Human relationships to technology and machines

“His ugliness was the stuff of legend. In an age of affordable beauty, there was something heraldic about his lack of it” (pg 4). In the current world, looks are something to be bought, and there is technology to get just about anything on the black market.

“He’d operated at almost permanent adrenaline high…jacked into a custom cyberspace deck that projected his disembodied voice into the consensual hallucination that was the matrix” (pg 5). It is unusual that technology such as the matrix is a hallucination of the mind, yet it is described as consensual.

“Night City was like a deranged experiment in social Darwinism, designed by a bored researcher who kept one thumb permanently on the fast-forward button” (pg 7). This demonstrates the constant state of change which occurs in life within this city.

“Julie Deane was one hundred and thirty-five years old, his metabolism assiduously warped by a weekly fortune in serums and hormones” (pg 12). Technology is so advanced that people can stay alive for much longer through certain procedures.

“…it was possible to see Ninsei as a field of data, the way the matrix had once reminded him of proteins linking to distinguish cell specialties” (pg 16). This shows the interplay between biological systems and machines, with something technological reminding case of natural occurrences.

“Program a map to display frequency of data exchange, every thousand megabytes a single pixel on a very large screen. Manhattan and Atlanta burn solid white” (pg 43). Case is likening the activity and real life exchanges in these cities to a computer programmed map.

“The transition to cyberspace, when he hit the switch, was instantaneous” (pg 56). One can travel back and forth between the real and virtual worlds in the blink of an eye.

“A few letter-writers had taken refuge in doorways, their old voiceprinters wrapped in sheets of clear plastic, evidence that the written word still enjoyed a certain prestige here. It was a sluggish country” (pg 88). The written word, which is so common in our world, is thought to be more archaic here. Case looks down upon these things as old-fashioned.

“The weight of memory came down, an entire body of knowledge driven into his head like a microsoft into a socket” (pg 117). Case is likening the real memory he had of his girlfriend to the technological advancement that allows people to gain instant knowledge by plugging something into their sockets.

“He knew that sunlight was pumped in with a Lado-Acheson system…” (pg 123). Even the weather, something that should be natural, is programmed here.

Neuromancer settings

One of the key settings described within the first few pages of Neuromancer is that of Night City. From what I have gathered so far, Night City is a central area in which a lot of illegal activities occur, and is home to many seedy bars, including the Chat. Within the first line, Gibson describes the sky above the city as “the color of television, tuned to a dead channel.” The image that immediately comes to mind is the fuzzy black and white pixels that resemble a blizzard on the television screen, creating static filled white noise. A few pages later he also refers to the “poisoned silver sky.” These are two intriguing descriptions that are initially given about the city, and while it caught my attention I am unsure as to why the author chose these specific word choices. Gibson goes on to state that Night City is like “a deranged experiment in social Darwinism, designed by a bored researcher who kept one thumb permanently on the fast forward button.” This is an effective way to describe the numerous unusual characters found around the city, and to imply that life is in a state of constant flux. Within this city, much experimentation occurs with technology and drugs, and there is a great deal of involvement within the black market.

At the beginning of Chapter 3, Case’s home of Sprawl is described. Once again Gibson effectively describes the hustle and bustle of the area by comparing it to the technology of a map displaying frequency of data exchange. “At a hundred-million megabytes per second, you begin to make out certain blocks in midtown Manhattan…” However, just a couple pages later, Case is eating in a rather deserted location, which seems rather the opposite of the description initially given. These conflicting descriptions are just one of the many things in this novel that have confused me.

So far I find myself a little bit disoriented as to the events that are actually occurring in the novel as well as the manner in which Gibson relays them to the reader. Usually when I read books it is almost as if I become a character within the story because I get so involved, but so far my confusion has prevented this from really being able to happen. So far, though, I am intrigued by the story, I’m just a little bit lost at the moment.

revised poem comparison

Over time, the spheres of nature and humanity have been forced to collide. This can be perceived as something beauteous, or on the other hand, something potentially terrible for the fate of the world. Both Ezra Pound’s poem “In a Station of the Metro” and Gerard Manley Hopkins’ sonnet “God’s Grandeur” examine the temporal aspects of nature and delve into the industrialization of society. Expressed in different ways through unique uses of structure, rhythm, and select word choice, each poet generates an opinion about industrialization and nature that directly opposes the other.

Using the most basic form of poetry, a couplet, Ezra Pound manages to effectively convey his thoughts through the use of contrasting images. The first line paints a picture of an industrialized and crowded society. Images of a populated city filled with movement and modernized technology run through the reader’s mind. The second line, however, creates quite the opposite image within the mind’s eye. In this line, the quiet, still images of undisturbed nature are the focus. When broken down and analyzed, the reflections created in each line seem to create opposing ideals within a society, but Pound’s use of images show how the two can actually go hand in hand. The industrialized world still contains a beauty and naturalness, and can bring up the images of nature.

Because of the brevity of his poem, Pound uses a select choice of words to convey appropriate imagery in his poem. In the first line, he uses the word “apparition” to describe the people in a crowd. One common synonym for an apparition is a ghostly figure or phantom. When thinking of the meaning in this light, the tone of the poem takes on a feeling of the supernatural, thus connecting concrete modern day technology to something out of this world. This word can also simply mean appearing, although usually occurring in a rather quick, startling manner. Images of a busy metro station, with people rushing by amidst the hustle and bustle, come to the surface. Not one person is there for a very long period of time, they are rushing about; it is as if their faces are there one moment and gone the next. When choosing the wording of his poem, Pound could have easily used either of these words in place of “apparition,” however the dual nature of this single word is quite critical to the imagistic poem and how he connects it to the latter half of the couplet.

Applying the more formal structure of the Italian sonnet, Gerard Manley Hopkins’ uses the first octave of his poem to create the competing images of nature and industrialization. Unlike Pound’s poem, however, which first invokes images of a technology filled world, Hopkins chooses to illuminate the greatness of the natural world. He begins by comparing the grandeur of God to a great form of energy and richness using the imagery of shook foil and oozing oil. The greatness of nature can be found everywhere in the world, and exudes and energy that nothing else can compare to. This, however, contrasts to the negative impact that man has made upon the earth, as is described in the second quatrain of the poem. The use of the rhyming and repetition beginning in the fifth line emphasizes the passage of time and how man has beat down upon the earth and been industrializing it for many years. Hopkins’ expels his distaste at the industrialized state of the world, hinting that man has somehow disconnected himself from nature. Due to the organization of this first octave, one imagines the natural world simply being wrecked by modern innovations; quite the opposite message from what Pound’s poem conveys.

Despite the somewhat negative images within the first part of “God’s Grandeur,” the volta, which begins the final sestet of Hopkins’ poem, serves as a turning point towards the positive. After describing the industrialization of society, he changes tone and says “And for all this, nature is never spent,” implying that no matter what damage mankind may cause to the earth, the beauty of nature can still be discovered. The single line in this poem greatly parallels the second line in Pound’s poem, as both encompass the passing of time and the lasting characteristics of nature. Much as the world has taken a beating in Hopkins’ poem and is in rather a tired state of being, the petals on the bough have likewise been spent and drained of life. They may be grimly interpreted as symbols of death, remnants of flowers that have fallen from the tree. But rather than creating a feeling of sadness at this loss, Pound inserts within this sentence a feeling of life. The wet bough may signify the coming of spring, when the flower buds on the trees can bloom once again and renew their lives.

The petals on the bough can also be paralleled to the faces in the crowd. They sit, pale against the black backdrop of the wet bough; similarly the pale faces of the people rushing by contrast the dark underground atmosphere of the station. It is in this way that Pound effectively draws the correlation between technology and nature and how both can coexist upon the same earth. Although Hopkins’ poem also examines the durability of nature, he sends quite a different message, implying that despite the destructive nature of humanity nature can still thrive. The two do not coexist, but rather compete for their space in the world.

It is clear that both Ezra Pound’s “In a Station of the Metro” and Gerard Manley Hopkins’ “God’s Grandeur” both focus on the contrasting images of nature and industrialized society. However it is only with deeper analysis that the opposing messages these two poets send across about the same subject matter becomes evident. Despite the brevity of his poem, Pound manages to use a select choice of vocabulary to invoke a barrage of opposing yet complimentary images within the reader’s mind. In a few short words he displays the connections between the industrialized world and the natural and implies that as time passes the two spheres coexist rather peaceably. On the other hand, Hopkins’ message is quite the opposite. Industrialization and nature do not go hand in hand, and it is only due to the greatness of God that the natural world has even been able to survive the beatings of mankind. Thus, while both agree on the greatness of nature, it is the opposing views on industrialization that create such a heated “conversation” between the two poems

Two Poem Comparison- rough draft

Whether in the structure of a formal Italian sonnet or in the most basic form of poetry, a couplet, drastically different poems can actually convey similar messages. This is the case for Ezra Pound’s two-line poem “In a Station of the Metro” and Gerard Manley Hopkins’ sonnet “God’s Grandeur.” Both poems examine aspects of temporality as well as the contrasts between industrialization and nature. While Hopkins’ distaste towards the industrialization of the world is evident, Pound’s poem paints a rather different attitude towards the same topic.
Although only a mere two lines long, Ezra Pound uses a select choice of words to convey appropriate imagery in his poem. In the first line, he uses the word “apparition” to describe the people in a crowd. One common synonym for an apparition is a ghostly figure or phantom. When thinking of the meaning in this light, the tone of the poem takes on a sort of eeriness and a feeling of the supernatural. This word can also simply mean appearing, although usually occurring in a rather quick, startling manner. Images of a busy metro station, with people rushing by amidst the hustle and bustle, come to the surface. Not one person is there for a very long period of time, they are rushing about; it is as if their faces are there one moment and gone the next. When choosing the wording of his poem, Pound could have easily used either of these words in place of “apparition,” however the dual nature of this single word is quite critical to the imagistic poem and how he connects it to the latter half of the couplet.
Similarly, the first octave of Gerard Manley Hopkins’ poem creates images of the industrialization of society, specifically in the last four lines. He begins by comparing the grandeur of God to a great form of energy and richness using the imagery of shook foil, and oozing oil. The greatness of nature can be found everywhere in the world, and exudes and energy that nothing else can compare to. This, however, contrasts to the negative impact that man has made upon the earth, as is described in the second quatrain of the poem. The use of the rhyming and repetition emphasizes the passage of time and how man has beat down upon the earth and been industrializing it for many years. Hopkins’ expels his distaste at the industrialized state of the world, hinting that man has somehow disconnected himself from nature.
Despite the somewhat negative images within the first part of Hopkins’ poem, the volta serves as a turning point towards the positive. After describing the industrialization of society, he changes tone and says “And for all this, nature is never spent,” implying that no matter what, nature will prevail. The single line in this poem greatly parallels the second line in Pound’s poem, and both encompass the passing of time and the lasting characteristics of nature. Right now the petals on the bough may be spent, and can be interpreted as symbols of death, remnants of flowers that have fallen from the tree. However within this sentence there is also life, the wet bough signifying the coming of spring when the flowers can bloom once again.

"Ode to Edward" Villanelle

This is it, our love is true,
From the first glance,
I want to spend eternity with you.

In your eyes I saw that golden hue,
You skin shining in the sunlight,
This is it, our love is true.

There is nothing that I wouldn’t do,
I’d give my very life,
I want to spend eternity with you.

So many times you’ve come to my rescue,
Nobody else could compare,
This is it, our love is true.

My life as a mortal should be through,
I may be young but it matters not,
I want to spend eternity with you.

With each passing day I knew,
No price would be too high to pay.
This is it, our love is true,
I want to spend eternity with you.

"The Other Universe of Bruce Wayne"

Bruce Wayne is a common name in the world of popular culture, thus Bucky Sinister’s poem “The Other World of Bruce Wayne” uses a creative mechanism to intertwine the classic world of poetry and the modern generation. The format and content with which Sinister wrote this poem is different than many other poems I have read before. I do not think it any less literary than other works just because the content centers on a modern-day super hero. However when reading the poem, I read it more like a short story rather than with the rhythmic tempos of many poems.
From the opening line, Sinister manages to draw the reader in to explore the alternate world which he has created. In this world, the Batman that so many of us know and love does not exist, rather he is an alcoholic with many personal and life problems. When we think of any superhero, we tend to forget that when they are not out fighting villains, they are usually normal people like you or me. Sinister’s poem takes it to another extreme, illustrating the kind of person Bruce Wayne is without his superhero persona. There are many people in the world who are down on their luck and who, from day to day experience rejection, alcoholism, and other health problems, and Sinister manages to bring a beloved superhero down to the level of the common man.
Towards the end of the poem, Sinister tells Wayne that there is an alternate universe where he is actually a beloved hero, something that is rather unbelievable to the down and out Bruce Wayne. As a reader, we know the alternate world in which Batman does exist is our world. This is an intriguing thought because it makes one think that it is possible that any of us “normal” people, or anybody out on their luck has a superhero in them somewhere.

Emily Dickinson's "I Dwell in Possibility"

Emily Dickinson’s poem “I Dwell in Possibility: can be considered a meta-poem, because it is a poem about poetry. The main idea behind this poem is that there are innumerable possibilities when writing poetry, and though it may seem to be contradictory, poetry is not as confining as prose. Dickinson proves that anything is possible by her usage of numerous dashes throughout the poem, using the dashes as connectors to emphasize parts of her poem as well as using them as an indication of her rambling thoughts.
She describes Possibility as a House which has more windows than the House of Prose, and more doors. Both windows and doors open to the outside world, a place that has no limits and no confinement. Anything is possible, as Dickinson accentuates with her use of dashes as opposed to other grammatical choices such as periods or commas. The final stanza describes how “Visitors,” whether they are readers of poetry or somebody who is just experimenting with poetry, should view Possibility as the fairest. Dickinson herself has the job of “gathering Paradise,” of writing poetry using the limitless bounds of Possibility.
Dickinson breaks the boundaries of poetry with her use of dashes, and in some locations, especially in the last line almost uses them in places of ellipses to demonstrate unfinished thoughts. With the dashes, the reader naturally pauses at these breaks in the poem, and is also given the opportunity to interject their own thoughts subconsciously into the poem.