Poetry Revised

Choices
By Tess Gallagher
I go to the mountain sideof the house to cut saplings,and clear a view to snowon the mountain. But when I look up,saw in hand, I see a nest clutched inthe uppermost branches.I don’t cut that one.I don’t cut the others either.Suddenly, in every tree,   an unseen nestwhere a mountain   would be.                                      for Drago Štambuk
The poet’s life and background
Tess Gallagher is a poet, writer of essays and short stories, born in 1943 in Port Angeles, Washington. Her family dealt with logging; therefore, she grew up visiting the forests. After obtaining her degree, she went ahead and taught in Universities such as St. Lawrence, University of Arizona and University of Montana among others. She is married to Raymond Carver, a short story writer who passed on in 1988. Most of Her poetry collections have been published (Magazine, par. 1-5)
The occasion/ date the poem was written
The poet was dedicating this poem to Drago Stambuk a fellow poet who is passionate about nature and conservation. This poem is part of her many poem collections written in the late ‘90s.
● Form and meter (fixed forms? Line lengths? Stanzas?)
The poem has only one stanza and twelve lines of different lengths.
The poem does not have a fixed form as syllables vary with both stressed and unstressed syllables.
● Rhyme scheme and sound devices (alliteration, assonance, repetition, etc.) The use of repetition in the poem is evident as words such as
I, in, don’t, cut, nest, the, and mountain have been placed in different lines in the poem.

Repetition not only creates a pattern or emphasis but also makes the poem interesting.
In the third line, consonance has been used in words view and snow
“and clear a view to snow”
There is also use of resonance as a variety of words have been used
● Speaker of the poem and situation (what is happening?)
The speaker refers to the voice or character behind the poem chosen by the poet. A fictional person decides to go and cut young trees using a saw which hinders the view of the mountain but then thinks twice after realizing that the trees are home to some birds. Therefore, letting the birds stay by not destroying their nests that they have worked so hard to build.
● Specific choices of diction (and HOW these capture the tone & emotions within the poem)
The diction of the poem is poetic with artistic choice of words that influence the emotions of the reader. This also helps the reader to think deeply about the purpose of the poem and what message the poet is trying to communicate. The tone of the poem is serious.
● Figures of speech (and HOW they contribute to the poem’s meaning – metaphor, simile,…
Metaphor example is when nest is compared to home, mountain’s view representing satisfaction brought by good scenery, and saplings represents future generation.
Assonance is evident when vowel sound “o” has been repeated in line 1 as shown below
“I go to the mountain side”
Synecdoche is also used where trees with nests represents the forest
Figures of speech used contribute in defining the meaning of the poem by bringing out what the poet really means. It also creates rhythm, stirs emotion, and provides emphasis and the tone of the poem.
● Dominant imagery (what is seen, heard, felt, tasted, scented, etc…)
The dominant imagery is that of the poet trying to cut some branches but then changes her mind. We can feel a sense of responsibility and a caring heart towards nature and the birds. An image of Snow Mountain, the trees can be seen virtually. We can smell the scent of the trees and hear the chirping of the birds and their chicks in the nest as they feed their young ones while others are busy building their nests.
● Overall meaning and theme (what is the poet/persona “really” saying here?)
The main theme of the poem is the choices we can make. The overall meaning is that we as human beings have power over nature.so we can either protect it or destroy it. The control and choice are on our hands.
● A complete scansion of the poem, showing meter, rhyme scheme, and annotations
Please break poem up line by line and foot by foot using / and show each stressed/unstressed syllable
/ ` / ` / `
I go to the moun/TAIN side –Iambic trimeter
` / ` / ` / of the house to cut sap/lings,-Trochaic trimeter
` / ` / ` /and clear a view to snow- trochaic trimeter

` / ` / ` / ` /
on the moun/tain. But when I look UP,- iambic tetrameter
/ ` ` ` / ` / ` / saw in hand, I see a nest clutch/ed in-Dactylic monometer, iambic trimeter
` / ` the upper/most branch/es.-Amphibrachic monometer
` / / ` `I don’t cut that one.-iambic monometer, dactylic monometer
/ ` / ` / `
I don’t cut the others either. Trochaic trimeter
/ ` / `Suddenly, in every tree,-trochaic dimeter  
`  / `an un-seen nest- Amphibrachic monometer
` ` / where a moun/tain-Anapestic monometer 
` `
  would be.-pyrrhic monometer
Work Cited
BIBLIOGRAPHY Magazine, P. (2018). Tess Gallagher. Poetry Foundation. Retrieved November 30, 2018, from www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/tess-gallagher. par 1-5