I wouldn’t assume that globalization would completely demolish unique identities.
Globalization and multiculturalism lead to the inevitable fading of unique identities. Although there are definite consequences of removing certain aspects of identities, I think because globalization cannot be stopped, the fading is out of our hands. One consequence is lessening the ability to connect to society and those around you. For many people, religion or ethnicity is a major part of who they identify as and how they chose to live their lives. I think globalization does and will continue to diminish unique national and cultural identities but will not have the power to completely annihilate them because of the influence identities have over their people.
Choice-
Just as a smoothie becomes blended together from unique ingredients, as the world becomes more globalized, ethnic and cultural values become blended.
Globalization does the same to culture and ethnicity as a blender does to a smoothie. Pico Iyer’s introduction in The Global Village Finally Arrives describes the multiculturalism that is all around him in what he describes as a “relatively unintentional Southern Californian town”. He speaks of all of the different cultures that have influenced his own. As the world becomes one globalized village, values and cultures influence others. I chose this metaphor because just as a smoothie consists of many different fruits, cultures are influenced by other cultures.
I believe that this “new world order” would ultimately be negative. Personally, I would rather live in a more globalized world with less unique cultural identities, as Iyer recalls in his intro- globalization supplies people with diversity in everything they do, what they wear, where they live, the foods they eat, and what they are exposed to (media and so forth). Without multiculturalism, the human capacity for growth would be extremely limited. People would have to be much less specialized. The ability to trade allows societies to grow, but at what point must we stop growing?
Although there are benefits to this trend, there is detriment as well. Overpopulation and further pollution can be contributed to by longer life-spans due to further medical advances (which aren’t all negative), and higher birth rates. As the world becomes overpopulated, our natural resources we depend on will deplete at an expedited rate and we will run out of room. Also, as cultures and different ethnicities begin to mix, the individuality begins to fade. Although, I don’t believe that a lack of extreme ethnic individuality would deprive the world, I do believe that it is an important factor in establishing values. As values are already established, I don’t believe these beliefs and moral will be completely removed from today’s world as cultures continue to mix and multiculturalism continues to affect our lives.
2) Can we have a globalized world without losing our unique national and cultural identities?
As the world becomes more globalized, cultural and national identities become interconnected. I think that although the distinctiveness of national and cultural identities will fade, the cultural values will still exist in a broader way. I believe that after enough time has passed, identities will become more similar. Although it will remove some of the uniqueness, I wouldn’t assume that globalization would completely demolish unique identities.
Globalization and multiculturalism lead to the inevitable fading of unique identities. Although there are definite consequences of removing certain aspects of identities, I think because globalization cannot be stopped, the fading is out of our hands. One consequence is lessening the ability to connect to society and those around you. For many people, religion or ethnicity is a major part of who they identify as and how they chose to live their lives. I think globalization does and will continue to diminish unique national and cultural identities but will not have the power to completely annihilate them because of the influence identities have over their people.
Choice-
Just as a smoothie becomes blended together from unique ingredients, as the world becomes more globalized, ethnic and cultural values become blended.
Globalization does the same to culture and ethnicity as a blender does to a smoothie. Pico Iyer’s introduction in The Global Village Finally Arrives describes the multiculturalism that is all around him in what he describes as a “relatively unintentional Southern Californian town”. He speaks of all of the different cultures that have influenced his own. As the world becomes one globalized village, values and cultures influence others. I chose this metaphor because just as a smoothie consists of many different fruits, cultures are influenced by other cultures.
Genocide
Use this link to venture to my Op-Ed and cartoon about the Cambodian Genocide.
Social Psychology: Conformity
Truth of War
Click this link to travel to our first project about the truth of war for a soldier!