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Messy? Or Clean? Take a look at your room right now. Is it clean and organized? Or is it unkempt and scattered?

For those of you who chose the latter, which is probably the majority, you will definitely be able to relate to this poem: Messy Room written by Shel Silverstein. While incorporating stereotypical descriptions and images throughout the poem, Silverstein presents his readers with an unexpected surprise at the end of the poem. Along with the little twist, Shel Silversteins effective use of imagery and irony in this poem helps creates a carefree and humorous mood overall.

The light-hearted mood is enhanced by Shel Silversteins usage of imagery, which makes it easier for the audience to create an unambiguous image of the room that Silverstein is describing. Poems, slightly different from essays and other forms of writing, allow the readers to visualize images with shorter lines yet have the same captivating and powerful impact on the imagination of the reader. This tactic is demonstrated in the line his books are jammed in the closet (line 9). Silverstein has targeted his audience to teeangers by using details such as books and closet. These objects can be easily witnessed in a stereotypical teenager room. Mentioning these objects can make the readers feel emotionally attached and less distanced from the poem. Another example is And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall (line 12). Shel Silverstein devotes most of the lines in the poem to include vivid descriptions such as smelly and old, helping the readers conjure a clear image of the room being described. Silverstein encourages his readers to use their imagination and creativity while reading this poem. Through these illustrative descriptions, Silverstein is giving emphasis on the disorganization and messiness of the room. By making the reader concentrate on such details, Silverstein relays a message that people should not judge other people just by first impressions because this embarrassing room that the author either directly or indirectly criticizes is the

authors himself. The author wants people to throw away such biased and prejudiced judgement, along with the stereotypical opinions of people.

In addition, Shel Silversteins usage of repetition creates irony and humor which adds on to the carefree mood. The repeated lines in the poem actually have a completely opposite meaning. Whosever room this is should be ashamed! (lines 1 and 12). Although these two lines have an identical sentence structure, they serve a completely different purpose. Line 1 is mentioned out of pure curiosity, asking to whom this messy room really belongs. However, by line 12, because the same sentence has been repeated earlier in the poem, the readers start to wonder if the author has been talking about his room all along. The narrator is starting to grow indignant as it describes the room in detail and tells the reader, more than once, that the owner of this room should definitely feel ashamed and embarrassed. Thus this is why the repetition further strengthens the sense of irony in this poem. Another example is Huh? You say its mine? Oh dear, I knew it looked familiar! (lines 15~16). The usage of rhetorical questions and a wide variety of punctuation makes the poem more conversational and relatable for the reader. It makes the readers feel as if the poem is talking to them directly. As is characteristic of a rhetorical question, it does not require a response, but it adds to the warming mood to the poem.

Shel Silverstein succeeded in choosing the suitable devices imagery and repetition to include in his essay in order to create the light-hearted and humorous mood that he intended from the start. These two elements definitely inspired teenage readers like myself to read further on with the poem as we were able to relate to the scene described in this poem.

Poetry Analysis Senior Second Draft Take a look at your room right now. Is it clean and organized or is it unkempt and scattered? For those of you who chose the latter, which is probably the majority, you will definitely be able to relate to this poem: Messy Room written by Shel Silverstein. While incorporating stereotypical descriptions and images throughout, Silverstein bestows his readers with an unexpected surprise at the end of the poem for a slight twist. Along with the little twist, Shel Silversteins effective use of imagery and irony in this poem helps creates a carefree and humorous mood overall.

The light-hearted and humorous mood is enhanced by Shel Silversteins usage of imagery. This makes it easier for the targeted audience to create a unambiguous image of the room that Silverstein is describing. Poems, slightly different from essays and other forms of writing allows the readers to visualize images with shorter lines yet having the same captivating and powerful impact on the imagination of the reader. This tactic is demonstrated through the line his books are jammed in the closet (line 9). It seems like Silverstein has targeted his audience to teeangers because he uses details such as books and closet. These objects can be easily be witnessed in a stereotypical teenager room. Mentioning these objects can make the readers feel emotionally attached and less distanced from the poem. Another example is, And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall (line 12). Because Shel Silverstein devotes most of the lines in the poem to include vivid descriptions such as smelly and old, it definitely helps the readers to create a clear image of the room being described. Silverstein encourages his readers to use their imagination and creativity while reading this poem. Through these illustrative descriptions it is giving emphasis on the disorganization of the room. By making the reader concentrate on these little details, it helps Silverstein put up a message that people

should not judge people just by its first looks and impression because this embarrassing room that the author either directly or indirectly criticized was the authors himself. The author wants people to throw away these prejudiced and biased judgement, along with the stereotypical opinions of people and judge people for who they are.

In addition, Shel Silversteins usage of repetition creates irony and humor because the repeated lines in the poem actually has a completely opposite meaning. Whosever room this is should be ashamed! (lines 1 and 12). Although these two lines have an identical sentence structure, they serve a completely different purpose. Line 1 is mentioned out of pure curiosity, asking who this messy room really belongs to. However by line 12, because the same sentence has been repeated earlier in the poem, it makes the reader become suspicious if the author is actually talking about his very own room. The indignant author who describes this horror room in great detail, tells the reader, more than once, that the person who belongs to the room should be ashamed. That is why the repetition further strengthens the sense of irony in this poem. Another example is Huh? You say its mine? Oh dear, I knew it looked familiar! (lines 15~16). This line also contributes to the irony that is used in this poem. The usage of rhetorical questions and a wide variety of punctuation makes the poem more conversational and easy to relate. The rhetorical questions makes the reader feel as if the poem is talking to him or her individually. As the definition of a rhetorical question, it does not require a response, but it adds to the comfortable and warming mood to the poem.

Shel Silverstein did a superb job in choosing the suitable devices: imagery and repetition to include in his essay in order to create the light-hearted and humorous mood that he intended from the start. Myself as another teeanger reading this poem, I was definitely able to relate to this poem.

**NOTE: my senior sent me his edits by email! Poetry Analysis First Draft with Peer Edits Look at your room right now. Is it clean and organized or is it unkempt and scattered? For those of you who chose the latter, which is probably the majority, you will definitely be able to relate to the poem: Messy Room written by Shel Silverstein. While using many stereotypical descriptions and images, he bestows on his reader a little unexpected surprise at the very end of the poem for a little twist. Furthermore, Shel Silverstein effective use of imagery and irony in this poem helps creates a rather light-hearted and somewhat humorous mood.

Shel Silversteins usgae of imagery makes it easier for the targeted audience to create a clear image of the room that Silverstein is trying to describe. Poems, slightly different from essays are all about allowing the readers to visualize images with shorter lines yet having the same captivating and powerful impact on the imagination of the reader. This tactic is demonstrated through the line his books are jammed in the closet (line 9). It seems like Silverstein has targeted his audience to teeangers because he uses details such as books and closet. These objects can be easily be witnessed in a stereotypical teenager room. Another example is, And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall (line 12). Because Shel Silverstein devotes most of the lines in the poem to include vivid descriptions such as smellyand old, it helps the readers to create a clear image of the room being described. Silverstein is encouraging his readers to use their imagination and creativity while reading this poem. Through these vivid descriptions it is also emphasizing on how disorganized and messy the room is. By emphasizing on these little details, it helps Silverstein put up a message that people should not judge people just by its first looks and impression because this embarrassing room that the author so either directly or indirectly criticized was the authors himself. He descri The author wants people to throw away these prejudiced and biased

judgement, along with the stereotypical opinions of people and judge people for who they are.

Shel Silversteins usage of repetition creates an irony and humor because the repeated lines in the poem actually create a different result and consequence. Whosever room this is should be ashamed! (lines 1 and 12). Although these two sentences have an identical sentence structure and words, they serve a different purpose. These two lines were mentioned with some space in between them. First, line 1 is out of pure curiosity, asking who this messy room really belongs to. However by line 12, the readers are definitely starting to realize that the author has been talking about his very own room. This moment of pause adds to the light-hearted mood. The indignant author who describes this horror room in great detail, tells the reader, more than once, that the person who belongs to the room should be ashamed. Another example is Huh? You say its mine? Oh dear, I knew it looked familiar! (lines 15~16). This line also contributes to the irony that is used in this poem. The usage of rhetorical questions and a variety of punctuation makes the poem more conversational and easy to relate. The rhetorical questions makes the reader feel as if the poem is talking to him or her individually. As the definition of a rhetorical question, it does not require a response, but it adds to the comfortable and warming mood of the poem.

Shel Silverstein did a superb job in choosing the suitable devices: imagery and repetition to incorporate in his essay in order to create a light-hearted and humorous mood that he intended from the start. As readers reading this poem can relate to this poem, the irony remains.

Poetry Analysis First Draft Look at your room right now. Is it clean and organized or is it unkempt and scattered? For those of you who chose the latter, which is probably the majority, you will definitely be able to relate to the poem: Messy Room written by Shel Silverstein. While using many stereotypical descriptions and images, he bestows on his reader a little unexpected surprise at the very end of the poem for a little twist. Furthermore, Shel Silverstein effective use of imagery and irony in this poem helps creates a rather light-hearted and somewhat humorous mood.

Shel Silversteins usage of imagery makes it easier for the targeted audience to create a clear image of the room that Silverstein is trying to describe. Poems, slightly different from essays are all about allowing the readers to visualize images with shorter lines yet having the same captivating and powerful impact on the imagination of the reader. This tactic is demonstrated through the line his books are jammed in the closet (line 9). It seems like Silverstein has targeted his audience to teeangers because he uses details such as books and closet. These objects can be easily be witnessed in a stereotypical teenager room. Another example is, And his smelly old sock has been stuck to the wall (line 12). Because Shel Silverstein devotes most of the lines in the poem to include vivid descriptions such as smellyand old, it helps the readers to create a clear image of the room being described. Silverstein is encouraging his readers to use their imagination and creativity while reading this poem. Through these vivid descriptions it is also emphasizing on how disorganized and messy the room is. By emphasizing on these little details, it helps Silverstein put up a message that people should not judge people just by its first looks and impression because this embarrassing room that the author so either directly or indirectly criticized was the authors

himself. He descri The author wants people to throw away these prejudiced and biased judgement,\ along with the stereotypical opinions of people and judge people for who they are.

Shel Silversteins usage of repetition creates an irony and humor because the repeated lines in the poem actually create a different result and consequence. Whosever room this is should be ashamed! (lines 1 and 12). Although these two sentences have an identical sentence structure and words, they serve a different purpose. These two lines were mentioned with some space in between them. First, line 1 is out of pure curiosity, asking who this messy room really belongs to. However by line 12, the readers are definitely starting to realize that the author has been talking about his very own room. This moment of pause adds to the light-hearted mood. The indignant author who describes this horror room in great detail, tells the reader, more than once, that the person who belongs to the room should be ashamed. Another example is Huh? You say its mine? Oh dear, I knew it looked familiar! (lines 15~16). This line also contributes to the irony that is used in this poem. The usage of rhetorical questions and a variety of punctuation makes the poem more conversational and easy to relate. The rhetorical questions makes the reader feel as if the poem is talking to him or her individually. As the definition of a rhetorical question, it does not require a response, but it adds to the comfortable and warming mood of the poem.

Shel Silverstein did a superb job in choosing the suitable devices: imagery and repetition to incorporate in his essay in order to create a light-hearted and humorous mood that he intended from the start. As readers reading this poem can relate to this poem, the irony remains.

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