The Works Of Poet Carl Sandburg And His Effect On American Poetry :: essays research papers

The Works of Poet Carl Sandburg and His Effect on American Poetry The beloved poet, Carl Sandburg, changed the course of American poetry. He was a poet, novelist, journalist, and songwriter, yet the influence of his works have not always been acknowledged. Carl Sandburg's evocations of American urban and rural life, compassion for people, and his love of nature, through his works have made an enormous contribution to the American literary scene.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Carl Sandburg was born on January 6, 1878 to illiterate parents of Swedish decent in Galesburg, Illinois. Much of Sandburg's literary works are a result of his life time observations. He, more generously than many of his fellow authors, left a detailed account of his wanderings, his numerous jobs, his early struggles, and his successes in life. His own life fascinated him.(Rogers 19) Therefore, he felt he wanted to share his fascination with the people he enjoyed writing about.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Carl Sandburg is so greatly remembered because his writing was considerably different from the writing of his contemporaries. He let his mind travel, and be free. His works included the use of free verse, colloquialisms, an original type of rhythm, and oddly structured, prosaic poetry that emphasized key phrases and images.(clc 35, 338) Sandburg was the first of a long line of poets and authors to use the words and phrases that he created in his poetry.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sandburg's style of writing is what changed the course of American poetry. Before Sandburg, most poetry and other literary works were considerably similar, along with dull and boring. He carried poetry to "new horizons." He, many times, wrote of reality, which was not always what people wanted to read, but it was reality and it had to be dealt with. This is how his writing became so known, because he dealt with what was real in our fantasy world.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Sandburg was not afraid to express his true feelings and thought on people, society, nature, and life in general. One of his finest poetic achievements is a poem called The People, Yes. It is a poem about people in life, and everything life entails. The images in it range from a white man and an Indian man arguing over who knows more, to why children put beans in their ears when told not to. The People, Yes covers everyday dilemmas encountered by the common man, but have not been expressed, and it is mandated by none other than Carl Sandburg, the great American poet. "The people is a myth, an abstraction. And what myth would you put in place of the people? And what abstraction would you exchange for this one?

An Episode of My Life- Life of a Grade 8 Student Essay

I woke up in the middle of the night after the weird noise coming from my brother Jake’s room. It was his alarm that made such noise. He has an important high school exam today. Apparently he thought that having a fire drill sound as his alarm tune would surely wake him up, it did but it woke all of us up. After finally being able to sleep again, I woke up around eight o’clock. I was thirty minute later from the time when I usually wake up. It is Wednesday, June 27th. The weather was extremely beautiful and warm, a typical June weather in L.A. After having breakfast and a nice cup of ice tea, I got ready for school. Today was the last day of school so I wanted to enjoy it. I put on an over- sized sweatshirt and paired it with ripped skinny jeans while grabbing a pair of sneakers. I was never allowed to wear such kind of cloths in school, apparently my school is private and only accepts proper dress code. My dad’s driver drove me to school today because I was going to be late. Usually I just walk to school since it only takes me ten minutes. Around nine thirty, I arrived at school. I entered through the front door and saw the crowd surrounding a seventh grader that was being bullied by a bully. This actually happened a lot after he arrived to our school. His name is Thomas Thomson and had been called names ever since last year. He was a show off and had a bad attitude. The bully was Joe Kinderson. He always bullies younger graders and was expelled twice in one year. The only reason he is still here is because of his dad, the president of Kinderson Company. His dad’s company founded our school and that is why our school’s name is Roy Kinderson Academy. Being in a private school had never been what I wanted. If I hadn’t fail grade five, I would still be in Rosemary public school that can give me at least freedom. That was not bad enough, because I got a D on two of my subjects for the past two semesters, I will have to be sent to a boarding school in England and live with my aunt Frowny after summer break. Aunt Frowny’s actual name is Juliana Frowren Williams. My brother and I gave her the nickname â€Å"Frowny† since she barely smiles to us. First period was supposed to be French but Ms. Lewis our homeroom teacher decided to change it into science so she can give us a review quiz on what we learned this year. Our French teacher Madam Garcia was one of the nicest teachers in grade eight due to the fact that she barely gave us any homework and that she always has a big bright smile on her face. Since today was the last day of school, we only had to stay in school until after lunch. We had recess after first period. My two best friends Trina and Elisa were with me along some other girls. They think that going to school in England will be a fairy tale but for me its definitely not. Lunch was pizza and fruit salad. We had to help clean out the classroom before lunch. Around one o’clock we were about to leave. I knew it would be the last time I ever see my friends and teachers so I left early. I didn’t want to get emotional since I was known as a girl who never cries. I will really miss my school but I can still contact people from my school using Facebook. I got home a quarter to two. Took a shower and watched TV until my mom went home. She made me to go shopping with her and buy new cloths for tomorrow. Tomorrow is our family â€Å"Frienbely† day. It was a unique holiday my parents thought about when I was five. They wanted to celebrate the coming of summer break by hanging out with Jake and I as friends for a whole day. We thought it was cool at that time but that was because we were young. As we were on our way to the mall, I had to tell my mom how my day went. I told her about the practice fire drill we had today and the whole morning of cleaning. She asked me if I took memorable pictures with any of my teachers and friends but I said I would still visit them in the summer. The afternoon turned to be a disaster to me. I accidently went off to the wrong escalator and ended up bumping into the set where they were shooting a music video. The camera caught me spilling coffee onto my pants by accident and broadcasted it on the big screen in the mall. The embarrassing thing wasn’t this but my mom. She shopped at my favorite store and bought the exact same cloth I was wearing. She though it would be fun and would be perfect for tomorrow’s â€Å"Frienbely† day. Because my mom withdrawn five of her credit cards last week without knowing, my brother Jake had to come over to pay for her bills. He laughed so hard at both of us and laughed even harder when he saw the big screen playing over my coffee spilling moment. Around seven thirty in the afternoon, my family went out for dinner after my dad returned from work. We had dinner at a famous Spanish restaurant since my mom is half Spanish. The restaurant wasn’t famous because of its extraordinary taste but by its reasonable price and its interesting arrangement of tables. Dad bought cloths for the â€Å"frienbely† day as well. He told his secretary to get the same outfit that matched with the cloths Jake bought last week. I was going to laugh at Jake to get back at him, but I thought I would save it for the next time he makes fun of me. After we got home just before eleven o’clock, I found Jake’s new girlfriend waiting for him by the back door of our house. Jake didn’t tell mom and dad about his new girlfriend because he just broke up with his ex- girlfriend last week and their relationship only lasted for two days. I didn’t tell mom and dad about Jake’s new girl friend because they promised me to buy me a new CD that mom banned me from listening to. They were going to sing at the karaoke club with a bunch of friends to have fun and relax after their two months of studying. I went to bed at two AM in the morning. The new video game I bought last week kept me from sleeping early. After five minute, I slept soundly with a dream that led me to the uncertainness of tomorrow.

Biography of Akbar the Great, Emperor of Mughal India

Akbar the Great (Oct. 15, 1542–Oct. 27, 1605) was a 16th-century Mughal (Indian) emperor famed for his religious tolerance, empire-building, and patronage of the arts. Fast Facts: Akbar the Great Known For: Mughal ruler famed for his religious tolerance, empire-building, and patronage of the artsAlso Known As: Abul-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar, Akbar I  Born:  Oct. 15, 1542 in Umerkot,  Rajputana  (present-day  Sindh,  Pakistan)Parents: Humayun, Hamida Banu BegumDied: Oct. 27, 1605 in Fatehpur Sikri,  Agra,  Mughal Empire  (present-day  Uttar Pradesh,  India)Spouse(s): Salima Sultan Begum, Mariam-uz-Zamani, Qasima Banu Begum, Bibi Daulat Shad, Bhakkari Begu, Gauhar-un-Nissa BegumNotable Quote: As most men are fettered by bonds of tradition, and by imitating ways followed by their fathers...everyone continues, without investigating their arguments and reasons, to follow the religion in which he was born and educated, thus excluding himself from the possibility of ascertaining the truth, which is the noblest aim of the human intellect. Therefore we associate at convenient seasons with learned men of all religions, thus deriving profit from their exquis ite discourses and exalted aspirations. Early Life Akbar was born to the second Mughal Emperor Humayun and his teenaged bride Hamida Banu Begum on Oct. 14, 1542, in Sindh, now part of Pakistan. Although his ancestors included both Genghis Khan and Timur (Tamerlane), the family was on the run after losing Baburs newly-established empire. Humayan would not regain northern India until 1555. With his parents in exile in Persia, little Akbar was raised by an uncle in Afghanistan, with help from a series of nursemaids. He practiced key skills like hunting but never learned to read (possibly due to a learning disability). Nonetheless, throughout his life, Akbar had texts on philosophy, history, religion, science, and other topics read to him, and he could recite long passages of what he heard from memory. Akbar Takes Power In 1555, Humayan died just months after retaking Delhi. Akbar ascended the Mughal throne at the age of 13 and became Shahanshah (King of Kings). His regent was Bayram Khan, his childhood guardian and an outstanding warrior/statesman. The young emperor almost immediately lost Delhi once more to the Hindu leader Hemu. However, in November 1556, Generals Bayram Khan and Khan Zaman I defeated Hemus much larger army at the Second Battle of Panipat. Hemu himself was shot through the eye as he rode into battle atop an elephant; the Mughal army captured and executed him. When he came of age at 18, Akbar dismissed the increasingly overbearing Bayram Khan and took direct control of the empire and army. Bayram was ordered to make the hajj—or pilgrimage—to Mecca, but he instead started a rebellion against Akbar. The young emperors forces defeated Bayrams rebels at Jalandhar, in Punjab. Rather than executing the rebel leader, Akbar mercifully allowed his former regent another chance to go to Mecca. This time, Bayram Khan went. Intrigue and Further Expansion Although he was out from under Bayram Khans control, Akbar still faced challenges to his authority from within the palace. The son of his nursemaid, a man called Adham Khan, killed another adviser in the palace after the victim discovered that Adham was embezzling tax funds. Enraged both by the murder and by the betrayal of his trust, Akbar had Adham Khan thrown from the parapets of the castle. From that point forward, Akbar was in control of his court and country, rather than being a tool of palace intrigues. The young emperor set out on an aggressive policy of military expansion, both for geo-strategic reasons and as a way to get troublesome warrior/advisers away from the capital. In the following years, the Mughal army would conquer much of northern India (including what is now Pakistan) and Afghanistan. Governing Style In order to control his vast empire, Akbar instituted a highly efficient bureaucracy. He appointed mansabars, or military governors, over the various regions; these governors answered directly to him. As a result, he was able to fuse the individual fiefdoms of India into a unified empire that would survive until 1868. Akbar was personally courageous, willing to lead the charge in battle. He also enjoyed taming cheetahs and elephants. This courage and self-confidence allowed Akbar to initiate novel policies in government and stand by them over objections from more conservative advisers and courtiers. Matters of Faith and Marriage From an early age, Akbar was raised in a tolerant milieu. Although his family was Sunni, two of his childhood tutors were Persian Shias. As an emperor, Akbar made the Sufi concept of Sulh-e-Kuhl, or peace to all, a founding principle of his law. Akbar displayed remarkable respect for his Hindu subjects and their faith. His first marriage in 1562 was to Jodha Bai, or Harkha Bai, a Rajput princess from Amber. As did the families of his later Hindu wives, her father and brothers joined Akbars court as advisers, equal in rank to his Muslim courtiers. In total, Akbar had 36 wives of various ethnic and religious backgrounds. Probably even more important to his ordinary subjects, Akbar in 1563 repealed a special tax placed on Hindu pilgrims who visited sacred sites, and in 1564 he completely repealed the jizya, or yearly tax on non-Muslims. What he lost in revenue by these acts, he more than regained in good-will from the Hindu majority of his subjects. Even beyond the practical realities of ruling an enormous, predominantly Hindu empire with just a small band Muslim elite, however, Akbar himself had an open and curious mind on questions of religion. As he mentioned to Philip II of Spain in his letter, he loved to meet with learned men and women of all faiths to discuss theology and philosophy. From the female Jain guru Champa to Portuguese Jesuit priests, Akbar wanted to hear from them all. Foreign Relations As Akbar solidified his rule over northern India and began to extend his power south and west to the coast, he became aware of the new Portuguese presence there. Although the initial Portuguese approach to India had been all guns blazing, they soon realized that they were no match militarily for the Mughal Empire on land. The two powers made treaties, under which the Portuguese were allowed to maintain their coastal forts, in exchange for promises not to harass Mughal ships that set out from the west coast carrying pilgrims to Arabia for the hajj. Interestingly, Akbar even formed an alliance with the Catholic Portuguese to punish the Ottoman Empire, which controlled the Arabian Peninsula at that time. The Ottomans were concerned that the huge numbers of pilgrims flooding into Mecca and Medina each year from the Mughal Empire were overwhelming the resources of the holy cities, so the Ottoman sultan rather firmly requested that Akbar quit sending people on the hajj. Outraged, Akbar asked his Portuguese allies to attack the Ottoman navy, which was blockading the Arabian Peninsula. Unfortunately for him, the Portuguese fleet was completely routed off of Yemen. This signaled the end of the Mughal/Portuguese alliance. Akbar maintained more enduring relations with other empires, however. Despite the Mughal capture of Kandahar from the Persian Safavid Empire in 1595, for example, those two dynasties had cordial diplomatic ties throughout Akbars rule. The Mughal Empire was such a rich and important potential trading partner that various European monarchs sent emissaries to Akbar as well, including Elizabeth I of England and Henry IV of France. Death In October 1605, the 63-year-old Emperor Akbar suffered a serious bout of dysentery. After a three-week illness, he passed away at the end of that month. The emperor was buried in a beautiful mausoleum in the royal city of Agra. Legacy Akbars legacy of religious toleration, firm but fair central control, and liberal tax policies that gave commoners a chance to prosper established a precedent in India that can be traced forward in the thinking of later figures such as Mohandas Gandhi. His love of art led to the fusion of Indian and Central Asian/Persian styles that came to symbolize the height of Mughal achievement, in forms as varied as miniature painting and grandiose architecture. This fusion would reach its absolute apex under Akbars grandson Shah Jahan, who designed and had built the world-famous Taj Mahal. Perhaps most of all, Akbar the Great showed the rulers of all nations everywhere that tolerance is not a weakness, and open-mindedness is not the same as indecisiveness. As a result, he is honored more than four centuries after his death as one of the greatest rulers in human history. Sources Alam, Muzaffar and Sanjay Subrahmanyam. The Deccan Frontier and Mughal Expansion, ca. 1600: Contemporary Perspectives, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Vol. 47, No. 3 (2004).Habib, Irfan. Akbar and Technology, Social Scientist, Vol. 20, No. 9/10 (Sept.-Oct. 1992).Richards, John F. The Mughal Empire, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (1996).Smith, Vincent A. Akbar the Great Mogul, 1542-1605, Oxford: Clarendon Press (1919).