Unfolding Bud

One is amazed
By a water-lily bud
Unfolding
With each passing day,
Taking a richer color
And new dimensions
One is not amazed,
At a first glance,
By a poem,
Which is as tight-closed
As a tiny bud.
Yet one is surprised
To see the poem
Gradually unfolding,
Revealing its rich inner self
As one reads it
Again
And over again.

Naoshi Koriyama uses a central metaphor in his peom to compare peorty to a budding flower. Much like a growing plant, peotry developes its beauty gradually. Koriyama refers to a peom's initial impression as ordinary and reserved. He describes:

"One is not amazed,
At a first glance,
By a poem,
Which is as tight-closed
As a tiny bud" (7-11)

Through this comparison, the reader is shown how a peom starts out with a hidden message inside, waiting to blosom and reveal itself. The connotation used by Koriyama reminds the reader that a "tiny bud" (11) is how a beautiful masterpiece begins, and one must be patient during the early stages of a poem until its true meaning is discovered.

Koriyama further illustrates the transformation from bud to blossomwhen he writes:

"One is amazed
By a water-lily bud
Unfolding
With each passing day,
Taking on a richer color
And new dimensions" (1-6)

Through these vivid words the reader is able to see how a flower is transformed to be magnificiant and beautiful. One can also see that this metamorphisis does not occur overnight, but rather it takes time to fully run its course. Just as Koriyama describes a plant as "Taking on richer color" (5), he later refers to a poem as "Revealing its rich inner self" (15). His diction convinces the reader of their similarities since they both develope a fuller beauty and meaning as time goes on. Through these comparisons, Koriyama shows the audience that to discover the true meaning of a peom, one must be patient and wait for its beauty to bloom.

First Quarter

Looking back on the past 8 weeks or so in Ms. Froehlich's class, I've learned a lot. I'd say the biggest thing I was thought is that a theme is not simply one word or idea, but a series of insights that are all related. This has really helped me improve my writing and dig deeper into the literature or film we're studying. There are still a lot of tough things to deal with in class, though. I really want to work towards making my voice come out more in my writing, and also to make sure my ideas are solidly supported with evidence. Another thing I want to focus on improving is not stressing out about papers and essays. I get so nervous and ask too many questions (Sorry, Ms. Froehlich).
I feel like our classroom environment is fairly mediocre. 5th hour seems to be very talkative and I think we should channel all that energy into trying to focus. That way, not only will our grades improve, but so will Ms. F's feelings towards 5th hour :). Also, I think that during group discussions it would be good to hear from some people who don't usually talk so we can hear the new ideas they have to contribute.
My goals for second quarter are to really focus on improving my writing skills. I want to vary my word choice, and make my ideas come accross in a clear and interesting manner. Another goal I want to work towards is meeting some new people in the class. There are people who I haven't spoken to much yet, but they seem very interesting and fun. Looking ahead at the final part of first semester, I hope that I can acheive my goals and that our class can keep up the hard work.