Competition!

[mayorshaggy]

This comes from an activity that my class completed the previous week. I will give a big prize and (well, of) bragging rights to whomever can answer these questions correctly:

1) In which author's style is the following poem written?
2) What poem by that author is this poem styled after?
3) What song's lyrics are the basis of the content of this

Comments

Well, darn

[twelveoaks]

I begin to suspect the LJ cut doesn't work in comments, so I'll just post it.

My answers are

Re: Well, darn

[mayorshaggy]

Right so far.

[pinkbliss645]

It would be cheating if I posted.

[twelveoaks]

OK, it has something to do with the Beach Boys?
I am guessing that from the line "wouldn't it be nice" and also the reference to surfers. I also confirmed the identity of Dick Dale using Google (is that cheating?).

THe "aged eyes" bit and references to a house made me think of the Sloop John B, but that doesn't feel quite right... "The LOve Song of JOhn B?"
No.

Oh, maybe I am making this way too hard - it's "Wouldn't it Be Nice," isn't it?

Wouldn’t it be nice if we were older
Then we wouldn’t have to wait so long
And wouldn’t it be nice to live together
In the kind of world where we belong

so it's The Love Song Of Bryan Wilson?

I think this is right, but even if it's wrong, the excercise was very entertaining, and the poem is great fun. Thanks!

[mayorshaggy]

Technically it's "The Love Song of B. Douglas Wilson"

Good Job Twelveoaks! Figuring out who Dick Dale is isn't cheating, it's taking advantage of a BIG clue. And yes, the song is "Wouldn't it Be Nice."

[twelveoaks]

Yaay.

Did you write this yourself?

[mayorshaggy]

Yes I did (with obvious help from Mr. Elliot and Mr. Wilson)

I assigned this project to my 11th grade American Lit. class. Writing a love song of their choosing in the style of J. Alfred Prufrock was supposed to teach the students something about voice/style and to emphasize how non-traditional of a Love Song the poem is. Plus, imitating the style of the poem is a great way to make students take an active role in learning the ins and outs of Elliot's poetic language: to imitate, you must understand (or at least have some idea.)

I figured that it would be unfair of me to not do the assignment, so I worked on it as the students did. They only had to "translate" one or two stanzas (15-20 lines), so mine is considerably longer (the whole Beach Boys song).

Then again, I AM the teacher, so I better be able to do more than my kids.

[luckypooka]

Kudos! I like the poem! I knew it was The Love Song of J Alfred Prufrock by T S Elliot right away, but I'm araid I read the comments before I figured the rest out. *HUG*! ttfn

[twelveoaks]

Do you have any others like this?
I was just telling someone about how cool this poem was. :)

[mayorshaggy]

Let me look-if not, I might try writing one.