In the Comments section below, please post a response of at least one full paragraph (min. 5 sentences). Your assignment is twofold: 1) you are to demonstrate a clear understanding of the text by attempting to summarize the text's argument as precisely as possible, and 2) you are to use your comment to ask the text (or ask your peers) at least one thoughtful question.
Remember: your comment can respond directly to other students' posts on this text. The goal of this forum is to offer an opportunity for intelligent dialogue related to the works we are studying in class. Respectful debate is always welcome.
I think that this is a confusing poem because it does not give much detail. Its sound like the setting is on a farm becuase they talk about chickens. When it says that "so much depends upon a red wheelbarrow," it shows that the farmer is dependant upon the wheelbarrow for his work. He might use it to carry around food for his animals, or for other things. In the story, it just rained so the wheelbarrow, which was left outside by the chickens, was wet. My question is, what is the significance of the rain water?
ReplyDeleteI just will randomly say that i think the wet wheelbarrow(supposing its made of metal) acts as mirror and chicken see their reflection as they qre red and not white as trully are
DeleteI think this author was basically speaking about the small necessities of a simple life that actually make a huge impact. Without a wheelborrow things are hard to transport. Water is necessary for, if this poem is set at a farm, plants, animals, and even the farmer's family. Chickens are a necessity for food. I think he specifies that the chicken's were white because white is a color of simplicity but also pureness. Why would the author choose to write this? Was there actually a hidden meaning behind this poem or was it just a bunch of nonsense?
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DeleteThere has to be a meaning to this poem, the question is what is it? There's no way that he would just write four phrases of nonsense without a point. However, I think that the point may simply be to display an image that stuck with him. Not all poems have to have a deep meaning. After all the type of poetry he is writing is called imagism. Why is it that this image stuck with Williams? Was it just a pretty image or did it represent something to him?
ReplyDeleteI dont think that the idea of the wheelbarrow being covered in rain water is that important. I think that it just serves as a way of placing importance on the wheelbarrow, instead of focusing on the chickens. I agree in the idea of this taking place on a farm where these objects are commonly found. I also agree with the idea of the chickens being white as a sign of purity. The question i have for this poem is who is it that the author intended as the audience for this poem? Because not too many people care about chickens and whellbarrows.
ReplyDeleteI think the author intended everyone for an audience because everyone literally is reading it. I disagree Corey, I think the rain is significant like in the Ezra Pound Metro Station one she compares the stations to wet petals. Maybe rain was a big deal during this time period... or its holding a secret meaning?? I just think its ironic for both of them to use rain and for it NOT to mean something. Jake I think you're right about the farm. And Holly you explain that well. But I feel like there is more to this poem. It's pretty famous and his choice of words must be significant since there aren't many. Why does he use a wheelbarrow? And whats with the rain???
ReplyDeleteI think that this poem does have a hidden meaning. As matt said this type of poem is called imagism. Therefore these simple and easy to relate to objects probably symbolise something else or have a greater meaning, cuz like corey said, who cares about chickens and wheelbarrows. Like for example lets replace the chickens with happines (since there white and pure) and the wheelbarrow with our path to happiness. Maybe the rain symbolises the hardships we go through in life that make getting to happiness harder just like rain would make helping the chickens with the wheelbarrow harder? Or some other symbolization. I just think this poem is not meant to be taken literally.
ReplyDeleteI think that maybe the poem The Red Wheel Barrow represents a personal experience of the author ,or like a representation of life during the time period this was written (1923). The red wheelbarrow is an important tool found on a farm. When the author wirtes "so much depends upon the red wheel barrow" he could just be saying that the wheel barrow is a tool that is necessary for doing some sort of work on the farm. Where the poem says,"glazed with rain water" it could just be saying that the wheel barrow can't be used because it is filled with water. This could be a representation of the farmer's life leading up to the years of the Great Depression where the farmer has no work. My question is what do the chickens have anything to do wth it besides the fact they are also found on a farm?
ReplyDeleteI remember reading this poem in 8th grade. We had to imitate it, but at the time it had no real meaning to me. Reading it again a few years later it gave me this sort of epiphany. The poem starts out with "So much depends...” as we've covered in class when analyzing a poem step 1 calls to start at the beginning. If something starts with how much depends on another thing, it is only logical to assume that independent variable is of some importance. The poem then goes into talking about a red wheelbarrow, some water, and a chicken of the white variety. At first I couldn't help but think "What? What depends on those kinds of things? Who cares?" It then hit me, what if it's BECAUSE of the fact that they are the little things. Maybe William Carlos Williams is trying to convey that life would have significantly less meaning without the little things that often go unnoticed. Like, watching an animated movie without all the extra sound effects put in afterwards. When watching the movie you are never thinking about the rustling of the grass, or the clicking of a pen when the character is about to sign an important legal document, but if those effects were missing, the movie would feel so empty and lifeless. I believe Mr. Williams is talking about the color and texture of these simple objects he probably sees everyday, because without them there would be no magic in life. It seems as though it is almost necessary that the little things go unnoticed, so that the wonder and in our day-to-day lives is present conscienceless. My question: Did William Carlos Williams live on a farm or something?
ReplyDeleteI think this image means something to Williams. I think it was an image that stayed with him throughout his years. It might of been a place of great happiness because of its simplicity. I think the poem is meant to mirror the image of the wheelbarrow. The image is so simple and so is the peom. There are no elaborate words to describe things. He describes the whellbarrow with simplicity to emphasize the simplicity and beauty of it. My question is, how can a simple poem like this make us think so much?
ReplyDeleteA simple poem can make us think because there are so many different interpretations. The different outlooks that you may have are endless. The poem discusses how the red wheelbarrow is of high necessity. It says that even the simplest things are needed. I think the poem is so simple just to illustrate the simpleness of the wheelbarrow. My question is why is the poem formatted in the way that it is? Why is there a break after every four words?
ReplyDeleteI, just like everyone, else do not fully understand the meaning of this poem. I like Peter's question in asking how such a simple poem makes us all think so much about it. All he did was talk about a red wheelbarrow and yet here we are discussing it. Adding such things like rain water, just make us think more. My question is why write a simple poem to make us think so much about it?
ReplyDeleteRachel described the first step in poetry analysis which is to begin at the beginning. I want to tackle part of the second step of examining a poem which is to notice patterns. First of all, there are no capital letters in this poem, and no punctuation. I thought this was very interesting. Also, the first and third stanzas are similar to each other and the second and fourth stanzas are similar to each other. The odd numbered stanzas are descriptive of the state of an object. The even numbered stanzas are descriptive of the color of an object. "so much depends upon" and "glazed with rain water" each describe the state of the wheelbarrow. "the red wheel barrow" and "beside the white chickens" describe the color of things (wheelbarrow and chickens). Another pattern that one can notice, which may help answer Alex's question is that chickens, wheelbarrows, and even the stanzas appear to look similar. When seen from the side, a wheelbarrow has a metal bin which protrudes over one wheel. Also, a chicken has a body which protrudes over one leg. Likewise, the stanzas are a body of words which protrude over one word.
ReplyDeleteI also noticed that the first stanza says "so much depends upon" and then Williams goes about talking about a wheelbarrow. My thought is that each stanza is independent of the other. The only thing that holds them together is this idea of relating them to the wheelbarrow, but each stanza is about a different necessity on the farm. The second is about a wheelbarrow which is used to carry loads and accomplish tasks on the farm. The third stanza is about rain which helps things to grow on the farm. Without rain, farm life would be impossible to maintain. And finally, the fourth stanza is speaking of chickens which provide produce for the farm. My question echoes some others when I ask, who is the audience of this poem? Is Williams saying more in his argument than just explaining the necessity of items present on a farm?
I agree with Peter that the poem demonstrates something important to Williams. Also, I believe it explains the wheelbarrel just as he sees it. The poem is being made more complicated than it needs to be. My question is why is something so simple, is construed to mean something much more complicated.
ReplyDeleteI think the adjectives he uses are interesting to look at. Each one is so simple, yet they can be interpreted in so many different ways. After looking at and trying to dig the meaning out of long, complex poems, it's kind of strange to try and analyze such a rediculously simple one. I think that is what makes this poem so popular and unique: it simplifies things.
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Based off the discussion in class today, this poem makes so much more sense. I had picked up on the strange way the words were printed, but it had not occured to me that they werein the shape of a wheelbarrow. Also, I believe that Williams was trying to give the wheelbarrow a "new" look when he talked about it being "glazed with rain water." If the poem is trying to cast attention on the wheelbarrow, it makes sense that something new and shiny would stand out more than a rusted piece of metal. I wonder, though, what the significance of the chickens is.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, this poem evokes abandonment. Productive farm tools are not just left outside to endure the hardships that the elements can cause. The sheen on the wagon is superficial, caused only by the rain that has fallen on it. The wheel barrow, itself, is a rudimentary tool and uncomplicated; much like its abandoned existence.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the rain on the wheelbarrow plays a significant role in the meaning of this poem. Rain is often associated with cleansing and purification. As we discussed in class, the wheelbarrow was "glazed" with rainwater, which gave it a new appearance. When something is purified it is made new. Someone mentioned earlier that the white chicken may have been a symbol of purity. If this is the case, then maybe the author is trying to say that the wheelbarrow covered in rainwater is becoming as pure as the white chicken. Red is also the color of blood, which could be like a sacrifice. It could symbolize man's sin being covered in Christ's blood and therefore being cleansed and becoming as pure as the white chicken, although the author may not have intended this to be the meaning at all. Could the chicken actually have significance in the poem, or is it just merely something near the wheelbarrow?
ReplyDeleteI believe that the poem could be related to the events that were occurring during the early 1900s. The word “red” appears to be one of the most important words in the poem. One of the meaning for red is “of or indicating a state of financial loss or debt.” I agree that the poem is talking about a farm. The poem was written in 1923, I think that this might have to do with the problems with farming in the early 1900s. So the red is symbolizing how the farmers were not doing well. Many of the farmers at this time in history had financial losses and were in debt.
ReplyDeleteI think that the wheel barrow is a very important part of the poem. Around the same time when the farmers were suffering financial problems, others, especially in Germany were using wheelbarrows to carry money. So while some were using wheelbarrows to do hard work, to earn barely any money, others were using wheelbarrows, not for work, but to carry large portions of money. I think there might be some connection between how the wheelbarrow is used and what it is used for. A wheelbarrow is used to carry the load or uphold something, so in one case the wheelbarrow is upholding hard work and the other case it is just carrying money.
ReplyDeleteI love the imagery in this poem. As I read it, I picture a vivid red wheel barrow, contrasting against a misty grey post-rain atmosphere. Like Caleb, I wonder: is there actual significance behind red the wheel barrow? Molly also raises a good point and I really like what she says "the wheel barrow, itself, is a rudimentary tool and uncomplicated; much like its abandoned existence." In class, it was mentioned that the phrase "so much" is seemingly arbitrary, so how can we truly know the significance of this poem?
ReplyDeleteFirst off, the structure of the text draws the reader's attention as it looks like a wheelbarrow. Next, the structure of each stanza sticks out. Each line/sentence is chopped up, even the word wheelbarrow is seperated. I think that this may mean that Williams wants us to read each word as it is and understand it's meaning. Then, we are to put the overall meaning of the stanza together, then understand the poem as a whole. Therefore, this poem seems to be about how everyone must rely on the things around them. This largely is about farmers, as the setting appears to be a farm. He says that so much relies on the wheelbarrows, and he is extremely correct. At this time, if a farmer was without a wheelbarrow, or if their's broke down, they would've had trouble transporting their goods and would've lost a lot of money. Now, my question is; why does Williams talk about the white chickens? Is it to contrast the red wheelbarrows or to just help the reader understand the poem is about farmers?
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