Performance Poetry: Review # 15

Joyful Noise: Poems For Two Voices

Fleischman, Paul. Joyful Noise: Poems For Two Voices. Harper & Row, 1988.

Critical Analysis:

Fleischman has once again created a collection of poems meant to be shared by two voices in this companion to his previous work, The Phoenix..  In this selection, Joyful Noise: Poems For Two Voices, readers experience the insect world in a creepy manner as the poems and illustrations themselves seem to crawl off the page.  This collection of poems was written to be read aloud by two people, therefore the setup of the text io the pages has been divided into two parts, one for each reader.  Fleischman includes a note prior to the first poem explaining to readers how to read with two voices, separate at times, and simultaneous at others.  The way in which the parts are printed as well as the added element of performance, is sure to attract readers of all ages.  Students will enjoy reading and performing, but will learn as they are interpreting the themes presented in this guide to insects.  Each of the poems themselves are witty and enjoyable, many portray the insect as attitudinal at times.  I found it quite clever that Fleischman chose such a wide array of insects to include in this collection from those annoying pests like grasshoppers and mayflies to insects we need like honeybees.  All in all, this book is detailed in information and design.  The stunning illustrations of Eric Beddows are lifelike and meticulous, making the insects themselves creep and crawl, spin and leap, fly and buzz……all through the pages.  Each of the fourteen poems is presented in first-person offering readers a close encounter of life as each insect.  The clever use of onomatopoeia, personifcation, and imagery are present throughout most of the poems in this collection, adding to the scientific theme and providing lasting meaning for readers of all ages.  Fleischman has masterfully written a collection of poems that will guide readers on a discovery of insects while using verse with occasional rhyme to enhance the poetic structure and feel from cover to close.

Poem Spotlight

Fireflies

Light                                                      Light

                                                                Is the ink we use

Night                                                     Night

Is our parchment

                                                                We’re

                                                                fireflies

fireflies                                                 flickering

flitting                                                  

                                                                flashing

fireflies

                                                                fireflies

                                                                gleaming

glowing

Insect calligraphers                         Insect calligraphers

Practicing penmanship                 

                                                                copying sentences

Six-legged scribblers                       Six-legged scribblers

Of vanishing messages,                                

                                                                Fleeting graffiti

Fine artists in flight                          Fine artists in flight

adding dabs of light                        

                                                                bright brush strokes

Signing the June nights                  Signing the June nights

as if they were paintings               as if they were paintings

                                                                We’re

flickering                                              fireflies

fireflies                                                 flickering

fireflies.                                               fireflies.

Paul Fleischman

Analysis:

This poem was buzzing with pizzazz and as I read it I immediately was reminded of catching fireflies with my kids last summer.  Fleischman creatively uses themes and experiences that readers can personally relate to, and this makes the poem more meaningful.  The poetic elements presented in this first person account of a firefly are delightful, starting with the use of alliteration of the letter “f and g" as he describes the fireflies as flickering and flitting, and then gleaming and glowing.  The rhyming and repetitive phrases keep the reader hooked as they continue to read from one side of the page to the other soaking in both of the reader’s parts.  I especially appreciated Fleischman’s clever use of personification as he describes the fireflies as “insect calligraphers, practicing penmanship”.  This unique approach has readers envision the light of the firefly in a whole new perspective.  The imagery presented in this piece is powerful and poignant, presented in just the right places.  This poem is meant to be read by two voices, however Fleischman has included several parts where the readers read simultaneously.  Most of the simultaneous readings are choral, but Fleischman has included several lines where readers are reading different words at the same time such as the ending where one reader says flickering  while the other says fireflies.  Students will get a kick out of this new style of reading and will enjoy the overall diversity of the structure of this collection and the delightful text .

Classroom Connections:

When I came across this poem I immediately thought of how great this would be as a companion to the Eric Carle book, Firefly, Firefly.  This book is usually shared in the early grades, but this poem would be a wonderful resource to use when sharing it again in the upper grades.  Students would have so much fun sharing this poem orally with a partner. 

As an additional activity students could create puppets for the fireflies and read the parts as a puppet play for younger students.  The poem presents itself to such powerful performance and the use of puppets would make the poem come to life. 

Since this poem is about an insect and includes many scientific facts, the teacher could also choose to explore fireflies more through classroom research.  Students could gather new facts about the firefly and write their own poems in either free verse or another form such as haiku about these unique characters.