Somewhere I Have Never Travelled, Gladly Beyond by E.E Cummings

Journal #31

My job shadowing experience was a good one I think. First, I did not get the memo though that the floor would be really hot. I got overheated and almost passed out in the 11 o clock hour and was going to have my dad come pick me up. I sat in the break room for about a half hour until I cooled down and then decided I was well enough to go back on the floor with my person. I thought the job shadowing experience put in to perspective how much work that these people do on a daily basis. The girl I worked with was quick because it has taken her years to learn the computer, so she knew how to type everything in really fast and get caught up on her work. I learned that is it is hard not to develop and emotional attachment to the patients. Even in the short time I was there, I felt bad for the 93 year old man that we were taking care of. He was so nice and talkative, and it was hard to put aside feelings for profession. I think that is okay though if I want to study oncology because the patients need that kind of support and comfort while maintaining a professional status. I think that based on the experience I could go into that career, just in a different area. The person I shadowed was the charge nurse so she called all the shots on the floor that day and she only had two patients to look after the whole day. I think I need to get over some things first. Like she watched one of her patients throw up all over himself, but she cleaned it up and came right in the break room and ate her food. Looking back now, there really was a lot of downtime on the job, which I was not expecting. She sat doing paper work and computer work for the majority of the time until one of her patients would ring the buzzer for help. I think that if I were to go in to a nursing career I would want to be a little busier. I did not like just sitting down a lot because I wanted to be up doing other things. I think my experience overall was a good one and I might go back and shadow strictly oncology sometime soon.

Journal #30

http://whitmanarchive.org/published/LG/1891/poems/46 

This is my favorite Walt Whitman poem because it describes me and I can personally relate to it. Basically, I like it because it talks about escaping from the world and from the people and just finding yourself. It says, "Escaped from the life that exhibits itself, from all the standards hitherto publish'd, from the pleasures, profits, conformities, which too long I was offering to feed my soul." That quote represents all of Whitman's works because he was always trying to define self. In order to do so, he had to escape the world and not give in to society to feed or define his soul. He had to go elsewhere in order to find his soul or self instead of looking through the eyes of other people. I like this poem a lot because I can take a lot of advice from it. I think that it is a good thing to get away from the world for awhile and clear all your thoughts. The world puts a lot of information into your head without you even realizing it and in a way it shapes who we are. I just find the poem very inspiring. Also the part that says, "for in this secluded spot I can respond as I would not dare elsewhere" is a very powerful quote. In this sacred place where he escapes he can finally be himself and for me that is very hard to find and even harder to do because people always seem to know something. The fact that the poem talks about just escaping and it how the poem makes it sound so easy is a little misleading, but it gives a sense of hope that it is possible. Also the quote "Strong upon me the life that does not exhibit itself, yet contains all the rest," seems to be a contradictory quote because it talks about how he escaped from the world and society, but society and the world contains things that he needs. I think Whitman is confused on who he is and we cannot really define self or really find ourselves completely because we are always growing and changing in some way, shape, or form.

Chanting the Square Deific Reflection Blog

From the very beginning of "Chanting the Square Deific," strong views about superior beings are present. The title says it all. The Square Deific refers to the points of a square representing each deity and how they're connected (Oliver, Charles M.). Whitman uses self perception, the worlds perception, and the soul to represent the different aspects that make up the idea of "self."

The first stanza is representing God (Whitman, Walt). In those lines, God has many different personalities and is very accommodating to many people with other religions; Jehovah being the first described. Jehovah is another name for Jesus(Johnson, Phillip). Then Walt Whitman goes more in depth by including "Old Brahm," which is the word used to represent the God of Hindu mythology, and "Saturnius," which is the word used to represent the God of Roman mythology(Oliver, Charles M.). So, God is only one section of this quaternity, but is powerful and unchanging, at the up most importance to religion. The fact that Kronos, the God of time, is mentioned is important because God is represented as timeless and the ultimate chooser of fate, who can change people's paths, overall affecting one's self perception. Since the stanzas explain these superior beings from the speaker's point of view, there are very different connotations that can be taken away from it. In this case, the speaker is using his self image to describe how he sees God. For instance, he mentions how God is relentless, merciless, and remorseless giving a more negative connotation on God (Oliver, Charles M.). These feelings expressed by the speaker are probably from life experiences, or the times that God was "unfair" in life.

The second stanza Christ being the second side of the square, directly connected to God. There is a different tone with this stanza because the speaker has a more positive connotation of Jesus, rather than God (Whitman, Walt). Jesus in this stanza is represented as a survivor when the speaker says, "Many times have I been rejected, taunted, put in prison, and crucified, and many times shall be again." The speakers words are powerful here because God has such negatives words to represent him, but Jesus, who is second in the quaternity is loving, and gentle, a survivor, and full of wisdom (Oliver, Charles M.).

The third stanza is about Satan, or commonly known as the devil, and makes up the third side of the square deific. Satan is described as the being who still utters his words and his being to people trying to revolt them from the ways of God and Jesus and those who have a different, more positive power (Whitman, Walt). The speaker gives Satan common perceptions, but also understands that there is a different side, one that is a little condescending of people who have struggled, in this case slaves (Oliver, Charles M.).

The fourth stanza is about Santa Spiritia, which is also know as the soul, and it makes up the fourth and final side of the square (Whitman, Walt). The soul may be the most powerful part because without this soul, one would not be able to distinguish between God, Jesus, and Satan, or give opinions and perceptions of these beings. The most powerful quote is the very end, where this general soul lives through these other three beings(Oliver, Charles M.). This soul affects "self" because it is most solid and represents life. This soul determines decisions, opinions, personality, each belonging to one's self image and how other people perceive that image. So overall, the quaternity can be represented through the soul, which represents life and affects everything that happens in life.

Johnson, Phillip. "Who Is Jehovah? Who Is Jesus?" The Spurgeon Archive. 1996. Web. 05 Apr. 2012. <http://www.spurgeon.org/~phil/articles/deity.htm>.


Oliver, Charles M. "'Chanting the Square Deific'." Critical Companion to Walt Whitman: A Literary Reference to His Life and Work, Critical Companion. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2005. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID=5&iPin= CCWW082&SingleRecord=True (accessed April 4, 2012).


Whitman, Walt. "The Walt Whitman Archive." CHANTING THE SQUARE DEIFIC. (Leaves of Grass [1891-1892]) -. The Walt Whitman Achieve. Web. 05 Apr. 2012. <http://whitmanarchive.org/published/LG/1891/poems/247>.

Journal #29

Self is really hard to define, simply because I have not fully developed myself. I am still young and have a long way to go, so I do not think "self" can really be defined until I am in the stable years of my life. I believe that I am here for a purpose. I think that there was a reason that God put me on this Earth. I am not sure what this purpose is yet, but I think that is in the journey of finding myself. As for who I am, my name is Courtney Rose. I am currently 16 years old. I have a mom named Barb, a dad named Brian, a brother named Carson, and a niece named Brooklynn. I am a junior. I am about 5'7 and the only sport I participate in anymore is poms. My favorite color is teal blue and I do not have a favorite food. I am hard to define and hard to understand because my thinking process is different from most other people. I am different from a lot of other people too. I do not involve myself in useless drama, and I tend to be pretty quiet. I am usually quiet because I just like to take things in. I am a hard worker and easily motivated. I go after what I want and I am not afraid of the people who try and get in my way. That is just me on the outside. I believe in God and I think that he does everything for a reason, although sometimes I do not understand. I like nature, but I take it for granted most of the time and do not feel "connected" to it like authors of the time period did. I do not believe that there even is a true definition of the word self, I think that you just kind of give it your own meaning. Whatever is chosen to be done in life is the meaning you give yourself. Your decisions, morals, expectations, etc. help to form your "self" and your image.

“Two Butterflies Went Out at Noon,” is an Emily Dickinson poem that is strictly focused on nature, and the aspects associated with nature. In this case, the poem is dealing with butterflies. The speaker is very monotone in this story. The fact that there are two butterflies is significant because that could represent something like a friendship or a relationship(Dickinson, Emily 18). Emily Dickinson had a “tiny” writing style and she usually incorporated things that were not very significant and seen by most people. In this story, the butterflies represent a part of nature that most people do not notice on the day to day. In this poem though, she describes how they are on a journey and no one knows about it.  Unless the birds came upon these two butterflies, no one would even notices that these two miraculous butterflies were on a tremendous and great journey.  Butterflies only live for a certain amount of time, so most people consider them insignificant, because one may think that butterflies do nothing for society, nature, etc.  But, in facts, butterflies are significant, and I think that is the message Emily Dickinson is trying to get across with her poem “Two Butterflies Went Out At Noon.” The great thing about this poem is the mystery that she puts into it. The butterflies are flying over the sea, but no one sees them, or hears them, so no word is brought to her, but yet she thinks up this whole scenario. This poem does reflect a lot of nature, but also a lot of love. The two butterflies are a couple and represent a symbol in this story. The mystery of this relationship is for the reader to make interpretations. Also in this poem, the speaker makes reference to birds when she says "if spoken by the distant bird, if met in ether sea by frigate or by merchantman, report was not to me"(Dickinson, Emily 18). The line incorporates the mystery of the story of the butterflies with the mystery of the journey with the bird in the poem below.

Since "Two Birds Went Out at Noon" was so short, we picked a poem that had the same theme called "A Bird Came Down the Walk." In this poem she is simply observing the observations of a bird, just like she was observing the butterflies. The mystery in the story is that the birds and butterflies do not know her and she does not know them, but she can figure out a lot about them by just watching. She combines the two poems with the line "Than two oars divide the ocean, too silver for a seam, or two butterflies, off banks of noon, leap, plashless, as they swim" (Dickinson, Emily 23) The line incorporates the theme of the butterflies flying over the ocean with the bird that is flying over the ocean too. The observances she makes in the poems are very unique. She attempts things that people ordinarily would not. She actually looks at the bird and breaks down every move that it makes (Dickinson, Emily 23). To her, everything has a meaning and a purpose.

Dickinson, Emily. "23. “A Bird Came down the Walk:.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems." 23. “A Bird Came down the Walk:.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems. Bartleby Great Books Online. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. <http://www.bartleby.com/113/2023.html>.


Dickinson, Emily. "18. “Two Butterflies Went out at Noon.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems." 18. “Two Butterflies Went out at Noon.” Part Two: Nature. Dickinson, Emily. 1924. Complete Poems. Bartleby Great Books Online. Web. 30 Mar. 2012. <http://www.bartleby.com/113/2018.html>.

Journal #28

"I heard a fly buzz when I died," is a very depressing poem. The speaker is laying on his/her death bed and as she is waiting to take his/her last breath, a fly decides to interpose and disrupt her death. This poem reflects Emily Dickinson because she was a very religious person, so she incorporated God, or in this case Jesus, into the poem. I think the fly in this poem serves as a symbol of an obstacle. It is the transition between life and death and the difference between her being alive and her going to spend her time in heaven. The poem has a very eerie tone to it though because of how it describes the objects. The logical preparation for death is definitely expressed in this poem. The speaker talks about how he/she signed away all of her stuff and she was prepared for death. Until the fly get in his/her way, he/she was fully prepared to die. Everyone was gathered around this person just waiting for him/her to pass into the light and something so simple as a fly got in the way. A fly is such a tiny creature, but in this poem in particular it is the most important thing. The buzzing sound is the last thing he/she hears before he/she dies, so the sound the fly makes is really significant. When he/she loses his/her sight, he/she either loses her vision and passes away, or he/she is not dead yet, but is dangling still between life and death. I think that the poem is very significant and very different. One thing that publishers liked about Emily Dickinson's poems was that she had very different topics and she tended not to talk about normal things or common things. This poem talks about the difference between life and death and not many authors were brave enough to venture into the details that goes along with dying. These aspects as well as her religion is incorporated into the story to logically explain the process of death.