Hello Project Write friends, family and fans!
We kicked off our 2022 summer camp today with a visit to Christ Church and a Pantoum Poem activity. A pantoum poem is a type of found poem. In our case, students blended lines they read or overheard during their exploration of Christ Church with phrases and comments they "overheard" in excerpts of digital discourse from the Twitter feeds of multiple news sites discussing the January 6 hearings. The 'found' lines were then arranged into 4-stanza poems following a specific set of guidelines. Check out our writers' work and I think you'll agree that they created some powerful pieces!
Océane Box (Project Write alumnae and intern)
Ring freedom for the world
Rain or shine
To mourn her loss
Treason has consequences
Rain or shine
Sin and sorrow will be no more
Treason has consequences
In prospect of death and heaven
Sin and sorrow will be no more
It is the problem of the whole country
In prospect of death and heaven
I need to get back on track
It is the problem of the whole country
To mourn her loss
I need to get back on track
Ring freedom for the world
Zephyra DeVine
In humble hope
underneath this stone lieth the body of
those petitions from the liturgy
who departed from this life
underneath this stone lieth the body of
kinsmen and descendants
who departed from this life
buried in the churchyard here
kinsmen and descendants
a hundred years younger
in humble hope
proclaimed our independence
a hundred years younger
those petitions from the liturgy
proclaimed our independence
in humble hope.
Zion Alexis
They came across an ocean
Killed in action
She lost her husband to the war
In the burial grounds, rests the remains
Killed in action
My beloved and forever and eternally
My beloved and forever and eternally
In the burial grounds, rests the remains
You can truly be happy
My beloved and forever and eternally
You belong just as you are
You belong just as you are
You can truly be happy
Not only tolerated
You belong just as you are
She lost her husband to the war
Not only tolerated
They came across an ocean
Asiya Bowman
The steeple of Christ Church dominated the Philadelphia skyline
When I was in Afghanistan
Replaced 1955 David Van Pelt
That the Supreme Power, therefore, should be vested in the people
When I was in Afghanistan
There's a double sided sign with more text on the left
That the Supreme Power, therefore should be vested in the people
An original chandelier
There's a double sided sign with more text on the left
It's a really cool place to visit
An original chandelier
Lawyer of Barbados
It's a really cool place to visit
Replaced 1955 David Van Pelt
Lawyer of Barbados
The steeple of Christ Church dominated the Philadelphia skyline
Emma Chrismer
Supreme power, therefore should be vested in the people
The violence was no accident
Sorrow will be no more
All now ring freedom for the world
The violence was no accident
Eight bells proclaimed our independence
All now ring freedom for the world
This is not the problem of one party
Eight bells proclaimed our independence
The landmark for residents and travelers
This is not the problem of one party
It is the problem of the whole country
The landmark for residents and travelers
Sorrow will be no more
It is the problem of the whole country
Supreme power, therefore should be vested in the people
Zephyra, I really liked how you showed that the services held in the church influenced its community and from those members, the independence/government of the United States. It was just like we learned today.
ReplyDeleteI found the first/last lines for all of these pantoums to be quite powerful in their placement.
ReplyDeleteAsiya, I like the line you used about Afghanistan, it was an effective way to widen the scope of your poem.
ReplyDeleteOcéane, I love how you frame freedom as a something tangible, and as something that the country has somehow lost yet still needs.
ReplyDeleteOcéane, I notice there's a constant push and pull between a hopeful tone and a sad tone in your poem, which feels very true to life. My favorite lines are "It is the problem of the whole country/To mourn her loss." So powerful.
ReplyDeleteZephyra, my favorite lines are "proclaimed our independence/in humble hope." I usually hear about the Declaration as a display of strength, not of hope, but I like that image a lot more. It reminds me that nothing was certain back then.
ReplyDeleteZion, I love that your pantoum tells a story! I feel sad for the couple in your poem, but I can also tell they had a lot of happy times together. I can't stop thinking about the third stanza--I'm imagining that even though the wife is heartbroken at losing her husband, she's wishing him peace. It makes me wonder why he was "only tolerated" and by whom.
ReplyDeleteAsiya, I feel like you just gave me a tour of Christ Church's history! I love that there are lines talking about a lot of different periods, from a long time ago (when the steeple "dominated the Philadelphia skyline") to more recent times ("when I was in Afghanistan"). It reminds me of the way history and modernity coexist in a city like Philadelphia.
ReplyDeleteEmma, my favorite line is " The landmark for residents and travelers/Sorrow will be no more." I like the image that travelers will know they've reached their destination when there is no more sorrow. However, I appreciate that your poem talks about both jubilant moments and very serious ones because it shows the nuance of the moment we're in.
ReplyDeleteOceane;
ReplyDeleteI very much enjoyed reading your Pantoum Poem, and I liked how you were able
insert the line which reads:" Treason has consequences " along with the line :"Ring freedom for the world. I felt that it served as a reminder that freedom is fragile and we have to work to preserve it.
Zephyra;
DeleteI like how you began ,and also ended your Pantoum Poem with the line:"In humble hope" I
felt as though you were reminding us of the idea that the revolutionaries had no guarantee that there cause would ultimately succeed,yet they maintained hope.
Zion;
DeleteI wanted to mention that I thought that your Pantoum Poem captured both the Joy and sorrow that are experienced by people who emigrate o a new Land ,my favorite lines are :"
They came across the Ocean" and " She lost her husband in the War"followed by "You belong just who are", " Not just tolerated" It captures both the risk and the promise of starting over again in a new land.
Asiya;
DeleteI would like to mention that one of my favorite lines from your Poem reads "Supreme Power therefore, should be vested in the people". I liked how you incorporated so many elements
from our visit to the Church in your Pantoum Poem.
Emma;
DeleteI very much enjoyed the inclusiveness that was expressed in your Pantoum Poem. I especially enjoyed reading the line which reads:"Eight Bells proclaimed our Independence"
along with the Line" All now ring freedom for the world" as if to say that what happened here in 1776 ultimately would spread to other parts of the world.