Alone by: Edgar Allen Poe
From childhood's hour I have not been
As others were; I have not seen
As others saw; I could not bring
My passions from a common spring.
From the same source I have not taken
My sorrow; I could not awaken
My heart to joy at the same tone;
And all I loved, I loved alone.
Then- in my childhood, in the dawn
Of a most stormy life- was drawn
From every depth of good and ill
The mystery which binds me still:
From the torrent, or the fountain,
From the red cliff of the mountain,
From the sun that round me rolled
In its autumn tint of gold,
From the lightning in the sky
As it passed me flying by,
From the thunder and the storm,
And the cloud that took the form
(When the rest of Heaven was blue)
Of a demon in my view.
My summary:
Edgar Allen Poe was born in Boston in 1809, soon after his birth, his father left him and his mother. Shortly after that, his mother died, so Edgar was truly alone. In his poem “Alone”, Poe is talking about his life, and how he has never really been happy. He starts off this poem by saying “From childhood’s hour I have not been as others were; I have not seen as others saw”, and he’s saying that even when he was a child, he tried to be happy, but he still did not feel the same joy other children felt. Then, in line 6, he proceeds to say “I could not awaken my heart to joy at the same tone; and all I loved, I loved alone.” In this line, he is rhyming, which is a literary device, but he is also saying that he tried to be happy but it just didn’t work. And, he could love things, but he never really shared what he loved with other people because not only did he feel alone, but he was. In this poem, Poe also says that his childhood was the worst part of his depression. In the second to last line, he puts “when the rest of Heaven was blue” in parenthesis to show that even his heaven was sad looking. In the very last line of this poem, Poe says there is a demon in his view, which basically means that no matter what he does to try and be happy, there will always be something stopping him.
The Night by Gary R. Ferris
Still a mystery,
I can’t figure out;
Race home from work,
Where life is without.
I race to see you,
And hold you to me;
My mind says you’re there,
And my heart won’t see.
I open the door,
It’s still a surprise:
You’re not there,
And tears fill my eyes.
I need someone,
Or call on the phone;
But nothing breaks the silence,
Of these walls made of stone.
I punish myself,
By refusing to eat:
Depression is silent,
I hear my heart beat.
Where can I go,
Or should I stay:
Shy to choose,
In bed I lay.
Time will pass,
And the dark sets in;
Laying there wishing,
I could still touch your skin.
Lying there hurting,
I wish I could die;
Missing you so much,
Again I start to cry.
Sometimes I wonder,
If you even know;
The way that I need you,
Would you still go.
I can’t sleep now,
Again a long night;
Are you this lonely,
Do you share in my fright.
My summary:
Gary R. Ferris is an American author that’s known for his poems. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, he wasn’t depressed until he was middle-aged. “The Night” is a poem he wrote about what he felt when he was depressed and alone. The title of the poem “The night” is a symbol of depression in itself. A lot of people associate light with hope. So, at night when the sky loses its light, people lose their hope too. The third stanza of the poem says, “I open the door, It’s still a surprise: You’re not there, And tears fill my eyes.” So, we know that the author has lost someone he was very close with and saw every day; like a significant other, or a roommate. Ferris was not ready to let go of the person that left him, so he started to feel alone and depressed. Stanza six says, “Where can I go, Or should I stay: Shy to choose, In bed I lay.” This shows how the author had to fight a battle every day. It was even hard for him to get out of bed in the morning. In Stanza 8, the author rhymes “die” and “cry” with each other and starts a rhyme scheme. At the end of the poem, Ferris says, “Are you this lonely, Do you share in my fright.” And in this line, he is talking to the person that left him. He just wants to know if they’re doing well without him, or if they’re a wreck of emotions like he is.
From childhood's hour I have not been
As others were; I have not seen
As others saw; I could not bring
My passions from a common spring.
From the same source I have not taken
My sorrow; I could not awaken
My heart to joy at the same tone;
And all I loved, I loved alone.
Then- in my childhood, in the dawn
Of a most stormy life- was drawn
From every depth of good and ill
The mystery which binds me still:
From the torrent, or the fountain,
From the red cliff of the mountain,
From the sun that round me rolled
In its autumn tint of gold,
From the lightning in the sky
As it passed me flying by,
From the thunder and the storm,
And the cloud that took the form
(When the rest of Heaven was blue)
Of a demon in my view.
My summary:
Edgar Allen Poe was born in Boston in 1809, soon after his birth, his father left him and his mother. Shortly after that, his mother died, so Edgar was truly alone. In his poem “Alone”, Poe is talking about his life, and how he has never really been happy. He starts off this poem by saying “From childhood’s hour I have not been as others were; I have not seen as others saw”, and he’s saying that even when he was a child, he tried to be happy, but he still did not feel the same joy other children felt. Then, in line 6, he proceeds to say “I could not awaken my heart to joy at the same tone; and all I loved, I loved alone.” In this line, he is rhyming, which is a literary device, but he is also saying that he tried to be happy but it just didn’t work. And, he could love things, but he never really shared what he loved with other people because not only did he feel alone, but he was. In this poem, Poe also says that his childhood was the worst part of his depression. In the second to last line, he puts “when the rest of Heaven was blue” in parenthesis to show that even his heaven was sad looking. In the very last line of this poem, Poe says there is a demon in his view, which basically means that no matter what he does to try and be happy, there will always be something stopping him.
The Night by Gary R. Ferris
Still a mystery,
I can’t figure out;
Race home from work,
Where life is without.
I race to see you,
And hold you to me;
My mind says you’re there,
And my heart won’t see.
I open the door,
It’s still a surprise:
You’re not there,
And tears fill my eyes.
I need someone,
Or call on the phone;
But nothing breaks the silence,
Of these walls made of stone.
I punish myself,
By refusing to eat:
Depression is silent,
I hear my heart beat.
Where can I go,
Or should I stay:
Shy to choose,
In bed I lay.
Time will pass,
And the dark sets in;
Laying there wishing,
I could still touch your skin.
Lying there hurting,
I wish I could die;
Missing you so much,
Again I start to cry.
Sometimes I wonder,
If you even know;
The way that I need you,
Would you still go.
I can’t sleep now,
Again a long night;
Are you this lonely,
Do you share in my fright.
My summary:
Gary R. Ferris is an American author that’s known for his poems. Born and raised in Oklahoma City, he wasn’t depressed until he was middle-aged. “The Night” is a poem he wrote about what he felt when he was depressed and alone. The title of the poem “The night” is a symbol of depression in itself. A lot of people associate light with hope. So, at night when the sky loses its light, people lose their hope too. The third stanza of the poem says, “I open the door, It’s still a surprise: You’re not there, And tears fill my eyes.” So, we know that the author has lost someone he was very close with and saw every day; like a significant other, or a roommate. Ferris was not ready to let go of the person that left him, so he started to feel alone and depressed. Stanza six says, “Where can I go, Or should I stay: Shy to choose, In bed I lay.” This shows how the author had to fight a battle every day. It was even hard for him to get out of bed in the morning. In Stanza 8, the author rhymes “die” and “cry” with each other and starts a rhyme scheme. At the end of the poem, Ferris says, “Are you this lonely, Do you share in my fright.” And in this line, he is talking to the person that left him. He just wants to know if they’re doing well without him, or if they’re a wreck of emotions like he is.