Today begins our month long journey into the world of poetry. I know some of you will find our travels exciting, yet others of you are already moaning at the thought of reading poetry. Ms. Cerra, Ms. Krueger and I have tried to put together a wide variety of poems in hopes that you may find at least one that appeals to you.My first offering is a poem by Richard Brautigan, a counter-culture poet of the 1960's and '70's. (Yes, the photo is only about 40 years old.It wasn't taken during the Gold Rush Era.) When he wasn't trout fishing in Montana or visiting Japan, he spent much of his adult life in the San Francisco Bay Area. His lighthearted poetry makes it hard to believe that he was a tortured soul that committed suicide in 1984 at the age of 49.
Click on the link to read Brautigan's tribute to his girlfriend, Marcia with "Gee, You're So Beautiful That It's Starting to Rain." Post comments related to the Sights, Sounds, Emotions, Literary Elements, and Theme of the poem.
After you've completed looking at the poem through the explication lenses, click on the Richard Brautigan Wikipedia link above. Read the last paragraph of the Life section to learn about Marcia's connection to his death. Does knowing this information color your interpretation of the poem written 16 years before his death?
102 comments:
seems kind of simple to me. Despite his obviousness he gets the point acrost. more to say later.
I understand thet he likes merci, howerver he shows that how his feelings get across about what he wanted to get through to merci and about her long blonde beauty.
wow im amazed he has alot of feeling toward this merci person he seems by his writing to be very held back like he's not wanting to speak out maybe this was one of the reasons he commited suicide because he felt really buched like he expressed himself through his writing but not to people and that was his flaw
I think that the auther is describing his felling about marcia. He is explaining her beauty by comparing to god, music and sunshine harpiscord.
I think that he had a hard time understand to deal what had happened to him and felt there was no other way to live with out Marcia. Also it is weird that the poem was written 16yrs before he killed himself,because it seems he wrote this right before he died
this guy seems lika a total hippie; totally in love with music, writing his feelings, even if he isn't tat deep of a thnker, and, of course, he is in love with a girl.
I belive that this poet is explaining his true and deep love for Marcia so much that he wants her hair to be taught in high school.
On my opinion this guy like Merci a lot because of the fact that she is blonde. So he is in love with that, but doesn't say directly that he lovers her
so i think that hee is feeling alot of love and emotion into this and his theme is love but he uses alot of dry humor like computors because back then computers didnt excist
It seems kind of juvenile to me. but i think this poem is about love and illusion.
this artist seems really apperciative of his girlfriend, and was probably a sweet talker because of the way he describes her beauty but other wise he seemed to be in love with her.
Sadly,I understand why he would unfortunatly commit sucide, and that's because of what he was feeling and because he put on a happy face it was probably really hard on him. but finding out that that last person he had talked to was marcia gave the poem more belivablity of his feelings for her.
Well obviously, Mr.Brautigan is in love with Marcia's beauty. I wouldn't necessarily say that he is in love with her, because he doesn't say it through out his poem. I would say he is inspired by her beauty, in stead of being in love with her. The poem itself doesn't really convey to me a sad tone, so I am surprised that some one who wrote a poem like this would end up committing suicide. Although, it was written 16 years before his death, and a lot could happen in 16 years.
This poem sounds like he is in love with Marcia and the way that she looks. He seems to be like depressed or something.
well one can see he is madly in love with Marcia. He wants the whole world to recognize the beauty he sees in her through his poem.From reading the last paragraph on his biography, I can only assume that he commit suicide due to something realated to her. Maybe she cheated on him.
Many of you appear to be just reading and thinking about the very beginning and ending of this poem.
What about these lines: ". . . so kids will learn that God/ lives like music in the skin/and sounds like a sunshine harpsichord."
Why does he feel it important that kids learn this lesson?
Remember he spent much of his time in Japan. He studied Zen Buddhism and Japanese culture. He often wrote haiku, a Japanese form of poetry that communicates very large messages in only 17 syllables.
He must be talking about so much more than Marcia's beauty.
Well, thinking about the time it was written, I'd say he's trying to show that God made such people that are gentle and extraordinary. I feel like he's saying that there are those that still have goodness within themselves and such a person should be recognized. Agreeing with the lines:
". . . so kids will learn that God/ lives like music in the skin/and sounds like a sunshine harpsichord."
It does set a very calming image and he seems to be telling us that peaceful lifestyles are incredible and we must learn to live in that way.
(This is considering the Zen Buddhist thoughts of harmony and peace.)
he wants students to learn thoes things because there is so much more meaning in music and sounds and what lies beneath the skin of others than what you see. he wants them to learn how to appriciate things more deeply like he did with mercia.
i felt that the theme to this poem was passion; his passion for music and this one girl
this poem is talkin about this girl marcia, and he is saying alot of stuff like she is like a god, and he also talks about a report card and he mentions stuff about her like her blonde hair gets an ''A''.
he talks about her beauty how kids in highschool should be taught that. also saying like she is so beautiful that kids should look up to her or something.
i think this guy really likes the girl and all the stuff that he watches her do are his favorite
In this poem Richard Brautigan uses metaphores to describe his love for marcia.He also makes his "subject" related to the girl.This poem doesn't ryme instead he uses metaphores. He uses alot of emotional feelings,his mood towards this girl is positive.The theme for this poem is expressing your love towards some one and if you feel like telling them then go for it.
i think that the writer is obsessed with marcia and sees her beuty like no body else.
The poem "Gee, you're so beautiful that it's starting to rain" by Richard Brautigan is about the need to look to someone to love direly.
he adores her, everything she does. so much that he wants other people, such as the kids in high school, to be like her and be taught of her ways and behaviors. when he says, "so that kids will learn that God lives like music in the skin..." hes saying that she is like god and she lives a blissful life in her body and thats how god lives. the report card is the things she does that he loves so much.
i thought that her hair could be that with the wind her hair blows and flows easily like the sound of music (music notes) the way they are drawn in pictures and the brightness of the light is from the beautiful blonde hair and hes practically relating everything from her to things that happen in our every day life and since her hair seems to be so amazing so is the sun when it raises and when it sets buddah also is gols and since he studied that alot he might be refering to that in his poem!!!!!!!!11
i just realized that what i had said before about the sunrise he might be refering to gentle glass because she might be gentle and the beauty is of amybe her eyes or hust a way to describe her as a really beautiful god looking alike figure like simon in Lord Of The Flies well thats what i think besides and her magic is seen and marcia means dedicated to mars so he might like planets or interested in them! who knows he can only say but he is dead!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It seems like this guy really admired and loved his girlfriend, Marcia. And i think it is so interesting to readi it, because it looks like he wrote it to say "good bye" to Marcia.
This poem sounds like he is in love with Marcia because it is the way he look and acts
He seems like he really likes the girl and it also seems like he really likes her blond hair. He talks about his feelings but also about school he wants to see A's on the report cards. He also talks about god so i guess that means he's into god a lot to.
this poem is tells us dat da teacher cares bout hiz class nd dat blonde haird gurl
This man seems to be deeply in love with this women. He obviously loves everything she does and admires her.
when i read this poem the first time i was a little lost but once i read it over i began to understand what he meant he means that he was never mad at god for the way he lived but he felt like he could not live any longer and for that he just wanted to be saved and wanted marcia to be happy.
This poem is kind of boring but it is very intresting
H talks about her blond hair and she uses similies to compare "god lives like music in the skin" and tht it sounds like a "sunshine harpsichord" he is talking about how much easier school would be if the subjects were on the things he loves to do.
he uses similies to compare music and god
he didnt want marci to be mad at god because of his suicide
her long blond hair must stand for somthing.
he uses similies to compare music and god
this poem shows that Richard Brautigan had alot of affection towards marcia. he felt that she had so much beauty that she should share it with the rest of the world, and what not a better way to do that then by having it be joined in with high school.
im responding to Roxanne. i dont neccessarily agree that he sounds like a hippy. it just seems that marcia makes him very happy and hes not affaird to show it and express it.
The things he want his A's for are random, but the Merci girl part is sweet. That shows that he likes her and should be apart of his life. Does she even know him? Did he just see her past by him and just fell in love with her, with her not even knowing?
This poem Richard Brautigan uses many words to describe merci and her long blonde hair. you can tell that he is writing aboput someone that he really loves.
To me this poem is about a man who wrote about someone that he really loved and cared for. And this girl is beautiful and lovely.
this poen shows how much he lives merci's hair and the examlike that he makes is that they should teach kids in high school about how beutiful her blond hair is. i think that the theme of the poen is lust/ passion.
this poem is simple, but it has alot of emotion to it. not only by descibing her blonde hair [main point of poem], but also to show his love for her. he couldn't express this feeling for her [which shows personality traits of shyness and withdrawl] which may of caused him to commit suicide, and lose the one he loves by not being able to have her.
and by sharing it with high schoolers, he wants to let them know that she is perfect in all ways, and he is proud of that.
he is very obsessed with her beauty with the report card thing.
this peom is about how he thought of his girlfriend demonstraited in a way like he was a teacher grading her on the things he liked about her.
I think the poem does "color my interpretation", although he does die with hardly anyone knowing of his death. He seems very fond of Marcia in this poem.
he uses similies to compare music and god....he cares alot about people
in this poem, the poet is showing that he is explicating his feelings of what he is truly passionate about
the guy who worte the poem is unfolding to the world what he really loves in life
I don't really get the poem, but i did find a long simile that looks like it's two. It is, "God/ lives like music in the skin/ and sounds like a sunshine harpsicord." i cant understand anything in the poem.
i think that this poem shows the love that he has for marcia. although he sounds obsessive i think that the way he talks about he is admirable.
maybe there is something special about her that he believes that other people should know about because he describes herr as something that needs to be taught to other people.
richard brautigan is telling us that marcia is perfectand she is god like.he is also saying that her voice is so beautiful.
well i think the guy is in love with marcia and wants everything to be perfect just like her.. for example, all the grades thats on the poem and at the end its an "A+"
"Gee,You’re So Beautiful That It’s Starting to Rain" by Richard Brautigan is a poem about madness of love.It looks like that he is obsessed with Marcia and he compared Marcia with sunshine, music and harpsichord.
It's an interesting poem.He thinks that everything should revolve around Marcia's beauty and long blond hair,including school.He is very obsessed with her.
THe author is very obvious w/ how he feels about Marcia, he likes her cuz of her blonde hair and he uses similes to get his point across to the reader.
I understand the poem, Richard has feeling for Marcia. In his poem he talks about everything he likes about her.
maybe the poet wants to let us know that he loves marcia the way he appreciates god like music have great impact in our lives....
I think he sees her as his muse. I love his perspective on things. The way he can turn simple boring things into wonderful ideas.
I think some possible theme topics could be desire and obsession. The desire for love or the obsession over beauty.
I think this poem is simple. not deep or, life altering which to me kind of...makes the poem less intersting. But it is great in the way that the Author lets out how they feel.
i think the author really loves his girl friend.
i think the theme of this poem is the inner beauty of ones you love.
i can feel that the author loved merci deeply, merci is so important for him and he can not live without merci. his words bring me to his love
i can feel that how deeply the authour loves merci. merci is so important for him, he can not live without merci. the words the author uses bring me into the love of them
i think this poem is not as complex as i thought,but within his writinh, it seems has alot of impression behind it and strong feeling of love and depress, i wonder is this the poem that made him suicide?
I think this poem was simple. He seems to like this girl alot nd has alot of feelings towards her he wants everyone to know that this girl is very special and how she's great,wonderful person and he wants everyone to realize it.
Mr.Brautigan likes Marcia. I believe that he is mostly in love with her looks and not her.I think that he did it is because he couldnt live w/o Marcia. And thats why he commited suicide.
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it is about a guy named richard who is in love with this girl named merci he realy likes her and
i feel this peom although its short its meaningful. it only took him about one stanza to get his point across about his girlfriend and how much she means to him and how wonderful she truly is. and altough he doesnt use exact words to decribe her every word is meaningful and thoughtful.
This poem has imagery and figurative language of an obviously a not only pretty but gorgeous girl w/ features like ...long blonde beauty;...lives like music in the skin...
he likes her alot an wants classes all about her so he can lean more about her an admire her
This poem seems like the author wishes he could learn about more simple things in life. Also it reveals a love for someone named Marcia.
If you were to ask me about this poem I'd say it's pretty dry, simple and mostly dull love letter.
i really like this poem.after reading it a few times, you start to see how much he loves the girl. the simplicity of it is interesting to. its intense but at the same time fun.
i think that the author shows how he loves Marcia and appreciates her beauty. it shows how he thinks that her beauty is such an important and great thing that it should be taught in school. it also shows that he thinks life and school should be fun.
This poem show that the author really admires his girlfriend's beauty. This is interesting because he wrote the poem 16 years before he died like if he knew that he was going to kill himself 16 years later.
the poem describes deep felings for the girl, and u can tell she means everything to him. you can see this by the way he describes her.
i really liked this poem but i didnt really understood it. i only understood that he liked a girl named Marcia
im not sure if its a guy talking or a girl...a guy could be really in love with a girl...or another girl might just really want to be like this girl...its saying how like beauty shhould be taught in highschool..i dont understand where it says "so kids will learn that god lives like music in the skin"..
This poem shows that he is totally in love with Marcia. He wrote like a child to show how love makes you feel young. Even juvenile.
I wonder why he killed himself after talking to Marcia. It's too bad that his body was found over a manth after death.
I liked "Finding out about Fish".
I think Richard is talking about the crush on Marcia. The purpose of the poem is about his expression of his love and he pobablly wants to express him self with this poem. I really like the part that Richard make the chart of the dream report card, its really creative. From that part, I can pretty sure that he is interest in computer , fish ,and of course Marcia.
well lets see...hmmm...this poem actually gets the point of the meaning acroos clerarly to me...he loves her and everything...but i like the way he used school mixed with his feelings to make it a poem...yeah,,,thats about it
in the "we real cool" poem the author uses repitition. and when i read i thought the theme was if u slack off and horse around too often then you could kill dreams and hopes or your self.
for the "bike ride with older boys" poem i thought the authors theme of the poem was to not trust people you just met and go out alone with them.
this poem show how about the author feeling,and what happened to him and felt there was no other way to live with out marcia, and this guy like merci a lot. because of the fact that she is blonde. and he want student to learn those things, and merci is so important for him.
The man feels that everyone should be like Merci.
This poem has no repetition, rhyme and rhythm. The literary for used are simile, personification. The author used simple language for this poem. I think the author was so inspired by marcia. :)
The purpose of this poem is to show that the author wants every one to be like Marcia. That Marcia is everything to him. The author uses literary devices to describe beauty.
When the author says: “…God lives like music in the sky and sounds like a sunshine harpsichord” is making a important comparison between the girl he is talking about and the way “God” lives inside each one of us, that means that although you cannot see God as you cant see music or the sounds of an instrument s/he still exists and s/he lives within each one of us, that is why I think the author is not only focusing on beauty and love, he is also managing topics like religion, school system, and things that maybe we don’t usually notice because we are so used to them that they lose importance like playing, imagination, telling people you really love that you care about them and the way the author is telling us all those things is by using imagery of shiny things like, glass ,magic, blonde , sunshine harpsichord, the sea, and finally love and I say “love” because love makes your heart shine.
It seems like the writer is comparing the girls beauty to god. i think this means he really wants her and that shes beautiful.
the writer talks about how others dont see the beauty of music that is hidden because they just focus on the easy, given stuff. Everyone should be like Merci.
i think that this person is in awe over Marcia and that it's really cute how he has such strong feelings for her since he compares her to gods music and sunchine harpsichord.
i think that the girl is maybe beautifuland is going against god in this case
i think shez hawt. i luv cappuchino high skool. coffe is gud. get rekt
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