Friday, October 1, 2010

"Red Shift Essay"

In the poem Red Shift, the author Ted Berrigan Suggests that emotions often change like the title red shift. The title could mean love to anger or any kind of emotional change.



The narrator gives us a brief setting of the poem. He tells us its "8:08 pm" and he also tells us that its in the winter because of the biting air. He says this in a disappointing tone of voice, then starts to talk about " poison liquid air" and smoking to have some character. He is referring to Pepsi when he says "poison liquid air". This is where we see the first change of emotion.


In the second stanza we start to see more emotions. We get another look at emotions here and now we can see him in love, sadness, and memory. "Twenty years almost ago" this is when he tells us the past. Also you get to know what Allen Ginsberg and Frank O'Hara were big role models for the speaker. Also we start to see some love when he starts talking about this women.



The third stanza you get to see all of his emotions come out. When he talks he sounds like hes dying. He makes a good point when he says that he isn't going to leave even for "stupid estrangment". This is more on the loving side then anger or his previous emotions. He also doesn't want to die he wants to be 110 years of age.

In the fourth and final stanza his emotions drastically change from love to sadness once again. He uses powerful language here like "im only pronouns" to show us he didn't want all this to happen. Also we start to see the speaker "leaving his body" when he says "furious song flows through my costume".


The idea of emotional change is important because everyone has to deal with these emotions. Its all just a way of life. So this story is something everyone will face.

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