Pub 5

The Analysis of The Identity

By Julio Noboa Polanco

The Identity poem by Julio Noboa Polanco represents a boy who just wants to be different; he just wants to be free.  He doesn’t care about anyone else.  Each line represents how he just wants to be on his own and not clustered in with all the flowers (people).  “Let them be as flowers”, is the first line of this poem.  Julio is simply saying let them be “harnessed to a pot of dirt”, let these flowers always be “watered, fed, guarded, and admired.  He doesn’t care.  “I’d rather be a tall, ugly weed, clinging on cliffs, like an eagle wing-wavering above high, jagged rocks.” That quote from the next paragraph is how Julio expresses his desire for isolation even further.  He wants to be free and away from this horrible lifestyle.

There are two lines that show his metaphorical way of saying “I want out”. “To have broken through the surface of stone, to live, to feel exposed to the madness of the vast, eternal sky.”  This line expresses how he doesn’t want to take the path that everyone else takes. “To be swayed by the breezes of an ancient sea.” This line illustrates how he is basically being forced by society to be in this flowerpot.

One song that can relate to this poem is “I want to break free”, by Queen. There is a quote in the song that can relate to this poem which is, “You're so self satisfied, I don't need you I've got to break free God knows, God knows I want to break free.” This is basically Julio speaking as the narrator in the song, as he would be referring “you” and “you’re” to the people.  It was extremely clear in the poem that Julio wanted to be free from his lifestyle.  Another strong example includes, “I’d rather be unseen, and if then shunned by everyone, than to be a pleasant-smelling flower, growing in clusters in the fertile valley, where they’re praised, handled, and plucked by greedy, human hands.”

I can definitely see a theme of isolation within the relationship between this song and poem.  It is more of a positive isolation because he is kind of leaning towards a transcendentalist kind of attitude.  It is almost like he wants to be one with nature rather than be brainwashed by technology and doing what everyone else is doing, just like the people in the flowerpot.  

            In the end, Julio just wants to break free, as said in the song by Queen.  When it comes down to it he would rather be a tall, ugly weed.  His own path is his only path because the other “flowers” don’t mean anything to him.  

Looking Back at ENG 102

Going into the class of English 102 I wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary.    To Start off I thought professor Brady was out of her mind! However, in the back of my head I knew that this was very different and I liked it. .  I was just expecting another boring English class that I can half ass and just go through the motions.  Professor Brady does not allow that to happen.  As a student in Professor Brady’s class I notice that you cannot slack off at all.  When we get into our “fishbowls” it really engages every student and allows everyone to be involved, you cant hide!  You will actually feel extremely guilty if you don’t participate, or if she calls on you asking a question that you don’t know.

            It was a great experience of an English class and I’m surprised to say that I’ve learned many lessons in this class relating to real life situations.  My knowledge of writing a scholarly paper has advanced greatly.  I know how to structure properly, use grammar in the correct forms, and my vocabulary has expanded immensely.  I’ve gained a stronger general knowledge of life and English.  Something that professor Brady does that most professors at Farmingdale don’t do.  She makes sure everyone in the classroom is engaged.  She has techniques to make you do the work and stay on top of her class and she does it with extreme pride.  The class blog that we have is one of those techniques.  You have no choice but to step out of you comfort zone and express how you think.  In the end you've learned so many lessons from stepping out of your comfort zone and engaging yourself in class

            I like this class because my grades are based on my personal knowledge.  Each paper or pub that was written was based off of ideas that I had to create and put my brain to work for.  It wasn’t like you were given a test where you have the ability to cheat and easily just use your phone to get the answers.  You had to think!

Alternate Realities

The third lecture that I want to mention is the one about the alternate realities.  At the time we were relating these alternate realities to the play of “A Streetcar Named Desire” and how Blanch and Stella create alternate realities in order to avoid the truth.  This lecture caught my attention because I was able to relate this topic to real life.  Out of all the lectures, this one related to my life the most.  I watch people everyday create these fake lives in order to avoid the truth.  It is very inspiring when you sit in professor Brady’s class and she starts lecturing about something that you can relate to.  

Is Technology the New Nature?

The second lecture that comes to mind has to be about the transcendentalism.  Professor Brady mentions how a “transcendentalist is a man connected with his spiritual self and nature.”  Another quote that was mentioned in this lecture was, “man is natures masterpiece.”  I was able to vividly understand her descriptions in my head.  I enjoyed when she described one of her relatives as a transcendentalist, living in Colorado and enjoying the true nature.  This lecture stuck in my memory because it made me wonder, do I surround myself with transcendentalists?  Am I a transcendentalist?  Is it better route to be a transcendentalist and believe that “humanity cannot be whole without being connected to nature (Brady)”?  It made sense because we also talked about how our society is being brainwashed by social media and technology and it is forcing us to be the complete opposite of a transcendentalist.  Then I wonder, who defines a transcendentalist? As we grew up with technology already extremely common to have, is that the new nature? That is honestly way too much to think about and write about, but that’s the beauty.  You never have to worry about never having enough to write about for a paper or a pub.  You will never have trouble relating your research to examples in class because you can very easily picture her lectures in your head.