This week I am reviewing Anna’s blog post ‘This Old Mandarin Tree’, which is available here.
Hi Anna,
I absolutely loved reading your poem in the style of Walt Whitman. I also chose this as my blog topic for last week, and it has been really interesting reading the different ways you and I and so many others have created our own Whitman-esque poems.
Your poem, titled ‘This Old Mandarin Tree’, is a beautiful ode to Whitman’s style. You clearly encapsulate many features of his own poetry, including his inspiration in the natural world, intense feelings and exclamations, as well as repetition, celebration of the self, and varied line length with free verse. But on top of this, the poem itself is a wonderful image of climbing a mandarin tree, and I feel as though the poem builds up in intensity and emotion as the speaker climbs higher and higher up the tree – a wonderful encapsulation of form mirroring content. I got a real sense of childhood innocence and freedom from your words, and a unification with the natural world around you, particularly with the tree whose “roots, [and] these leaves / They are me.”
Thank you for writing such a beautiful poem. I look forward to reading more of your work through the semester. I’m sure that Walt Whitman would approve!
Georgia
Georgia's Literature Blog 