Verses on Bird ~ Reflection

As I read through Er’s poems, I found myself wishing that I knew how to read Chinese so that I could experience the poems in their original language. I imagine that there must be a great deal of beauty in the original forms and sounds and rhythms, and I know that much of that must have been lost in their translation. Though the English translations still have some elements of beauty and some moments of striking imagery and comparisons, for the most part, these poems didn’t quite resonate with me as much as some other poems I’ve read. At times, I found myself almost getting lost in Er’s poems. There were moments when I was delighted by the beauty of the images she describes, but I struggled a bit with the ambiguity of some of the poems. With many of the poems, I felt as if there were something I was missing, something I wasn’t quite able to grasp. Maybe the poems are more clear in the original language, or maybe the author intended them to be a bit vague for a reason. Or maybe it’s just the way I read.

 Despite some of the confusion I had with the meaning of some of the poems, however, I was struck by Er’s ability to create places and images with such depth and immediacy. One technique from this book of poems that I would especially like to emulate in my own writing is the technique of taking an ordinary object or place and looking at it from different perspectives, giving it more depth and shades of meaning. I like the way that Er is able to create a story in some of her poems out of just a simple place or object, making observations, meditating, and commenting on human nature and life in general. Two poems in particular that stood out to me as examples of this technique were “The Hardware Store” and “Watermelon Juice.” I enjoyed experiencing the worlds she created and the stories she told with her images in those poems.

One element of my own writing that I would like to work on is incorporating imagery in a more meaningful way. Sometimes when I use imagery, my focus is mainly on making the setting more detailed or using the five senses so that my writing is more vivid, but I realize that it is also important for me to think about why I am adding a certain image. Some images may contribute more fully to the topic of my writing than others, and I need to put more thought into the reasons for the images that I choose to use. Reading Er’s poems has reminded me that imagery can be an important element of tone and meaning and not just of the setting and that I can use it to add depth and a sense of immediacy to my writing.