Channels, Fall 2017

Page 18 Montgomery • Linguistic Self-Awareness Table 2 Section 3: Interviews The interviews were as telling as the survey, if not more so, and brief synopses are provided below. Note that names have been altered for privacy. Adam is a college freshman who appreciates the idea of poetry but does not actively seek it out. His last major exposure to the medium was in high school when he took a poetry class, which he enjoyed. While he enjoyed the content of every poem in the survey, he cited Longfellow’s “Loss and Gain” as his favorite piece. When asked why he favored this particular entry, he stated that “The rhyme scheme was just very even. It was comfortable to read.” He disliked “Those Winter Sundays” because it was “hard to follow,” but he was quick to add that the problem may have been his “inability to read or something.” These statements were interesting in that they indicated a linguistic awareness and an implicit understanding that poets deliberately flout linguistic expectations. Stan thought it was hard to rank the poems because the rhyme scheme was very different. He enjoyed Milne’s “Wind” piece because it was easier to read, but he added the caveat that it could be because he did not have “a great poetic background” and generally reads poems only in class or through social media. His favorite poem was Dickinson’s “I Died for Beauty, but was Scarce” because it spoke to “the futility of life and how we’re all going to end up in the grave.” In his words, he “hated” “Wake to Sleep” because, while he understands that slant rhymes are permissible, he did not like how it flowed. Finally, he argued that a good poem was one that had a clear point and maintained its rhyme scheme if it had one. Another student, Josh, described himself as someone who rarely reads poetry. When asked where he usually encounters it, he stated that social media was the primary source. Like others, his favorite poem was Longfellow’s “Loss and Gain.” He differed, however, in his 0 4.5 9 13.5 1 8 Votes Longfellow Bronte Blake Milne Pound Hahn Spender Hayden Roethke Dickinson