Bygone Ohio
The first poem talks about the beauty of Ohio with its people living happily in the comfort of beautiful scenery and clean environment as reflected by the artificial water fall coming out from a pipe connected with the main sewer, the river and the railroad. The poet recalls in his vivid memories how at once he sat on the railroad not far from that ‘waterfall’, just above the main sewer overlooking the river with a ferry traversing on it. But now, as he walks around, that beauty is gone. What the poet sees are the remains of the beauty that he too had enjoyed in the past.
What are left are broken walls with lots of cracks, “while grimed trees and oil cans liters just around. The river fast flowing clean water has now become a lost bath tub. The poet summons up colorfully in his memory the once beautiful Ohio perhaps during his youthful days, but the beauty that the poet once admired is now a Bygone memory of those old men of Winnebago. The wild grimed trees, the cracks on walls of abandoned barns and the lost bathtub are now just a gleam remains that reminds the old folks of the former beauty of Ohio.
The first poem is full of descriptive words describing the beauty of Ohio and the peaceful atmosphere the people enjoyed. The scenic description of the environment reveals that Ohio has not been touched yet by the arms of industrialization. The old men can enjoy the fresh air and the peaceful environment not being crowded by buildings, and individualism and the consumerism culture have not taken its stall yet with the people. The poem uses the elements of poetry to strongly illustrate the impact of utter neglect of the environment for the sake of commercialization or industrialization.
The first poem used poetical words such as “shining water fall out the pipe as somebody might gouge through the slanted earth” to describe clean environment where people actively participated on it. The next four lines of the poem talk about these environmental interaction. The poem goes as he said, “Quickened the river with the speed of light and the light caught there, the solid speed of their lives in that waterfall,” where people enjoyed the benefits of the clean and simple environment.
The second poem is the reverse scenario of the first poem. The songs of the men of old Winnebago has gone. The clean environment which is reflected by the shining water fall out of the pipe from the main sewer is gone too and is now replaced by oil cans Littering just at the very place where the shining water fall was.. The once river bang filled with people perhaps doing picnics and swimming, is now empty. What was left are “cold balloons” of lovers. The river which once enjoyed by the people is now “a body of a lost bath tubs.
”The proud houses which once stood nicely along specific places apart from each one as they have relatively small population of only one thousand six hundred families were now abandoned with walls each has crack and the trees that serves as shades, are now wiled and grim. The proud houses that once stood nicely as nobody are dwelling in the once beautiful place are gone. In the first poem, the author expressed his feeling and memories of the beautiful Ohio with such poetical description as men of Winnebago singing “shining” water fall out of the pipe, Martins ferry, my home, my native country, quickened river, with the speed of light.
” All these reveal that the author is proud of Ohio. But the second poem also reveals the author’s disappointment about utter neglect and abandonment of this once beautiful place. The author picturesquely describe what it has now turn perhaps after a long years being away. What he now sees are broken walls, wild grim trees, oil cans that litters around and the empty river bang which were at once full of people happily interacting with the environment. Perhaps some lovers are dating and enjoying the scenic beauty of the river, others are swimming while still others are doing family picnic and some maybe fishing.
All these are now gone and the author feels lonely as if the place is a cemetery. In the two poems, I like best the first one as it gives me mental picture of what it looks like for most cities now crowded not only with mix races of people but also with tall buildings too. Although the second poem depicts reality in most places but it always good to see nice places, I mean scenic environment. It made me feel good to imagine of fresh air, waterfall, clean river where everybody can swim or fish and lots of trees that provides shadow. The first poem provides the reader a positive imagination that creates interests in such kind of place.
The second one creates a feeling of regret, a feeling of frustration and anger why the people allow the deterioration of the beauty of their place. Since most people would not like bad news, or bad place, as it also create negative feeling or bad impression, I would rather say that I like and I favor the first poem. It makes me feel good and leave positive outlook not only on environment but in my own life particularly to environmental protection and to those who work hard for this cause. I think I owe them something that I need to do something. That is for the protection of the environment.
